The Moser Family Blog

A Day at Grandma and Grandpa's

2010-02-06T20:51:00.000-08:00

We spent the afternoon at Grandma and Grandpa's house today so the kids could ride the new quad Daddy bought them!

The next door neighbors have horses....so we had to stop by and say hi!

This picture just cracks me up!

I love how Hannah can still be girly....even when she's riding her quad.

Mason loves helping Grandma pick up the eggs that the chickens have laid that day!

Mason likes riding...and he's only 2 years and 9 months old!

Hannah was becoming quite the dare-devil....riding over the dirt hill.

Grandpa and Mason....chasing each other on the quads!

One little mishap took place. Mason was daydreaming and watching Grandpa do doughnuts in the yard....and he crashed into the house! Thankfully, Mason was okay (the quad only goes about 7 mph when he's on it)....but the house wasn't so lucky.

Time flies

2010-01-28T10:11:00.000-08:00

One year ago...

This morning...

Mason reading me a story

2010-01-27T10:19:00.000-08:00

Happy 4th Birthday Hannah!

2009-12-29T23:00:00.000-08:00

This year, Hannah's birthday fell on Thanksgiving Day! November 26...my baby turned 4 years old. I can't believe I've had her in my life for FOUR years already! It's just going by so fast!

From this:

Then this:

And next:

At three:

And now she's FOUR???

After a big turkey feast with the family, we celebrated by singing Happy Birthday to Hannah as she blew out the candles on the cake she requested. Chocolate cake with chocolate frosting and cherries on top. ??? Whatever...it was HER birthday. :)

So as not to disappoint, we loaded the cake up!

Hannah's 4th birthday present was her very own first 2-wheel bike with training wheels. She wanted a purple one...with sparkles.

The kids had a ball cruising around in the street on their bikes and scooters. Even baby Ethan was trying to keep up!

Hannah LOVED having her cousin Makenzie in town for her birthday celebration!

Here's a picture of Sunshyne, baby Ethan, Makenzie, me, Mason and Hannah!

On the Saturday following her birthday, we all headed over to Bounce U for the PARTY!!!
The place is really cool and the kids loved jumping their brains out. Here's Mason taking a swing at the "air T-ball". I think he has great form for a 2 year old! :)

My friend Katie's kids are pals with my kids. It's a beautiful thing! :

Happy Birthday my beautiful girl!

The Polar Express

2009-12-29T22:44:00.000-08:00

On December 13, we drove up towards the Grand Canyon with the kids to ride The Polar Express train to "the North Pole". We were so lucky! It snowed the night before and even while we were driving up there! We froze our tushes off (well, mostly I froze my tush off)...but the kids were super excited and loved playing in the snow (for a minute, until their hands froze)

All bundled up in their pj's...ready to board the train!

Family picture in the nice WARM train!

Hannah loves her daddy!

After the story, "The Polar Express" was read aloud on the train and we reached the North Pole, an announcement was made that Santa was ON THE TRAIN!!! You can see the anticipation in Hannah and Mason's eyes as they craned their necks to see Santa.

Mason was really excited....he could hardly contain himself!

And Hannah couldn't believe she was actually gonna get to talk to Santa!

He really was a sweet jolly old man...who was nice enough to not only hang in there long enough for my camera flash to fire...but he also handed each kid their very own bell. Just like the story.

After staying overnight near the Grand Canyon Railway that evening, we woke up in the morning, had breakfast, and enjoyed the heated indoor swimming pool and jacuzzi at our hotel. On our way home, we couldn't pass the chance to check out the Grand Canyon Harley dealership and let the kids play in the snow a little more!

Merry Christmas 2009

2009-12-29T22:22:00.000-08:00

This Christmas was the most fun I've had since I was Hannah & Mason's age. To be able to re-live the excitement of Santa thru their eyes is so exciting! Naturally, we used Santa as a threatening mechanism for about a month prior to his arrival. I'm not quite sure the Easter Bunny will have the same effect. :)

My dad flew in from St. Louis the week before Christmas which the kids LOVED! He's so high energy...which goes quite well with my children. They played non stop! Papa made a homemade kite and flew it in the park with them, he played hide and seek for hours, and he even baked with the kids! Jim and I left my dad with Hannah and Mason one afternoon while we went for a Harley ride. When we returned, the kitchen counters were filled with rice krispy treats, cupcakes (decorated with m&m's), sugar cookies, pudding, and Jello!!! You would've thought somebody smoked a bowl while we were away! LOL (oops, did I just say that outloud?)

Here's my dad with the kids as they set out milk and cookies for Santa...and upon Hannah's request for the second year in a row: a pickle for the reindeer.

One tradition we have in our house for Christmas (besides new Christmas pj's opened on Christmas eve and Orange Rolls on Christmas morning)...is that the doorways leading to the living room get wrapped too! This way, if little ones wake in the middle of the night, they can't see anything that's taken place under the tree! In the morning, the kids get to TEAR thru the paper like at the start of a football game...and they LOVE IT!

This year, for some reason, the wrapping paper on one of the doorways came off. At 8am, Hannah comes TEARING into our room and says, "MOMMY! DADDY! Santa came! And I got a new doll house!!!! Santa Came!" She was frantic! Well, we got up, taped the wrapping paper back up and let her tear into it anyway. :)

We got Mason a train set this year...and it was a big hit. It circled under the Christmas tree...and at the push of a button it sounds "ALL ABOARD!"

Not too bad of a mess (although this is AFTER all the wrapping paper and boxes were thrown out)

Later that day, we all went to my mom's house for dinner and more presents. Even my dad joined! It was so much fun seeing Jackson rip into the gifts right along side Hannah and Mason. The cousins really adore each other and have a blast whenever they're together! As you can see below....

Hannah...dishing out some love to her Nana.

We bought Jackson the "Let's Go Fishing" game which was a big hit!

For the second year in a row, the adults participated in a white elephant gift exchange. The gifts are good ones! Set at $75-$100, we're always excited to see what we'll end up with! My dad received scratch off lotter tickets (he's still not a millionaire though), my mom got a really nice camping chair, Jim got a gift card to a liquor store so he could buy a keg for his new kegerator, and I got a gift card to Southwest Airlines!

Here's a picture of Stacy choosing her own gift! A gift card to a salon and day spa!

We always try to get a picture of the cousins together when we can...this was the best one!

Merry Christmas!!!

The last three Decembers

2009-12-29T21:52:00.000-08:00

A look back in time....Hannah and Mason growing up.

December 2007

December 2008

December 2009

Friends Forever!

2009-12-03T08:53:00.000-08:00

I can't believe I almost forgot to post these pictures! While we were on vacation in Illinois, we had a get together with all my best girlfriends, their hubbies, and ALL the kids! Katy was nice enough to host the party at her house...so there was plenty of room for the kids to run and play!

Friends for most of our lives....Lisa, Anne, Jenny, Me, & Katy!

Wow...how we've multiplied! 9 kids between the 5 of us...with another boy on the way!

The kids were having a DANCE PARTY!!! :)

Hannah insisted on taking a "tubby" with Jami...the girls played so well together!

Hannah's birthday on Thanksgiving!

2009-11-29T08:55:00.000-08:00

This year, Hannah's birthday fell on Thanksgiving! Sunshyne, Chris, Makenzie, and Ethan came from California for the celebration and turkey of course! We sang happy birthday to Hannah and gave her the present from us. Pictures from the party on Saturday will be coming soon!

Hannah's choice: Chocolate cake with cherries.

Hannah really wanted a purple bike with sparkles for her birthday.

Baby Ethan was cheering Hannah on as she learned to ride.

Hannah, Mason, Ethan, and Makenzie having fun on Thanksgiving!

Hannah showing how old she is now! My baby is FOUR???

More pictures from Illinois

2009-11-29T08:31:00.000-08:00

These are the last of the pictures from our visit to Illinois.

Aunt Marilyn had us and some of the family over to her house for a lunch one day. She kept busy with the kids on the trampoline!

The guys played washers.

Later, Aunt Marilyn took us to their property where they keep their horses. The kids even got to take turns going for a ride.

Aunt Adria had fun with the kids too!

Halloween

2009-11-29T08:07:00.000-08:00

For Halloween this year, a couple of Hannah and Mason's friends, along with their parents (our friends) came over to join us for trick-or-treating!

Mason was Spiderman!

I was sorta a disco girl :)

He was a little grumpy after waking up from a nap.

But then he warmed up when we told him about all the candy he was gonna get!

