What a great dog

Dexter is so very patient with the kids.

Finally, our first snow this year!

Alright, it's not the most impressive pic, but it's what I had.
Klara had a good time playing as long as she didn't fall down.
Kaleb has discovered that he loves to throw snowballs.
It's lots of fun to slide in the snow.

The Polar Express

What a fun trip. We took the Polar Express train to the North Pole!! This was our 3rd year taking the train and it was still so much fun. We boarded the train, ate cookies, drank hot cocoa, and listened to the book over the speakers. Then we stopped at the North Pole and saw Santa. Santa then "cuts" off a bell just like in the book and boards the train. Then starts the singing.......aggh, the singing. No one is on key, no one is on the same tempo, and the "elves" are trying to get all the songs sang. This lasts until Santa comes onto your car. Santa wishes each child a Merry Christmas and gives each one a silver bell.

This was taken BEFORE the bells were handed out. Can you imagine all the kids with a bell each!?! Who's idea was this?? And where are the ear plugs???!! Ok, it's not quite that bad.....or was it. Bells were everywhere. Each child drops their bell at least once leaving the parents to swan dive for it. It's forbidden to leave the train without your bell, and I'm sure Santa doesn't have any more......it was so funny to watch because we did the same thing.
Our bell is not broken...the kids ring them all day....is there a mute button for them?? All kidding done, we really did have tons of fun. The kids are getting older and understanding more. What a great memory we have now.

Christmas lights at Little America 2007

We took a trip to Little America where they turn all their christmas lights on at once. We didn't go last year because it is usually too crowded. But we decided to go this year and it wasn't so bad. The kids and I had on about 15 different layers (it was really cold out!!).

The kids did great and loved seeing all the lights come on at once.Tonight we ride the Polar Express. I'll post pics of that soon (I hope).

Not claustrophobic!!

Kaleb was taking a nap and when I checked on him, I didn't see him in his room. After a small panic, I called out for him.....he answered me from his toy box. He had put his stuffed Spiderman down and layed on him like a pillow and closed the top. After my heart started to pound again, I got the pic.

Brother and sister love.
Tackle
Ahhh
Cute kids and how they love each other!!

Captain Kaleb and Princess Klara
Kaleb with out the squished eye
Klara hanging with mom

Ahhh, the pumpkin. Time to slice it open (not your finger), scrape out it's guts, carve it (again, watch your fingers) and set it on fire. Sounds like fun. Well, that's what happened to me last year, so this year I opted for the "mummy" so I could help the kids paint theirs. Overall, they turned out pretty well and it was fun.

Kaleb's 4th birthday party

Ahh, what a great time Kaleb had at this birthday. All the kids (and some parents too) were dressed up. In this pic, we are missing 2 little ones, but overall, it was the best pic I got. Do you see the birthday boy?? He knows to sit all the to the back of the couch and I was unable to get him to move forward to be seen. It was a fun filled weekend with his MeMa and PaPa being here and all the fun activities.

Kaleb loved his cake. In fact, we just finished it last night. Sams Club did a great job! They made his cake to look like a pirate scene and I made sure they spelled his name right. We had such a fun time. Tonight is Halloween and I'll get a few pics of the kids tonight and then post those as well (our silly pumpkins too). Have fun and stay safe tonight.

Kaleb's big boy bed!!

It's done... finally. This bed took all weekend to get ready. We were given the mattress so that needed cleaning. Then we bought the bedding and it got washed.....it felt like 10 different loads. Once the frame was put together (after injury to Nekol's toe when it married the pieces on the floor.....which lead to major carpet cleaning from the pool of blood it left) we needed to add his headboard from his 4 in 1 crib....."it just bolts up"....not!! Clif had to drill holes in it and find different nuts and bolts so it would stay together. I guess I know a good christmas present for him, more batteries for his drill. That was the main reason this took so long, his batteries kept dying on him. After all of that, Kaleb loves his new big bed.

"It's more comfy" he says. The best part is that he has stayed in his bed all night long.....and no little boy accidents!!! I think Dexter is happy too. We finally got the windows done as well. We've had "temp" window coverings up for 3 years now. Isn't that the way it seems to go. Finally we got the blinds up and a valance. Of course they will stay with the house if it ever sells.

Welcome

Ahh, our first entry into our blog and not much to say. I know, exciting. I guess I'll start off by giving you an update. Clif and I have been married now for 6 years and have 2 kids.....Kaleb who is almost 4 and Klara who is almost 19 months. Let's not forget Dexter (our Boxer) and he's 6 now. We currently have our house for sale and we have no plans on where we would go next. We REALLY want to move to Colorado Springs, but we fear (yes fear) that Phoenix may be more the reality. However, we know it will become clear to us when this house actually sells. We've only had a handful of viewers to see our house and no takers. I feel desperate at times since we have neighbors that are less than neighborly.

Kaleb

We are currently working on Kaleb's pirate/costume party for Oct 27th. Now how fun will that be....plus it's a good excuse to wear those costumes more than once. We are also "home-schooling" him with pre-school material. He is doing great. This is a picture taken today of him 1st tracing and then writing his own name!! He is all about Spiderman, swords, guns, pirates, and sleeping on the floor. He has decided that he does not like his toddler bed anymore and has waited long enough for a "big boy bed". Since his crib/toddler bed converts, we will be getting his full size mattress tomorrow. Maybe then he will stop sleeping with the dog.

Klara

Are all girls over the top drama queens or just ours? What a ball of fire she is. I didn't know girls were this much fun. I already love playing with her hair and seeing how fast I can get it done before she wiggles. She loves her brother and tries to keep up with him. Words are improving past the "mommy language" stage...you know, the words that only mommy understands because I'm around her 24/7. She grunts for her sippey cup, says "uh oh iioh" Uh oh spaghetti-oh, "huh uh" no, "uh huh" yes, "bye-bye y'll" bye-bye ya'all, etc....wow, translations are harder than I thought. She struggles to stay at 20 pounds and is currently teething yet again her bottom first molars.

Dexter

What can I say....he's a great dog with the kids. He sure puts up with quite a bit. Here he is sporting the Superman cape, posing for the picture, and can't wait to have this removed. He has been kicked out of his bed multiple times during the week by Kaleb barging in. Klara likes to play in his water bowl and all Dex wants is to sleep in the sun.

Well, that's a brief update. I hope you enjoy and I look forward to comments. I'll do my best at keeping this updated, but for now, dinner is ready!!