I guess I have "THAT" kid after all . . . .

When I was pregnant with Tate, I remember being advised on more that one occassion how there would be a time when he would insist on wearing something totally off the wall. You know, his superman pajamas to the mall, his turtle neck sweater and cowboy boots in July, or in my case, his swim goggles to the Arboretum.

I was actually quite proud of myself. I didn't insist that he take them off. I did as I was advised and just let him have his moment. I even happily obliged when asked to help him put them on and fix them when they would slide of his head. I wasn't embarassed. In fact, I was honored to be the mother of "that" kid and smiled proudly with every whisper.

And, of course, took lots of photos. Because before long, girls will come knocking and I can't think of a better way to send them packing . . .

Snow Day - Part 2!

In all we ended up getting 9+ inches of snow. According to the news, it was the highest single day of snowfall ever recorded. It was fun while it lasted, but it definitely made me thankful that I don't have to live in it for months on end. Here are some more photos and video as promised.

Snow Day!

It snowed today - actually it is still snowing.  So far we have about 6 inches.  The kids are having a blast with it. 
Stay tuned for our "tubing" photos and video.

A Very Merry Christmas!

This year for Christmas, we travelled out to Northern California to visit Katie, Chris and the boys - and also the entire extended family (who drove out from Utah).  It was definitely a true Griswald family Christmas!  11 kids, 10 adults, 2 dogs, and 1 single family home (ok, and 2 hotel rooms).  The only thing that was missing was an RV parked out front and a yard full of gaudy Christmas lights and decorations.  We ate too much, and combined with the quantity of gifts under the tree, it was gluttony at its finest. 

But, it was definitely worth it and we made memories that will last a lifetime . . . which is what Christmas and family gatherings are all about anyway, right? 

We mostly just "hung out", but on one day we ventured over to a place called "Skyzone", which is basically a warehouse covered in trampolines, with a separate dodgeball court.  It was a blast.  After some gruelling games of dodgeball, where Josh was able to get retribution for all the torture I had placed on him as a child, the kids and adults were exhausted. Did you know that jumping on a trampoline as an adult is hell on your back, knees, and well, everything?

One of the highlights of the trip was an adults only night out in San Francisco.  We were staying in a suburb of Sacramento, so San Francisco is just a short 2 hour drive away.  We set the kids up at the house with plenty of pizza and movies, got dressed up in grown-up clothes and hopped in the car. We were treated to this view of the city as we were arriving.

Then, we ate dinner at this FANTASTIC restaurant in Ghiradeli Square at Fisherman's Wharf. Afterwards, we had tickets to see "Wicked". It was a perfect evening.

As we were leaving dinner, my brother Josh made a comment as to how nice it was to be able to sit and talk and have an evening without the kids.  My mom responded with how nice it was for her to sit and talk and have an evening WITH ALL her kids.  Funny how life is . . . .

Is Christmas really only one week away?

Whew! The last few weeks have just flown by. . . . here are some quick updates on what we have had going on.

Grandma Tanya and Grandpa Val came out for a visit over Thanksgiving. We had lots of fun, though not many pictures to prove it -oops! We got to go see the ICE! exhibit, which featured scenes from "How the Grinch Stole Christmas" carved out of ice. It is very cool, especially because this story is one that Tate LOVES. The photos are few and not great, but here's what I got (we took most of the photos with Grandma's camera and I forgot to download the photos before they left).

A week or so ago, we got bundled up and went to Christmas light parade.  It was mostly old classic cars spruced up with Christmas lights, but the kids had fun.  Plus, it was a small town parade, so they threw candy. 

We have been preparing for Christmas and the kids are getting really excited. Even Coy, who recognizes and calls out EVERY Santa we see with a "Tanta, Tanta".

Dinosaurs Alive!

Today we headed out to our local museum of Natural History and Wildlife Preserve and Sanctuary for their annual exhibit of dinosaurs.  They are life size, animatronic dinosaurs - complete with blinking eyes, moving heads and roars.  It is pretty cool. 

The best part of the trip was the wild life preserve, where it is all located.  The land is beautiful and is really unlike anything else in our area.  It is filled with trees, nature trails, rocks, and hills -- that's right, I said HILLS.  There are actual changes in elevation.  Nothing spectatular, but still, it is a HILL and for those of you who have been to Texas, this truly is a novelty.  We are really lucky to have this so close to us. 

As a huge bonus, the weather was PERFECT.  This is no exageration.  It was 75, blue skies, with a very slight breeze.  I love these days.  We went with our friends, Dawn, Layton and Cason (of course).  There is really very little we do with out them.  The boys are great friends and all get along famously.

We are a spectacle where ever we go, with all these blond haired boys. 

Whew! Since when was Halloween a week long event?

Here it is, 10PM on Halloween night. The costumes have been worn, the candy has been gathered and I am exhausted. We have definitely had a VERY eventful week. It started on Tuesday with a Halloween Carnival at the YMCA. On Wednesday, it was the "Fall Festival" at Tate's pre-school. Then on to Scare on the Square on Friday - a very cool trick-or-treating event put on by our city. It is in the historic district of downtown McKinney. The city blocks off traffic to the historic "square", and the restaurant and show owners line the sidewalks to hand out candy to the kids. We were amazed at how many people showed up (we tried to capture the crowd in the photo below). It was very cool. The grand finale was, of course, tonight. We started this afternoon with pumpkin carving (I know, a little bit late). Then on to dinner with friends, and then out for the gathering of the candy. The kids had a great time. Through all the events, Coy was perfectly happy as long as there was a lollipop in his mouth at all times. And tell me this, have you every seen a cuter Monkey?
For the record, if you ask Tate, he is a "bonehead pirate" and Coy is his "monkey friend". For those of you unfamiliar with this particular "Tater-ism", a bonehead is a skeleton.

What do you do when a zebra sticks his head in your car window?

Answer: Jump back, scream, then giggle . . . at our trip to the Wild Animal Ranch this scenario was tested several times, and in all instances, the reaction was the same.

Sure, there are signs like these all over the park.
And the large majority of the animals in the park have VERY LARGE horns. And many of these VERY LARGE HORNS are coming DANGEROUSLY CLOSE to the car doors.

But it is all worth it when you come away with a photo like this, and kids who can't stop talking about the time the zebra stuck his head in the window and dad made him smile. And about how mom and G-Ma would shriek and roll up the window whenever one of these FREAKISHLY LARGE BIRDS would approach.
For the record, ostrichs are quite possibly the creepiest animal ever (don't believe me - I promise you will change your mind when one is right outside your car window looking at you with those beady eyes).

And, the best part of the trip, G-Ma and G-Pa were with us! We had a blast.

Sure, we spent WAAAY too many hours in the car, but we also got to do this . . .

and see this

Oh yeah, and this too

(For those of you unfamiliar with Texas landmarks, it's the Alamo - you might recognize it from PeeWee's Big adventure. His bike was hidden in the basement)

Our visit to Utah, the cliff notes version

I had good intentions on giving a full synopsis of our 10 day vacation to Utah. But, being that it is now 2 months past due and I have much more current news to post, here it is, quick and dirty . .

On our summer vacation to Utah, we . . . .

rode the alpine slides at Snowbird

and rode the rides and roller coasters at Lagoon.

Then, we went to the Barton Ranch where we. . .

roasted marshmallows,

went on an early morning horse back ride,

were introduced to the world of cool, big kid toys by all the big kid cousins (Tate was in HEAVEN)went to a rodeo, and mostly just had a great time hanging out with all the aunts, uncles, grandparents, and of course, the cousins. Whew!

We also . . . spent a lot of time playing at G-Ma & G-Pa's house
and we even checked out the Discovery Gateway Childrens Museum. It was very cool.

Tate also rode on his first waterslides, but we were all more interested in getting wet than taking pictures . . . . check out the slide show on the right for more photos of the fun!