Hannah was a purple butterfly! Scary how beautiful she looked! :)

Once she was in costume, she was quite the little poser!

Later in the night, Jim and I went to a very fun party at Randy & Rachelle's house...dressed as a disco girl and Zorro! :)

Visit to Illinois

2009-11-29T07:28:00.001-08:00

I know I've been getting A LOT of heat for not updating my blog enough lately. :) So I have a lot of catching up to do....ready for a lot of pictures? LOL These pictures were all taken during our stay at my dad's cabin in Harrisburg, Illinois the first week in November. The kids had a BLAST and were very entertained with everything outdoors!

This picture was taken at an old Civil War cemetary near my dad's cabin.

The Ohio River...also just a few minutes from my dad's cabin.

The kids LOVED how Papa made lots of bubbles for them in the jet tub.

These waterfalls were amazing and just a short 10 min drive from the cabin.

Since Papa couldn't be at Hannah's real birthday party, he threw her his own little surprise party at the cabin...complete with cake and presents!

Fishin' and Plantin'

2009-10-21T15:24:00.000-07:00

The weather's finally cooling off and the kids are getting outdoors again!!!

Poor Mason...it was a slow day at the fishin' hole. He wasn't catchin' anything!

Hannah was so excited to finally bring home the sweet potato she's been growing at preschool. Now that it's mature, the teacher said we could plant it in the back yard!

So that's what we did! Jim dug a hole and Hannah fetched the water...

She took so much pride in planting this thing! Let's pray to God it survives in our horribly hard desert soil.
She and Daddy had a great time doing their little project....together.

Misc...catching up!

2009-10-02T16:07:00.000-07:00

Dang Facebook! I find it so easy to neglect my blog because it's so easy to update on Facebook lately! So I'm posting some random pictures from recent days:

Can you believe how big and handsome my boy is getting??? Mason's 2 1/2 and growing up way too fast. I just love my little guy!

The kids and I paid a visit to Daddy one evening when he was stuck working overtime at Tempe Marketplace. There was a cute little ASU "sign" set up and the kids had fun pretending to be football players as they ran in front of it!

Speaking of growing up! I feel like I'm gonna wake up very soon and Hannah's gonna be a teenager! And some days, she has the attitude to match! LOL Here she is at Nana's house. Hannah always keeps us laughing!

My brother Michael and I went to the Brad Paisley concert last night together. It was a lot of fun hanging out...just the two of us... which we rarely do anymore!
And finally...a picture of my man doing what he loves most....riding his Harley. Last month for his birthday, he took a 4 day ride to CO and back with his buddy Joe. I swear, Jim could ride cross country and back without thinking twice. He LOVES his Harley!

The Amazing Spider-Man!

2009-09-17T15:27:00.000-07:00

This is a pretty intense face huh?
I wonder what could be so captivating to Mason's attention??? Any guesses?

What could it be?

Watching SPIDER-MAN cartoons on the computer!

He was hooked for over an hour! I might have to start looking for a Spider-Man costume for Halloween. Hannah will be very disappointed...since she was pretty sure she had Mason talked into being a bunny rabbit.

Watermelon

2009-09-12T12:55:00.000-07:00

Mmmmmmm....watermelon on a hot summer day.

Want some?

Camping with Nana

2009-09-11T09:48:00.000-07:00

Jim's on his annual "bday Harley ride" to Colorado this week. So my mom invited me and the kids to join her for some camping in the mountains! The weather was AMAZING...about 30-40 degrees cooler than the valley which was a huge relief. Of course Nana brought lots of fun things for the kids to do...including bubbles! The sleeping arrangments weren't working out the greatest, so we cut the trip one night early. But overall, the kids loved being able to get outdoors and run and play!

Out of hibernation

2009-09-07T20:23:00.000-07:00

I have been in blogger hibernation lately! Been super busy with photography and just life in general...not to mention Facebook takes up my free time and it's so easy to stay in touch with people that way! :)

Anyway, we just returned from a weekend trip to San Diego! The kids were AWESOME during the entire trip which made everything that much more fun! Sunshyne, Chris, and the kids even drove down one day to hang with us on the beach!

Our resort was actually on Mission Bay...which was nice and peaceful and private!

The water was still pretty chilly so Daddy got the "carry me" request a lot.

Team work is needed for awesome sandcastle building!

Baby Ethan...he's almost one year old already!

Mason got obliterated with sand in the face...he wasn't too happy about it.

Check out Makenzie's leaps into their homemade sand bathtub!

And of course, Mason had to get naked on the beach!

Makenzie was filling up the "bathtub" for Ethan and Hannah.

The kids even found silly ways to entertain themselves in the hotel room!

And they even posed for a picture!

Our last day in San Diego, we rented bikes and drove the kids around on the boardwalks. It was the most fun ever! The kids were quiet and happy...they couldn't fight because they were in separate bikes, and we got to see a lot of the beach without having to walk!

We took the kids to Hooters one evening (simply because this restaurant is louder than my children)...and Mason kept himself entertained by sticking crayons up his nose.

The lobby in our resort had the most beautiful waterfall and fish pond...the kids LOVED this!

Hannah and Makenzie were brave enough to let the guys bury them...Mason wanted nothing to do with this!

Family picture on Pacific Beach

The waterfall in our resort lobby again....

We took the kids over to Belmont park to ride some rides.

Since the 8 of us are rarely together all at the same time, I insisted on getting a group shot!

Mommy and Hannah...self photo.

Our resort even featured live bird exhibits daily...the kids loved talking back and forth to them! It was hilarious!

Play Date

2009-08-14T21:45:00.000-07:00

We had a little "play date" at our house today. Tessa, her cousin Christina, and my friend Ryonna's youngest, Bella...all came over to play!

Mason and Bella had a love hate relationship going on! They wouldn't leave each other's side...but then wanted to fight over everything! :) I feel love in the air!

Even when Mason would play hard-to-get, Bella still would try to win him over!
Christina...the oldest of the group, set up a session of "school" for everyone. They made beautiful art out of foam sticker thingies...I was impressed at how well they all liked to be bossed around by a 7 year old!

Happy Birthday Nana!

2009-08-05T00:18:00.000-07:00

Last Friday was my mom's birthday (I won't mention WHICH birthday)! :) This year, instead of gifts, my mom asked me to take her to lunch and a pedicure. I figure that's a win-win...so I was happy to oblige! Well, when Hannah overheard me talking to Jim about the pedicure, she insisted that she wanted to go too!

I was a little wary of bringing my 3 year old into a nail salon...but after many "you have to act like a grown-up" talks, she actually did pretty well!

3 generations of "Sawicki" girls...Nana, Mommy, & Hannah
Very carefully choosing her toenail polish color (aka "peek yo kuh-wa")

After much deliberation and help from Nana, Hannah chose purple...to match her dress, of course!

Hannah acted like she's had several pedicures in the past. Almost like she already knew what to expect!

She liked the warm water...and how the lights in the water changed from green to blue!

This part tickled, she said. :)

She might have been acting grown-up, but she still brought her bunny to snuggle with during the pedicure.
Waiting for the polish to dry! It was sooooo hard for her to not touch the paint!
So she tried to speed up the drying process...
And here's the final product!
After the pedi's, the girls all went to lunch at Red, White, & Brew. It was a fantastic birthday celebration for Nana....just the girls!

Big Boy Bed

2009-08-01T13:49:00.000-07:00

This week has been such a turning point in Mason's life...and a week filled with mixed emotions for me. My little boy, my baby...is growing up way too fast. But at the same time, I'm so proud of his accomplishments. First, he's going #1 and #2 on the toilet all by himself which is HUGE!!!

And now this....this is the last picture I'll ever snap of one of my babies in their crib.

Because Mason is now in a BIG BOY BED! He was so excited that he even cleaned it til it was spotless!

There's no turning back now...he's officially not a baby anymore. Unless you wanna talk about how he still refuses to drink milk from anything other than a bottle. My baby boy :)

Dewper

2009-07-30T17:39:00.000-07:00

Every Thursday morning at the mall, there's a little music show with a giant prairie dog named Dewper. The kids LOVE him! I took them to the show today and...

Hannah got to prance around in a congo line behind Dewper shaking some African morocca thing!
She was so proud of herself!

Mason was content to just kick it with Mom on the carpet.

My kids think Dewper is, like, a ROCK STAR!
After the Dewper show, we cruised outside for about 2 1/2 minutes by the pretty fountains...but then we started to combust into flames. It's friggin' H.O.T. today!
So we headed back inside for one last AIR CONDITIONED stop at Border's Books where Mason just pulled all the toys off the shelves....
...and Hannah played with the bead game and we read some books. Good, Fun, FREE entertainment!

