December 21

Playing with my camera tonight didn't provide much success, but I did get to use a trick I learned from Understand Exposure. This is the moon taken from our back deck. As you can see, there is antenna and some other lit buildings across the field from us.

December 20

Dani and her mini-me making Christmas treats together!

December 19

Leila has recently learned to read. We were very impressed when driving around a car lot Leila yelled out, "Trucks!" as she read the sign on the lot. That was a few months ago and since then she has has taken to reading every sign to us that she can see. We bought her some first readers books and she breezed right through them. The latest language test...her very first email address. Here she is typing an email as I helped her spell the words. What a little grown up!

December 18

Our friends the Bishop's came over for dinner and a play date. Amanda and Bryan's daughter Lilly is just days older than Leila and the two get along beautifully. Yeong Ho is a little bit older than Thea and one of the cutest little boys I know. I was a little worried that Zoey would make him nervous, but then I looked over and saw this.

December 17

The 24 hours fever free rule proved to be a challenge for two parents who needed to get work done at home. Finger painting saved the day, but this girl is ready to go back to school!

December 16

Leila needed a sick day, so Cory and worked from home while she lounged around and watched cartoons. A little Tylenol goes a long way and she seemed to feel a lot better, at least good enough to play with her box of art supplies.

December 15

I hate pictures of myself. This is a terrible self portrait taken with Thea after my workout at the gym, so I look an extra special kind of crappy. Blech.

December 14

There are a lot of ugly nativity scenes out there, so when I saw this one several years ago I knew that I had to have it. It actually consists of several small sets, and over the course of a few years I accumulated the majority of them from my Mother in Law and my Grandma. I am so glad to have a safe, out of kid reach place to display the figurines this year.

December 13

A late night attempt to get caught up on Christmas obligations. We didn't send out very many cards, because we are both lazy and busy. We mostly tried to hit those that aren't on Facebook and would also be interested in our new address.

December 12

A bitter sweet day for me. I love to purge, I hate feeling like I am giving up on the baby making portion of my life. I just tell myself that getting rid of all of these adorable baby clothes doesn't mean I can't have another baby, it just means that I will get all new baby clothes when the time comes. This way I don't have to really accept that that time may never come.

December 11

Snack time!

December 10

We spent a few hours with our good friends the Webers. After listening to the kids running around and screaming and playing for a while, we decided we need some peace and quiet. These two little peas are big movie fans!

December 9

Leila had her annual school program this evening. I got lots of good pictures of my girl. She has come a long way from the first Love A Lot concert of her career where we had to pick our crying child up from the stage. This year she sung her little heart out and had a great time with her buddy Clara.

December 8

I am not the only one in this house who likes to take pictures! :)

December 7

My Christmas present to myself. I Love it. When I bought this canvas picture I had a place in the house in mind for it. Now that it is here, I think I like it too much for that out of the way place. So for now it is still wrapped in plastic, sitting in the kitchen. Soon enough I will find a place of honor to hang it.

December 6

Leila is left handed, just like her mama. Cory always jokes about how he hopes that at least one of them turns out "right." It looks like he got his way.

December 5

Lazy Sunday.

December 4

I like to sew. I really appreciate being able to see something that I think is neat, and recreate it for myself and my family. Every Christmas I have big plans to make gifts. This year I set my goal pretty low as far as homemade gifts go. I spent a couple of hours making some cold packs for the accident prone little people in the family. Leila has one that Grandma Sandi gave to her a couple of years ago and it has served us well. Hopefully the little nephews in the family will get some use out of these as well.

December 3

The view from my first of hopefully a whole lot of trips around the track at the new gym. Momma needs to drop some pounds.

December 2

These tender moments seem to happen less and less. The girls are getting very good at pushing at each other's buttons, but after a trip to visit Santa at the mall Leila must have been in the holiday spirit as she fed her sister grapes at the food court.

December 1

I should have known that the Christmas tree would be too enticing for Thea. Looks like the ornaments are going to be moving on up out of little girl reach!

November 30

The first snow of the season. Thankfully it didn't stick, I don't think we will get so lucky for long though.

