1 Year Old Already...

I can't believe it... Garrison is 1 today! Sniffle sniffle! It's crazy to think 1 whole year has come and gone so quickly! Its amazing how different each of our children are. Garrison is a very comical child (similar to his older brother)! He isn't a very huggy kissy kind of boy but he does give them when he feels you are deserving of one! He is walking everywhere these days. Loves his milk. Loves his siblings. Loves chasing them and "jumping" on them once he "catches" them. He is always smiling. Tries to talk every chance he gets. (I know what a shocker... we have yet another chatter box) He has been a wonderful baby. Does well in the car, whether long or short distances. Loves to go on walks and play at parks. He may have turned 1 but is still our little baby boy!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY SWEET GARRISON!

To celebrate Garrison's birthday we had a "birthday lunch" with Marc (he came home from work for a bit), Mom, Dad, and Jarrod (Marc's brother who is in town for the holidays). After eating lunch, we sang to him, and let him dig into a mini baseball cake I made! He seemed to REALLY enjoy the frosting! After cleaning all the frosting off Garrison, we let him tear into a few presents.

In January we will celebrate his birthday with the extended family when we get together for Ava and Marc's birthday!

Christmas 2009

This year we spent Christmas Day with Marc's parents, Aunt, and cousins. The day after Christmas we spent up in Scottsdale at Marc's other aunt's home. The kids were very anxious for such a fun day/weekend but overall they didn't have anything "big" on their lists. This year, the holidays seemed to have flown by. I think with the vow renewal and lots of family and friends in town it made for a very hectic time!

First Tooth

Just in time for Christmas Garrison cut his first tooth... FINALLY! Other than a few teething tablets here and there he has dealt with the new pain fairly well! He is now working on his second tooth which is causing him a little more discomfort it seems! I have been trying to snag a picture of his new tooth for just about a week and today I finally got one!

Grand Canyon

A view of the Colorado River!

Another shot of the river

Marc and I in front of the Grand Canyon!!

After venturing 3 hours north to Williams, we decided to make the extra hour north to visit the Grand Canyon. We've lived in Arizona for over 6 years and had never seen the Grand Canyon until now! Its breath taking. Gorgeous. Beautiful. Amazing. Extraordinary. Nerve Racking. Nerve racking because at many look out points there was pretty much nothing there to stop one of my 4 children from falling to their death. This statement may sound a bit dramatic but look closely at some of the pictures below. There literally was snow, ice, ground, cliff! The kids were a bit hesitant to walk too close to the edge at first, but as the day went on they got a bit braver. Dillon especially. It made me beyond nervous and normally that's not my personality. We all survived but I can't say for sure the next time we will be taking all 4 kids to see the Grand Canyon!! Probably not until they are all older!!

See the snow and edge... yeahup you could walk right up to it! Scary when the kids were anywhere near it!

Family shot minus Dillon where was he...look below

A favorite picture of mine... Liliana talking to an Elk that was passing by well she wasn't talking to it but it sure does look like it!! Oh how she loves her animals! I swear she will be a veterinarian one day!

Polar Express 2009

Back in 2007, we took the kids up north for a ride on the Polar Express. They had such a great time that we planned to do it in 2008. With the arrival of Garrison close to when the Polar Express was booking we had to pass but vowed in 2009 we would take the kids again!

As soon as the tickets went on sale for 2009, we booked our trip. This year we decided to see if Marc's parents wanted to join us. They agreed and the plan was hatched to wear matching PJ's! I went to work sewing up 8 pairs of matching pj pants for each one of us, including little Garrison! I made matching hats, mittens, and blankets for the kids. The date quickly approached and north we traveled in route to the Polar Express!

For those that aren't well informed on what the "polar express" is here goes...

Each year from Thanksgiving until the first week of the new year the Grand Canyon Railway decks out their train as the "Polar Express". They serve hot cocoa, give out cookies, and read the kids the Polar Express book. People are invited to wear their PJ's on the train to mimic the book! Some do and some don't! The train takes everyone on a 45 minute ride to the North Pole and back. While visiting the North Pole, Santa boards the train and hands out a special gift to each little boy and girl! While waiting for Santa the "chefs" lead each train car in some Christmas Carols. The kids have a blast, the parents have a blast, and lots of fun memories are made!

When booking a trip up north they offer fun packages which include a dinner meal, hotel, train ride, and breakfast. Seeing that Williams is 3 hours north of us, we always get the package.

As you can see by the pictures below it was a very fun trip...

Wedding Vow Renewal Ceremony

As everyone knows at this point, Marc and I celebrated 10 years of marriage and had a renewal of our wedding vows in the Catholic Church on December 10th, 2009. Its been a busy few weeks so I am just now getting around to uploading some pictures. We had a small reception which followed the ceremony. Enjoy the pictures...

Santa's Visit...

This year I volunteered my home for the Christmas party the MOMS Club puts on every year! I soon realized I would need a Santa to visit the children??!! First I had to find a suit. Luckily a fellow member had a contact willing to let us borrow the suit. Next up finding someone to wear the suit! You would think with all the dad's someone would be dying to dress up! No such luck! "I can't have little kids sitting on my lap that's just weird", "I have to work", "I don't want to do that", "Can't you find someone else to dress up"... were just some of the many responses we all got from our unwilling husbands! Marc thought it would be a great idea to ask his father! Those that know my father-in-law, know he isn't the type to normally do anything like this without being paid a large sum of money! I am really LOVED...well I am sure the oodles and oodles of begging helped too, because Santa stopped by for a visit! Ava starred into his eyes with the most innocent, amazed look on her face as he said "Hello Ava, Merry Christmas" to her!

Later that day, Ava spent the day with my in laws while I went to Dillon's class party. The entire afternoon she told my in laws how Santa came to visit, gave her candy, and had a fat belly... even fatter than Papa's belly! Needless to say she didn't know who was underneath that awesome red suit!