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Ramblings
01.06.10

2010 Goals

I love to set goals, but I usually do it in September instead of January. (reasoning behind this I wrote about here) But this January, I do have three simple goals I’m hoping to accomplish in 2010.

Goal #1 – Steer clear of Emergency Rooms. The ER seems to be my new hangout these days and I think I’ve had just about enough of the place.

Goal #2 – My second goal is to stay on top of my kids’ scrapbooks during the year. This is an area I have totally slacked in and I am beyond behind. Oh well. I’m not going to worry about catching up at this point. I’m just going to focus on a realistic way I can stay on top of things next year. I’m writing up a plan that will hopefully set me up for success. More on that plan tomorrow night.

Goal #3 – There’s always a lot of blog buzz about picking your “word” for the year. A word that helps define your goals. My word for last year was “action” because I was hoping to stop just making to-do lists of projects I wanted to someday complete and to actually complete them. Looking back I think I did ok – some things were completed and some weren’t. This year I didn’t have to give much thought to my word. In fact it came to me almost immediately. My word for 2010 is “survive.” I’m hoping to survive the third trimester I’m heading into. Hoping to survive another newborn stage. And hoping to survive the beginning of life with three little ones. I’m especially worried about surviving the newborn stage because looking back that stage was particularly hard on me with both of my girls. Newborns, while adorable and sweet, also bring with them sleepless nights, unpredictability, non-stop care, and all together too much crying. I do MUCH better when my babies are 3-4 months old and are starting to develop a bit of a schedule. I like schedules. That said, I really want to enjoy this third and last baby…even during the newborn stage. If I can survive those three months and come out smiling, I will be one happy mom.

That’s it. 3 goals for the year. No more ER. Stay on top of the kids’ books. Survive baby #3.
Seems simple enough, right?

What are your goals for the New Year?

xoxo, Erin
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Ellie and Addison
01.03.10

Our minute in the snow

Admittedly my children have been deprived. Growing up in sunny San Diego with grandparents residing in sunny southern Utah, they haven’t had many opportunities to see snow. Ellie played in the snow once when she was two but she can’t remember it and Addison – never. I knew it was time to do something about this when they started talking about snow after seeing it on an episode of Max & Ruby. They spoke of it like it was such a strange, foreign thing. Ellie said, “and guess what mom…my teacher has SEEN snow and even TASTED it.” Like her teacher was the most unique and privileged person on the planet. So while we were in Utah over Christmas my parents bought the girls “I love Utah” hats and took them to see snow.

They were beyond excited.

Of course, my girls have no snow clothes or boots so my dad had to improvise by tying Target sacks around their shoes and holding them together with duct tape. Classic.

They had a great time tasting the snow…

touching the snow…

and running and playing in the snow.

And then after a whole 15 minutes of playing in the snow they took off their gloves. They realized that snow is cold. And wet. And not as fun as they thought it might be.

And they both started to cry and wanted to come home and not play in the snow anymore.

They felt much better after they had warmed up and roasted a few marshmellows by the fire.

And now we’re back home in San Diego and our forecast for the week is looking like this.

And I don’t think the girls mind it one bit.
xoxo, Erin
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Christmas
01.01.10

Glimpses of Christmas

{Christmas At Home}

Letters, cookies and milk for Santa. Cheese for Santa Mouse.