#1 and #2

2009-07-29T21:52:00.000-07:00

Okay...I know I'm a terrible mother to do this....but I'm just so dang proud of my little baby boy! He's finally learning to potty train! A couple weeks ago, I was just telling a friend, "Oh Mason's not even CLOSE to wanting to potty train!" And now here he is peeing in the toilet...and YES, even doing the #2 today!!! What a big boy he's turning into! :(

I feel like having a diaper-free house is just right around the corner...just as long as Mason doesn't relapse! Hopefully he won't kill me one day for posting these pictures...but he's so stinkin' CUTE!

Cool Weather Camping

2009-07-26T14:54:00.000-07:00

This past Tuesday, Jim took a couple days off from work. It's been really hectic for him lately so we decided to skip town for a few days. We borrowed our friend's motorhome and headed up north to go camping with our other friends, Brooke, Brian, and their two sons, Brody & Bryce. It was sooooo nice getting out of the insane heat of the valley...and we even got rained on a little bit each day! The kids had so much fun playing together while the adults just kicked back and did a whole lot of nothing.

Bryce was sad about something...so Mason tried to make his buddy feel better.
We headed down to the nearby Willow Springs Lake one afternoon...so everyone except me and Brooke could do some fishing. She and I just sat on the shore and drank beer. :)

The kids took a little dip after fishing. It looks like Hannah's saying, "Whatever BOYS! I'm OUTTA here!"

Bryce and Hannah go to preschool together. They weren't that close to each other during the school year...but whenever our families hang out now, they are INSEPARABLE!

When we first arrived, Mason hopped on Bryce's little 2-wheeler with training wheels. To say he "rode the wheels" off that bike while we were camping is an understatement! He is such a natural (way better than Hannah, in fact). Bryce is getting a new bike for his birthday today...so Brooke and Brian told us to just take this little 2-wheeler home with us for Mason. He's STILL riding the wheels off of it!

Line 'em up!

2009-07-18T11:29:00.000-07:00

Mason doesn't typically care if things are neat and orderly. But apparently when it comes to hair rollers, he's all about organization!

I watched him from around the corner as he placed each roller next to another until they were all lined up.....then he would do it again!
Maybe this is a sign that I need to bring out another new toy that's stashed away in the closet? If they're resorting to playing with my hair styling tools, maybe they're really bored?

Pretty Pretty Princess

2009-07-17T16:17:00.000-07:00

Lately, Hannah's been VERY into dresses, pretty hair-do's...and anything else that makes her feel like a princess. She actually ASKED me to make her look like a princess the other day and TAKE PICTURES OF HER! Bestill my heart! I jumped at the rare opportunity!

Bath Blizzard

2009-07-17T15:59:00.000-07:00

After Christmas and birthdays, I usually put 2/3 of all the gifts high on a shelf in the kids' closet...to be pulled out on a rainy day (as if we have those in AZ!) I just find that the kids are so overwhelmed by all the new toys, that they really don't appreciate any of them unless they're introduced one by one.

I had forgotten about this one really cool present that somebody (forgive my lack of memory) gave Mason for Christmas. So I pulled it out a couple weeks ago and it's been a hit with the kids ever since! Introducing: The Bath Blizzard!

Just pour in some bubble solution...add a little water....

...and the bubbles just keep coming and coming and coming. Sometimes the kids will let the entire tub fill up with the bubbles and then they wear them as hats and beards!

My little bath boy :)

And here's Hannah demonstrating her odd teeth brushing techniques!

Woo Hoooooo!

2009-07-13T15:03:00.000-07:00

Naked baby launching!

A visit from Auntie Brenda

2009-07-13T14:41:00.000-07:00

This week, Jim's sister...Auntie Brenda is visiting from Wisconsin! The kids have been so excited for her arrival...and now that she's here they don't want to let her out of their sight!

Even though it's been a year and a half since Hannah has seen Auntie Brenda last, she had no hestitation about hopping right on her lap when she arrived!

It was sooooo hot that day too...not at all like the more mild Wisconsin summer weather Brenda is accustomed to! So we did a little bit of swimming at Auntie Jenny's house to beat the heat. I, my nephew Austin, and Mason were having a contest to see who could make the biggest slapping noise with our noodles!

Austin was shooting his webs at us....he loves Spider Man!

On Saturday evening, Jim and I took Brenda and Jenny to a Diamondbacks game...we had awesome tickets thanks to our friend Jason! It was a great time...and we even came home with a gift for the kids. It was "bobblehead night" at the ball park!

Mason, who probably didn't remember Auntie Brenda at all (he wasn't even walking the last time they saw each other)...has really taking a liking to her! He loves reading books while sitting on her lap!

One of the things that the kids were MOST excited about Auntie Brenda's visit was taking her along to...you guessed it: Peter Piper Pizza! We went there this morning with Grandma Carol too. The kids were having fun and winning a bunch of tickets when all of a sudden, Hannah hit the JACKPOT on one of the games! She won 716 tickets at one time! She was dancing around screaming, "I won the JACKPOT!". So this time, instead of winning piddly little stuff like plastic dinosaurs and tootsie rolls, she got to pick out BIGGER junk...like hair bows, a microphone (just what she needs), a paddle ball, and stickers. Mason even got a giant watergun for himself! How exciting!!! :P

Peter Piper Pizza

2009-07-09T08:12:00.000-07:00

My kids are so in love with Peter Piper Pizza lately. It's ALL I hear about every day..."Mom! Peter Piper Pizza! Can we go to Peter Piper Pizza?" So we go...and I spend approx $20 so the kids can play games and win tickets and "buy" tiny pieces of candy and plastic dinosaurs and cheap stickers. So much fun! :P

Gettin' Soggy

2009-07-07T23:25:00.000-07:00

We have been spending so much time at the lake lately! Big shocker, I know. The only difference: we have been heading out there at 5pm instead of 10am. It's just too dang HOT! And I hear the temps are forecasted for 115 this weekend. Dontchya just love Arizona in July? Anyway, I brought my camera out with us to the lake the other day (which I rarely do)...so I wanted to post some pics of our lake buddies and the fun times we've been having!

Mason L.O.V.E.S jumping off the boat into the water...he would do it 100 times if we let him!

This is a picture of our friend's daughter, Sloan..and Hannah. They're playing "beauty shop" on the boat...so girly!

I'm pretty sure Hannah wants to marry this guy...the guy with 100 nicknames. Belushi, Spicoli, Sunshine, Biggins....whose real name happens to be Ryan. He's a great lake buddy and he always has us laughing.

And this is our other lake buddy who happens to be our "slip neighbor" at the docks. Jason is totally laid back, has no kids, but loves ours...and is always fun to tease! He's a great guy!

Biggins was being such a great sport while Hannah was trying to push him off the boat!

Happy 4th of July!

2009-07-06T09:10:00.000-07:00

Our 4th of July weekend was awesome! Early on the morning of the 4th, we hopped in the truck and headed 3 hours north to Heber, AZ. For the first time ever in our lives, we arrived EARLY! We set up our chairs on the side of the road and waited for the parade to start. The kids LOVED the parade...with all the floats carrying water gun spraying people! Mason's favorite was the fire trucks...oh, and the candy too! I can't wait to take them to my hometown Mascoutah's Homecoming parade in a couple years!

After the parade, we drove around in the beautiful pines *with our windows DOWN*...the kids had fallen asleep and we were thanking God for every minute of shut-eye they could sneak in. We knew Mason would never make it thru the long day of festivties without a little snoozer.

We hung out at our friends' cabins for the afternoon where there were tons of kids for Hannah and Mason to play with. And at sundown, we all drove down to the highschool to watch the INCREDIBLE fireworks! There were also food vendors (kettle corn, YUM), a DJ, and a big blow up slide that we couldn't keep the kids off of!

The next morning, we headed back to the melting Valley of the Sun...but we made a quick pit stop first. My mom happened to be camping with her hubby very near where we had spent our weekend, so we crashed their campsite for a couple hours. It was a nice visit...and my kids ate her out of house and home, as usual!

It's always nice to be back to your home...but we sure enjoyed the 80 degree daytime temps of Heber...instead of the ones reaching 110 in the valley!

Go ahead, JUMP!

