SCATTER SUNSHINE

These pictures turned out so cute. Jayson's work held a charitable fundraiser Christmas Carnival and Santa came so the kids got to sit on his lap. It was great because we didn't have to stand in line or pay big bucks for each picture. Bobo sat on Santa's lap the longest. (He was busy rattling off his Christmas wish list.) The baby could care less whose lap she was sitting on, but the 2 year old was Traumatized. Santa and Mrs. Claus were shocked when we wanted a picture even though Smoochie was screaming. They probably thought we were awful parents. Maybe we are but this picture is priceless!

November totally flew by. I had YW in Excellence the same week that I was in charge of our monthly history party for school. So there were a million things going on at once. When December came, I thought we'd finally catch up... but wait... what about Christmas? So naturally, we've been going non-stop since. Even after all this, Christmas was a lot of fun. Lil' Puke or as we have now decided to dub her, "Pookie" started to crawl just in time to discover the Christmas tree. She loves the ornaments on the bottom the best! She also cut her two bottom teeth over Thanksgiving. Wasn't that appropriate timing? Pookie got lots of fun goodies and toys for Christmas but was happiest playing with the wrapping paper. Smoochie got a vanity from Santa with brushes, mirrors and fake makeup. She is in girlie-heaven with these gifts. Bobo got yet another gun. What is it with little boys huh? He also enjoyed using his new handcuffs to lock up Uncle Devan, Grandpa and terrorize ...

The kids had a great time trick-or-treating. Days before, Smoochie kept asking me if she could "wear green." I thought this was strange since she doesn't have any green clothes. I finally figured out she was saying she wanted to "wear Halloween." She couldn't wait to wear her pink Jasmine costume. Jayson's parents came over and volunteered to hand out the candy so we could both go with the kids (They are so sweet!). Honeybunches looked cute in her Tinkerbell costume (Thanks to Grandma Boehme for making it for her.) Bobo was a cowboy and Lil' Puke was an angel (Thanks again to Grandma!). Aunt Jaime and kids met us and we all had fun walking around the neighborhood. The kids filled their pumpkins so fast and so full, that they were tired out long before the night was through. What a great Halloween!

Today Jayson took the day off from work and we took the kids to the state fair. It was awesome because we got in free, parked free and the kids earned free rides by doing book reports. We watched the Banana Derby and rooted for "Bobo--the Monkey-Jockey" (see pic), saw grizzly bear cubs and learned some neat facts about the wildlife in Arizona through the Game and Fish Department. They have fun farm exhibits and a Jungle Safari activity center. We also rode the ferris wheel and took a lot of pictures which was probably the highlight of the day. And to top it all off I got to eat Indian Fry Bread. Yummy!

So I thought it might be fun to start this page and have a place to post cute pics and tell funny stories about the kids. Jay and I are pretty boring on our own, but the kids definitely liven things up for us. Take Smoochie for example. Tonight she got into my makeup bag and with the wisdom that comes from watching "What Not To Wear" properly used all four colors of my eye shadow and was outlining her eyes with eye liner when I found her. Pretty good for a 2 year old. She was so cool when she saw me that she just kept right on applying the liner until I grabbed it out of her hands, looked up at me, smiled and pointed to her face, "Sparkles Mamma!" She likes sparkles! Lil' Puke comes by her nickname honestly. She can't help it, she just is what she is. Four burp clothes later, she smiles happily and smells sour. But I can't help but think that she is just the cutest baby ever! Bobo has become a hunter! His uncle took he and Jay "scouting...