Congratulations Bobby!

This weekend Rob graduated from USC, with a MBA in business. Rob loves to study ( ;) ) so I know he is going to miss it but we are all proud of him! When Shelly asked if she could throw a party at our house we were more than happy to contribute to the celebration!

They chose an ugly Christmas sweater theme which only added to the entertainment. If we were having a competition, Rob would have won; his vest/turtleneck combo were to die for!

It's not a real party without Pat's BBQ!

The little ones got in on the action too!

Sunday, Haley suggested we do arts-and-crafts with the kids. We attempted to put their hand print on an ornament but that didn't work out.  I bought some finger paint weeks ago with the intention of using them to make thank you's for Lily's birthday but haven't gotten around to it (...yet, hopefully that will be happening soon).  After a brief  time browsing Pinterest, I found a project!

Lily, or Frankenstein as you see here, loved it! Painting, playing and eating it!

Another great and memorable weekend! I am continually surprised at how quickly children learn and grow. Each day is better than the one before, just when you think they can't get any cuter.....they do!

Happy Thanksgiving

It's a little late but.....Happy Thanksgiving!


A few years back we (Shelly, Haley and I) made our first Thanksgiving dinner and everything turned out great but this year it was perfect! My bird was golden and juicy, Haley's corn casserole is always a favorite and Shelly didn't disappoint with the largest serving of creamy mashed potatoes.

We all love spending time together and the kids make it even more exciting! The little ones, Denver (14 months), Lily (12 months) and Cruz (9 months) can now entertain themselves for the most part, so we were able to relax and enjoy spending time together. Anacapri has become quite the jabberbox, she lead the babies in a prayer before every meal and made sure the rest of us knew, "her (my) mommy was (is) coming right back" any time Shelly wasn't around. I have missed her little voice this last week!

We started the morning with a stroll!

The weather was a little chilly but we didn't mind. Pat kept a fire going inside, as well as outside. On Friday, Haley noticed a fire truck pull up to the house. Pat went out to see what was going on and the rest of us grabbed our kids and ran out to see the truck. The firefighter explained that they are on the roads for major holidays to be available for emergencies and he chose the empty field across from our house to park for a few minutes. He was so nice and let the kids look around and climb on the truck!

 

 

I say it every time we are together, but, it just keeps getting better! Our family has so much to be thankful for and I pray that our futures will be blessed in the same way!

Everyone left on Saturday so went out and got our tree! I had some extra help decorating this year.

Pat and I were laying in bed the other night and for the first time in a long time I thought about how fortunate we are. Really, how lucky I am. I thank God for Lily everyday but I forget about so many other things. I am thankful for my wonderful husband who worked so hard last year to support us when my salary was unexpectedly taken away. I am sure that was a big burden to carry but he did it well. I am thankful for our home. We found, what has turned into the perfect place for us, our 'compound' as I call it. I am thankful for our health and for our families, especially those that take the extra time for Lily. Whether it be caring for her, sending her special surprises in the mail, praying for her or just loving her; I will never be thankful enough for that. My goal this Christmas season is to remember how wonderful my life is and to strive to never lose sight of that.