November 29

Six weeks into the new house and I am feeling so grateful to be here. We love the house, and we love the neighborhood. There is such a nice sense of community around here and that was apparent the day that Cory was putting up Christmas lights, along with neighbors on both sides putting up their own lights. While Cory was trying to test the limits of our step ladder, another neighbor across the street offered to bring his larger, safer ladder over to help out. The streets lined with beautifully decorated houses filled with friendly neighbors is just another reason we are happy to call this home.

November 28

I came home from church drunk on the Christmas spirit and put Cory to work...I don't think he minded that scrooge disappeared for awhile.

November 27

This picture has to remain hidden until after Christmas..................

November 26

My babies love their cousins. This is the first time they had the opportunity to "hold" her, but now that Clay and Rebekah are moving to the area, hopefully they will lots more opportunities to hold their youngest cousin.

November 25

This sweet little turkey was made my cousin Nick's daughters, Lexie and Kenna. Seeing the girls walk in to Thanksgiving at Grandpa's house with these made me want to cry all the while putting a big smile on my face. Every Thanksgiving Grandma Dalene would make the candy turkeys. One for each place setting at the table. When Grandma Passed away in 2007, we were faced with our first Thanksgiving without Grandma's turkeys, but instead two out of the three aunts produced their own batch, not knowing that the other was bring turkeys. As time goes by, some of those wonderful memories of past holidays get further into the distance, but is beyond touching to see them revitalized and remembered years later, especially by the sweet children who are the last of the kiddos to have a memory of the original Grandma turkeys.

November 24

Home alone. Feeling better, but not so great that I want to spend the day away from my bathroom, just in case. We never used the fireplace in our last house. It is too much of a hazard with the little kids around. Having the house to myself today, on a crisp fall day, I couldn't resist the fire.

November 23

Today's picture was supposed to be at Leila's Feast day at pre-school, but unfortunately the two of us were attacked by an evil stomach bug during the night, and we spent feast day at home, watching TV and recovering. The highlight of the day was Thea's new shoes.

November 22

My husband is not only the best husband a girl could ever ask for, he is an awesome Daddy. Leila's shirt, and the girls' faces says it all...

November 21

There was one time a few years ago that I didn't bother to buy a special Christmas outfit for Leila. I just figured it wasn't necessary for her to have something new just for Christmas, when there are already so many other expenses to worry about. I remember feeling really guilty, and my mom ended up giving her one of her presents early so she could wear a new outfit to church that day. I learned my lesson, there are some things that I just need to do, even though I don't need to do them. One of those things, is new Christmas outfits for my kids, and here is Leila giving you a preview of her 2010 Christmas gear!

November 20

Killing time by making cookies...someone was REALLY excited to have a cookie. I was happy to have a sweet little helper in the kitchen. Baking with Leila is one of my favorite things to do on the weekend.

November 19

Putting the finishing touches on Turkey Tom before school this morning! Our family turkey was meant to be displayed at the Love-A-Lot feast. And it probably was, but November 23rd will tell you that we weren't there to verify.

November 18

I hate to brag. Really. But my Mac and Cheese is the best. I start with a recipe from the Anderson family cookbook, a recipe that originated with Great Grandma Anderson. I don't remember a lot of things about Grandma Anderson, but I do remember some. I don't remember eating her mac and cheese, but every time I make mine, I think of her. One of the things that I love most about cooking, is the connection I get by associating recipes with the people that made them first. Grandma Anderson may not have topped her dish with Italian style breadcrumbs, but for me, the connection is there anyway.

November 17

When I looked over the pictures I had to load to my 365 blog I was really annoyed at myself for not taking more than one picture this day. This picture is blurry and dark, but as you can see from the foot sticking out of the giant box the ottoman came out of, you can see that even two days later, this purchase was a hit, even if you can get boxes for free.

November 16

Bath night!

November 15

I worked from home today in order to be available to accept a delivery. We bought a storage ottoman online, and as soon as the girls got home from school they had to check it over pretty closely. I think they approved of the purchase. I am excited to have a coffee table that won't hurt shins and does hide toys!