Letter from Santa

{Christmas At Mom’s}

(25 WEEKS)

(Mom and Dad)

{Insert the only NOT so fun part of my Christmas vacation. Shortly after the above pictures were taken I went to lunch with my family and then my mom and I went shopping. We were in the parking lot of a store when I stepped wrong and dislocated my left knee (this has happened to me countless times – both of my knee caps pop out of place every now and again). This was a bad one and I fell flat on the pavement with most of my weight landing on my left elbow. I was in a lot of pain and nearly passed out so my mom took me to the ER. We were both worried about what the fall did to the baby and thankfully the baby is fine. I, however, cracked a bone in my arm and my knee is swollen the size of a grapefruit leaving me pretty much immobile. I can kinda limp around with one crutch with my one good arm on my one good leg. Good times. My family has been great to help Kenny with the girls and hopefully everything will heal soon.}

We were going to go to lunch with friends the day after my little accident but since I couldn’t go, they picked up sandwiches and came to me. :)

Aside from my injuries I had a wonderful Christmas. I have the greatest friends. I have the best family. I love my husband and girls. I can’t wait to meet my little boy. I can’t wait to take pictures with my new lens. I can’t wait for my knee and arm to heal. I can’t wait to not be pregnant anymore. I can’t wait for 2010. Bring it on. Happy New Year everyone!
xoxo, Erin
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Christmas
12.24.09

December Traditions

December is full of so many fun activities. We’ve loved creating some of our own traditions as well as celebrating traditions that were part of my childhood.
Every December we enjoy the fun holiday art the kids bring home and every December we pull out our Advent calendar. My grandma made this calendar for me and my siblings when we were little and I love seeing my girls use it now. Each day they pull out a little nativity figurine to place on the tree (a wise man, soldier, sheep, etc.) and then baby Jesus and the star on Christmas Eve. They were so excited to finish the tree this morning!

This was my fourth year going up to Addison’s pre-school to help with Christmas cookies. It has become a fun little tradition for me regardless of which child is attending at the time.
One of my cute neighbors throws a neighborhood holiday party every December that we all really look forward to. We used to do a playgroup once a week but as the kids have gotten older it has been harder to get together and we miss it! It’s always so fun to catch up with friends while the kids do crafts and play.

This month was also full of lots of school parties and performances (above is Addison with her favorite teacher during her holiday performance) and LOTS of lights. We’ve enjoyed the lights in our own yard and driving around looking at other lights at night. We always take a trip to “Christmas Card Lane” – a neighborhood of houses that are decked in lights with Disney paintings and themes. The girls love getting out of their seat belts and standing in the car with windows down and the heat on full blast. They run back and forth from one window to another… “Add, look! It’s Ariel!” “Over here Ellie! It’s Peter Pan!” People are out walking the streets with hot chocolate and everyone is waving and yelling “Merry Christmas!” Such a fun holiday atmosphere and one of my favorite San Diego traditions. We also always make a trip to the temple to see the nativity and lights. The girls get to be in pajamas with hair not done – as was the tradition when I was a little girl. :)

Kenny and I have started a little date night tradition of going to the Poinsettia Bowl together every December if we’re still in town. We went last night and had a great time together. Utah was playing and won which made it even more fun. GO UTES!

This year we started a new tradition with “The Elf on the Shelf.” I’m sure most of you reading this have done it with your family or have heard of it, but for those who haven’t, it’s a little elf that comes to visit every December to watch the kiddos and make sure they are being nice and not naughty. Every morning he is sitting in a different spot to watch over things and the kids can’t touch him or his magic will disappear. Each night he heads back to the North Pole to report to Santa about what he has seen. My girls have LOVED this. They can’t wait to wake up and run downstairs to see where he is hiding. I have LOVED this because it has been a major help in the behavior department. All I have to mention is that “the elf is watching” and any fighting quickly ceases. Brilliant.
Our elf has been so sneaky! Here are some of the places he has been hiding this month…

If you have little ones at home this is such a fun tradition to start! This morning my girls woke up and ran downstairs. I called them to see what they were up to and Ellie yelled, “We found the elf! And we put the star on the tree! And there are presents under our Christmas tree! We’re having our own little party!” :) They are so giddy and excited.

