New Year, Lots of Changes...

As we prepare for the New Year, we are also preparing for Mike's departure. He will leave sometime in January for Iraq. We ask that everyone keeps us in their prayers. We are preparing the boys and are welcome to any suggestions to make this time a little easier for all of us. We are so thankful that Mike was home for the holidays. The boys have already said they would be "my big helpers!" Mike went last week to a briefing and received a voucher for a Daddy Doll (http://www.daddydolls.com/). I think this is such a neat thing the boys are going to love it. Check back throughout January more news on the deployment.

Christmas Morning

We had a wonderful Christmas! Santa was able to stick pretty close to his budget. He brought Aaron and Mike a Wii~WOW has the Nintendo come a long way! Ace thought everything was "INCREDIBLE!" He really enjoyed Christmas this year. I loved watching his excitement as he opened each gift. Aaron was amazed that Santa left "goodie bags" that matched his Christmas PJ's. How smart is Santa? Mike was happy with the kitchen gadgets he received. As for me~Santa completely blew the budget! I received a Nikon D60! It is now charged and ready. Happily the Kodak Easy Share will be retired. After presents we enjoyed Beignets, (ben-ya`)these are fried dough covered with powdered sugar~~they are so yummy! We had a wonderful day enjoying all of our goodies that Santa left.

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Hi all,

We hope that each of you are having a wonderful Christmas! The boys were so excited this morning. Aaron thought "Santa is a really clever guy!" and Ace thought it was all "INCREDIBLE!!!" Check back soon for pictures of our Christmas morning.

Mike, Carlota, Aaron and Ace

A perfect gift just for me!

I love perfume! I wear perfume every single day without exception. I think I get this from my Mom, she loves perfume. My sister, Courtney and I have both inherited the "love of perfume gene." I must say I don't wear cheap perfume. I'm not sure why, but I am naturally drawn to the more pricey stuff. Well, a few days ago one of my very dearest friends Autumn gave me the perfect gift!! She knows me oh so well!! It was a Scent Sampler. What is a Scent Sampler you ask? It is a perfectly cute box with nine different perfume samples and a atomizer. Included is a Scent Certificate~~this allows you to go back to Sephora to get a full size bottle of your favorite perfume out of the set! My dream come true~~Thank you Autumn. I really appreciate you!

Question of the Day~~~

As I sat with Aaron at the bus stop this morning, we were talking about random things. We started talking about Santa and the things he hoped he would bring him. I reminded him that Santa would bring a few things he wanted, but the true meaning of Christmas was not what we got. Then he said "Well it is good that all the things he brings us is free, that way you don't have to buy them." I said "I suppose your right, Aaron." He stops and thinks a minute~~~ then says "Mom, does Santa pay taxes?" Right then the bus turns the corner. SAVED!! Maybe, just maybe I bought another precious year of playing Santa~!

Is Christmas Really Almost Here????

I can't believe that is is already Christmas! This year has really flown by. We have had a great year. The boys are so ready for Christmas and that includes Mike. He still thinks that we should open presents daily and if we get gifts from out of town family--OPEN THEM NOW!~~~ Well, I like to wait till Christmas morning. We'll see who wins the battle this year, I sadly have to say Mike has won it more than once~~I suppose when it comes to Christmas most of us are just kids at heart and how long can one say no to the chance at a nice gift. I also have to report that I managed to stay true to the budget I set. We decided a few months back that we go a "little crazy" with the gifts at Christmas. This year I set a $125 limit with each of the boys and have stuck to it, even a few dollars under it! I am so proud of myself, I have had to fight off temptation more than a dozen times. Not an easy task~~and for those of you who know me all too well I love to SHOP!!!

Oatmeal Quickies

Growing up I can't count the times my Dad would whip up what he called "Oatmeal Quickies". They are so easy and so yummy. Last night we made them as a family. Aaron and Ace ate sooooo many. I can't believe that they didn't get sick. It was the first time I had ever made them and it brought back such memories--Thanks Dad!!

Rouge is sick!!!

Ace came in our room today and informed us that Rouge was sick. For those of you who don't know Rouge is our dog. So I asked what was wrong "He needs to go to the doctor, Mom Rouge has Chicken POPS!" What a laugh I got out of this--poor Ace was so serious. He almost looked annoyed that I was laughing at him.

We are so ready for Thanksgiving

I can't believe that Thanksgiving is almost here! I love this time of year. Today, we planned our menu. We decided this year that we would change things up a bit. We have family coming to visit and thought it would be great to cook some foods that are more "Louisiana Style". So this year a shrimp dish will be included with the main courses. We will still have some of our favorites though. Mike went to the store today to start gathering the goods. Since we do most of the shopping on base, we know that as Thanksgiving gets closer some items will run out. Check back for feedback on how everyone enjoyed our not so "traditional" Thanksgiving.

