Pirates & Pumpkins - It's Halloween Time!!!

On Tuesday, the kids' Halloween Costumes came in the mail. They were so excited to play dress-up. They had NO idea they were going to be Pirates though. Boy were they excited! Here are just a few quick pic's we snapped during our "dress rehearsal". We'll get better ones as we get closer to Halloween. Still need to get their swords, earrings and Asa's eye patch. Saturday their new school is having a Harvest Celebration (aka Halloween Party). There are going to be lots of fun activities for them as well as a petting zoo. It's all Asa can talk about lately, he can't wait to play dress up in is Pirate costume and go to the party.

I got smart this year and decided to buy "craft" pumpkins and carve them. I was tired of spending all of that time carving pumpkins every year and then watching them go bad and having to throw them away. With the craft pumpkins we get to keep them year after year and add to the collection! Yeah! We will still get a regular pumpkin and carve it closer to Halloween though. Here are 3 of the 4 pumpkins. I haven't carved the 4th one yet.

Baby Johnny is finally home...

Sad and happy day yesterday. we got the call that Johnny was ready to bring home. Sad because a new sense of reality set it for me... the baby we were able to hold and feel just a little over a week ago, really is not with us anymore in flesh. Happy because the baby we were able to hold and feel just a little over a week ago, is home with us where he belongs. His urn was so much more beautiful than I imagined it would be. I knew it was going to be beautiful, but to actually see it and to know that is where he is, gave it another level of beauty that I wasn't expecting. My mom and I also ordered a charm necklace each, a teddy bear, that also holds some of his ashes. I only wish that mom was able to experience seeing it for the first time like I did, and then be able to put it on and wear it. Wearing it though is another challenge for me since Asa and Lexi are still so small. They want to pull on it and yank on it. They don't understand (nor do I expect them to) what the necklace is. Asa knows that he has a baby brother and that his baby brother lived in mommy's tummy and now is an angel and lives in heaven, but flies around us and protects us all day, even when we are asleep. He knows that he his lucky to have his very own angel. Lexi's just to young, but one day she too will know how lucky she is. Although I never expected my kids to have their very own angel like this, I am so very thankful that they do. Here is a picture of Johnny's urn. It represents the 5 of us. Daddy, Mommy, Asa and Lexi who can be seen and Baby Johnny on the inside, who although can't be seen is always with us.

In Memory

When God sends forth a tiny soul
To learn the ways of earth,
A mother's love is waiting here
We call this wonder birth.

When God calls home a little soul
And stills a fleeting breath,
A Father's love is waiting there,
This too is birth, not death.

John Allen Abbott Jr.
Born to Heaven on September 22nd, 2009 @ 6:28 p.m.
2.3 ounces

We love you our sweet little Angel in Heaven.

Our Future Rock Star...?

Look what John taught Asa to do while watching a "rockumentary" on Iron Maiden tonight. Once he got the hang of it, he was doing it non-stop all night. He makes his Daddy so proud! Forgive the messy face - I didn't have time to wash the face before I snapped the picture.

The Joy of Potty Training

Ever since we've been more on top of getting Lexi potty-trained, we have been having problems keeping clothes on her. She takes EVERYTHING off. She will not wear a diaper/pull-up/underwear for more than 5 minutes at a time. She insists every 2 minutes that she has to go potty. I love her eagerness, but it is exhausting! So at home in the evenings and during the weekend, we just decided to let her go naked. We can't keep anything on her anyway and as long as it encourages her to go potty in the potty and not anywhere else... what's the harm, right? Well today we pick her up from daycare and learn that she was constantly taking her clothes off all day, but she did go pee-pee on the potty at school twice - all on her own. So apparently we've created a naked monster who now thinks it's okay (and the right thing to do) to get naked when she has to go potty. Just when you don't see the harm in something - BAM! - there it is... naked at school. LOL. Do you think I'll (we'll) have it all figured out by the time the 3rd one gets here? Yeah - you're right - probably not...

Happy 2nd Birthday Lexi!

Thanks to everyone for stepping up at the last minute to make this such a special day for Lexi and a great party. Lexi loved all of her gifts (as did Asa) and loved the cake! Of course, her favorite present of all was her new Kitty - "Jack" from Gramma & Grampa. I can't believe she's 2 already!

