We're thinkin' he'll be a golfer someday...

Ren spent the last hour or more walking around the house with these. He even found some golf balls and tried to hit them. Jason's smiling from ear to ear about it.

Sick again.

After a few days of throwing up, we found out that Cohen has strep throat. He's never had it before. It's no fun, but at least he can be medicated for it.

Oranges from the trees.

I need to start juicing these babies. Our orange trees had an abundance of oranges this year.

Nap.

A long hard day of playing... Cohen's favorite Christmas gift was the Leapster2. He could play it all day if I let him.

Let me out, PLEASE!

Ren does not like to be gated in... not one bit.

Dark chewy chocolate...

yum. We have way too much chocolate and sweets in the house right now... if only I could get myself to throw it out...

Santa came!

Before the opening of gifts... we love this day so much!

Gettin' ready for Santa.

Ren helped Daddy clean today... we're all anticipating a great Christmas morning!

I love Christmas cards.

Mourning doves.

I took a birdwatching class in college. It totally changed my view of birds... I guess I never had a view before, other than that "Oh, there goes a bird." Now, when I see a bird, I stop, look and try to identify what it is by name. These little guys are mourning doves (not like morning, but mourning). They're called that because the little sound they make when they take flight sounds like crying. And there you go. College taught me so much! ;)

Aunt Jaimey and Uncle Jim are here!

We're so happy to have Jaimey and Jim visit for a few days.

My men.

Jason is the best dad. I love seeing him with his boys. They absolutely love him, too.

My favorite picture of the boys...

We got our pics back from Kara. This one is my favorite. We used it for our Christmas cards.

Cohen's new lunchbox.

Cohen's been asking for a lunchbox for like a month. He wanted a Thomas the Train one, but I only found them online... so I kept putting off getting one. He finally decided he'd rather have a lunchbox than wait for a Thomas one, so he picked out this Cars one to match his backpack. He was so excited to use it today that he got ready a good 20 minutes early for preschool and walked around the house like this. Too cute!

Mom's Raisin Nut Nibbles.

I made these for a cookie exchange party. They are divine and making them makes me feel like my mom is close by.

The tongue out means he's concentrating.

Dancin' with the keyboard.

These two were cracking me up tonight. They were playing the keyboard together and dancing/bouncing. It was so cute.

Something new.

Because I have a ton of leftover ribbon, I thought I'd try a new type of burp cloth... with ribbons on the top and bottom. I love this green number ribbon with the navy stripe. What do you think?

Chocolate chip pancakes = yum!

My friend, Michele, gave me the best egg substitute, and now I'm cooking things for Cohen he's never had before! Like chocolate chip pancakes! He had them for lunch today and LOVED them! Thanks, Michele!

Two boys in front of a red door.

We took photos w/ Kara today. This is one I took w/ my camera that turned out pretty cute, I think.

Trapped.

We've gotten out the dreaded gate. Ren's sure to learn to break it down soon, but for now, we love it.... keeps this crazy one contained a bit.

Happy boy havin' lunch.

Ren's become such a great eater! He loves finger foods now and can't get enough of graham crackers especially.

Bubble heaven.

Cohen played w/ his new bubble toy today. It's like big bubbles on steroids -- every kid's dream.

I'm in love w/ this smiley face.

Cohen's B-day Party!

Cohen had such a fun birthday party today! Here he is with his Thomas the Train cupcake.

Magnets.

Ren loves to walk around with one, preferably two, things in his hand. Sometimes he'll carry one or two things in each hand. Here he is with some magnets he got off the fridge.

Dinner.

Chicken. Tomatoes. Peppers. Capers. Garlic. Bacon. Oregano. Thyme. Parsley. Yum!

Happy Birthday, Cohen!

Putting up the tree!

We got out the Christmas tree tonight. Cohen was so excited. He was running through the house singing, "It's the Christmas holiday, Christmas holiday, Christmas holiday... We wish you a merry Christmas and a happy New Year!" And then when we got the tree up and turned on its lights, Cohen exclaimed, "Wow! That's an awesome tree!" and later said, "This is the best Christmas ever!" He's so ecstatic it's adorable. Oh, and he had to set up a train track that goes around the base of the tree, too. It's tradition, you know.

Getting rid of the leftovers...

was hard... but such a relief! I threw them all out today... mashed potatoes, cheesy potatoes, stuffing, rolls, gravy, chili con queso, ham, etc. The only thing we kept were the pies. Next year I'm going to remind myself that I don't need to make enough food to feed 100 people when we're only feeding 10. This picture will help me remember that!

Big hug.

Ren walked over to Cohen and gave him a big hug. It was so precious. They just stood there for a minute, hugging... long enough for me to take a picture, even!

Dancin' the night away.

Cohen was bustin' a move to his Thomas movie songs.... very funny.

Reading with Aunt Jaimey and Uncle Jim.

Thanksgiving flowers.

Preppin' for Turkey Day!

Playdate.

Playing...

Cohen and Ren are playing together now... well, sort of. Cohen plays with his stuff, and Ren just crawls and walks all over it and dumps toys out of bins and chews on everything... Cohen gets upset, but he's handling it better overall. Some days are easier than others... he did pretty well today.

Ren's birthday cake.

Blue Eyes

This is Ren in his new shirt... I think it brings out his blue eyes nicely.

A gift from Auntie Jaimey...

These adorable baby shoes arrived in the mail for Ren. Aren't they precious?

Happy Birthday, Ren!

This is the gift Cohen picked out for Ren... he even picked out the wrapping paper, Elmo card, and ribbon. He was so excited to get it ready for Ren's birthday!

Balls!

Ren loves walking around with a ball in each hand.

A little mushroom.

I found this little guy in our backyard and thought he was too cute to not document.

Gift set for Heidi...

Brotherly Love

A visit to my hairstylist...

always makes me happy! Here's my new look -- highlights and a trim.

Dinner...

YUM!

Goin' shoppin' around the house...

is tons of fun!