2009-07-02T09:28:00.000-07:00

The kids are really getting a lot of use from their trampoline! This morning, it was beautiful and cloudy...and pretty cool considering our hot daytime temps the last few days! I even dragged my butt out of bed for a 5:30am 3 mile run. It was GORGEOUS!

Mason gets some pretty good leaps!

And Hannah's always doing crazy stunts!
Like this....
But Mason was frustrated that he wasn't able to do somersaults as well as his big sister (note the pouty face)
But then he did it!!!

Puzzling

2009-07-01T16:32:00.000-07:00

Hannah has a new favorite hobby...puzzles! I found the perfect one (despite the fact that it's dinosaurs and not princesses). She LOVES this puzzle and puts it together several times a day! I think we are going to add this new found toy to her birthday and Christmas list this year!

It was a "Gray" week

2009-06-26T18:14:00.000-07:00

My cousin Sunshyne and her two kids Makenzie (3) and Ethan (9 months) paid us a visit this week! She and I try to take turns driving to each other's house every few months...which is not a bad drive since they only live about 5 hours away in CA! Since we've been doing these visits for about 3 years, I thought I would post the progressive pictures of our girls...to document their budding love and friendship. Yeah right...it's more like a love/hate relationship. But it's probably just a 3 year old girly phase they're going thru!

Picture HEAVY!

2009-06-26T17:14:00.000-07:00

This post is VERY picture heavy...as I'm a little behind lately! I was too busy visiting with my cousin to worry about blogging! Enjoy the pics!

My little girl...getting too big
Hannah playing with baby Ethan

He is such a smiley baby!

Makenzie had fun diggin' in the sand at the beach at Saguaro Lake

2 mommies

Makenzie and Hannah riding in the tube behind the boat!

Running (literally running) home from the park

Makenzie's treasures that she found at the park

Getting so grown up

Makenzie was seriously deep in thought!

Hannah's NEVER deep in thought! LOL

Muscle Woman

The girls had fun playing at the park!

There's the beautiful smile again!

Big sis and little bro

He's so stinkin' CUTE

See what I mean? :)

Happy Father's Day!

2009-06-21T23:05:00.000-07:00

Jim's Father's Day wish was to just chill at the lake with his fam...so that's what we did! He went on a little swim with his offspring to where the dare devils dive off the cliffs. Hannah and Mason loved that part!

Luckily, our little dare devil, Hannah, wasn't interested in diving off herself!

Daddy...he's a good one.

Randomness

2009-06-15T08:31:00.000-07:00

Sometimes I just feel compelled to blog about our weather here in AZ. Maybe it's because I take notice of the little things in life...and I usually find great appreciation in them. Or maybe it's just because I'm getting older and that's just what you do when you get older...talk about the weather. At any rate, for all you Phoenicians out there who might be reading this...have we not had the most beautiful June you've ever experienced? The temperatures have been perfectly warm and breezy...and I, personally, am loving it. It's been FANTASTIC lake weather.

I've been awful at remembering to bring my camera to the lake lately...which means I have no NEW pictures from our fun weekend. So I've dug into some archives to share some random pictures this morning.

This is my friend, Bill's, beautiful daughter Melanie. My kids were having a blast blowing bubbles with her at their house a few weeks ago.

And our other friend's Kelli and Jason also brought their cutie pie Kaelyn over to play as well!

I fell in love with her freckles! I wonder if she likes them?

I've known Melanie for 7 years...I met her when she was maybe 3? She's such a little woman now!

Now THIS is a rare find...my husband in uniform. Doesn't he clean up nicely?

And just one to make you smile :)

The D Family

2009-06-13T00:22:00.001-07:00

I had the pleasure of taking family pictures for my friends Jon and Mel yesterday...and their baby "M" is to die for! Those LIPS! We had a lot of laughs that day! Here are some of my favorites:

JMK (just my kids)

2009-06-09T15:29:00.000-07:00

My kids get sooooo sick of me taking their picture...imagine that. So I try not to stick the camera in their face too often. This is in hopes that when I DO try to take their picture, they won't just run away from me!

I managed to get a few shots of them today...it's been a while! They're getting so big! Hannah weighs 33 pounds and Mason is following closely behind at 31 pounds. It won't be long before he passes her up! She better learn to run fast...because Mason has a lot of paybacks to dish out!

What's up Cuz?

2009-06-08T16:50:00.000-07:00

Cousin Jackson and Uncle Michael came over for a little swim today. Our weather has been unusually cool this past week with highs in the low 90's! It's been wonderful...but the kids weren't as interested in being in the pool this time.

So they did a bit of jumping on the trampoline...

This little dare devil wasn't afraid of jumping off the waterfall a few times...just to show the boys who's boss...
A future hall-of-famer...
Here's a picture of Hannah showing off her mad computer skills to the boys...

Happy Birthday Tom!

2009-06-08T11:14:00.000-07:00

This week we celebrated Jim's dad's 67th birthday! Tom and Carol came over and we all feasted on filet mignon and stuffed mushrooms. YUM!

Hannah presented Grandpa Tom with his birthday present...a basket filled with all his favorite treats!

And he even shared one of his Krispy Kreme doughnuts with her...they were both in heaven!

Hannah had so much fun baking Grandpa Tom's cake with me earlier that day. She cracked all the eggs, used the mixer, (licked the beaters, of course) and put all the sprinkles on! She loves to help!

Happy 67th Balkus!

Shaq Attack

2009-06-01T19:05:00.000-07:00

Look out Shaq! Give a 2 year old a basketball and see what happens?

Baby G

2009-05-29T18:05:00.000-07:00

It's official! I took pictures for my first paying job this week! "Mom" said she loves all of them...and they're for "Dad" for Father's Day. So hopefully he'll like them too!

The shoot was hard work but a lot of fun...here's some of my favorites....

A Bout with Grout

2009-05-29T17:31:00.000-07:00

Remember these days? When your parents would be hanging out with their friends, talking, and drinking until late in the night? Remember winding down on the couch watching cartoons until it was time to leave...only, your parents were having too much fun, so that time grew later and later....so you CRASHED out?

Below is a picture of the tired little victims of the above mentioned scenario. Sean, Markita, and the kids came over last night to clean our carpets and tile (more about THAT later)...in exchange for a yummy steak dinner, drinks, and good company. A trade I'm ALWAYS up for!

Embarrassingly enough, this is a picture of the grout between our tiles (7 years worth of grout dirt) BEFORE Sean cleaned...

And here is the beautiful AFTER shot. I cannot believe the difference! Nor could I believe how much dirt was in that grout!

I know this probably seems like a really weird thing to blog about...but I guess you can only look at so many pictures of my kids, right? :)

Long Weekend!

2009-05-25T22:21:00.001-07:00

Here's a brief re-cap of our long weekend...Friday: funeral. Sucky. Saturday: Lake. Sunday: Lake, spent the night on the boat. Monday: Lake. Got it?

It was actually an awesome weekend! On Saturday, we had an adult only trip to the lake with my brother, Stacy, Danny, and Michelle. Our friends Sean, Markita, and Heber were out on their boat too. I love spending time with the kids on the boat too...but it's nice to just worry about yourself once in a while!

Sunday, we brought our friends Brooke, Brian, and their boys Brody, and Brice (cute huh?). I haven't downloaded those pics yet but we had tons of fun together that day! Let's just say, Brooke was having so much fun that she didn't wanna leave that night! Brian had to threaten to leave her behind! What can I say? We're fun to party with! LOL

And finally, today was spent with Jim's sister Jenny, her hubby Steve, and our nephew Austin...along with Danny, Michelle and their son Kale. The kids all have so much fun together and they were swimming all day!

If you look closely, Hannah is asleep next to Austin, and Mason is asleep between Auntie Jenny and Jim!

Michelle, Jenny, and Me!

My over-exposed hubby and tuckered out Hannah.

The Stud Muffin

Jim, Danny, and Michael

Michelle, Stacy and Me!

Birthday #31

2009-05-18T12:38:00.000-07:00

I had such a fun birthday weekend! A huge group of our old crew got together for a lake trip to Lake Pleasant. It sure brought back memories! We all had fun drinking and dancing on the boats...and when the sun went down, we headed over to the restaurant at the Marina for a hot meal (and boy, did we all need it!) After dinner, Tamara's boat and our boat headed out to a quiet little cove on the lake where the guys threw out lines in hopes of catching some catfish. No luck there...but it was such a beautiful and peaceful night under the stars.