Ace saying Grace...

This is Ace saying his prayer before he eats, well actually in the middle of his meal, it is too cute. We say grace at each meal, Ace says his a little different. He doesn't say God he says Bod. He loves to be the person to say grace. It is priceless!

Our Pumpkin Patch Visit

Last weekend we went to Butler's Orchard to pick pumpkins. We all had so much fun. We went on a hayride, had hot apple cider and caramel apples. The boys loved getting lost in the Corn Maze. As we where looking at pumpkins Ace found his perfect pumpkin and just sat on it. It was so cute!! It was a perfect way to spend the weekend.

My "FALLSCAPE"

Each year I create what I like to call my "FALLSCAPE". I am not sure exactly where the name came from and I know it is not a real word, but it has stuck. Although we really miss Louisiana at times, fall is not one of those times. We love the change of leaves and the crisp weather. It is something we never had growing up. Everyone comments on my Fallscape and today a neighbor with her baby came over and had a photographer take a few "FALLISH" pictures. Yes, I know fallish is another word that some would consider not a real word, but it just sounds like it should be. RIGHT??

The SWEETEST Words!!

As I went to tuck Ace in last night, I said "I love you Ace." He said "I love you too Mommy, Ahhh you make my heart smile." He could never know how much that touched me! It was so amazing to hear that after a long day....... The pictures with this post are ones we took of Ace last year. Lesson #101 inlife--Why not to leave a 2 year old unattended. Ace found a BRAND NEW UNOPENED box of chocolate in the pantry. He not only opened the box, but also opened the plastic paper. What were we doing you ask?? On the computer. At the moment we saw him, all we could do was laugh and get the camara.

Where does time go?

Ace has started Pre-School. I must say I was so nervous about this. He is the most loving little boy and at the same time can be the wildest monkey in the ZOO! He has gone 3 weeks now. By the 2nd week I had talked to the teacher about Ace, she said he was still in his "transition" period. As a parent all I heard was he is not getting the routine. I thought great, my child is that one the one that the other parents look at funny as he approaches the class. Well, by the end of the 3rd week the teacher said Ace's "transition" was going much better--umm he is not as bad?? On Friday when I went to pick him up I got the briefing from the teacher. As I am listening to her, my eyes fill with tears. I look at her and tell her I am going through a "transition"! Honestly, she must have thought I needed medication, but all of the sudden I realized that Ace was at school and loved it. I was so sad and yet so happy. I suppose I wanted him to scream and cry when I dropped him off. Instead the "Big Boy" he is said " Bye Mommy I love you, have a good day." I can't believe that he is already 3!

Today I am THANKFUL.........

As all my friends and family know yesterday was my 31st (WOW) birthday. I was kinda down since Mike was gone, he's TDY to Wyoming. When I got up I had the poor me thoughts, I know I know, there is so much worse going on in the world. However, in our house when it is your birthday it is YOUR day! So that is my justification.

Little did I know that my AWESOME friend Autumn and her wonderful husband Brad, as well as my sweet little Avery had a sweet surprise in mind. They greeted me at the door with a Happy Birthday, flowers, a present and the cutest bundt cake ever! It really was the best! Thank you guys so much! We are so blessed to have you in our lives!!

As the day went on I thought I would treat the boys to dinner, because back to the YOUR day rule--I don't cook on my birthday. However, our other wonderful friends the Villarreal's, plus Grandma, had dinner taken care of. I was once again greeted at the door with a Happy Birthday song, flowers, YUMMY Chicken Nachos and a German Chocolate cake! It was great. Thank you so much, Jesse, Tina, Clarissa, Nicholas and Grandma. Although Mike wasn't here each of you made my day special.

My David Beckham

For those of you close to us, we have probably had this discussion. Mike or should I say David has become quiet the celebrity. It seems that we can't go anywhere lately without people coming up to Mike to ask for his autograph. Mike is so funny---he goes along with it. Really we were at Target last weekend and a man walked up to Mike all flustered and asked for his autograph, but informed Mike (David Beckham) that he couldn't find any paper. It's crazy!!

Mike has started to coach Aaron's soccer team, so I am on a mission to find soccer clothes and take look alike photos. Check back in a few days...

Our Trip Home

On our last trip to Louisiana, we got to meet Chef Paul Prudhomme. He gave us a personal tour of his house and the kitchen that he uses to create all of his seasonings. For those of you not from Louisiana, he is a "famous" chef. Mike's Dad works for a company that handles his products and knows him personally. We had a blast and since we both had grown up seeing him on TV, this was an awesome experience. Check out his website to see what he has to offer or just read up on him http://www.chefpaul.com/

We are starting a BLOG!!

We are finally starting a blog. It may take a few weeks to get it up and running. We hope that you will check back to see our progress. We think that this will be an awesome way to let our family and friends see what we are doing although we are miles from our home.