Oh Christmas Tree

December 1st is officially here, let the Christmas season begin! Christmas is my favorite holiday, and while I'm slightly embarrassed to admit this, I've been listening to Warm 106.9 for about the last two weeks. For those of you unfamiliar with this station, Warm 106.9 has been playing Christmas music around the clock since the start of November!

Yesterday, we went to a local tree farm in search of the perfect Christmas tree. It didn't take us long to find it, and once home I was eager to bring it in and start decorating. Decorating the tree is one of my favorite Christmas traditions! I love reminiscing about the story of each Christmas ornament...when it comes to my ornaments, I have a great memory!

Now that the tree is trimmed our biggest challenge is to keep the kiddos (particularly Owen) from touching and removing the ornaments. My new famous line is, "No touching, just look!" Unfortunately, one ornament has already been broken, but Scott's assured me that with a little super glue he can fix it like new. I'm on serious Christmas tree patrol until the newness of the tree wears off.

Daddy and Tate hauling our freshly cut tree to the car


Owen thoroughly enjoying his complimentary candy cane


My attempt at getting a group photo with our Christmas tree

Ellensburg Getaway

This weekend we were able to escape to Ellensburg for a night to visit my Uncle Steve and Aunt Mary. I think Ellensburg is beautiful, especially the views from my Aunt and Uncle's home. Every time we go visit, I always leave saying that I could see myself living there and start pondering the future possibilities of making the move...who knows, perhaps someday! We all had a great time catching up with family that unfortunately we don't get to see very often. In fact, this was Tatum and Owen's very first visit to the Gordon's home. One of the many hi-lights of the trip for the kids (and us too) was getting to help feed their horses, Tracy and Toodles. Tatum even got to try on a cowboy hat and sit on a saddle. Tate said she someday hoped to be a "cowboy girl". Thank you Gordon Family for a fantastic time!

Tatum with Aunt Mary petting Toodles

Tatum shooting hoops with my Uncle Steve and cousin Callie

Tatum with Uncle Steve having oh so much fun...check out the beautiful scenery!!

Swimming in the tub

Last night Tatum wanted to wear goggles in the tub. As soon as Owen noticed this, he had to have a pair too. Here's a short video of the kids having fun in the tub with their goggles. Also, I have to mention this video is mild compared to what happened next. They moved on from simply blowing bubbles to literally cannon balling in the tub. Let me just say, it took about 3 towels to soak up all the water off the floor!

Happy Halloween!

Happy Halloween from our little black kitten and turtle! We spent the evening at my Aunt Vicki and Uncle Steve's house with lots of family and did a little trick or treating around their neighborhood. This was the first year Tatum was really into the holiday. She absolutely loved getting dressed up in her costume and couldn't wait to go trick or treating. Tatum definitely had the trick or treat part down, but both her and Owen (especially Owen) need to work on not barging into a complete stranger's home. Here are a few pics from our fun night.

Trick or Treat!

Tatum with my cousin Stephanie

My little kitty cat, exhausted after a night of fun

Grandma & Papa's Pumpkin Carving Party

Tonight marked the third annual pumpkin carving party hosted by Grandma and Papa (my Mom and Clint). The weather was perfect for an afternoon of pumpkin carving! Here are a few pictures from the party.

The gang...Rach, Justin, Scott, John, Jen, Kate, Brian, Tracy, and Grandma Cheryl

Scott and Justin intensely carving their pumpkins

The "cousins" decked out in their Halloween costumes:

Blake, Emma, baby Kate, Tyler, Owen &Tatum

Hammon Annual Harvest Party

Last weekend we went to Kingston for Logan and Kate Hammon's annual Harvest Party. Logan is a fellow Lynnwood firefighter. The kids had a fantastic time and Scott and I enjoyed visiting with several of his co-workers (when we weren't chasing around the kiddos). There was every activity imaginable to participate in...pumpkin painting, apple bobbing, a putting hole, frisbee toss, pumpkin seed spitting, face painting, a scavenger hunt, and the list goes on!! Owen loved bobbing for apples...and he really was bobbing, putting his entire face in the water. Thanks Hammon Family for another great party!

Luke and Tatum painting pumpkins

Tatum and Owen bobbing for apples

Boots and Backpacks

Apparently, if your a kid there's nothing quite as exciting as a "cool" backpack and rubber rain boots! After we bought Tatum her new school backpack we could hardly get her to take it off...she would have slept with it on her back had we not coaxed her to hang it on her bedpost. She had to take that thing with her everywhere we went. It came with us to the grocery store, church, Grandma's...absolutely everywhere! Owen had to get in on the backpack frenzy too. Of course Owen likes and tries to do everything his sis does.

The boots were a gift from Grandma Vicki...Thank you! As you can see, those are a big hit too. My kids are puddle magnets, so they're a great and fun option for the weather around here. When I first puts the boots on Owen he instinctively started stomping his feet up and down. I have a feeling that it will take a little more than just the boots to keep him dry when he goes puddle stomping!

First Day of Preschool

Well, we made it through the first day of preschool without shedding a tear (at least Tatum didn't)! As I watched Tate with her teacher, I felt my eyes starting to get teary. I had so many emotions going through my head; excitement, happiness, pride. I snapped a quick picture, gave her a kiss, and before I could even say good-bye, Tatum darted across the hall for her classroom shouting "Bye Mom", and never looked back. All I could do was smile...I knew she was going to have a fantastic time!

The report from Tatum was that "Preschool was great!" She said they painted apples, danced to music, and had story time. Tatum told me the best part about preschool today was story time...they read Pooh goes to School.