ANNOUNCEMENT!!!!

Our Amazing 4th of July Weekend! Part 2

What a better way to spend 4th of July then driving one of the most beautiful scenic roads in Colorado? We headed out of Cortez around 8am for a beautiful drive on the Grand Mesa - Scenic and Historic Byway. If you ever get the opportunity to drive this, I would encourage you to do so. In fact, we are talking about going back in the fall when the leaves change colors and drive it again! The Byway takes you from Cortez up through Dolores and several other small cities and then leads you to Telluride. There are tons of camping spots along this road and amazing views. Once we got to Telluride the weather was a little cool still and there was just a hint of snow still on the mountains. We decided to brave the Sky Tram and see how Asa and Lexi would do. I am so glad we did - they loved it! Especially Asa which kinda surprised me. At points he even waved to other people as they were passing us by. Lexi was a little hesitant at first, but warmed up once she saw how much fun Asa was having. After the Sky Tram we came back down the mountain and strolled the main street of Telluride. They had just finished their 4th of July parade (we missed it - on the Sky Tram). The streets were full of people, kids, and dogs and everyone was having a great time. We had a mini-picnic and then hit the road again. Perhaps, July 4th was not the best day to do this drive because for the most part the highway was shut down in all of the cities for their parades, so there was a lot of detours. Ouray was beautiful but there were so many people that we decided not to stop and get out and headed to Silverton. Silverton was pretty much the same, road closed - detours and a lot of people. We drove around a while and again decided not to stop. Plus the kids were napping and we didn't want to wake them up anyway. After more beautiful scenery we came to Durango. Of course we had to stop here! This is where the train is! The trains were out still so we walked the main street and window shopped. They were having a BBQ Contest and people from as far as Florida had driven to take part. It smelled sooooo good! All the smokers and hickory and BBQ sauce - yummy! We settled on the vendor that had the most amount of trophies and awards displayed at their booth. Yes they were from Florida. Needless to say - we were not impressed and this convinced us even more that John needs to start his own BBQ business and show these people how REAL BBQ is made. After the BBQ we headed back to the train depot and got to watch the train come in. Asa had the biggest smile on his face. He thought it was pretty neat and I am so glad he got to see a real live train. Then we headed to the train museum and both kids got to explore a real engine and sit in the engineer seat. After Durango we headed back to Cortez and played on the playground at the campsite until it was time to watch the fireworks. The kids were really excited - until the first firework went off and then they started to cry. They both wanted to go back to the tee pee (or as Asa called it the "camping fire"). So, we left and John and I pretty much walked backwards so that we could see the fireworks and the kids didn't have to. Sunday morning we got up early and headed for home. Decided this time to drive though Gallup to I40 and then hit I17 at Flagstaff and took a side-trip through Oak Creek Canyon and Sedona. Got home about 4pm. Overall it was an awesome trip and I am so looking forward to our next one! Enjoy the slide-show!

http://www.slide.com/r/41Zfc2sX5T_DJBhnPRFub8LfKK6vTR-1?previous_view=mscd_embedded_url&view=original

Our Amazing 4th of July Weekend! Part 1

Hope everyone had a wonderful and safe 4th of July! We are glad to be back home, but also very thankful that we had the opportunity to head to Colorado for 4 days to enjoy some amazing scenery and fantastic weather! The kids did great the entire trip and are really turning in to be some Road Warriors! They pretty much just go along with anything we do and as long as John and I show excitement, they get excited too.

We left Thursday morning for Cortez, CO. We stopped in Tuba City and were a little less than impressed. I remembered a huge Truck Stop that my parents used to stop at and I wanted to see it again. Apparently my childhood memories are a little off, because there is no Truck Stop in Tuba City. At least, none that we saw. We did stop at a little Trading Post though - and I'm not joking when I say little. It was more like a mini Circle K though except this store had burlap bags for sale too which I thought was kinda cool. Now I know where to go if I ever need a burlap bag.

