Happy Anniversary to us

Scott and I have now been married for 5 years! How time does fly!

Sledding!

Richard has been so excited about the snow we have been receiving. I broke down and bought him snowpants and boots even though I previously asserted it might be a waste of money. Well, so far we've had plenty of snow to warrant buying the clothes to keep him warm and dry. We got a sled from my sister for Christmas. Richard and his cousin immediately wanted to go out and try it out!

Christmas!

I had to work Christmas Eve, which was a bummer. I was psychologically prepared, though, so it wasn't too bad. It was very busy. I then set up Christmas once I got home and then went to bed. I had to get up about 1 1/2 hours later, which wasn't fun. However, I didn't want to make everyone wait to open presents. Richard had a lot of fun. He got a battery powered CAT digger that he really likes. He also seemed excited about the games I bought him. Audrey liked opening the first few presents but then I think got tired of the process. She just wanted to play with stuff and look at the tree. She loved her toothbrush, a musical bunny, and her books.

Disneyland!

We went to Disneyland and had a fabulous time! I love Disneyland and the kids had a great time as well. We went with the Hales' and another sister, Thamina. I thought things were so fun with the decorations of Christmas. We played hard and didn't get nearly enough sleep. However, what's the fun in sleeping when you could be playing!

Richard's favorite rides were Buzz Lightyear Astroblasters and Small World.

Audrey loved the lights, the sounds, and the bright colorful everythings!

So, not much to talk about in this corner. I sat down last night and had a huge present wrapping session. So, now I'm just about all done. I helped Richard wrap a couple of presents, and he was SO excited! He tried so hard to pull the tape off just right and then put it on the paper. Somehow, he didn't quite catch the concept of taping two ends together and so would just randomly place the tape. I tried harder to guide his placement, but some still ended up a little bent, twisted, and not quite in an effective location. Oh, well. He was having a great time. I let him pick the bow and the location of the tag. He then placed the gifts he wrapped under our tree with great excitement. Oh, having a three-year-old has definitely boosted my ability to feel the excitement of the holidays. I didn't realize how muted it had become until this year, since this is the first year Richard has really grasped the concept of what is going on.
Audrey is quite the chatterbox. I don't remember Richard jabbering as much as she does, but she's almost always making noise. She's starting to say a few words. Of course, if you don't know that's what she's trying to say, it's hard to understand as with all newbie toddlers. However, that's what makes it so endearing! She says shoes, eye, dad, mom, kitty, fish, and I think mouth. The last one is questionable. I guess you can see what is important in her life! Especially since the first word I could identify was shoes!

Success always seems so close...

It snowed again last Saturday. We got a few more inches. The kids had a lot of fun playing in the snow. I've decided I need to get Richard some snow pants and boots. Audrey doesn't care for the snow enough to get her some. She'd rather stay on the sidewalk away from the snow.

We made cookies for neighbors for Christmas. Richard loves to help put things in the bowl. He doesn't care much for cookie dough, which shocks me! I LOVE cookie dough! He doesn't care much for cookies though, either....

I might possibly be making progress with potty training Richard, but I hate to get excited only to have my hopes dashed again. I got frustrated with him today and explained that I didn't like cleaning his diapers just because he's lazy. So, then he's asked to sit on the potty a couple of times today! Audrey saw him doing it and wanted to be part of the fun. Who knows. At this rate, Audrey just might be potty trained first! She may just be that motivator I need to convince him being potty trained is a good idea...

SNOW!

We had a nice snow storm on Saturday. As soon as Richard realized it had snowed, he was asking to go play in it. I made him eat breakfast first, but I daresay he didn't eat as much as he usually does. He seemed to have a great time! He stomped through the snow, threw snow balls, and just went beserk. We also brought Audrey outside, but she seemed very unsure of what to do in the snow. She much preferred walking on the sidewalk. Scott helped her as it was very slippery. Neither child has snowpants and so both came in with soaking wet pants. Alas. I'm cheap and don't want to buy something for $30 that may be worn only a couple of times depending on how much it snows this year and how long it sticks around. Richard only came in because Scott was getting tired of being outside. I went out again with Richard later in the day and also had to make him come in because I was getting cold.

We were able to go to the First Presidency Christmas Devotional on Sunday, which was wonderful. My sister so kindly volunteered to watch the kids so we could go. It has been a very long time since Scott and I have done something together without the kids that was not in our family room. It's always wonderful to go to the Conference Center, listen to the First Presidency, and hear the MTC sing. I just enjoyed it so much more as it was given to me rather than solicted to work out by me.