Here is a pic of Tatum at school right before she took off for her classroom.

Tatum saying good-buy to her little brother.

The many faces of Tatum

Scott and I just bought a new camera, and I am having so much fun with it! While on vacation our camera broke and after discovering it would cost as much to fix it as to buy a new one, we decided on the later of the two choices. We decided on the Nikon Cool Pix P80...still a point and shoot, but with a lot more zoom and the ability to be a little more creative! I've been taking pics like a mad woman to get used to the camera and test out all the neat features. As you can see from the pictures I've been using the kids as my subjects. Tatum's been fairly cooperative. Owen, on the other hand won't sit still for more than 1/2 a second. I guess that just means I'll have to work on my action photography a little more. Anyway, here are several close-ups of Tate that I took out in the yard this morning...her personality is just shining through these photos.

Owen too!

I couldn't post 4 pictures of Tatum without putting one up of Owen too. As I said before, I can't get the guy to stand still, however, he did sit just long enough on the neighbors tractor so I could snap this picture.

Long Beach Vacation

We just returned from our brief get-away to Long Beach and I am happy to report we were able to sneak in some rest and relaxation...even with our 3 year and 16 month old kiddos! From reports of the weather at home, it sounds like we really lucked out with the weather. We enjoyed three beautiful sunny days with temps that felt like the low 70's. On our first excursion to the beach, I wasn't prepared for Tatum (knowing her, I should have been) heading straight for the icy ocean water. I'll let the pictures tell the story.

We spent our time doing all the typical yet fantastic ocean vacation activities; kite flying, walking on the beach, building sand castles, throwing sand (this was Owen's favorite), chasing and jumping over waves. Owen even enjoyed running into the water, however, not without holding on (and pushing forward) to his Daddy's legs.

The ocean is a perfect family vacation especially when little ones are involved. There is definitely something for everyone...even if it's just admiring a beautiful sunset or walking barefoot on the warm sand (my favorites). I'm already looking forward to our next trip to the ocean!!

RV Shopping

Yesterday, we headed south to Qwest Field to check out the Seattle RV show. Yes, Scott and I for several years have been dreaming about one day owning a travel trailer. I grew up camping (although, I hardly would call staying in a trailer camping) from the time I was born. Now that we have kids and are a little more settled we hope a trailer is in our family's near future! We came away from the show with lots of information and a bag full of trailer pamphlets. Although we aren't sold on any particular brand, we have narrowed it down to the floor plan we like best.

The kids surprisingly had a great time. Tatum and Owen were responsible for quality control...jumping on beds, climbing up on bunks, couches, etc. to ensure strength and durability!!

Tatum enjoying a piece of pizza as big as her head!

Check out Owen's hair-do. Since giving him his first hair cut, his hair sticks straight up. I'm curious how long I will have to let it grow before it will lay down??

We leave tomorrow for a week on the Washington coast. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that we can sneak in a little rest and relaxtion while we're there! I'll be sure to post pics when we return.

Swim Lessons

Tatum started a two week, 8 lesson swim program yesterday. She is having a fantastic time! Today, during the middle of her lesson, she got out of the pool and walked over to me and said, "Mom, I just love my swim lessons." She gave me a big kiss and then walked back to the pool for the remainder of her lesson. That girl can be so dramatic, although I have to admit her comment put a big smile on my face. You can't help but love her enthusiasm! In the pictures, Tatum is practicing blowing bubbles and putting her face in the water.

Swim Lesson Video

Tatum with her instructor.

Slide Waters Lake Chelan

Last week, Scott and I, along with the kiddos ventured to Eastern Washington for some sunshine and a little bit of fun. Our plans were to stay until Saturday at the very latest, but we didn't end up leaving until late Sunday afternoon because we were having such a great time. We spent a couple days in Wenatchee and a couple days at Mill Bay Resort on Lake Chelan. We soaked up as much sun as we could, spent hours in the pool, went for a boat ride and even managed to get in a bike ride. Here are some pictures from the highlight of our trip - Slide Waters. Tatum went non-stop from the time we arrived at 10am until 5pm, hardly making time to stop for lunch. Owen also really enjoyed the water slides - so much so that he thankfully took an afternoon nap at the park. Although we had a fantastic time on our trip, Scott and I are happy to be home...traveling with a 3 year old and 16 month old (to put it lightly) is exhausting!

Water Slide Action

Watch Tatum cruise down the water slide...all by herself of course.

Crabbing

Scott and I took Tatum crabbing for the first time recently. As Tatum puts it, she "loves crabs"! Tatum truly does love eating crab. She has been very fortunate to get to enjoy a lot of it in her lifetime thanks to several family members who are crabbing enthusiasts. Tatum was very interested in watching the crab crawl around in our bucket. Although, we came home with only one crab, we had just enough for a crab salad dinner.

Owen's recent interests

"Driving" the mini. We'll see if he's still excited to drive Mom's minivan when he gets his license.


Putting his diapers in his diaper pail. He insists on this and becomes quite frustrated when the diaper "disappears".

Partners in Crime

This is what I discovered a few minutes after telling Tatum I wouldn't turn on the TV for her. As you can see, this girl sometimes will not take no for an answer. Typically, wherever Tatum is, Owen is right on her heals. He desperately wants to keep up with his sis, but I think he'll have to wait awhile before he can keep up with those long legs of hers. Tatum and Owen have been playing together really well. In the last pic, Scott caught them snuggling on the couch watching a movie while we were up making dinner...I love it!