Great Christmas!

We had a great Christmas!

On Christmas Eve, the kids got to open presents from each other. Ally had to clean her room and do all of her chores before this could happen... So, before 8:00 EVERYTHING was done... only she had to wait for Devin to wake up and he decided to sleep until 10:00 am.



It was a warm day here... (he he he to all of you snowed in)...



My mom makes matching pajamas for all 8 of her grandchildren every year... even when the oldest is almost 15... but Cameron is a good sport! Here are my cuties in their matching pj's:



Ally didn't wake up until 8:30 on Christmas morning (must have been because she couldn't fall asleep until after 11 the night before).



Devin woke up about 10 am and he got to open his presents after everyone else... there was no way his big sister could have waited!



Ally got exactly what she asked Santa for, a Nintendo DS. Now I just have to figure how to keep her off of it...



We had a great Christmas! We hope all of you feel as blessed as we do!

I have a story to tell you...

I can't leave ever leave Ally in charge of her brother for a few seconds or...

Poor kid is going to get confused...



And here is his lovely, triumphant sister...

Tough Mommy Moments

Devin is 4 months old today. He also got his shots today... broke my heart. :o(

He is now almost 13 pounds and 25 inches long... 15% in weight and 45% in height. He is developmentally on task.... only his head is not growing well. Talk about hysterical mommy moment. He has always had a small head, at 2 months it was at 10% but this time his head is at 2%... the doctor said it could mean his brain is not growing well, which equal developmental delays, learning disabilities, etc... or it could just mean he has a small head. Only time will tell. It's hard not to worry... what mommy wouldn't?

Yes, Dear Ally, there is a Santa Claus...

For the first time this year I heard, "Mommy, Chandiler says there is no Santa Claus." How can it be coming that time already? Can't she believe until she is sixteen?

But here is my dilemna... how do you answer such a blatant request for honesty? I responded, "What do you think?" I couldn't bring myself to "lie". Through her whole life I have been completely honest with her, I don't sugarcoat the truth... "Yes, you are going to have a shot and yes it will hurt" type of thing. We give her an honest answer, even if it isn't what she wants to hear. How can I not tell her the truth this time?.... and yet the truth is, I believe in the spirit if Santa Claus... but he isn't the one really coming down the chimney to leave presents under the tree. (big sigh).

New Pictures

Cause to Celebrate!!!

Devin slept for 10 hours straight last night! He usually does any where from 6 to 8 hours straight, but last night was 10! Hallelujah!

Ally is Seven!

This past week was Ally's 7th Birthday! I can't believe how big my little girl is getting. In some ways I am so sad that she isn't the little girl that would fall apart every time I left her sight. But mostly I am so proud of the young lady she is becoming. She is such an amazing and inspiring little girl!

Just recently, she woke up in the middle of the night sick, feeling like she was going to throw up. She really did look green. I settled her in bed with a bucket and then had to feed Devin. She was gagging and almost throwing up and I thought I was in for a long night. Then I hear this sweet little voice begin, "Heavenly Father..." she was praying to be better. My first thought is to hurry in there and explain that Heavenly Father isn't going to be able to give her what she was asking for and hoping that it wouln't rock her fragile (so I thought) faith. But she turned silent after her prayer and when I finished feeding Devin and went in there she was asleep. She slept the rest of the night and woke up perfectly healthy the next morning. What a powerful lesson she taught me that night! She is truly an amazing child!



She chose to go to Peter Piper Pizza, so we spent $20 on tokens for her to get enough tickets to win a dollar toy. :o) We also went to see Madagascar 2. It was a fun day celebrating my baby's birth!

Busy week

Ally takes gymnastics on Thursdays. Her favorite part is the beam.



Ally had a fieldtrip this week too... it was the first time I let her go by herself. She had a great time... I think I was a nervous wreck the whole time.

And here is a picture of Devin, just because he's cute.

Halloween

Here are a few pictures from the morning.

This is the balloon launch at Ally's elementary school.



