New Hair Cuts

Over two and half years ago, Granny passed away after battling ovarian cancer. I decided then that I would grow out my hair in her memory. Just before New Year's Monica and I cut off our hair to donate for wigs for cancer patients. I asked Christina if she would do it for us, and she lent her skills to creating these cute 'dos for us. We were both very pleased with the outcome, Monica donating 8" and I had 11" for donation. And one note, Locks of Love still charges for their wigs and Pantene donates them for free. 

Yesterday, Aunty Theresa bleached some highlights for me. Ever since my sister-in-law visited with pink streaked hair, I have been considering going with bold, fun colored highlights. Being February, month of the amethyst, (and well- it's my favorite color anyways) I went with purple highlight for my first try!

I LOVE IT!

So thanks Tina for the cut and Aunty Theresa for the streaks!

Christmas 2009

I'm finally getting caught up on all my pictures from Thanksgiving and Christmas!

This year's Christmas started a little differently. Ryan and I wanted to start a new tradition before the gift opening frenzy began. So we had the girls come to our bed and we read the Christmas story out of Luke. Then we had a family prayer and then ran to the den to open our presents!

The girls started with their stockings. I had to laugh really hard because ever since the first time she saw it on TV, Monica has been asking for "the touching brush" and when she sat on Santa's lap at the mall and told him what she wanted, the "touching brush" was right there on her list! So she was really excited when she pulled it out of her stocking. Santa must have elves who shop the "AS SEEN ON TV" sections of Walmart!

Leah LOVES Spongebob Squarepants. It's the only thing she asks for by name.

So she was pretty stoked to pull a DVD out of her stocking.

These two pictures are another thing I had to laugh at.

Or rather, Ryan had to laugh at.

Every year he tries to trick me into telling him what I got him for his gifts, ever since our first Christmas together when he came out of the bathroom all smug saying, "I know what you got me for Christmas!" He had totally figured out the Craftsman 150-piece tool set. (Honestly, how do you keep something with that many metal pieces from rattling?) So this year Ryan got a movie/entertainment themed gift. The girls gave him "G.I. Joe" and I gave him popcorn and Santa brought him Coke. So whenever he asked me what I got him, I would tell him I got him popcorn or Coke and he never really believed me. So we had to take a picture of him opening his popcorn and Coke! (He also got a year's subscription for online XBOX play if anyone has a hubby that wants to co-op with him...)

Here's another funny. In our nursery at church, Leah LOVES this little hammer toy. So I got her one. Well as soon as she opened it, she didn't want to play with anything else. Ryan would give her unopened gifts and she would push them away. So we finally hid the hammer and shapes when she wasn't looking and then she kept unwrapping. Well, after we were done at our house and went to Nana and Papa's, it turned out that Nana also got a hammer toy! Luckily hers was a wooden one with different colored pegs and Leah was just as enthralled with the wooden one as the plastic one, if not more so!

One of the other things Monica continually asked for was Pixos.

Since she also loves Tinker Bell, she got the Tinker Bell Pixos from Grandma Kathy.

Monica was pretty stoked.

The girls and all their loot! Last Christmas we were sort of, well...broke. So even though the girls were perfectly happy with half as many presents, it still hurt our feelings a little bit that we couldn't give them more. So this year I started early in September because I knew we were going to be pretty broke again, and whenever I saw something I thought one of the girls would like, I would grab it. So little by little we were ready for Christmas and actually felt like we had overdone it just a tad! I have to say I like that feeling a little better than wishing there was more we could do.

I love when you ask a group to smile and get one of these instead! HAHAHA!

No worries, I still love you guys!

But what I love even more is when you ask a group to smile and they try their best to get a good shot in even if your camera is incredibly slow and takes the picture 15 years after you push the button! Thanks Taylors!

So this is worth remembering for years to come. Monica scored some big wants from Nana and Papa this year. The first was an awesome Tinker Bell clubhouse that I'm sure I'll have some pictures to post about later but didn't catch on Christmas. The other was this set of helmet and knee pads! Monica's reaction to the helmet was, in a word, AWESOME! She looked at the helmet and took these really deep, excited breaths and was practically hyperventilating..."It's..it's...it's a..." deep breath, "it's a...(gasping for breath by this time) it's a PRINCESS HELMET!!!!!!"

