Merry Grinchmas

Yes, Merry Grinchmas. I really thought this year would be different....
It started the Thursday before Christmas...I am normally pretty stubborn about taking anything or going to the Dr. However, by 7:30 that night I couldn't take it anymore. I was so sick. Lucky for us David and Stacey were able to watch the kids so Scott could take me to the ER. My fever was so high, as well as my heart rate and blood pressure.  I seriously thought my head was going to explode. Two IVS, plenty of drugs and a handful of prescriptions later I was released and diagnosed with the flu. We asked if we got a deal since my dad was also at the hospital(he even got to stay there for a few days!)  Friday  Samantha came over to handle the kids for me all day. She got Ty off the bus, took Hailey to dance, fed them lunch, dinner and even stayed until Scott's flight got back late that night. I couldn't have done it without her.  I seriously slept from Thursday night until Sunday. I was starting to feel better, but still exhausted when Hailey spiked a fever on Monday morning. She was out of commission until Christmas Eve, and even then she wasn't 100%.  I knew I had to cancel Christmas Eve with my mom's side. The house was being disinfected as fast and as often as we could, but  lets be real,  we were in no condition for guests. Not to mention the cook(my dad), Hailey and I were  still sick. We did share our germs at the Uberts on Christmas Eve for a few hours, which was wonderful, and seemed to give us a little pick me up.  Christmas morning was great. The kids got up at their usual 6 am. =) They loved opening their presents. They were beyond spoiled and found out we would be going to Disneyland, Legoland, and San Diego in January! We enjoyed brunch with my parents, and spent the rest of the day in jammies until it was time to get ready for Papas.  I really thought we were in the clear, and would break our sick Christmas curse. Then Tyler came in my room and said his head hurt while I was getting ready. I chalked it up to being up late the night before and getting up at his normal 6 am wake up.  I thought, no big deal, I would just give him Tylenol before we went to Papas. After I dried my hair and put the corn casserole in the oven, I looked at Ty laying in my bed and said, oh jeez, the kid is for real sick.  I could just tell. Scott and I decided to stay home. We both knew it was best. Tyler fell asleep super early with a high fever, so Hailey, Scott and myself ordered some Chinese. Hailey went to bed fairly early as well, so Scott and I watched some Christmas classics.  What can I say, another year of being sick at Christmas....not quite the holiday we wanted to have, but we were together as a family, and that is all that truly matters. There's always next year....

Cuties on Christmas Eve

Family in Pajammies!

Santa was here!

Ty's Nerf Zombie stuff--he was so excited!

A big girl bike---complete with a seat in back for Teapot

Looks like a great Christmas morning

                                            And what we really looked like most days----

Poor kid---he slept from Christmas Day until Saturday!

How is she so cute even when she is soo sick?!?

This and That Photo Dump

Gotta love matching jammies! Even Teapot joined this year!

Our family Thanksgiving pic

picking out our Christmas tree

for as girlie as she is, she was in the dirt helped cut it down

teamwork dragging our biggest tree yet to the car

Oh YEAH!!! Scott just happened to be in Austin this week, and the best husband ever knew not to come back empty handed! LOVE these donuts! He got my usual razzle dazzle.....

....and blue balls! these super yummy donut holes were smothered in some sort of blueberry goodness! they were amazing!!!

Our house rivalry

I think these pics from last Sunday will speak for themselves.....

Bears fans......

GO PACK GO!!!

 

Oh, and we created a monster....Tyler is hooked on Monopoly.  I'm not going to lie, it really stunk being beat by a 5 year old who had never played before, but at least Scott got his butt kicked too!

Yep, those are all his hotels. He has asked to play every day since......

Halloween Fun

October flew by! Here are some fun Halloween Pics!

Tyler, slow down. Why are you getting so big?!?!

Our tiny meatball Miss Hailey

playing in the leaves

Love her!!!

Such a ham

Ty's pumpkin is the left, Hailey's is on the right

Happy Halloween!!!!

A weekend away with Scott....

I have the most amazing husband! To celebrate our 10 year anniversary early, we headed to Palm Springs for a long weekend. According to Scott he has been planning this trip forever, but he didn't tell me until a few weeks before. It was a great surprise! (almost as good as the sparkly one he gave me while we were there!!!)  The weekend flew by, even though we spent most of it relaxing by the pool just eating, drinking, and enjoying each others' company. I just can't say it enough that I am the luckiest girl in the world!

the view from our room...the picture doesn't even do it justice

champagne and chocolate to celebrate

Dessert at the restaurant...it was such a great meal!

totally roughing it by the pool....it was so quiet and most of the time we had it to ourselves!

the guy who made it all happen, watching football in our cabana while I worked on my tan!

 

Apple Picking

Every time we go up north we pass this super cute little apple place in Wisconsin. I always think it looks like a fun place to take the kids, so today we headed out early and checked it out.  I am so glad we did.  The kids had a blast picking honey crisp apples(their absolute favorite! I mean seriously if you ask the kids what kind of apple they like this will always be their first answer) and because we got there nice and early we had first pick off the trees.  Of course they enjoyed tasting them too as we picked!  After that we checked out their farm area, which was filled with fun stuff to do.  They did a corn maze, a cow maze, went down the most ridiculous big slide, posed for pics, and played in the corn box! We grabbed some hot cider and a piping hot fresh apple donut, and headed home. It was such a great way to spend time as a family!

