feliz navidad

{ i've been putting this off because i have so many pictures! i decided to try the photo collage thing this time; you can click on the collage to see it enlarged. enjoy!! }

we got to spend 2 weeks in texas over the Christmas break! we did our Christmas morning on friday before we left ohio to minimize the luggage. as it was, we took 2 suitcases (3 on the way home!), 2 strollers, 2 car seats, and 5 carry-ons (not including the baby), so i guess it was a good idea.

after russell's test on friday night:

after a 6-hour delay in memphis because of weather, we made it to grandma and grandpa roberts'! most of the clan picked us up in the rv with a HUGE welcome banner on the side! (i wish i had a picture!)

monday, we headed up to killeen to visit ephraim, heather, max and ezra. they are the texas bbq gurus and recommended that we stop at kreuk's in lockhart. we're glad we took their advice - amazing brisket!

heather and ephraim treated us to some delicious meals, a drive through Christmas lights show, and a fun visit to the 1st cavalry museum. and all these boys treated us to some laughs! they sure had a good time and calvin misses playing army guys in max's backyard. thanks for letting us drop in for a fun visit!

back to san antonio... we performed the nativity pageant at a nursing home, which i'm sure was entertaining on some level! we had a good time. Christmas eve started at bruce, nancy and grandma's home with food, ornament-making, and a program with scriptures and songs.
we got some fun pictures of 5 of grandma's great-grandkids born in the last year...
then to kelly and john's for the opening of Christmas jammies...

FINALLY, the magical morning! grandpa read from the bible and book of mormon about the Savior's birth. we started unwrapping in an orderly fashion, then had some chaos for awhile. we took a break for a delicious breakfast and then started round 2 of the presents. we were definitely spoiled! (i love the pic of russell holding up his "blinded by science" t-shirt from his parents. he looks like a mad scientist with that hair!)
calvin had a blast making SNOW with cousins that night, which was the closest thing we got to a white Christmas.


calvin turned 3 on the 26th. watch for a separate birthday post SOON, but here's a preview pic...


we got some cute shots of the boys in their new sunday suits with grandma and grandpa:


we got to test out a flight simulator at kyle's work.
grandma took us to see the san antonio children's museum and eat yummy mexican food on the riverwalk.
russell and i got to go to the temple.
kim and mike treated us to a heavenly breakfast at magnolia pancake haus.
reese let us take him to northstar mall (that's big...he's a teenager. and it was fun)
we met our good friends the wright's for dinner and shakes at ez's. so good to see them:

on new year's eve it was a gorgeous 75 degrees and we spent most of the day outside. we started with the mandatory visit to rudy's bbq:
then off to breckenridge park to feed ducks and play corn-hole, fox-tail, and on the playground...

we rang in the new year (or in calvin and mason's case, slept through it) at "the shire" (grandma and grandpa's vacation rental home). we had a shrimp boil and strawberry shortcake, played a bunco tournament and monopoly deal, and exchanged white elephants. russell and i barely made it til midnight then somehow stayed up til 3 to get everything packed for our trip the next day.

after another long day of flying we (and ALL our luggage) made it home.
p.s. this little guy came home with three new teeth on top (now he's getting a fourth up there for a grand total of 6)

big thanks to rod and karen and kelly and john for hosting our stay. we had such a good time!
worst part of the trip: coming back to SUB-freezing temps! it was so nice to fly south for a bit of the winter and now i'm ready for spring.

happy new year!

6 months!

this little sweet-cheeks is such a joy to our family. he's already 6 months old and ready to be on the go.

he has a little curly mohawk and the sweetest smile, which he shares often with family, friends, strangers, and even stuff on the shelf at the grocery store. he's such a happy baby.

mason has two teeth and has been eating rice cereal for a couple months. he recently started on fruits and veggies and he loves his peaches and sweet potatoes. right now his mode of transportation is rolling around (it's alarmingly quick and effective) and i suspect he'll be crawling within the next month. mason is ticklish and cuddly and loves to spit and make his big brother laugh.

he looks so much like his daddy. see for yourself! russell and mom in 1981...

mason and mom in 2009:

we sure love this boy!

turkey week

we kicked off thanksgiving week by having some friends over for dinner and fhe. we decorated turkey cookies:


russell was off school tuesday through friday, so we had lots of free time for some more exploring...

we visited a couple amish settlements in the area and bought WAY too many treats (cinnamon rolls, cookies, pie, pretzels, apple pull-apart bread, candy, and more). YUM
calvin also loved trying out the huge (and expensive) play sets that they build.



we came home and had a pizza and popcorn movie party, complete with a "tent" in the living room:


we ventured into cincinnati for the first time and went to the aquarium in newport. we saw the penguin parade, frogs, birds, alligators, snakes, turtles, and feeding time for sharks and pirhanas. we got to touch crabs, starfish and SHARKS!

couldn't keep his eyes off the alligators

cool jellyfish exhibit

and the new favorite, sharks! at the petting tank, he kept yelling, "I TOUCHED THE SHARK!"

my three boys (in brown and orange stripes) on the scale they use to compare your weight to a shark's. calvin and russell decided to wear matching outfits that day, so i dressed mason to go along.

we walked outside in the chilly weather for a quick glimpse of cincinnati across the river (i love calvin's hand right on russell's forehead)

the missionaries joined us for our thanksgiving feast (my first time cooking the whole thing!).

i love smelling the onion and celery cooking in butter (for grandma's famous dressing)

russell roasted an excellent turkey this year

calvin wanted to take a thanksgiving picture with this book because he is thankful for it

our feast. we thought we'd be nice and start mason on applesauce for a special treat. this was the look he gave after every bite:

friday we went to the temple in louisville and then put up our christmas tree.

these two are so alike!

this one enjoyed nibbling on a package of ribbon

saturday we went to downtown cincinnati with our friends the levin's. we saw gingerbread house and train displays, rode a horse-pulled carriage, visited santa at macy's and ate seafood.

calvin was keeping his distance from santa and didn't want to sit on his lap. santa was nice and let me sit in his big chair with calvin - that's a first for me!

so grateful for a fun week together.