I think this reaction will be retold over and over because it was stinkin' hilarious!

Me and my mom!

The next day we had another Christmas at Aunty Theresa's.

I thought this pic was so cute of Mikey, Monica and Leah!

Now here's the part where I complain. My pictures, for some reason, are now suddenly not downloading from my camera, even from the same group of pictures. I had some awesome pictures of my aunts and uncles and cousins and now each file is saying "empty". BOO! So I have to play with my camera and hopefully just a setting was changed by a kiddo playing with it and I can get back on track taking pictures. But we had a wonderful Christmas!! Ryan got me a beautiful necklace and a really cool version of David McCullough's 1776. And he got me "Star Trek" with Chris Pine because he knows he is my Hollywood crush. :)

Thanksgiving 2009

I only got two pictures from Thanksgiving. But I think that just means we were having so much fun I didn't even think about taking out my camera. We went out to Ramah to celebrate with Jeff & Jodi and Kris & Lonnie. I also got to spend some time chatting it up with Maressa, which is always a favorite anytime we can squeeze it in. So here are the two pics.

It was during this weekend that Ryan and I were introduced to Canasta. Since then we have become Canasta crazoids. It's a fun game, to be sure, but the most fun of it is good company.

The night before we all left, Leah cuddled with Kris and had a special moment with her. The reason this pic is especially important is because Leah hardly cuddles with anyone but her daddy. So if she lets you cuddle her, you have triumphed in a major way!

Timeout for Conspiracy

The week before Thanksgiving, the girls had their first joint timeout. I thought it was worth documenting. Plus, Leah was so darn cute all itty bitty but plenty big enough to know she shouldn't have been climbing on the sink. Since Monica helped her climb up on top of the sink, she had to do some time too.

Fallen Leaves

On November 13, 2009 I was a motivated mom and raked up as many leaves that had fallen on the grass and made a pile for the girls to jump in. Leah wasn't too sure about it, but Monica dove right in.

Introducing Our Newest Family Member...

Funny story how this worked out.

After our last kitty run away, or got caught by coyotes, or was catnapped- we'll never know- Ryan and Monica have been wanting to get another kitty. So I put a stipulation on when we could get another one. I knew that Siamese kittens were hard to come by. And females seem even harder to find. So I said I would agree to get another cat when we found a female Siamese.

Then about a month ago, Aunty Sarah called us up and said she was babysitting an adorable kitten who needed a home and fit the criteria exactly that I had laid out. So before I even had a chance to say, "Let me talk it over with Ryan," Ryan said we would take her no questions asked. HAHA! So we now have a new member of the family. We hope to make this one long term that we all cry over in 15 years when she's too old to walk and needs to be carried to her food bowl.

So, without further ado, I present

FIGARO

Now I have to explain her name. It was Monica's first choice to call her Figaro, but Ryan and I initially vetoed it. So then Monica suggested "Heavenly Father". That felt a little too sacreligious so then she started throwing out nonsensical things like "Shinnydoo" and "Makatita" (which is a 'word' Monica uses when she thinks she's speaking Spanish). So we turned to Facebook friends for help and got a bunch of really good ideas of what to call her and Monica didn't like any of them. So after about two weeks of calling her "The Cat", Ryan suggested we finally go with Figaro. I call her Fergie, for short.

The girls love playing with Figaro and she allows Monica to pick her up all day long and somehow doesn't mind when Leah puts her in a chokehold. Thank goodness I mind, so she never has to endure the torture for long. But she rarely scratches, is very playful and just goes with the flow. She is the perfect cat for our family and we love her!

Sisters Make the BEST Hairdressers

I couldn't hear the girls playing one morning when they were in the toy room, so I thought I'd better check on them. I found this...

Monica was patiently letting Leah play with her hair.

And Leah was being pretty gentle, not pulling Monica's hair.

They were both having so much fun, and Leah was enjoying being the hairdresser that I had to take a few snapshots of the moment. I think it could be a glimpse into the future of what I'll find in about 10 years when I pass by their bathroom, only Monica will probably be painting her nails as Leah brushes her hair.

Sisters are the best!