Unfortunately, we were awoken at 4:30 the next morning by an emergency phone call from Jim's boss. Tragically, Jim's partner, Russ, had died in his sleep that night at the age of 36. It may have been heart failure due to medication he was taking because of cronic back pain following many surgeries. He has a stay-at-home wife and 2 small girls which makes this all the more tragic. We headed home a few hours later, and as you can imagine, today has been a very tough work day for Jim. I would imagine the funeral services will be at the end of this week. Please say a prayer for his family...as I've heard that his wife is not taking this well at all.

So...on a lighter note, despite the awful news, my birthday was better than I could've asked for. The kids sang Happy Birthday to me at home and helped me blow out candles on my white chocolate raspberry cake (yum) after spending the night with Nana (who spoiled them rotten). Here's some pictures from the weekend:

Me & Tamara...she's become such a good friend who also happens to be my, Jim's, and Hannah's dermatologist!
For some strange reason, Jim crawled into bed with Rachelle the next morning.??? LOL This is a picture of their big 'old platypus feet.
My good friend, Mo. She has 2 little ones at home too...so we really whooped it up together!
Rachelle and I...after swimming across the lake to get to this sandbar. We wanted a picture that looked like "we walked on water". :)

Tran and I...great buddy who was also celebrating his birthday. Happy Birthday you Asian hottie!

The newlywed, Dawn, and Olga...one of my back-in-the-day friends!
Here's Olga drinking from a coconut. Her hubby brought real coconuts on the boat and used the milk to mix with ice and vodka for an interesting concoction.

Scotty doing one of his famous back flips...he's insane!

Me, Olga, and Rachelle...gosh it's been a while!

Scotty: "Rachelle, tell it to someone who cares, okay?" lol

Randy and Rachelle came with us on our boat...they helped make my birthday so special and were super generous with gifts, and helping out with the boat and even buying dinner. Thanks guys!

Scott and Mo brought their boat which is big enough for a dance floor practically and has an AWESOME sound system!

Day #2...me and Rachelle

No, officer. I haven't had ANYTHING to drink! Notice the "birthday girl" badge on my hat..courtesy of Dawn and Tran. Thanks guys!

Schooooool's out for summer!

2009-05-14T16:32:00.000-07:00

I can't believe my baby girl finished an entire year of preschool today! Sadly, her teacher, Mrs. Maresh will not be returning next year because of budget cuts...and we will definitely miss her. Hannah has learned so much since last August and we owe most of that to Mrs. Maresh's patience and warm nature with Hannah.

I don't think Hannah understands that she won't be going to school for the next 3 months...but boy will I miss those Tues and Thurs morning hours with Mason while Hannah had a blast at school.

Here's Hannah back in August on her first day of preschool

And here was Hannah this morning on the last day of school
It's so hard to believe how fast she's growing up! Here are some pictures of Hannah using my computer. And she's REALLY using it! She loves to play the Wow Wow Wubbzy games at NickJr.com. What a big girl!

Look at the concentration on that grown-up face!

Ok...maybe she's not THAT grown-up! This is a picture of Hannah throwing a tizzy because she couldn't put Wubbzy's hat on right. :)

Summer fun

2009-05-11T13:52:00.000-07:00

I keep forgetting to bring my camera to the lake lately! And that's where we've been spending most of our time! But here are some recent pictures from my dad's visit. The kids LOVE being on the boat...and their favorite part is parking at the beach and playing in the water and sand. It's so nice to spend an entire afternoon together without ANY whining, crying, or complaining! :)

Mason's Birthday Party!

2009-05-03T22:55:00.000-07:00

Another celebration today was Mason's 2nd Birthday! After the baptism, we had a few friends over for pizza and cake...bouncing and swimming! I think the kids are CRAZY for getting in the water but they all had a blast!! Mason received lots of cool toys from his friends...and I think his favorite was the Harley Davidson scooter Grandma Carol got him! He also got roller skates, a wiggly sprinkler for the hose, a sidewalk chalk sprayer, a tricycle...and tons of other neat things! Hannah and Mason were exhausted after everyone left around 8pm. We had NO fussing when I announced it was bedtime!

Blowing out the candles

Taking a swing at his blow up tee ball set
All decked out in his safety gear on the Harley scooter

The trampoline was a HIT with all the kids!

Hannah's bestest friend and idol, Tessa.

Our friend's Danny & Michelle's son, Kale.

The party scene.

Our neighbor, Elias, taking a dive off the grotto.

Our other neighbor, Zsofia, and Hannah.

Taryn, doing some back flips on the trampoline.

In the name of the Father....

2009-05-03T22:48:00.000-07:00

Today was Mason's Baptism! My brother was the Godfather and Jim's sister, Jenny was the Godmother. Mason looked so handsome all dressed up and did very well during the ceremony. Of course he didn't like the cold water being poured over his head...but it's probably because he didn't want his hair getting messed up! He's Jim's son, after all! LOL Mason was so cute while all the blessings were being said. After everyone would say, "Amen", Mason would repeat LOUDLY, "Amen!!!".

Boing Boing Boing!

2009-05-01T21:38:00.000-07:00

This year, instead of doing the usual bounce house for Mason's birthday party, we decided to chip in a little extra money and just get a trampoline as his present. This way, the fun never has to stop! So Jim and my dad set out this morning to construct this massive thing in our back yard. They worked tirelessly until it was finished...and the kids are having a blast already!

They make a great team!

How the heck are we supposed to stretch this thing?

I think there was about a million of these to put on!

Time for fun!

2 Year Check Up

2009-04-30T16:37:00.000-07:00

Two posts about Mason in one day? Geez....what does he think? That it's his birthday or something? :)

Hannah and Mason started swim lessons yesterday at the gym we go to and they LOVED it! I was worried that Mason wouldn't even wanna get in the water because he seemed a little unsure at first. But once he got in, he was a HAM! He did everything the instructor told him to and loved every second! Hannah's class was next and it's like she never skipped a beat since swimming in our pool last summer. She got a little cocky at one point though...she let go of the wall when the instructor wasn't looking and had a heck of a time keeping just her nose above water. Since I was holding Mason way across the other side of the pool, another mom ran to assist! Hannah told her daddy later that, "I almost DROWNED!"

Here's Mason getting ready for his lesson...I didn't get a picture of Hannah since I was busy dealing with Mason in the hot tub when it was her turn!

Mason also had his 2 year checkup today...conveniently timed on his 2nd birthday! Our fast growing boy is 31 lbs, 35" tall, and is in the 95% percentile for his head size. For those who know his daddy, that last measurement should come as no surprise. Dr. Lorenzen said he's a very healthy perfect boy...and she is "blown away by his vocabulary"! I guess I'm used to well-spoken toddlers with Hannah as my first experience. But Mason wasn't shy to use sentences with the dr and she was quite impressed!

Here's Mason...sleeping peacefully in his car seat BEFORE the appt.

And here's Mason AFTER 3 vaccines and a finger prick to test iron in his blood. He did better with the 3 shots than he did with the little finger prick! Oh, and he HATES bandaids!

After having a COMPLETE 2-year-old meltdown in the car on the way home, I guess he was a little sleepy.

Happy 2nd Birthday Mason!

2009-04-30T08:43:00.000-07:00

Happy 2nd Birthday to my little "baby" Mason! Time has flown even more quickly with him than it did with Hannah! It's hard to believe that he's old enough to potty train, drink out of a cup, and talk in sentences! What happened to my little baby?

Newborn Mason
1st Birthday

2 Years Old!

Mason H.A.T.E.S when I sing to him (or ever, really). So I thought it would be funny to sing him Happy Birthday this morning :)

Party of Five

2009-04-29T10:18:00.000-07:00

I did my first family-of-five shoot this past weekend and we had so much fun! Corey, the dad, is a crack up and kept me laughing the entire time. It was really good practice with Sophia and her clan and I am thankful for the opportunity to have gained more experience...but I think the demand is high enough now that I'm ready to get this business off the ground! We'll see how it goes!

At Last

2009-04-25T08:53:00.000-07:00

After many months of waiting....well, actually FOUR YEARS of waiting if you wanna get technical....we launched our new boat yesterday! It was a beautiful Friday afternoon with a light breeze blowing....ahhhhhh. The kids had a blast and I think they're gonna enjoy spending weekends cruising around Saguaro Lake this summer. Hannah LOVED going fast...Mason, not so much! :)

I think I almost got choked up watching Jim put the boat in the water for the first time. He put so much blood, sweat, and tears into this whole deal!

Mason loved looking at the ducks in the water!

Hannah kept wanting to go "faster Daddy!"...even in the no-wake zones!

