Christmas #2

After we got home from our Christmas vacation to our snowed in house Josh had an unexpected day off of work. We used this snow day to recover and to open the rest of the gifts that we couldn't fit inthe car. Josh recieved his little gifts and then we opened the wii. Blessing or curse? The Faldmos knew what the boys were getting and so they sent a couple of games...Lego Batman and Lego Star Wars. Those games have been a source of joy, contentions, excitment, tears, and laughter. She gets the award for the best/most used gift for our family this year.

We learned that daddy can hold one the nunchuck and Zachary holds the controller and can beat up the bad guys. It is so cute the way that he gets into the game and fights. I love the way his little body shakes and hair bounces.

Munchkins

Working with the youth I know that someday that my sweet boys will be teenagers that will be embarrised to even achknowledge our excistance. Josh and I will go form super heros to weirdos. So in effort to remember these blissfull moments I'm making more of an effort to write these moments down. This is one of those moments that you just want to bottel up and relive when ever you are having a challenge.

I got to go to a meeting tonight and I was givin munchkins (doughnut holes) to bring home. I announced to the boys that I had treats and they came running. The favorities for the boys were the chocolate ones. Those quickly got grabed up. Adam got the last one and I guess he noticed that I didn't take any of the chocolate munchkins. He came around the table to me and said " mom, I'll break off a piece for you." I figured out that he wanted to share the last one with me. I didn't have the heart to tell him that I don't like those and to take the whole thing for himself because he was so excited to give me some. He split it in half and with a sweet smile gave me my share. He just melts my heart.
Zachary had one in his hand too and followed the example of his older brother. He tore off a small morsel and said with his fun smile, "this is for you daddy."

I just love my boys.

More Snow

I feel like I'm experiencing a winter like what George Washington did during the winter of 1779-1780. However I have the great comforts of heat electrisity, super markets with really good grapes, phones and all of the other luxeries that we enjoy in this time.

We have had more snow than I can ever remember seeing except when i worked on the mountain but that was an elevation of about 9,000-10,000 ft. I know that people complaine about all fo the snow and yes it is expensive to salt and plow the roads but it is really pretty. I feel like I'm living in one of the cards of Currier & Ives.

The best part of the snow are the snow days. I get to have the boys with me and take a break from our usual routine. It is tradition that when we have a snow day that we go out and play in the snow and I make chocolate chip cookies. We have had so many snow days that I just make a large batch of cookies, freeze several dozen cookies dough balls and pull a couple dozen out to bake each snow day. One of Zachary's favorite treats now is "a cookie ball".

Another adventure that this weather has offered our family this year is great sleding conditions. For the past couple of Saturdays Josh has taken the boys to a park with a little bunny hill and a nice path to walk up it. The boys and Josh have had a good time riding down the hill. I am a spectator. I hope that next winter is as good as this one because we have big plans to go snow skiing in the Pocono Mt. I know that it will not be what I have been spoiled with in Utah but it is better than doing nothing. Plus I really want to introduce my boys the the sport. It is my favorite activity to do on this earth and I really hope that they love it or grow to love it. I am thinking that if they like sleding the they will love snow boarding etc. Right?

Blizzard

I can't believe this winter. We have had a snow or ice storm every week since we got back on the Dec. 26th. That first storm was pretty crazy since we drove through the whole thing from Charleston, SC to Spotswood, NJ. I think that Josh was white knuckeling it for 700 miles. It was slow going. We counted about 35 cars that had spun off of the road and 4 wrecks. I kept on thinking that we should stop and get a hotel but Josh persisted. I really thought that we were going to have to stay at a hotel when we got to NJ. They had the worst roads out of any state that we drove through. We later learned that the unions decided to do a bad job on purpose. What is wrong with these people?

My eyes really got big when we got off of the NJ turnpike and onto the the roads less traveled. Places that I had been several times before even our neighborhood were unrecognizable because of the amount of snow that blanketed everything. I'm glad that we had GPS. The snow finnally won when we arrived at our house. We were fotunate to break the bank of snow onto our street but when we got to our house we were stopped.

The snow level that is seen in this picture is up to my car door window. If you look closely you can see Josh's foot prints going up the driveway.

It was 1:00am, I'm pregnant, the boys are asleep in the backseat, and we just have little over 50ft between us and our house. Before I could ask Josh what we should do he was bounding up the driveway in over two feet of snow. He opened the garage door, grabbed the snow shovel and started to make a path to the car. A few moments later another figure showed up and started to help Josh shovel the snow enough to get our car in. It was our neighbor Romero 22yr. old marine that was home for Christmas. One of the best highlights to our vacation happened at the last 50ft on our trip home.

funny things that you say

Adam you saya the funnist things. A while back when we were on vacation you and zachary were taking a bath and found my razor. ya'll were curious and wanted to play with it and I wanting to protect you took it away and explained what it was for. I told you that girls had hair on their legs and shave it off with this tool.
Weeks pass and at random you ask to feel the hair on my legs. So I let you feel the less than smooth surface of my calf and you with a discusseded look on your face exclaimed "mom you need to cut that off!" Thanks Adam I'll be sure to do that.

You are a gentelman. You hold the door for me and tell me that I smell like flowers. You work hard to please me and do what is right.

Today you sat for a while and helped me make santa sandwiches by spreading peanut butter on crackers. You really did a good job too. I love those simple moments with you and your brother.