I love that they love each other so much. I hope they are always this close.

She just had to pick the biggest one....

When did this kid get so old?!?!

                                     

Of course having a taste...

The corn box, way better than sand! =)

Happy Birthday Scott!!!

 I am more than a few days behind on this....

Scott, I love you. You are the most amazing father and husband, and I hope you know just how much you mean to all of us! Happy Birthday!

Tyler's a Kindergartner!

Yes, the big day came....Tyler is officially a kindergartner! He was sooo excited. He woke up this morning and came down stairs at full speed saying, "Who wants to sit next to a kindergartner for breakfast?!?" He quickly got dressed and grabbed his fully loaded backpack and headed out front for pictures. We drove over to Dryden and snapped a few pics. Scott was even able to join us, so that just made the morning even more special.  I really thought I would be more emotional about my favorite little man being a kindergartner, but seeing how eager and happy he was made it easy. This whole move was so that the kids would get better schools, and seeing the glow on his face just made it all worth while. After he headed in, I did ask myself if that just happened, and would anyone notice if I just peeked in his room, but I controlled myself.  I think out of all of us, Hailey was the most upset. She just loves her brother, and even though her and I have lots planned for while Ty's at school, she would much rather be with him. I scooped her up, and then we went in to meet the principal and other parents during a little meet and greet. It was a very nice morning.  Hailey and I were there to get Ty off the bus after a few errands.  He was so happy(even thanked the bus driver) and talked our ear off about his great day.  He can't wait to do it again tomorrow!

She was so happy for  him, but kept saying "Me miss Tyler"

Love my little man

My two favorite boys.

Love this. I was so glad Scott was there.

 Our Dryden Dolphin!

Waiting in line for Mrs. Riesing, his teacher

                                    

We love our kindergartner!

He LOVED the bus! It is only the kindergartners on the way home, so I let him try it out.

Big House Project 1

So our first house project was a bit unexpected, but after thinking about it, made the most sense. Long story short, we knew during our home inspection that the lawn had been killed, however, we would receive new sod once we moved in.  Before the sod came, we built our new garden. We seriously dug the old one completely out, and got rid of the awful dirt/rock/mulch/sand mix.(I'm not kidding, it was just a 14x6 garden of dirt!) I wouldn't have been able to grow a weed in that stuff!  I am thrilled with the results...even though it was the hottest weekend to date!  Big thanks to Scott for shoveling at least 5 yards of dirt and my dad for his green thumb and bobcat! One project down....I don't even want to think of how many more to go!

 

 

Before...doesn't even do the ugly justice!

After....Starting to look more like our home! And have to brag that I designed it myself!!

Tyler is 5!!!!!

5!!! I can not believe our little man is five fingers old! Where on earth did the time go?!?! Tyler has grown so much, yet stayed the same in so many ways.  He continues to be our early riser, up by 6 most days. He still doesn't eat meat. He is an old soul trapped in a little boy's body. Tyler continues to live each day to the fullest. He is constantly smiling, laughing, singing or talking. He still is the best cuddle bug, and will gladly give hugs or hold hands...even sneak in a kiss or two. =)

He loves to learn! Both Scott and I can't wait for kindergarten with how much he will be learning--he participated in safety town this summer and talked our ear off everyday with his new knowledge. His vocabulary is expanding, and will surprise us using it correctly. He is such a reader, and is really taking off with reading on his own! Everything right now appears to be an adventure to him, and he soaks it all up!  The kid asks questions and makes connections all day long.  He might be scared of new things, but once he tries, he jumps right in!  We can't imagine what goes on in his head, but it always makes Scott and I smile---I swear that is why he is a horrible sleeper, his mind is constantly thinking!

Tyler loves his friends and play dates!The kid is such a social butterfly and ladies man. =) I know he had a hard time with the move in regards to his friends, so I have been trying my best to keep those relationships. I know once school starts he will make new ones! Tyler is very outgoing, and tends to make friends easily. He did have an amazing monster truck party with his closest 5 year old friends for his birthday! They were able to drive around Safety Town on power wheel jeeps. He had a blast, and it was definitely fun to watch!

Randoms about Tyler (I love asking this and seeing how much stays the same or changes)
Favorites...
color----orange, green, purple, camo
food----velveeta and peanut butter nutella sandwiches
friends---avery, annabelle, kaitlyn, emma, sophia, lyla, maya, greta,  jackson, logan, brayden, 
song----Summer(Calvin Harris)
tv show--- 7D and Phineas and Ferb
movie----Wreck It Ralph
restaurant---Bonefish

Loves to....
Drive! Especially his own snowmobile!
Golf, play basketball, t-ball, fish, archery, swimming
work on Legos
color
travel---Tyler has been to 6 different states, and by plane 5 times!

 I really wish I can slow all this down! Scott and I often reflect on our journey to have Tyler, and just how special he really is. He is truly an amazing kid! He brings so much joy and laughter to our family. We love him so much!

Gosh he looks old here..

Start your engines!

Everyone wanted to ride with the birthday boy, so he was great about taking turns

The kids also got to ride a train around safety town-what a great party!

Tyler designed his own birthday cake...Happy Birthday Ty!