russ's new office!

yesterday the kids and i went to visit russ at his new office. russ's new boss and his sons LOVE to hunt...i mean, they LOVE it. all over the office are taxidermy animal heads of animals that they killed...the only other place i have seen so many taxidermy animals is at bass pro shops! we saw a giraffe, gazelle, water buffalo, wart hog, zebra skin, deer, elk and a lot of animals i don't know the name of! mia and george were both running around saying, "mom, come look at this!" russ has a very nice office that looks out over a train track, which the kids thought was cool. the train comes by 3 times a day, but we didn't get to see it. after we had the office tour we went to capriotti's for lunch. it was fun hanging out with daddy for an hour!

my friend, missy

when i worked at the university of phoenix as an academic counselor, i had a financial counselor that i was paired up with to make it easier for the students. this is how i first came to know melissa. melissa was very easy to work with; she was always friendly and helpful, and as time went on we became friends. she found out she was expecting her first child a month before i found out i was expecting mia. it was so fun to have someone i could share my pregnancy with. there were many days where i did very little work because i was at her desk chatting about anything but work! since i quit my job right after mia was born it meant that i didn't get to see melissa very often. over the years we have only seen each other a handful of times, but i still consider her a good friend. right around christmas i found out that she and her family were moving mid-january. i didn't want to pass up an opportunity to see her before they left, so george and i went over to visit and to say good-bye. it was SO nice to catch up and to see how her family has grown. she now has 3 beautiful children. i will miss them, but i wish them the best of luck in their new adventure!

georgie started preschool!

yesterday george started preschool at the same place mia went to preschool. he was so excited to go when he woke up. he picked out his coolest outfit (jeans and a lightning mcqueen shirt with a matching jacket). we pulled up, and he was confident and cool. the garage door went up signaling it was time to go in, and the waterworks began. then the screaming began..."i don't want to go to preschool!" repeated over and over. after assuring him i'd be there to pick him up and giving him a kiss, i peeled him off my body and handed him to miss janie. i then stood in the garage with my ear to the door to hear george GAGGING! i thought he was going to puke! after about 20 seconds, the crying stopped. i peeked in, and janie was holding him on her lap and reassuring him (one of the many reasons i love this woman...she is so warm and loving). when i went to pick george up, he was nothing but smiles! he was SO proud of the leopard he made, and i must admit, he did a great job! i am so proud of my little man and am excited for all he's going to get to experience in preschool.

new year's in utah

we are starting a new tradition of going to visit russ's family for new year's each year for 2 reasons...1) the kids LOVE to play in the snow 2) russ LOVES to watch football with his dad. don't get me wrong, i enjoy the trip too, but i don't love the snow, nor do i love football. i do, however, love being with family.

russ and george getting read to rip down the hill on their sweet new sled!

i can't believe how much mia loves the snow. she was out there for hours every day and would come in completely soaked!

mia, eliza & george...the cutest cousins i've ever seen. i love how our kids are in all the mismatched snow gear borrowed from the neighbors and eliza is a completely matching snow bunny!

new year's eve was spent at melinda's place. thank goodness for photoshop because we couldn't get all three kids looking at the camera at the same time for anything!

melinda bought a cute cardboard house for the kids to decorate. it was the perfect activity as it kept them occupied for a looooong time.

happy new year's from aunt linnie and mia!

TRUE STORY: a drunk driver ran into russ's parents block wall new year's eve!!! he did donuts in the neighbors backyard (there was all sorts of damage), then he drove up and hit the wall (this picture is only a portion of the damage), then he drove around the corner and ended up leaving his car on someone's front lawn! he was driving with a suspended license already and by the time the cop got through with him he had a minimum of 6 counts against him! he got buuuuusted!

i sat on the porch and took pictures of these 3 building a snowman. russ called me a wuss several times...like i said, i don't like the cold.

on new year's day, mia disappeared for about 45 minutes. she was upstairs creating her own 'happy new year' sign. i love this kid.

russ's mom and brother have january birthdays, so the whole fam went out for a delicious dinner.