The great thing about being on vacation is that you can pretty much do whatever you want and see whatever you want - so we detoured through Monument Valley. I am so glad we did because it was just as beautiful as I remembered it when I was little. It was a little overcast which I think added to the beauty and color of the monuments. After Monument Valley we stopped at Four Corners for a family photo op. And finally, we made it to our Campsite - er, Tee Pee site? - in Cortez, CO. Yep - it was a Tee Pee. Home sweet home for the next 4 days and 3 nights. It was a nice Tee Pee, minus the bare dirt floors (which Lexi LOVED!) and the Orioles Nest and constant bird chatter at the top of the Tee Pee. The Tee Pee was nice and roomy - we were able to fit two queen sized blow-up mattresses with no problem and walking room between. The first night was a little uncomfortable. The kids were excited and didn't want to wind down. Asa wanted on Lexi's bed and Lexi wanted on Asa's bed. Asa wanted to sleep with Mommy, then Daddy. Lexi just wanted to be wherever Asa was. It was a lot of back and forth. Finally they feel asleep and mommy & daddy could too! Except it was FREEZING cold (in the low 50's) and raining off and on all night. No rain got into the tent, but the tee pee doesn't come all the way down to floor level, so there was a little bit of a draft coming in the Tee Pee. The kids were warm and toasty in their fleece footed jammies and blankies, so we just had to layer ourselves up to stay warm. They slept pretty good the first night and the rest of the nights they were so exhausted from being on the go constantly that they pretty much feel asleep as soon as their sweet little heads hit the pillows (that was our goal - yeah it worked!).

Friday morning we left for breakfast and then headed off to Mesa Verde National Park. There are a few ruins that you can see from overlooks and some you have to have a ticket to go see or you need to walk to go see. We stopped at the Visitor Center first to get a little more info before heading further into the park. We decided to not get any tickets this time. Tickets are required for Balcony House and Cliff Palace. Both would be impossible to attempt with a 3 year old and a 22 month old. The Cliff Palace is a pretty steep walk, plus steps and ladders. The Balcony House is the same thing. We made the decision to not see these dwellings after we attempted to see the Spruce Tree House. Needless to say, there was no way that either John and I were in any condition to pull and/or push the stroller up and down a windy trail. We got about 1/4 way down and immediately turned around and headed back up. Definitely something to do when your kids are older - much older! The overlooks were just fine for us!

John and I took tons of pictures (almost an entire card worth). This time though I decided to create a slide show rather than attempt to post a bazillion pic's on the blog. Hope you enjoy it!

http://www.slide.com/r/ajuWlcU06z-ycIeaQvjUWlKGgCrnSg0O?previous_view=mscd_embedded_url&view=original

There are tons more pictures and I will get those on a slide show hopefully tomorrow night. It's my bed time and my pillow is calling my name. Love to you all!

Exciting News!!!

Lexi pee-pee'd in the potty!!! It happened on Saturday and needless to say it was an exciting moment for all of us. She has shown an interest in the potty for a month or so now, but never actually "gone". And I do have to confess that it wasn't a full-on emptying of the bladder or anything, but at least it was something (if even a trickle). Oh - Happy Day!

I know I haven't written anything on the blog for a while, and to tell the truth, not that much has really been going on with us, so unfortunately nothing really to write about.

Today I took Asa and Lexi over to Auntie's new place to go swimming in the pool. Of course, I forgot the camera. Probably a good thing anyway, because with these two, you can't afford any distractions around water. The water in the pool was pretty cold, but the kids didn't seem to mind. Of course as soon as we got there and got Asa on the first step, he announced that the had to go "potty", so Auntie had to walk him all the way back to her place and then back again. But that gave me a little one on one time with my sweet little Lexi. She sure does love the water! After Asa and Auntie got back we swam in the "cold" pool for a little bit and then walked over to the "hot" pool (jacuzzi) and then repeated the above two steps about 4 more times. Personally, I could have stayed in the jacuzzi the entire time - it felt sooooooo good! Anyway, we had a good time and can't wait to go back again and swim some more. Thanks Auntie!

Here's a couple cute videos of the kids. We were trying on their new bathing suits and they were just being funny in general.

Video 1:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Elx69E8EtUg
Video 2: This one is really cute because Asa was looking at himself on the viewer screen as we were recording, that is why he is smiling so much! He has a great smile!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eNPITYk4Rd0

Asa's New Summer Do!