This morning you were looking incredibly handsome in your new suit and blue shirt. I was exploding with pride as I was doing your hair. It made me so happy when you told me that you thought you looked like a missionary. We talked about your uncle Kevin who is a missionary right now and then we talked about what missionaries teach. You were so shocked to hear that people don't know about Jesus Christ and about Heavenly Father. You were openly concerned for these people. On the way to church we continued our talke about what missionaries teach. I told you about the plan of salvation. How Heavenly father made a plan for us to return to him and to become clean that Christ was like the soap and that by having faith in Jesus we can clean off our mistakes. You and Zachary were listening and taking it all in. Your comments were..."yeah and I'll be like a hero and fight the bad guys." Then I told you that there is a bad guy and his name is Saten. You guys got into this and related it to the Teenage Mutant Nija Turtles. "We are a team and we are brothers." were the words that you said a couple of times. I told you that there is a way to get special powers to fight Saten and that is by praying, and reading the scriptures.
I never thought that TMNT would be a teaching tool for the plan of Salvation but I'm glad that you were able to liken the gospel of Jesus Christ unto your self.

Adam you are good boy and a really good leader. I see you taking care of your little brother and I see that you are making ready to take on the added responsibility of your brother that is on his way.

xoxo,

Love your Mom

Halloweenorific

I thought for a long time that it was just up here in the northeast that Halloween celebrations were over the top but I now think that it is every where it just is a bigger deal than what it was growing up. From what I remember for me Halloween was a fun fair at the school and then trick-or-treating from dusk till you just couldn't carrie your body any further or 8:00pm what ever comes first. I remember being a witch, cat, cow, and my favorite was when i was an alien. My amazing mom made this costume out of one of my gymnastic leotards and different colored tights that were stuffed and made to look like arms and legs. Halloween was a parade of mom's creativity. Almost everyone that I knew had a homemade costume that was original and a work of art. This very well might not have been true but it is how I remember things to be.

With me just going a long with the flow of things up here my kids experience three different pumpkin pickings: one with our play group, another with our family, and lastly each had one with their school.

We had a great time on the pumpkin picking with the play group. We had a huge hay ride all to our small group. Zachary spent a lot of the duration of the ride putting hay down his shirt or burring him self with it. After the picking of the pumkins we sat down for some apple cider doughnuts (which were delectable). Then Adam and Zachary played freeze tag, hide-n-seek, and just plan old ran around. I just loved seeing Adam play with his friends in the non choreographed setting. I felt like all of the those kids needed the break from school.

Then We went as a family with the McCains when they come up for the holiday weekend. kristin brought her fancy camera and took photos for our family. A lot of the pictures came out really good and I'm very excited to used them as our christmas photos. We also caught the tail end of the apple picking season. We got to use these apple pickers they are long sticks with fingered baskets at the end. They were perfect for grabbing the apples way up at the top of the trees. We got some of the best apples that I have ever had. The day that were were there they had some pony rides and Zachary pulled daddy's purse strings and so with a little asking from Zachary and Adam they got a pony ride. They loved it! That weekend with the McCains was great. We really didn't have to do much to entertain the kids. They were very happy and content to play in the back yard. So most of Saturday afternoon that is were they were just having raw boy fun.

The other trips to the farms were done at school so i don't know much about what happened. But from what little my boys told me I gathered that they were most impressed with the cool bus ride to and from the farm.

Party! Let's have a party at school, at church, and at friend's houses! I didn't feel too bad about spending the amount of money that I did on costumes because they really got a lot of use out of them. Adam months ago fell in love with being spidermonkey (one of his favorite character's from his favorite cartoon) I was releaved when I found it for sell and very lucky to find it in his size. Zachary's costume was a struggle to find as well. I found his Batman costume for only $5. i felt like a champion and Zachary looked adorable! Seeing my boys proudly ware their costumes makes my frantic searches worth it.

Zachary had is school party where they had a parade around the parking lot. I got to go and be the proud parent. Adam also had a parade at his school I boundeled Zachary up in hsi costume and he was a hit with another little batman that he played with as we waited for Adam's class to come by. I absolutly loved that Adam's teacher was dressed as Spongebob.

Next we had the church party. Lots of chilli, cornbread, friends, games and cute costumes. Zachary's favorite game was the mummy wrapping game. He loved spinning around and getting wrapped in toilet paper and then riping it off of himself as he graweled and threw the pieces everywhere.

Finnally Hollween and time for trick or treating. We didn't even get around the block. Zachary wanted to go back home after about 8 houses but Adam continued with daddy. Adam brought back Zachary's share from the houses that Zachary didn't go to. So sweet.

Day of the Dudes

If I had daughters I would have been somewhere like the princess party at Toys R Us. Rather I was experiencing the joys of entertaining boys. We started our day by going to the rock gym where Adam and Zachary got to get roped in and try their climbing ablilties on a wall. Adam and Zachary had a good time on the ropes however I think they were a little intimidated by the harness and ropes. They are used to free style. Before we left Steve our belay guy took the boys up to a beginner boulder room. This was a freestyle climb and they bost climbed higher on these walls than they did when they were waring the ropes. They had an awesome time and I'm sure that we will be back.

From there we went to our favorite pizzeria and then we went on a hike where we pick up some colorful leaves. Adam really loved being the lead on the hike and he kept us all in line. I really enjoyed Adam's enthusiasm. Zachary had an eye for the colorful leaves for collection and that resulted in him getting behind Adam's lead speed. We ended our hike at a playground where they got to play chase with dad and climb some more.

We spent the rest of the evening feeding the blazing fire that dad built int he back yard. After we burned our way through little more than half the fire wood that I bought and our neighbor's sticks that he gave us I went for a little search for some more food for the fire. I found some leafy branches that had fallen from a huge oak tree near by and brought them back for the Adam and Zachary's "burn it" appitite. We ended by cooking dinner over the fire. Adam and Zachary wouldn't hear of daddy cooking their hot dogs so they both got their own sticks and roasted themselves up some winnies.

It was a perfect boy day climbing, hiking, burning stuff, & cooking with sticks. I think that we covered it all.