November 14

Lots of kids have a Lovey, and my kids are no exception. I remember when Leila was little we always wondered when and if she would gain an attachment for one of her toys, but everything seemed to be pretty expendable to her. I remembered from when the twins were babies that there were definitely drawbacks to this scenario. Little Clayton was attached to his pacifier, but nothing like little Cassie and her blankie, which she temporarily named Mike after a favorite uncle. I would be willing to bet that Cassie still has that blanket, or at least the scraps of it that have survived the last 24 years.

Leila eventually did turn to a blanket as her special lovey, and Thea followed right in La-La's footsteps when she also claimed a fluffy pink blankets as her own "Nigh-night."
Here are my girls on a Lazy Sunday morning sporting their special friends.

November 13

The much anticipated baby shower. Leila tried her best to be the center of attention, but the competition was fierce with all of the grandkids together in one place.

November 12

SQUEE!!! BABY!!!! Mabel is in the house!

November 11

Upon returning home I was greeted with a lot of work to do to prepare for house guests and a baby shower for the weekend. Thankfully I have wonderful sisters. Cassie had to work, but Andrea, Dani and I spent the evening baking together and chatting. Love them.

November 10

Home sweet home! Cory, being the rebel that he is, had his phone on during take off and landing so that he could take some video of the experience to show Leila. Leila is a little sponge these days, and she was very interested in hearing about flying. Judging from the picture you would think Thea was really interested too!

November 9

Though our trip wasn't a long one, we spent our evenings out making the most of it. Both by exploring the shops and restaurants, and also by exploring the countryside. Leave it to a couple of small town Iowans to visit a new city and drive for miles to get a view of the countryside.

November 8

I love an opportunity to explore new places, and this was my first experience with the southwest.

November 7

I don't have a lot of experience flying. Aside from a trip in the Cat Scale plane, and my honeymoon, I had not flown. Cory and I managed to get permission from work to attend the same PMI seminar event, so on Sunday morning we dropped our girls off with Grandma Lori and Grandpa Carey and we flew out of Moline to Scottsdale, AZ.

November 6

Leila's first kid birthday party, at the Iowa Children's Museum with lots of her friends from school.

November 5

The favorite hiding spot in the house got lots of attention when our good friends the Weber's stopped by. Leila and Bryce managed to fit in there, but it was snug. When Matt and Cindy stopped by our house way back in the winter of 2005 to tell us that they were going to have a baby, we were very surprised. They had always been our couple friends, from the time that Cory and I were a couple. When we started dating, I was sharing an apartment with Cindy, and practically Matt too. We were all very close, and thankfully, many years and five kids later, we are still close. Judging by the close quarters of our respective first born children, the kids are close too.

November 4

One of my favorite things about the new house...the beautiful window in my front door.

November 3

This was one of those days. One of those days that I go back and forth thinking that either:
a. I wish I didn't work, and I could be with my girls during their happier daytime hours instead of only getting a few hours of tired cranky babies at the end of the day, and
b. Thank God I don't have to spend all day with cranky tired babies and instead have the opportunity to work quietly by myself.

Thea was crying and whining while she wandered around the house, only to throw herself down on the front rug and cozy up under her blanket. I had intended to get a picture of her miserable little face and use November 3rd as a day to complain. When I came up behind her she perked up and gave me a sweet smile. Even on bad days, I get a lot of bright spots.

November 2

A couple of months I posted on my regular blog about my propensity to decide to make sweeping changes to my lifestyle, and then brush it all aside when I fail to meet my high expectations. Well, at that time I had decided to focus on my weight, and my nail biting. Thus far, the weight issue is as big of a failure as ever, but I am happy to report success on the nail biting. As a matter of fact, I have had to do a major nail clipping because they were too long. Here they are, just a day or so after one of those major clippings. Sweet success.

November 1

I used to be really interested in politics, as recently as the last election I was excited about the debates, interested in points of view, and passionate about my own stance on a lot of issues. At this stage in the game, I am totally worn out of politics, and the ads are driving me crazy. I hate that we live in a country where so much of the advertising that we see is playing on our fears. Blah, I don't think I am going to even bother voting tomorrow.