I had to include this picture of Jim telling Hannah one of his famous and highly requested "monster stories". Apparently (by the looks of this picture), the monster in this story had horns???

Ahhhhhhh, it's so good to be back out on the water.

It's getting Hot Hot Hot!

2009-04-22T17:29:00.000-07:00

April...and it was 102 degrees yesterday...

But the kids are loving it!.....

Is this really happening?

2009-04-22T12:27:00.000-07:00

Is today FINALLY here? I can't even believe it! Jim left about an hour ago to pick up our boat in San Francisco! YIPPEEE! This has been a long long process and we're very excited for it to be over.

We spent the morning outside with Jim while he put the final touches on our empty-but-soon-to-not-be boat trailer. Mason loves anything to do with tools...so he was having a blast helping Daddy.
I think this picture would make a great ad for Dewalt tools...don't you? :)

And just a pic of a little visitor on our beautiful cactus blooms in the front yard!

True Love

2009-04-21T23:04:00.000-07:00

I don't think I need to tell a story about the next two photos in order to evoke the raw emotion and passion that was felt on this day:

Kids say the darndest things!

2009-04-21T22:53:00.000-07:00

Just a couple "Hannah-isms" and "Mason-isms" to tell:

Jim has been gone A LOT lately. Between dealing with all the boat stuff and working SUPER EXTRA amounts of overtime at the p.d. to pay for everything, we've definitely been lacking a daddy presence around here. (oh and p.s. he leaves tomorrow for 2 days again to pick up our boat! Boo-hiss and YEAH at the same time!) So yesterday, the kids and I are at the carwash waiting for our truck to be finished. Hannah and Mason are throwing pennies into the water fountain which is outside in the customer waiting area. I told Hannah, "Make a wish when you toss your penny!" So she does, and runs up to me to tell me what she wished for. I quickly said, "Nooooooooo....don't tell me! If you tell me what you wished for, it won't come true!" So she pondered this for a moment and then ran off to toss another penny. She immediately ran back and said, "Mommy! I just made another wish. I wished that Daddy would come home!"

Oh. My. Gosh. If only she were that sweet HALF of the time! LOL

Then tonight in the car, Hannah tells me: "Mom! Last night, Mason and I were laying in bed watching cartoons and I told him, 'Mason, I love you a WHOLE lot." I said, "Awwwwwwwww, Hannah! That's sooooo sweet! I love when you have a big heart like that!"

And then Mason chimes in, "YEAH! Me TOO!"

LOL

This Little Light of Mine

2009-04-19T12:14:00.000-07:00

Easter part 2

2009-04-17T22:19:00.001-07:00

I'm a little behind on my Easter pics! It's been a busy week...with tying up loose ends on our boat purchase and getting a beginner "website" for my photography gig set up WHEW! Check out the sidebar of my blog that says Michelle Moser Photography.

Anyway...here are the pictures from the rest of our Easter celebration. The kids loved the egg hunt at the park and couldn't wait to dig into all their candy once we got back to the house.

Even Mommy got a surprise from the Easter bunny this year..... YUM!

Nana with her grandbabies

Hannah's first Krispy Kreme Doughnut....oh my!

Our neighbors brought their pet bunnies to the park for the kids

Hannah found tons of eggs....so proud of her! Now I just

need to teach her to sit like a lady! :P

Happy Easter...part 1

2009-04-12T09:42:00.000-07:00

Happy Easter to everyone! It's a GORGEOUS day in Arizona this morning and the kids were so excited to see that the Easter Bunny paid a visit to our house! Hannah was FAST at collecting all the eggs hidden around the house. Mason found one...and when he realized there was candy inside the egg, he couldn't be bothered to find any more! :)

The Fam is coming over in a little while for Easter lunch...and then we're heading to our neighborhood park for a community egg hunt later. More pics to come!

DON'T take my CANDY!

"Speedy" the egg finder

This was their favorite Easter basket treasure...a candy-filled spinny thing that plays the Easter March when you pull the trigger.

Outdoor Fun

2009-04-10T22:07:00.000-07:00

Just some recent pics of the kiddos! The weather has been gorgeous lately and Hannah & Mason have been taking full advantage! It's hard to get them to come inside! We know the scorching temps are just around the corner...but be not afraid! Because this year, we'll be scorching our butts on a 30' Cruisers Yacht!!!! :) Jim should be picking it up next Wednesday (crossing our fingers).

Cotton Mo

2009-04-05T22:27:00.000-07:00

What a fun Sunday afternoon! Our friends, Scott & Mo (Hannah calls them "Cotton Mo"), recently moved into their new house that they built. It is soooo amazing. I feel like I stepped into an episode of MTV Cribs when I'm there! It was just about 80 degrees today which is a little chilly to go swimming...except at Scott and Mo's! Because of course their gorgeous pool is heated! So we spent a very relaxing afternoon sipping on Coronas...poolside. Ahhhhh.

We finished out the evening with some BBQ dinner and a "jam" session in Scott & Mo's music room. The kids all had so much fun playing together and we hope to do a repeat again soon!

Elle & Hannah playing in the jacuzzi

Mo & Elle on the drums...everyone rockin' out!

The picture of Jim & the kids actually going DOWN this slide into the water is on Mo's camera!

Mason...trying to decide if he's brave enough to go it alone

This is the view from their living room...nice "patio door" huh?

You can dress a girl up but......

2009-04-03T23:35:00.000-07:00

Hannah dove into her treasure chest of dress-up clothes this evening. She was loving all her different looks! She especially loves all the attention she gets from Daddy when she prances out into the living room where he's sitting!

The ROCK STAR

The CHEERLEADER

Attempting the splits

The "bored" MOVIE STAR

Hummmmmmm

2009-04-03T16:28:00.000-07:00

I'm not much into nature photography...but I was relaxing out in the back yard this afternoon with my hubby and kids (with my camera in my hand, of course)...and right in front of me was a cute little hummingbird zip zipping around! I couldn't resist a pic.

Chatter box

2009-04-03T10:47:00.000-07:00

Mason has been talking up a storm lately! It seems like overnight, he started using sentences...which is WEIRD! If he gets an owie, he'll say "Hannah did it!"...even if she's at school. Just a minute ago, he brought me an empty water gun and said, "water in it...please?" Hopefully this breakthru in communication will improve his 2 year old temper tantrums! Sheesh!

Playing Catch Up

2009-03-31T23:24:00.000-07:00

I guess I've been in a non-blogging mood lately? We've been busy busy busy though!

Let's see, at the end of last week, I landed a case of Strep Throat. Fun. The next morning, I pulled up my boot straps, packed my antibiotics and headed out on a Harley ride with my hubby to Prescott. It was just an overnighter and it was fun...until we got a flat tire. Again. And Again. And Again. Just a thought...don't get a flat tire on a motorcycle on a Sunday. There was NO PLACE open to help us! Thank God for the invention of fix-a-flat. It got us home. Safely? Probably not...but it got us home.

On Monday, Jim left on his Harley again...this time to San Francisco! Our "new boat" lives there and he needed to take a trip to verify it's condition is as good as it appears online. We are VERY excited to get back on the lake now that the kids are older. After talking to him tonight, the report: "the boat looks AWESOME but it needs a new fuel pump and the trailer is a piece of junk". Soooooo, we may or may not buy this one. :( Dang, I thought the search was over!

Since Jim was out of town, last night I decided to take the kids to see their very first movie. I figured the dollar theatre would be safe enough since the odds of them making it THRU the movie would be slim to none. So, we load up into the Hummer and....we don't go. Dead battery. And no hubby to rescue me. But I called up dear-ole-Dad who walked me thru the steps of how to jump a battery. I actually DO feel smarter now! LOL It was a frustrating night and we never made it to the movies. :(

Well, I think that pretty much sums up the last week of my non-blogging life! I'm posting some pictures that I took on Monday of my friend Alley's beautiful girls, Camryn and Cassidy. It was nice to get more practice. While I was shooting the girls next to a beautiful garden of flowers, Mason decided the garden would make a good place to plop down. What a goofball...and of course, with a sucker in his mouth!

Here's Hannah...so proud she peeled an orange!

Mason was just chillin'...waiting for Mom.

Camryn

Such cute little sisters!

I couldn't resist a funny Easter shot of Cassidy!

Happy Birthday Bella!

