My Little Sparkler (Is That Cheesy Enough?)

I'm way past fashionably late with this blog post, but I couldn't pass up the opportunity to share my trying-to-be-really-cool sparkler action.  Though it's nowhere near as cool as what you'd find on Pinterest, I'm still in love with Clara's name in sparklers and have to admit that it was a lot of fun to do!  So here ya go:

As for the night itself, I had way more fun than last year.  The fireworks were larger than a quarter, I wasn't forced to listen to rap coming out of a lowrider, I wasn't sweating up a pregnant storm, and we didn't have to almost run anyone over on the way home.  (That all happened last year.)  

Nick and I scoped out the perfect fireworks location, grabbed some ice cream, and found ourselves a front row seat.  How there weren't more people near us, I'll never know!  Clara was a doll, as usual, and didn't cry or startle at the fireworks.  She simply gazed up at the sky and then fell asleep on the way home.  Oh, how I love that girl.  And the 4th of July, too!

A Pleasant Weekend

This was our Memorial Day weekend.

On Top of the World

This weekend, the girls headed out to an Easter celebration.  Easter is usually a low-key holiday around these parts, so it was a lot of fun to do something a little bit different.

It was so nice to get away from the big city and the ever-increasing temperature.  

Oh, how I long for green trees and tall grasses...

Valentines and Birthdays and The Plague

I had grand visions of heart-shaped pancakes and homemade valentines, but all of that has come to a halt, thanks to a little bug that's making it's way around our house.

Miss Clara has been sick for over a week now.  She also cut her first tooth and is working on second.  

(When did this baby get so big?!)

Our hubsdaddy picked up the bug sometime this weekend and now, I fear that I may be next.  My nose has started to run, but I'm hoping that's as far as it progresses.   I am already worn out physically and emotionally form playing Nurse Mom.  I don't think I could handle a full-blown sickness on top of this!

I hope your Valentine's Day/Arizona's 100th Birthday is a great one!

Day at the Parade

Clara and I took it upon ourselves to celebrate MLK Day with a little parade-watching and festival-navigating.  Little did we know, Clara has a thing for marching bands, as evidenced by the uncontrollable flailing of her arms and legs.  Drum solos, however, haven't yet passed her test.  Each time those drummers started up, she would freeze and cock her little eyebrows.

Speaking of eyebrows...

It has come to my attention that Clara inherited something besides tiny ears from Husband's family.

The Eyebrows.

New Year's Eve With Clara

For the first New Year in quite a few New Years, we did not see any person, boat, or barn (almost) catch on fire.  As disappointing as that may be, our little trio still managed to have a memorable, if not simple, night.  

And then, we started sleep training.  (Oh my.)

Temple Lights

It's always such a bummer to leave Christmas behind and return to the daily grind.  All the lights and trees disappear and there are far less cookies to eat after December 25th.  That's why I always appreciate those who leave their lights up through the New Year.  It makes the transition a little bit easier and it's so undeniably cheerful.

Christmas Part 2

Once we arrived at our next Christmas destination, Clara quickly found her way into her favorite person's arms.  She has a sweet (and sleepy!) spot for that Grandpa Steve.

This celebration was filled with lots of good food, gifts of all shapes and sizes, lots of little cousins, karaoke, cheesecake, card games, and much more.

And, in my opinion, these little girls were the best gifts of all!

Christmas Part 1

Each and every Christmas morning begins at my parent's home.  My father wakes us up before the sun rises and my mom turns on the video camera to catch our faces when we first lay eyes on our stockings.  This is always my favorite part of Christmas, when exchange sibling gifts and we all sit around in our pajamas.  

This year, we made a stop at church before dropping in at Mimi's house.  It was nice to dress up in red and listen to beautiful Christmas hymns before diving into more presents.  It sort of made me wish that Christmas was always on Sunday.  

At Mimi's we opened gifts with all of the extended family and had our traditional wrapping paper war.  The morning came to a close with a generous helping of Mimi's famous "stuff."  Then, for us, it was off to visit the other side of the family!

Intro to Christmas

2nd Annual Gingerbread Party

Once again, we gathered all of our friends around a child-sized table, passed around a bottle of Martinellis, and ate way too much candy.  We had a true candy house, a cottage complete with a truck and gummy dog, a cathedral-like home with a wreath and snowman, and a two story mansion with a floating roof.  It was wonderful having so many friends in our home, especially Jenny and David, who we haven't seen in much too long.

(See last year's Gingerbread Party here)

Turkey Day 2011

This Thanksgiving, we spent a lot of time with good food and family, which is just the way we like it.  (Plus, it was an opportunity to escape our neighbor's barking dogs and pogo-sticking son!)

Here's our Turkey Week in a photos: