Our 6th Anniversary

This is a busy time of year for us! Ruby's birthday is a little over a week before our anniversary, and all that sandwiched between Thanksgiving and Christmas. It is a lot of fun.

Anyway, we had planned for months to go to Ashland, OR for my cousin's wedding, but with the storms that came our way this month, it was really unlikely that was going to happen. We got tuned into another plan and it was hard to shift gears when at the last minute the freeway opened up and travel south was possible. Anyway, we stayed home and our kids went up to stay with Opa and Oma for two days.

Oddly, our romantic weekend away turned into a project weekend at home. This was a mutual decision with specific groundrules:

1. No garage projects

2. Built in naps and sleeping in

3. Breakfast out

We decided to paint Alice's room, which has been a literal eyesore for the whole year we've lived in this house. It was a lot of fun! We worked all day Friday with a short break to our ward Christmas party. It was after 1AM when we finished up and I didn't even feel tired.

On Saturday, we had breakfast at a nice little restaurant and then worked the rest of the day and made it to the last "worship" session at the place where we were married six years ago, the LDS Seattle Temple (really in Bellevue). We had a late dinner at a yummy wok and since we were halfway to my parents' house, we went the rest of the way there to sleep so we could take the girls back home first thing in the morning.

It was really nice of my dad to let us do this, because my mom ended up leaving a day late for the wedding and he had a full day with both kids and no carseats. It sounds like they had fun, and we are really grateful to have such a hands-on Opa.

Here are the before and afters of Alice's desk, which was the greatest change...

Here is a before shot...

Here is an after shot. I hate to post it because it looks like the paint is flourescent...and it isn't! It is actually really mild and not lemony at all. I love the color...but as much as I try to edit it to the right color, it is not working. It looks good in Photoshop, but not on blogger. It looks more like the real color in the desk picture.

We painted the room as a beginning of Alice's transition into her new big girl room, so this hodge podge of her baby furniture and bedding (what's left of it) is on the way out. We are excited about an Alice in Wonderland theme, and I'll post pictures in the future. I AM HATING THE YELLOW IN THESE PICTURES.

Christmastime is here...

Thank goodness I was asked to host part of the ward progressive dinner because it forced me to decorate for Christmas! It was so much fun. Miraculously, my two-year-old got all of her interest out that night and hasn't touched the tree or gifts under it since! I love Christmas decorations.

Pretzel Love Note

I went up to my parents' house on Monday for a visit and when the girls and I got home, there was this note on the counter. Chris can be really creative and romantic, and this is a perfect example. When I called to say thanks, he admitted that he's been biting prezels into letters his whole life, but he'd never attempted to spell anything out. He was going to say, "I Love Rebecca Pierce" but apparently the "o" was going to cause him some trouble, so he went for "want" instead. In case anyone is putting together the combo of my being gone a night and him doing this sweet thing for me and thinking he was in the dog house, he wasn't. He was just being sweet.

Ruby and Kiley's Birthday Party

The day after Ruby's birthday we had her party with her friend Kiley, whose birthday was a few weeks prior. We had it at our local YMCA in their gymnastics room. I guess I was busy with our new video camera, so I didn't get many pictures of their fun. They have a great big and long trampoline that is level with the ground and a pit filled with foam for jumping fun. We set up a big fort-like place for them to climb around in and did a fun parachute activity. All-in-all, it was a low stress, kid friendly place for a party.

Ruby received many nice gifts that have been keeping her really busy since. Lots of Barbies is the key to happy playing for her, and I am guessing she got like five to add to her collection of at least 20. She is really into Barbies that sing.

I was going to make the cake, so I told Ruby she could pick any kind of cake theme she wanted. She was so sweet, she has no interest in horses but she knows that Kiley is really into them, so she said, "I just know that Kiley would want a horse cake, will you make her one?" As much as I adore Kiley, I would have prefered to make something that I knew would excite Ruby, but I wasn't about to discourage her kindness.

Parents of Daughters UNITE!

My five year and two day old daughter is in love. I know it because I was in love at her age and I can tell. She has fallen for our close friends' adorable son, Wyatt. While my childhood love bloomed for like twenty years and never amounted to anything more than friendship, this obvious twitterpation by my little Ruby has me freaked out.

Though Ruby did kiss Wyatt twice in the presence of both myself, Chris and Wyatt's mom, we first realized that she was having fond thoughts of Wyatt over Thanksgiving break. During pretend storytime, a part of the bedtime ritual, Ruby requested a story about Ruby and Wyatt falling in love and getting married. As Chris' storytelling subtly guided the tale around the romance, Ruby would redirect him back to the forever after.

So Wyatt came down on Saturday for Ruby's birthday party and he and his family came over for a little while afterward. They were having a nice time playing together, and then Wyatt came downstairs for a bit. Ruby proceeded to get undressed down to her panties and confidently walk her bare bod downstairs. Right in front of eight adults, she walked over to Wyatt (in baggy Dora panties, oooohh laa laa) and smirked and said, "What?"