2009-03-24T16:13:00.000-07:00

This afternoon, we went to Hannah's friend Bella's 3rd birthday party! I can't even tell you how much fun the kids had...because Bella's mom went ALL OUT for a Tuesday afternoon celebration! Hannah and Mason got to go on Pony rides, jump in a bounce house, have "animal" balloons AND get their face painted! Hannah looked like a fairy princess and Mason was a puppy (sort of). Besides all that, there was the usual singing happy birthday, presents and goody bags! What a fun afternoon we all had...especially for the middle of the week!

Happy 3rd birthday Princess Bella!

Time flies

2009-03-20T22:18:00.000-07:00

I just got to thinking today about how much my little Hannah Banana has grown up. At times that gives me a sense of relief because she's so much more self-sufficient than just a year ago. But at times that also makes me painfully sad. Tonight in the car, we had just left from having sushi and ice cream with Daddy before he headed off to work again. We had all the windows rolled down and the tunes turned up. Hannah said, "Mommy! Somebody has a fire in their fireplace in their back yard!" I laughed and said, "How do you know THAT, smarty pants?" She said, "Cuz I smell it!" I know it's just the mommy in me coming out...but is she brilliant, or what? I mean, at 3 years old, did she really just point something out, site unseen, by the smell of it? Wow.

Right now, Hannah's favorite thing in the world is stickers. She loves putting on mascara and does an impecable job. She's right handed and talks about "staying in the lines" when she colors. Strangely, she has a very tight bond with our little schnoodle dog, Yazi. Strange because Hannah spent the first two years of her life hitting Yazi and pulling any part of Yazi's body she could get her chubby little fingers to grasp. Her favorite cartoons are Wow Wow Wubbzy, Dora the Explorer, and Little Bill. She likes to go to sleep watching one of these cartoons while holding on to her "bunny" and her "soft blankie" (aka Mason's blue baby blanket). She has a love/hate relationship with her little brother...but loves to check his diaper for poo poo. If there IS no poo poo, then she likes to change his diaper (and he lets her!). Hannah wants to go to Kindergarten like Tessa. And even though this won't happen for another year and a half, I'm sure the time will fly by way too quickly.

My "baby" girl. :(

1 year old

2 weeks ago

Baby Jax

2009-03-19T12:34:00.000-07:00

A couple weeks ago, I got to take some newborn pictures of my friend Cari's little guy, Jax. He was only 2 weeks old at the time so I thought he would be in a milk coma while I snapped away. He was a little sleep fighter! We managed to get a couple cute shots...but shooting a newborn was way harder than I thought. Cari's gonna let me practice on him again soon! What a cutie!

I Left My Heart.....

2009-03-17T00:09:00.000-07:00

Well, I'm back from my vacation to San Francisco with my mom. We had a wonderful weekend together with great weather, lots of shopping, good eats and WAY too much wine!

Our first day in town we did A LOT of walking...all around Fisherman's Wharf, to some of the piers, downtown into China Town and back to our hotel at the Wharf. We had the most amazing Italian food that night in North Beach at an incredible tiny little restaurant called Mona Lisa. YUM!

The entire next day we spent shopping at Union Square. Period. We were so tired that it was all we could manage to have dinner and head off to bed that night! Whew! I'm out of "marathon shopping shape"!

Saturday was my most favorite part of the trip...our tour of the wineries in Napa Valley. It started with a bus ride over the Golden Gate Bridge which was gorgeous. We spent the day at 4 different wineries where I learned much more about wine (other than just how to drink it!). The day ended with a ferry ride under the Bay Bridge back to our hotel. It was so much fun and I definitely want to go back! After dinner that night, Mom and I pretty much passed out early (too much wine I guess)...only to be woken up by the fire alarm being pulled in our hotel. Not pleasant...it was my first experience with a hang over at 10pm at night. Kids do the darndest things!

And finally, after cruising around Ghirardelli Square for the better part of Sunday, we headed off to the airport for our 5pm flight. Right as we were about to board, we were notified that the pilot had become violently ill and was taken off the plane on a stretcher! No pilot means no flight. They flew another pilot in from Vegas and our flight was delayed 4.5 hours! Oh well...the rest of the trip couldn't have been more perfect!

This picture was taken on Pier 39...mmmmmmm, wine tasting!
At the Andretti Winery in Napa Valley...my FAVORITE part of the trip

I couldn't pass up taking this picture in downtown San Fran... On the ferry ride...coming back from Napa

My mom bought these adorable little sourdough turtles for the kids from Boudin Bakery...we ate there TWICE during our stay!

Having lunch on the 8th floor of Macy's in downtown San Fran

Bubbalicious

2009-03-07T15:53:00.000-08:00

Is he really old enough to chew gum? Probably not. But he THINKS he is!

Rah-Rah-Rah!

2009-03-06T16:06:00.001-08:00

This week, Hannah's school was celebrating Lutheran pre-schools. Tuesday was pajama day and Thursday was "wear your favorite sports shirt day". Those who know us, know that we're not much of a sports loving household...so I ventured out to find Hannah something to wear for the special day. She was so excited to go to school as a Diamondbacks cheerleader! And to make the day even more special, her daddy got to take her AND pick her up! She was in heaven!

Sleeping Beauty

2009-03-04T21:21:00.000-08:00

So, the other day I posted something about how Mason was sleeping horribly and getting out of his crib, right? So Jim lowered the crib to it's lowest height...and Mason's STILL climbing out. It looks like our 22 month old son will be in a toddler bed this week. :( I can't believe in the last year I went from having TWO cribs in my house to ZERO.

*wiping my tears away* Well, this afternoon, Mason desperately needed a nap. I put him in his crib and he proceeded to melt down for a few minutes but then it grew silent in his room. I thought FOR SURE he had fallen asleep. But when I walked down the hall, I could see from under the door that his bedroom light was on! That little %$&*!!!! But when I listened at the door, I heard nothing. So I ever-so-gently opened the door, and this is what I found......

www.Slingsmart.com

2009-03-02T23:22:00.000-08:00

I wanted to give a "shout out" to my cousin's business that she started. Please visit www.Slingsmart.com to see her beautiful homemade baby slings. They make awesome gifts too!

I'm posting some of the pictures I took recently for her website. The mama's who volunteered also let me take some pictures of their babies too! I had a lot of fun!

Cereal Slurps

2009-03-02T11:11:00.000-08:00

This morning was kinda rough in our house. Mason didn't sleep well last night which is very unusual. We tried moving him to our bed...that didn't work. We tried moving him back to his bed...he just screamed. I slept with him in the spare bedroom...and he finally slept. But he tossed and turned all night which left me exhausted by 7am this morning. He recently started crawling out of his crib...so even when I tried to put him down for his nap earlier, he just kept getting out. Arrrrrgh. The beginning of a new era. On top of all this, he peed on our carpet that we just got cleaned YESTERDAY. And before I could grab a diaper and WHILE I was cleaning up the pee mess, he crapped on the patio. Sigh.

ANYWAY, my point in all this grumbling is... none of all this stuff really matters when you come around the corner and find both these little hoodlums finishing off their cereal the same way I used to when I was their age (and still sometimes do when nobody's looking!) They were so stinkin' cute together...that I smiled for the FIRST time today .....and grabbed my camera :)

A Spanier Visit

2009-03-02T09:12:00.000-08:00

Last night, we had our friends Sean & Markita over for dinner. They also brought their 3 kids, Joseph (10), and the four year old twins Jacob and Sloan. All the kids had so much fun playing together! It's so much fun to see how they interact with each other now...especially since they've know each other since they were just little baby blobs! No more baby blobs now! Last night it was fort making, couch jumping, playhouse playing, mudpie eating all around fun!

Nici's Shower

2009-03-02T08:33:00.000-08:00

Yesterday afternoon, I went to my friend Nici's baby shower at the Monastery. She got some really good spoilin's for baby girl! I tried to snap some pictures for her but it was a really dark room so I wasn't having a lot of luck. But it was a fun time and a beautiful day!

More CA pics

2009-02-27T10:41:00.000-08:00

Here are some more pics from our CA trip this past weekend! I have had a really hard time kicking my butt back into gear the past couple of days (thus, no blogging). As a matter of fact, I just unpacked the final suitcase about an hour ago! What a slacker I am!

On a funny note, earlier today, I asked Mason to go throw away an empty hairspray bottle. He grabbed it and ran out of the room to throw it away. He came running back a couple seconds later yelling something that sounded like, "Mom! Nu-noo Nu-noo!" He was holding out his hand as if he was trying to hand me something. So when I put out my hand to take whatever it was from him, he hit my hand with his fist. OH DUH!!!! He was so proud of himself for throwing away the hairspray bottle that he came running back for KNUCKLES!!! I'm always giving my boy "knucks" when he does something good and that's what he wanted this time too!

