Love the Rain!

Now I know that I am truly a Seattle-ite. I am absolutely loving our weather right now. It has been rainy for 3 days, pretty much non-stop and I couldn't be happier. I know, most people will think I am crazy. I do like living in Los Angeles but I miss weather and we are finally having some weather. It's even cold, well, cold for us (like mid-50's). Of course, L.A. not quite as equiped for such weather and it makes driving crazy but that's great for me because it means we have an excuse to stay in and play games, read books, do puzzles and watch movies. All I need now is a fireplace and hot chocolate:)

Bag Tagged!

Ok, so Jen bag tagged me. I am not really familiar with this process but I'll give it a shot. I pretty much only carry my diaper bag, simply because every time I don't take it because I don't think we'll need it, those are the times we need it bad. Lucky for all of you, these pictures were not taken on a Sunday when the bag is bursting at the seems. I'll put a little plug in for the bag as well. This is the diaper bag I bought when Lauren was born and I love it. It's just big enough to fit the necessities without allowing enough room to lose things in it. It's the perfect size.

So here it is:
And here's the rest...
Things to look for:
-3 Pez dispensers, these come in handy when I need a really good incentive.
-2 pairs of sunglasses, of course the Hello Kitty ones are Emily's.
-My planner, without which I would be unorganized and late all the time.
-Tons of fruit snacks of various flavors (Fruit snacks have always been Emily's favorite.)

So there you have it, not too exciting. Sorry. So now I will tag Jill Zappe and Natalie Jensen..

She's Done It!

Lauren has finally started crawling. For the longest time she just wasn't interested and she hated being on her stomach. Anytime she would try, she'd fall on her belly and then just freak out. We had almost figured she was just going to skip the whole crawling thing but on Friday she surprised us. Emily had her Dora Memory game out and apparently that was the magic trick for Lauren. She must have really wanted those cards or she's just really anxious to torment her sister. Playtime has always been so peaceful since Lauren couldn't get to Emily's toys. I think I feel the winds of change.
Here I come!
Still has to take a little rest now and then.

I love my girls!

For all of my growing up, I always said that I wanted all boys. Mostly because I figured they would be easier, especially in the teenage years. For those who know me well, you know I am not a drama girl, I just don't handle it very well. Guys reactions to situations always made more sense to me than girls, I am sure it is a product of 5 older brothers. Well, here I am with my 2 girls. Don't get me wrong, I still have nightmares about what our teenage years could be like but lately I've had some little insights to how fun having girls can be and will be in the future. Believe me, Emily definately have some drama mama in her but for the most part she is the most fun girl. And of course, Lauren just like a little doll. Emily lately has just said the funniest things. Here are a few glimpes into our girl:

Last week, I was getting ready for Young Women's (always a challenge since I would still like to appear like I am cool). When I came out Emily said "Oh, Mom.. cute purse. You look so cute." I know she's only two but I still had to feel pretty good.

At the stores, mostly Target, she is always picking up clothes and saying "Look Mom, this is cute."

Today we drove by the mall and she said to me "Let's go to the mall and buy me a new cute dress." I told her she didn't need a new dress and she told me "I need a new cute dress for church." I was practically waiting for her to tell me she had nothing to wear. It's begun.

Last week she was supposed to start dance class. When we went to get ready she threw a fit and wouldn't put her clothes on. I told her that I wasn't going to pay for her to go to class if I had to fight her every week. She told me, "That's fine, I'll just dance at home." And believe me she does. Anytime there's any music, she definately gets her groove on. We are thinking she is more of a freestyle dancer and the class setting just doesn't suit her.

I could go on forever. She's such a funny kid. She definately keeps us on our toes.

Funny Face..

So lately Emily's new favorite thing is to make funny faces. It's pretty hilarious. It almost always involves her tongue somehow and usually includes her eyes rolling back in her head. She really is the craziest kid. Her best showtime is during dinner. For some reason that's when she comes up with her best work. The last couple of nights she will say "Mom (or Dad), I will make a funny face and you laugh." She will then make her face, we will laugh (mostly fake and way overdone) and the best part is that she then laughs so hard she can hardly breath. It's great. Pretty much what is comes down to is that she thinks she is pretty darn funny. I have to admit that Jason and I get a really good, real laugh out of it as well.

Classic tongue with Dad in on the act.
The tongue roll.
Monkey lips :)

Let's Play Pretend!

Emily's latest favorite thing is playing pretend anything-babies, dollhouse, sports and best of all pretend friends (Cruella frequently visits us at dinner time.) It's pretty fun to watch her create her own little world. She's at that great age where everything is fun. We love it.

We're training here for future chores.
I did not teach her this technique-we'll take care of that before it's real.
This is our fort-a family favorite thing to do.

We love the Wii!

I had to share this because it was just about the funniest thing I have ever seen. Jason's parents got a Wii for Christmas so we've been playing as a family-so fun. Last night we got Jason and his dad to box each other. I have to tell that it's been a long time since I have laughed this hard. I was trying to video tape it but I couldn't hold the camera still. It's hard to describe, I guess someday you'll have to see it to believe it. I think in the end Jason's dad came out on top but I think the spectators we're the real winners in this one.

The First Sleepover!

Jason's dad has been building a beautiful lakehouse on Haven Lake for the last 5 years. He had done almost all the work himself and it's amazing. Well, this trip it was ready for overnight visitors, so we, Jason's parents, and his sister Natalie and her little boy all went out for a sleepover. It was so fun. The lakehouse was so beautiful and as an added bonus we woke up to about 2 inches of snow. It was so fun. Of course Emily has never really seen real snow so she had a great time. It really was such a special visit. Kudos to dad for building a great family retreat.

A view from the deck-so amazing!

Emily's first snow ball

Seattle in the Winter (and the rain)!

One thing we always love to do when we come home is to make a trip to downtown Seattle. This year we went with a big group of my family. The best part about the visit to Seattle is the ferry ride. I don't know why but this has been one of my favorite things ever since I was a kid so it's fun to now be able to share that with my own kids. We always take french fries with us on the ferry and we feed the seagulls. The birds are so crazy, or hungry, because they will come and take the fries right out of your hand. Emily was even brave enough to do it. We were pretty proud. Emily, Lauren and Jason with my parents.
Us with beautiful Seattle in the background.
Jason and Emily
Me and Lauren
One of my most favorite views-Seattle and the water-what a beautiful place.

Merry Christmas to all!

We had a great Christmas. Santa's sleigh was definately full. Emily got a cute dollhouse and the car to go with it. She loves it. At least we hope she loves it because now we have to find a way to ship it home. Lauren got a variety of toys and books, with some cute clothes on the side but her favorite gift was, of course, the wrapping paper. Why don't we just give our kids wrapping paper and boxes for Christmas? Emily's toy collection grew by leaps and bounds so she's a happy camper. And of course, the best part of Christmas was being with our families. It's always a treat (and busy) when we come home for Christmas, but it's so special to be able to spend time with both of our families. Ultimately, we leave this Christmas feeling very blessed for great families.


The dollhouse
The SUV (a very loud one, I might add)
The dollhouse came with baby twins-she's in love!
Lauren's bear..and getting to the good stuff-the paper.