On Sunday, we took Asa for a much needed haircut. We were originally going to take him to the Barber Shop on Base, however once Asa walked in, he immediately did an about face and walked out. We thought he might be ready for it... guess not. So back to Snip-n-Snap for Kids we go. I admit that I freaked out a little when I saw the stylist start shaving off all of his beautiful blonde hair, but I have to admit now that it looks great.

Here's the before picture (front)...

After picture (front)...

Before picture (side)...

After picture (side)...

Asa's Classroom Cupcake Cake

Almost forgot! Asa's birthday festivities actually began on Thursday, May 21st. Because Asa wasn't going to be at school on his actual birthday, his classroom had a little birthday party for him on Thursday. Here is the cake we brought in for his class. It's a Madagascar Cupcake Cake and the class loved it! It was pretty cool looking too!

The Big Day - Asa Turns 3!!!

Today is Day 1 of the most amazing birthday weekend a 3 year old could ever want. Today at 12:10 p.m. Asa was officially born. Since the theme for Asa's birthday is "Madagascar", we thought it would only be fitting that we take Asa to Out of Africa for the day. First though, we stopped at Village Inn for a good hearty "pattycake" (pancake) breakfast. It rained a little here and there, but for the most part, the weather was great!

It was amazing to me how close you could actually get to the animals. Really the only thing separating you was a single chain link fence!

See what I mean? A little scary!

This alligator was a little creepy too!

This was by far the most concerning part of our day. Asa, John and I were walking down this dirt road and on both sides were animals. If you look really closely at the picture below you can see the lion laying down looking at Asa. This lion only moments before this picture was taken was actually actively "stalking" Asa as he was walking down the road. The lion was creeping along the fence line, camouflaging itself with the brush and peering out between branches. This went on the entire length of the fence. It really concerned both John and I which prompted John to hold Asa's hand the rest of the way down the road.

Here's a close up picture of the lion that was stalking Asa.

I could not believe that we were close enough to this Lion to get this picture. Truly an amazing and beautiful creature!

It's my birthday and I can make silly faces if I want to!

We were waiting to take the Safari Train to go see the zebra's and giraffe up close. It was raining pretty heavy at this time. I just loved this picture of Asa's hand catching the rain drops.

But I loved the picture of Asa catching raindrops on his tongue even better!

Zebra's from the Safari Bus.

Do you see the giraffe? Yeah, this is as close as we could get to it. Bummer!

After Out of Africa, we picked up Lexi and headed to Outback Steakhouse for Asa's traditional birthday dinner. Asa got his complimentary birthday dessert, and a special tour of the kitchen by the manager!

After dinner at Outback, we headed to Gramma & Grampa's travel trailer in Buckeye and I got to open my first present! My very own Dyson Vacuum Cleaner! This was a gift from Grandma Dot and Asa loved it! Here he is at home that night vacuuming the family room floor for mommy! Thanks Asa! And thanks Grandma Dot! Asa loves his new vacuum!

Birthday Party

Day 2 - Saturday, May 23rd. Here are some of the pictures from Asa's birthday party. It was such a beautiful day! We were worried that it might be too hot, but thankfully it wasn't! It was great!



Gramma showing me how to play with my new bubble wand!


More fun to chase the bubbles though!

Grampa teaching Asa how to use his new T-Ball set.

Check me out! I can really swing a bat! Watch out Diamondbacks, here I come!

The ducks at the park are always a huge hit with the kids. Especially with Lexi who tried to "talk"to them before she would give them anything to eat.

I swear they both did not wear yellow shirts on purpose.

Asa opening one of the MANY gifts he got. I knew we had to get him this dvd. He saw 'The Adventures of Shark Boy and Lava Girl' one time on t.v. and after that would not stop talking about it. He actually calls it "Shark Loving Girl". Here he is opening his present.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lXGD5Sb5-Bs

Happy Birthday to You! Happy Birthday to You!

Make a wish!

More bubbles... there seems to be a theme here, don't you think?

Lexi making her "silly" face.

After Asa's Birthday Party, Daddy and I took Asa and Lexi to the water play area at Marley Park to run around some more. This was Lexi's first visit to the water play area and she LOVED it! This girl did not have any reservations jumping right in running through the water. Asa... not so much. He preferred to just get his feet wet and watch Lexi.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NwA-MiBxzUE