Trip to Cali

2009-02-24T08:33:00.000-08:00

Since Jim was flying to Texas this past weekend to visit his buddy, Oscar, the kids and I decided to drive out to Cali to visit Sunshyne and her family. No sense in hanging around the house by ourselves all weekend, right?

The drive there and back (5 hours) was great. No major mishaps or meltdowns! The stay at Sunshyne's? Less than great. Mason wouldn't nap during the day and Mason not napping = Mason not happy. So we're talking nuclear meltdown every day from about 4pm til bedtime. Hannah was in a very antagonistic mood towards Makenzie all weekend....so even though the girls LOVE playing together, they spent a lot of time fighting and tattling too. This trip was A LOT OF WORK! I'm ready for my trip to San Francisco (without children this time) in a couple weeks!

I'm posting some of the family pictures I took for Sunshyne and her family...I'll post more from my trip later!

Papa's last day

2009-02-17T23:18:00.000-08:00

On Papa's last full day here, we headed out to ANOTHER park (hey, we have to enjoy this beautiful weather while it lasts!). This time, we went to Freestone Park where there's tons of water, lots of ducks, rides for the kids and even a train ride! I was pretty shocked when Hannah said she would ride the ferris wheel all by herself since Mommy was too tall to ride with her! What a big girl!

The kids already miss their Papa...but his absence will be pretty short lived. He'll be back in just a couple months for Mason's second birthday! We can't wait!

Happy Birthday Jackson!

2009-02-16T13:32:00.000-08:00

Today is my nephew, Jackson's 2nd birthday! I can't believe he's already TWO! Yesterday, we celebrated the occasion at Tumbleweed Park which the kids LOVE because there's the most giant playground there that I've ever seen! Along with that, Michael and Stacy had a pinata for the kids to whack at too! Everyone had a great time and Jackson received tons of cool new toys! Happy Birthday Jackson Ray!

Free Entertainment

2009-02-15T10:02:00.000-08:00

The kids have been having so much fun with Papa...as usual! My dad has the funniest ways of entertaining these little munchkins too! Yesterday, he had them MESMERIZED by the dust particles floating in the air. I'm pretty sure Hannah and Mason think Papa is a genious (I'm also pretty sure Papa would agree with them). LOL

Happy Valentine's Day!

2009-02-14T11:35:00.000-08:00

Happy Valentine's Day everyone! My dad arrived from STL last night...he's here to celebrate my nephew's birthday which is being celebrated tomorrow! Hannah and Mason loved getting their valentine chocolate from Papa! And Daddy also spoiled them with singing stuffed animals...a doggy and a monkey! Mommy won't be left out on the V-day fun either! Our friend, Mindy, (aka the best massage therapist in the whole world) is coming over this afternoon to give me a massage! To say I'm excited is an understatement! Later tonight, Jim and I are heading out to dinner with some friends while my dad enjoys some bonding time with the kids!

Hope everyone's dad is filled with love!

Go Fly a Kite!

2009-02-12T23:11:00.000-08:00

Hannah and Mason were SO excited today because we said after preschool, we would take them to the park and fly the new kite we bought the other day. It's a ferocious looking dragon...and I have to admit, I was pretty excited to see it flying too! Well, our first attempt at the park wasn't so great. There was little more than a breeze and even THAT kept dying out! The kids had a very anti-climatic look on their faces as we told them we would try another day.

But a few hours later, the wind really picked up (or so we thought)...so we went out front to try it again!.....

Jim and Hannah assembling THE DRAGON

Barely off the ground!

Run Jim, Run!

Hannah was bored with our pathetic kite flying abilities.

"Well guys, maybe we'll try another day?"

Later the same day...THE DRAGON was trying to fly again!

The wind died down AGAIN and Jim said, "Are you f*@#!^% kidding me?" LOL

Come on Hannah...help Daddy fly the kite!

FINALLY!

To Nana's House We Go!

2009-02-08T22:01:00.000-08:00

My mom had everyone over for dinner at her house tonight. Gosh, it's so nice to eat someone else's cooking every now and then! Her husband, Reggie, smoked a turkey and we had all the fixin's to go along! YUM! The kids had a blast tearing up Nana's house and disrupting her normally peaceful life! My mom had Hannah sitting on her lap and asked her if she wanted to spend the night soon. Hannah replied, "No because I have a lot to do. I'm going to Disney Land and I have to do homework." LOL (she's not going to Disney Land and I'm pretty sure preschool has never assigned her homework before!) She's a trip....
oh and p.s....the boys don't have any clothes on because they DRENCHED themselves and each other while splashing in the hot tub!

Fun with their 'cuz

2009-02-05T23:32:00.000-08:00

Just a couple photos! I kept Jackson today since his Thursday sitter wasn't able to. The kids love having their cousin over to play...I think it distracts them from wanting to kill each other all day! LOL But MAN! These kids can tear a place UP when they get together! :) Notice Yazi surveying the damage?

Basking in the warm sun

2009-02-03T14:53:00.000-08:00

Just a few photos from today! I watched my nephew, Jackson, for just a while so his mom & dad could get their taxes done! We had fun enjoying the beautiful weather outside...it's 80 degrees today! My East coast friends, eat your heart out! ;)

Go Cardinals!

2009-02-01T13:06:00.000-08:00

For the first time in franchise history, the Arizona Cardinals are playing in the Super Bowl today! Just saying "Cardinals" and "Super Bowl" in the same sentence is unthinkable...so wish our hometown team good luck!

GO CARDS!

Wanna get stoned?

2009-02-01T11:14:00.000-08:00

My handy hubby is at it again! Since Mason was born, all home improvement projects came to a screaching halt. But lately, we've been on a rampage to spruce things up a bit without spending a lot of money. Yesterday, Jim used the leftover stack-stone from previous projects to replace the wood paneling around our island. Now our island matches the stack-stone on our fireplace and I love it! Jim did an amazing job and he was POOPED by the end of the day!

The kids had a blast too...they had Mommy's undivided attention ALL day (I had to keep them busy and away from all of Daddy's tools and mortar!). We spent HOURS outside in the yard, going for desert walks in the neighborhood, playing at McDonald's, and going to Home Depot for more materials!

Just hangin' with Mommy

2009-01-30T22:57:00.000-08:00

Just some pictures of my little guy today...he's just not that LITTLE anymore! :( Hannah spent most of the day running around with Daddy...so Mason and I had some quality mommy-son time together!

Practicing his "downward dog" pose from Yoga.

Mason HATES when his hands get dirty!

Baby Bumps

2009-01-29T22:48:00.000-08:00

My friend Cari came over today while her husband (aka my hero) worked on my computer. She let me take some preggo pics of her since she'll probably only be pregnant for a few more days! Her due date is just one week away. I feel so lucky to have taken these shots for her...as getting and STAYING pregnant has been an uphill battle for her and her hubby. But any day now, Jax will be joining us in person (and then I'll be bugging Cari to take pictures of her baby instead of her belly!)

Best Buds

2009-01-28T23:29:00.000-08:00

Do they look comfortable, or what?

Jaxson & Madison...say cheeeeeze!

2009-01-27T22:45:00.000-08:00

Yesterday, my friend Katie came over with her two kids for a little "photo shoot". I'm enjoying all the practice I can get before my first photography class next month! Jaxson and Madison were both in fun moods...especially Jaxson! He was so "kissy" that he was even smooching on Hannah! The kids all had fun running and playing at the park together.

Four Peaks

2009-01-25T21:36:00.000-08:00

This afternoon, we took the kids out to the desert near Four Peaks to ride their electric jeep around. It was such a gorgeous day...we all wanted to be outside! Our friends, Jeff & Tracy and their 4 boys were camping out there too...so we met up with them for the afternoon! The kids had a lot of fun playing with the boys and just gettin' dirty! Mason threw such a fit when it was time to go home. There's nothin' like good, cheap entertainment!

A kiss from her prince

2009-01-24T14:39:00.000-08:00

How sweet are THEY??? Hannah is finally feeling better...the 2nd kind of antibiotics is WORKING! Yesterday morning, she fell asleep on the couch while watching cartoons. I kept trying to keep Mason quiet since I figured the more sleep she was getting, the better. He just can't stay away from his sister though. I grabbed my camera just in time to catch him trying to kiss her. Oh, melt my heart!