We just made cookies and are anxiously awaiting this guy to visit! I don’t know how my girls will sleep tonight. I don’t know how I’ll sleep tonight. What’s better than being a 3 or 5 year old on Christmas Eve? Being a mom of a 3 and 5 year old on Christmas Eve.
Hope you all have a great Christmas and enjoy this special time with your family!
xoxo, Erin
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Christmas
12.22.09

Pretzel Hugs

Last year I found a version of this fun treat and I decided to make them look a little more “Chrissmassy” and to deliver them for friends and neighbors for Christmas.  They were such a hit that I made them again this year. They are seriously SO YUMMY and so easy to make. All you need is Pretzel Snaps, Hershey’s Hugs, and Holiday M&M’s.

It also helps if you have a couple of good “helpers” to unwrap the Hugs and place them on top of each Pretzel Snap.

After you place the Hugs on each pretzel you can count them all. Why? I don’t know. But Ellie seemed to think it was an important step.

Then place them in the oven at 200 degrees for about 7 minutes. Just watch for the Hugs to barely melt.

After you take them out of the oven promptly place two Holiday M&M’s on each Hug. Then put them in the fridge to cool. I like to leave them in the fridge overnight and then take them out the next morning and deliver them sometime later that day. Let them sit on the counter after the fridge for a bit so they are room temperature when you deliver them.
Olivia the pig loves Pretzel Hugs too.

Then wrap them up on cute plates or in cookie jars and deliver! And don’t forget to make a tray for your own family. They really are such a tasty treat. I should know.
I’ve eaten about a hundred of them in the last week.

Oh…one last thing –

Keep a close eye on your “helpers.”

**Update:  Here is a fun way to give your pretzel hugs as a gift!

xoxo, Erin
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Christmas
12.21.09

2009 Christmas card

I have so many pictures to post and catch up on but I spent the last hour making my to-do list for the next few days and now I’m burned out. So tonight I’d just like to wish everyone in blog land a
Very
Merry
Christmas!
xoxo, Erin
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Addison
12.19.09

Holiday Burnout

Anyone else feeling like this? Glad this fun but oh so crazy week is over!

xoxo, Erin
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Christmas
12.17.09

Christmas Decor

We are pretty happy around our house. The girls are counting the days until Santa comes and are having so much fun with all of the holiday festivities. Kenny is still flying high after seeing the Chargers play in Texas. Not only did the Chargers win and not only did he get to see the coolest stadium in the US, but he also got to sit in the owners box during the game and meet Jerry Jones (the owner of the Dallas Cowboys) because one of the guys he was with is related to him. Yes, Christmas came early for my husband. He should be on a high until at least February. As for me, I’m happiest when I’m home. Listening to Christmas music surrounded by my decorations and lights puts me in the best mood.

A week or so ago Ellie yelled from the family room “mom! there’s a sock for the baby!” I had taken the Charger sock down that she put up (I know, I said I was mellowing, but apparently not…it was bugging me so bad!) I went in the living room thinking she had put the Charger sock back up and saw a matching sock with “Kole” on it. So far Kole is the ONLY name Kenny and I have agreed on for our little guy. We don’t know if we’re using it or not, but Kenny ordered a matching sock with the name on it to make me and Ellie happy. He set it up and waited to see how long until one of us noticed. Didn’t take Ellie long. :) I said to Kenny “but what if we don’t use that name?” and he smiled and said “then we’ll order another sock next year.” I was already feeling emotional because it was such a sweet thing for Kenny to do and then I looked up and saw all five socks hanging there. Before I knew it I had tears running down my cheeks. It just hit me. There was my family. All five of us. I always knew there would be five. It felt so right and so…complete. Kenny didn’t even tease me for crying like he usually does. I think he liked the look of five socks too. (that or he’s finally learned not to mess with me when I’m crying during a pregnancy)


I’m especially loving all of the lights at night. You can’t beat dimming the lights and turning on the fireplace and tree and just feeling the coziness it all brings. Of course our fireplace is completely for ambiance. It doesn’t give off much heat and it’s a good thing since its been sunny and in the high 60’s all week. I love that here in San Diego we’re all running around in UGGS listening to music about how “the weather outside is frightful” when it might as well be June. :)

Hope you’re enjoying the coziness of your home this holiday season!

xoxo, Erin
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Christmas
12.15.09

A family favorite

In honor of my sister’s birthday today (happy birthday Car!) I thought I’d post our family’s favorite Christmas photo.

