Happy Year of the Rabbit!

Have I ever told you how much I enjoy learning about other cultures? For Christmas this year we had several parties revolving around Christmas celebrations in other countries. It's actually how I stumbled on this little gem:

On Christmas Eve in Sweden everyone drops EVERYTHING to watch it. So, this year we watched it. We also did some Mexican, German, and Italian traditions. Next year I plan on doing some more. It's been fun to learn about this stuff and even more fun to teach Hailey about it.
We have had a fun couple of months doing some other holiday stuff and mixing it up with holidays from other countries. So today we celebrated Chinese New Year. I know it was yesterday but Alex had school. We started out with a homemade Chinese feast. Chinese Salad, egg drop soup, egg rolls, sweet and sour, fried rice, and lemon chicken all made from scratch. (no mixes, my friends) And it was delicious. I forgot to take pictures of that part though. After that we popped open some crackers that we bought at an after new years sale, ate some store bought Asian goodies, and played some games. Then we all got Lucky Red envelopes. Hailey is already dreaming of what to buy with her $1.
So excited for her cracker!

 All of our goodies.

 I LOVE this candy. If you haven't had it, you should go buy some.

Matthew is obviously very excited about his crown.

 Amanda playing an intense game of tiddlywinks.

 "Please just feed me mom." He was not that interested in what was going on.

 The conversation heart stacking game.

 My dad and Steven tied at 16. They are master stackers.

 Hailey was really getting into it too.

 I found this Chinese New Year/Valentines fusion game idea on FamilyFun.com, it's much harder than it looks.

 Steven and Alex loving each other a little too much.

I See You!

I have been throwing the idea of starting a recipe blog for a while. I even got myself an url for it. Time and a need for sleep have not been my friends in this endeavor though.

Speaking of sleep, I am seriously lacking.

I've gotten some really awesome freebies and deals lately. I've shared a few on facebook, but I fear if I share too many I will become that annoying friend that everyone blocks. BUT I also want to hook everyone interested up with great deals. Maybe when I finally start my other blog, it'll be for more than just recipes.

I think it is hilarious when Hailey sings rock songs. A two year old rocking out is the funniest thing ever.

One of my best friends from high school (one of the few I actually still talk to) shared this on facebook yesterday. I LOVE it. To Kill a Mocking Bird is my favorite works of fiction and Atticus Finch is my hero. He is the kind of man I want to be. ;)

It looks I will no longer be the black sheep in my family. I have read The Fellowship of the Ring, The Two Towers, and most of The Return of the King. I actually like them. My dad will not have to disown me. I still WILL NOT read The Silmarillion. So I guess I am still the black sheep.

Even after reading the books I still don't understand why they didn't use the eagles sooner. When I saw this clip for the first time, I knew I was not alone. I'll warn you now that there is a cartoon bum in it.

What came first?

I'm pretty sure that kids are supposed to walk before they can do this. Matthew's been doing this for about a week, and I've finally caught it on video. He's actually been really close to walking for a few weeks, but I don't think he really wants to.

Oh What do You do in the Winter Time?

Go get ice cream!

And then Share some with your brother.

Why is this kid so happy?

Because he got to eat one of these.

His sister on the other hand, only wanted the frosting.

We'll eat healthy next week. ;)

Who's the Fairest of them All

I'm seriously in love with this onsie. I know it's goofy, but it makes me smile.

Saturday Hailey and daddy went on a daddy daughter date to the Disney Store, for the princess party they were having. The girls were supposed to dress up and Hailey wanted to dress up like Snow White. I thought it was a little weird since she likes Ariel the most. I guess Stemanda is rubbing off on her. :P

We're Going to the Zoo!

For the kids birthdays we have tried to make it a tradition that instead of toys, they get passes to some place fun. This year we decided to get LA Zoo passes. It's a little bit early, but with the three day weekend we decided to go ahead and do it. We had San Diego Zoo passes a couple of years ago and it's definitely my favorite zoo, but we decided LA would be a fun change. We had a lot of fun and both of the kids LOVED it. The best part of the day was when Hailey dropped her chap stick into the ground hog exhibit and we had to get a keeper to get it out for us. I didn't care so much about the chap stick, I just cared about not being responsible for the death of a zoo animal.

We had to get the ground hog pictures that every kid who goes to the LA zoo has.

Hailey and Papa.

Matthew likes the giraffes as much as mommy does.

 Notice the way my children are dressed? It's been in the mid eighties all week. Alex won't stop complaining. ;) On a side note, my mom was watching Matthew yesterday and decided to give him a faux hawk. Too funny.

10 months!

I love this kid! I guess I missed a few months, but I'll be brief. (I took pictures of those months, just didn't blog them.) Matthew is finally sleeping through the night! He went from no more than 2 hours in a row, to 12 hours in a row. It took a month of awful nights, but we are finally there. He loves to eat, read, cuddle with mommy, play with toys, take baths, play with Hailey, be with daddy, dance, shake his head "no," cruise around, and babble. He is REALLY close to his first steps, like within the next week close. He does not like to be hungry or let people besides mommy and daddy hold him. I'm sure I'm forgetting something, but that's what happens when you don't blog for a few months. He keeps us smiling and laughing all the time and we are grateful to have him as part of Team Y.



Now, this girl is almost three! Can you believe it!?! Where did the time go? She rarely lets me take pictures that aren't candid. She is SO smart. No one who meets her can believe how smart she is. She talks as well as my kindergartners did, seriously. (in fact better than some) When I tell people things she has said to me, they often try to correct me with dumbed down versions of what she said. But she really talks like that. Some times she makes me feel dumb. ;) She is SO fun. She makes us laugh constantly. She has been such a blessing in our lives.
This shot show the bump she got on her forehead in nursery yesterday. It also shows the jar she has decided to carry around constantly. Two year olds are weird. :)