the birthday peeps

grandma showing off her new robe and mia showing off her old one

you can tell mia and george don't love grandma and papa one bit!

christmas day

mia and her pile of presents...

george and his pile of presents...

jolly old st. ute and his ukelele

(i'm thinking christmas in hawaii sounds pretty good)

george may have been disappointed with the puppy santa gave him, but he LOVED the hulk punchers papa steve gave him!

the aftermath, which took FOREVER to clean up and organize!!!

eve

on christmas eve we went to my parent's house to enjoy a delicious dinner with my whole family as well as my grandparents, two uncles and aunt. after dinner santa made an appearance! papa steve missed out on the santa fun. no one knows where he went, but he showed up again right after santa left. he barely missed him!

mia had no problem sitting on santa's lap and whispering what she wanted for christmas (a stuffed puppy the barks and wags his tail)

george said there was NO WAY he was sitting on santa's lap...

once george saw santa was giving out presents, he decided he might try to sit on santa's lap.

george got a little puppy to which he replied, "my puppy is cool, but i just wanted hulk punchers."

mia got a little kitten...

after we got home we put out cookies for santa and a carrot for the reindeer. mia's note says, "these are for you, santa. i love you santa." then she drew some mistletoe. santa and the reindeer loved their snack by the way...

hair wars

hair wars {a definition}: an annual touring event for artists and salons to create unconventional, elaborate, vibrant hairstyles and fashion using hair as the medium.

over the past year there have been six local hair wars competitions, each with one winner. my brother, skaught, was one of these winners which qualified him for the hair wars finale!!! the theme was "holiday spirit." skaught and 3 others from his salon created an AMAZING angel for the event. she was the product of lots of thoughtful planning, MASSES of hair, and hours upon hours of creating and assembling. i don't think skaught slept for 3 days getting ready for this.

jamie, trevor (jamie's beau) and i headed to the palms (moon nightclub) for the finale on december 20th. it didn't start until midnight, but we wouldn't miss the unveiling of this masterpiece for the world!! each of the six finalists were so creative and amazing. there was: the angel (skaught's), 2 ice princesses, hope (her hair was fashioned like a bird's nest and had eggs nestled in it), an ornament (her hair was shaped in large bulbs and also had ornaments incorporated into the creation), and a new year's themed contestant. even though i felt like i had been hit by a bus the next morning (i didn't fall asleep until around 5 am and then had to get up to take care of my kids), we had the BEST time celebrating skaught and his accomplishment. they didn't win the competition; however, i think it's pretty spectacular that they made it to the finale! i'm so proud of my big brother!!!

here she is! it's hard to see in this pictures, but the rays coming off her head are made out of hair and light up...

skaught doing some finishing touches before the runway walk...

me, jamie & trevor...

jamie, skaught and me...

the {creators} of the angel...

the other contestants...(hard to see i know, but this is the best shot we could get)

'twas the sunday before christmas

here are the kids decked out in their christmas outfits...

bellagio conservatory

every year we head to the bellagio to gaze in wonder at the amazing winter wonderland display of polar bears made out of carnations, reindeer crafted out of pecans, snowmen created out of carnations and poinsettias in such abundance, it's hard to believe they are all real! they use natural, organic supplies whenever possible, and it's amazing to look at each detail and figure out what was used...seeds, beans, plants, etc. so creative and breathtaking!

mia's class christmas party

thanks to my mama watching george for a few hours, i FINALLY got to help out in mia's class for her christmas party! they did a rotating party where the kids went to other kindergarten classrooms to learn about different culture's holiday traditions (hanukkah, holland wooden shoes and mexican poinsettias). mia's teacher, miss whisler, taught about the mexican poinsettia tradition. we had so much fun learning about the poinsettia legend and making a really pretty "stained glass" poinsettia ornament. miss whisler also surprised each student with a thoughtfully chosen christmas present...a book to practice reading over the christmas break (mia zipped right through hers as she is already reading at a 3rd grade level!!!)