He didn't really respond, I mean he's not pouring over stories of true love's kiss on a daily basis, not to mention that there hasn't really been much of an awareness of modesty or gender between them. If they are cold in their swimsuits, they just take them off. He really didn't think anything of her walking around in her panties.

She asked, again, "What?"

I was baffled, but I managed to say, "Ruby, when we have guests at our house, we need to wear a shirt and something on the bottom, please go get dressed." We've had that conversation before, so it wasn't anything new to her and she went on her way upstairs.

THANK GOODNESS she didn't pull some swanky pose or something or I'd be more baffled.

If you are thinking to yourself, "A five year old can't be in love," you are wrong. I swear they can. Do I think that her crush will last? Probably not. Wyatt lives 40 minutes away. Maybe it will just be that "interesting boy that you see when your parents get together" fascination...the boy you can claim has a crush on you when no one else seems to. Those are really handy.

Anyway, HELP!Back when they were young enough to give kisses goodbye!Fingerpainting fun!

Caught white handed with diaper cream beards.

Her first pick for a friend to go get a bithday treat with.

Batman and Ballerina

Grinch turned Grizzwald...

Isn't it amazing what a child can do to change you?! In the past, Chris has been less than enthusiastic about putting up Christmas lights. This year, he was initiating the process before Thanksgiving was even over and he even said, "Ruby sure would like that Santa Clause" when we were walking by the inflatable lawn ornament sculptures at the store. I guess it happened to me too. I used to vow that my kids wouldn't fall prey to wearing character clothing...but I now think that Ruby looks precious in her Tink shirts or Alice in her Elmo jacket.

Anyway, the outside of the house is decorated partially now. The garage is on the side of the house, so other than a few lights in bushes leading up to the front door, it is hard to notice the garage work Chris went to. Anyway, he assured me it isn't done, but regardless, I'm not complaining!

Baby Diaper Mama?

Alice has really gotten into the baby thing lately. One minute she will be cuddling the baby saying, "baby go night night" and then in the same breath she'll just drop the baby and move onto the next thing. Today, it was our first diapering of the baby doll. I don't know why this corresponded with her removing her own diaper, but I guess that is a good reason to get her dressed right after she finished breakfast (maybe it would deter her?). Anyway, I had to help of course, "Fix it, Mama!" but it was darling anyway.

With our first, we were so pushing for Ruby to do teh next thing, that by the time she said a word or took a step, it felt like it was primarily our own doing. With Alice, we are amazed when she does new things (daily) bacause we aren't drilling her all day with the next thing like we were with Ruby. It is fun to watch her discover!

Ruby: Birthday Girl

We had a pre-birthday celebration at Oma and Opa's house the day after Thanksgiving. Ruby got to open a few presents, and she really liked them! She got Gabriella from High School Musical from Hailey and Emma and a nice winter coat and Barbie from Oma and Opa. Though she didn't really know anything about the movie, HSM...she loves Barbie's that sing, so that was the biggest hit. We have spent some time on youtube looking at some little excerpts from HSM and she talks about it all the time now.

Ruby with helper, Alice.

Uncle Jordan and RubyDaddy went and got Ruby this fancy cupcake. She was really excited about it!

Santa Baby

I am married to the tradition of annual pictures with Santa. I don't really know why, I guess because I still did it with my family when I came home for Christmas from college. Anyway, I learned a few years ago that Santa gets to our mall really early in November! I always have their Christmas dresses early, so I head over before Thanksgiving and I don't have to wait in line! The best thing is that they will really spend time taking pictures so that your kids actually look at the camera. In our case, Alice wasn't feeling Santa one bit, and Ruby got tired of smiling, so I still had to buy the CD and do some Photoshopping in order to get the right picture. Anyway, we like this Santa because he is close to our house and he has a real beard!

Since You've Been Gone

I can breathe for the first time...


So Ruby's favorite song for like two long years was "Since You've Been Gone" by Kelly Clarkson. Better than some song about a farm if you ask me, but it got old none the less. We listened to it all the time. Ruby can sing every word...even the "S" word ("stupid love song") which I usually turn the volume down for only to hear her happily belt it out knowing it is her one freebie.


So we hadn't listened to the song in a long time. Ruby moved onto "Jesus Take the Wheel" (Carrie Underwood) and "Popular" (Wicked Soundtrack). She makes music requests all the time, but one day she asked for SYBG again. For some reason, this was the day that Alice was going to zone in on music because since that day (three months ago), Alice has asked, rather demanded "Since You've Been Gone" EVERY time we get in the car she starts on me about it and doesn't take "no" for an answer.

It is really entertaining to hear my two year old belting out the chorus. She knows it and loves it. Any tips for getting her onto another song?