Guess we weren’t too excited about meeting Santa!
(Carly is on his right knee and I’m on his left)

Hope you have a great birthday today Car! Love you.

(for more old pics of me and Car you can head to her b-day post from last year)
xoxo, Erin
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Christmas
12.14.09

Girls Only Weekend

The girls and I had plans for this weekend. BIG plans. Since Kenny was going to be gone all weekend (headed with friends to Texas to see the Chargers play the Cowboys) the girls and I started scheming weeks ago about what our weekend would include. This is what we came up with:

-lots of time in our p.j’s (only leaving the house when absolutely necessary….like to get pizza for dinner) It rained most of the weekend which made this idea absolutely ideal.
-watch Mary Poppins (girls first time – my idea) They loved it! And I love that they’re getting old enough to enjoy great movies.
-make snowflakes (Ellie’s idea)
-have a fashion show (Addie’s idea)
-work on a special Christmas gift for daddy
-lots of Christmas music and movies

We started calling our weekend the “Girls Only Snowflake Mary Poppins Fashion Show Christmas weekend with no boys allowed”

I also ended up doing a lot of organizing when the girls were in bed. I don’t know why it is, but I always get crazy about organizing when I’m feeling overwhelmed or stressed. It’s like I have so much other stuff I should be doing that I don’t know where to start. Instead I just clean out a drawer.

Then I feel better and can move on and deal with life. I also spent lots of time WRAPPING and accessing where I am on Christmas gifts this year. Not far enough and the girls only have school one more week! I’m running very short on shopping time and next weeks schedule is already so busy. Just looking at my to-do list makes me want to clean out the fridge.
I know.
It’s a problem.
On to the fashion show! First item of business was to assemble the audience.

And here come my little divas…modeling the latest in Christmas attire. Minnie mouse nightgowns are hot! You really shouldn’t be seen without them this holiday season.

Strike a pose. OR: Stop. Hammer time.

Yes, even the bunnies came downstairs modeling different attire.
And that’s a wrap! Love my munchkins. Overall it was a good weekend. I had lots of fun with my girls, caught up on some housework, and didn’t put on one stitch of make-up. I think I’m ready to face next week!
p.s. Kenny – as fun as our “Girls Only Snowflake Mary Poppins Fashion Show Christmas weekend with no boys allowed” was, we really did miss you. Ellie carried around your pillow half the time because it “smells like daddy” and in the evening when I was watching It’s A Wonderful Life and started crying…again… I could hear you teasing me, singing A Whole New World (your favorite thing to do when you think I’m being overly sentimental or cheesy) and without your sarcasm, the movie and the weekend just wasn’t the same.
xoxo, Erin
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Ellie and Addison
12.09.09

Our Tether Ball Rules

(pics from our Thanksgiving in Utah)
RULE #1: Everything is acceptable. Ignore all regular Tether Ball Rules.

RULE #2: It’s perfectly acceptable and even encouraged to take a break from the game altogether and play chase with the ball.

RULE #3: If scared of the ball, or anything else for that matter, you are allowed to take refuge in-between daddy’s legs.

RULE #4: You are especially encouraged to play Tether Ball when you have a ball in your hand and one in your belly.

RULE #5: Try not to get carried away and hit your three year old sister in the head. If you are the three year old who is continually getting hit in the head, make sure that grandpa isn’t far. It’s well known that grandpas give the best hugs.

RULE #6: Stop every now and again and smile for a picture. It makes mom happy and if mom’s happy you can play more Tether Ball.

xoxo, Erin
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