Thanksgiving!

Before Christmas arrives, I thought I'd put up the Thanksgiving pictures first since we had such an amazing time with Joe's parents who came to visit. 1st, here are some fall pictures we took of the boys.

Here's babybump at 24 weeks. I am now 28 weeks and in that month my tummy has turned into a bowling ball that sticks far out and very low. I would definitely not post a picture of myself at this point...not so cute!

The boys had a blast when Tom and Suzy came to visit. On Thanksgiving, grandma engaged in the boys in a "turkey hunt" and "Pilgrams & Indians" game. We also saw Santa, visited the Ice show at Gaylord Palms, visited the zoo, and did some shopping.

I must make a note of our black Friday shopping early, early at Walmart. Joe and I went for the first time and it was CRAZY! I witnessed people turn into animals once the pallets were open...people trying to rip things out of our hands, etc. I had to guard my cart with my life! Anyways, we went for the $25 Leapsters and were lucky to score those, plus everything else on our list, but will we attempt it again next year? I'm not so sure!

While Suzy and I had some girl fun shopping, Joe and Tom took on the task of putting up the lights. Here's Tom anxiously telling Joe to get off the roof.

Here are the festive end results! Good job!!

Merry Christmas everyone!

October Fun!

Get ready for the overload of pictures. We wore ourselves out every weekend this October because the weather was fabulous!
-Of course we hit the pumpkin patches...altogether 4 times!

Every year Mason tries to lift a big pumpkin and is surprised it's too heavy. Always following the surprise is the frustration (meaning, mini tantrum)

So Joe puts Samuel on top of the maze next to the sign that says "No standing on the maze". He took him right off after I threatened that Samuel could fall and lose another tooth. No, not that!

-We went to the circus and during intermission the kids had an elephant ride. $8 per kid for 15 seconds...ouch. But how often do you get to ride an elephant?? We're such suckers I know.

-Boo at the Zoo 2 times: Our zoo is awesome here and they throw a pretty fun Halloween event. Samuel dressed as Peter Pan and Mason as Captain Hook. I thought Samuel looked pretty Shakespearean in this picture!

They played carnival games, danced with the witches, and marched in a costume parade. -We went to 6 flags twice this month. No pictures but we had so much fun! Samuel sang karoke "I want Candy" on stage (by himself!) and they both participated in the costume parade. They just wore their superman capes to the park and looked pretty funny among all the real costumes, but Samuel's dance on stage totally made up for it!

-Here we carved pumpkins with our neighbors next doors. The adults were more into it than the kids, but still fun!

-Ward trunk or treat: Samuel and Mason in their real costumes as Captain Hook and Captain Jack Sparrow. We had Samuel watch Pirates of the Carribean with us so he could become familiar with his costume and he loved it. Anything pirate is his thing!

Aren't Samuel's dreadlocks killer? Thanks again mom for the costumes! -Finally, trick or treating in our neighborhood. We went with our neighbors and the kids had a blast. I love how everyone, adults included, really get into Halloween here!

Joe and I dressed up to be the prisoners of our pirates. Then Joe took it further and said that truly we are prisoners of our kids everyday. Samuel is saying...no time for Halo tonight dad, you have to wake up early with us tommorrow morning!

Phew! That was our October. We literally did 2-3 major activities every weekend. We even suffered the flu this month! I just love the fall! My favorite time of the year by far. Any fun ideas for November?

It's a GIRL!

Yep, for those who didn't know, I am pregnant...with a GIRL!!! Holla! Our Vegas trip was a major success :) I was trying to find a more creative way to break the news but as weeks continued to pass I decided to just announce the news before I delivered a 3rd child without having told all my friends.

So, here are the facts: 20 weeks along, due March 17th (St. Patrick's day everyone tells me), a GIRL (did I mention that?), and my worst pregnancy to date.

I shouldn't say that since the baby has been strong and healthy so far, but my have I suffered this time around!! It's gotten a lot better but even at 20 weeks I'm still losing my meals here and there. I'm anemic so I lay around all the time with no energy and I've got painful varicose veins. Yep, just got my presciption for my compression hose...lovely huh? My next door neighbor is due the week after me and she is having the time of her life being pregnant. No nasuea, no veins, and full of energy as she zips back and forth to the gym.

Oh well. However miserable I have been, I cannot forget what a blessing this pregnancy is. It was a year ago that they found a tumor in my uterus. And now I'm arguing over girl names with Joe! (He's so opinionated at the wrong times!) Anyways, Trapnells...we're going to have to postpone our plans for a cruise dangit. One day when we're 50 I'm sure we can coordinate our lives and go!

Here's a picture of my cute boys. More to come!

Utah fun!

Ok, so this Utah trip was combined with our Vegas trip, but as usual I am very behind on my posting! We had a blast as usual. The pictures start out at Cherry Hill...a kid favorite!

We were so excited when Tyler and Katie decided to come out an join us at Cherry Hill. This was our first look at Zaida. Isn't she so precious? I had the opportunity to rock her to sleep and loved every minute of it! Thank goodness for Bella and Lily who were always great help with the kids. My boys miss them tons.
After 7 hours at Cherry Hill, Mason gives a sleep thumbs up.

The night of 4th of July. We had a picnic at a park with the Berrett family and then watched fireworks afterwards. So much fun! It was also cooler that night so it was that much nicer!
Here we are in Park City. We took the lift up and the Alpine slides down.

For some reason Samuel felt like posing for pictures that day. He was cracking us up, doing any pose Joe asked him to.

Here is Samuel's first hike. He took a spill and is crying here...he has a hard time comprehending "walk slow and carefully". But other than that he had a blast!

On our way back from Vegas, we got to stop and visit the Trapnells. We love those guys! It felt like no time had passed since we had last seen them. We saw their beautiful new home and were plenty entertained by their kiddos. Damon, my little buddy throughout dental school actually took this picture. Pretty impressive for 8 years!
I also got to see Tara Summers, one of my best friends from Milwaukee days. She now lives in Bountiful, UT which is so cool b/c she's only a couple of blocks from Joe's parent's house. Anyways, I didn't catch any pictures from our visit, but we had a blast!

Vegas Baby!

For our anniversary, Joe surprised me with a little getaway to Las Vegas. Let me tell you, I love these kind of surprises! Thank you Tom, Suzy, Emily, T, Bella, and Lily! It was a team effort to watch our boys! So we left the boys, and headed to the Bellagio. Joe, I know I give you a hard time for being "thrifty", but this time you really spoiled me! The Bellagio was gorgeous. Here is the Botanical Gardens in the courtyard of our hotel. Don't mind us, we still get a kick out of taking these kinds of pictures!

Here's Joe relaxing by the pool. We made sure to do a lot of this! Along with eating.We watched the Cirque du Soleil "O" show...the water one. It was amazing! We also watched the broadway "Jersey boys" (my favorite show), and the Cirque du Soleil "Ka". Lot's of shopping on the Vegas strip. I saw many things I liked...but a little too high end for me!After sleeping in (my favorite part of the trip), we'd eat a huge brunch, and then explore the different hotels. Here is the courtyard in the Wynn. A waterfall at the Wynn
Ceasars PalaceOutside Paris, Venetian, and Palazzo.So much fun to get away! I'd never really been to Las Vegas and I really liked it! Our trip included my favorite things: sleeping-in, good eating, relaxing by the pool, and great shows. Thanks so much Joe! I had a blast!