It was also the Halloween parade. Notice that the kids are walking outside? We don't have halls in our schools... it is so warm that each grade is in it's own separate building and you have to walk outside to get to the different buildings, office, cafeteria, etc. (and see that little blonde boy next to her... it's her crush... but shhhhh! don't tell her you know!)



Devin LOVED the balloon launch and parade! He had so much fun watching it all.



Ally drew the faces on the pumpkins and Alex carved them.



Happy Halloween!!!

Back from Utah

We got back from Utah yesterday. We had fun... just really busy visiting family and friends.

My crazy sister decided to get goats for their milk (my nephew is allergic to cow's milk). This is Ally with her cousin Emily and their 2 goats, Lava and Winnie:



My mom took all of "her girls" to see High School Musical 3 on opening day. This is Ally with her 2 cousins, Emily and Kaylee. The girls loved it... and my sister coined the phrase for us adults "we loved it badly".



My parents had a Halloween Party at their house. Ally made a haunted house with graham crackers and candy...



Alex gave a beautiful blessing! Thanks to all of my favorite priesthood leaders who stood with him in the circle and blessed my little angel!



We had a great time!

Sad Day

Today, Devin got his 2-month old shots. I'm not sure who cried more, him or me. He is in so much pain today. :o(

He now weighs just over 10 pounds... my premie is getting bigger and bigger (although still in the bottom 20%). There were 4 babies in the waiting room, all 2 months old... I couldn't believe how big the other babies looked! They looked like they could eat Devin for dinner.

No pictures, as I am too busy packing and trying to get everything ready to leave early Tuesday morning... did I mention our flight leaves at 7:30?... since Tucson is an hour away we have to leave our house at 5:30 am.

Hopefully we will be SEEING a lot of you soon!

Night in Tucson

Alex had meetings in Tucson yesterday and this morning... so we packed up the kids and went along. Alex was gone the whole time, but Ally and I got in lots of shopping... can I just say how scared I am of when Ally gets a little bit older? She has her own unique style and already shops like a sixteen year old... someone needs to hide the credit cards!!! Devin had fun too... he had a really messy diaper when I was holding him... ewww!!! At least it was an excuse to buy a new shirt (and a spare, that I labeled "just in case").

All went well until the middle of the night. At 2 am I was woken up to a loud alarm... the fire alarm! So I wake up Alex (who didn't hear a thing!), we threw on some clothes and grabbed the kids and were hurrying down the stairs... of course we were on the 5th floor. Then an employee stopped all of us crazy guests and told us it was an accident... yeah, tell that to the family dragging a panicked six year old down the stairs and carrying a baby who just decided that if it was time to wake up, it meant it was time to eat.

Oh well, at least we were okay and it wasn't a real fire... good thing we packed our sense of humor!

That smile makes my heart melt!

It is amazing how much happiness can come from such a sweet smile!

Professional Pictures

We took Devin to get his 6 week picture taken at Sears... what a nightmare!!! Right before his appointment the camera broke, so we had to reschedule for later that day. When we got to that appointment, he was happy, cooing and ready... however, they took over an hour to get to us and by that time he was fussy, crying and sleepy. So, we didn't get any cute pictures. I was so disappointed. If you look close at his pictures, you can see his red, puffy eyes from being tired. Poor baby!

The pains of having an older sister...

Do you think it will scar him for life if his sister dresses him in a hat from one of her dance costumes?

Mark Your Calendars!

We will be coming "home" for a visit October 22th to October 28th.

We are coming to Utah to visit, show off Devin, and to have him blessed so all of our families can be there. We are going to bless him on October 26th at 11 am, at my parents ward house. Mark your calendars, so you can come!

Picture Overload!

Here are a bunch of picures of Devin...



My parents stayed down here for 6 weeks.



Devin's First Bath:



And see what happens to his hair after he has a bath...

Ally's Constitution Day Program

Ally had a Constitution Day Program at school.



Her line for the program was, "They talked for months"