Happy Thanksgiving!

We hope each of you have a safe and wonderful Thanksgiving Day tomorrow!

Christmas Decorations

Neighbors are already starting to put up their Christmas decorations!

Yesterday evening, the boys and I took a little stroll to see the sights.
It's fun to see all the lights, snowmen, reindeer, manger scenes, angels, and trees!

YAY! 'Tis the season...already?!!

Snow in the Mountains!

We were met with a fresh dusting of snow as we arrived at our

mountain getaway on Saturday afternoon.

On Sunday, Gary watched the boys so I could take a little hike with Abi.

The sun was just dipping down toward the horizon as we ventured out.
The air was so fresh and crisp;
Abi & I enjoyed our first walk in snow for the season.

My cell phone doesn't quite capture the brilliant colors of the sunset,

but here's one of the better photos.

Winter Wonderland!

Grayson's 18-month Portraits

Grayson and I headed to Sears today while Gordy was at preschool.

Time to get some updated portraits!

These are the proofs e-mailed to me; they're not top quality,

but you can still see how well Grayson posed for the camera.

Grayson noticed this football and basketball as soon as we

entered the studio, and wouldn't let go of them throughout

the entire session.

Again with the football & basketball -- and an adorable smile.

Grayson did a great job!

Such a serious little sweetheart!

We love you, Grayson!

The Little Gym

Monday evening, we went to a special toddler class at The Little Gym.

Dear friends invited us to "Bring a Friend Night," and we had a lot of fun!

Here are Casey and Abigail --

Casey and I used to teach together...and then we had our babies together!

Abi was born the day before Grayson arrived, so we were all at the hospital at the same time.

It's so fun to watch our babies growing together...!

Grayson loved the bubble catching, stomping, and popping activity!

Gordon got to be 'the big kid' at this class, and he really enjoyed
all the equipment and space to explore.

Here are Grayson, Abigail, and Gordon,
playing in what Gordon decided was a 'doughnut.'

What a fun time!

Thank you so much for inviting us, Casey!

Beautiful Sunny Saturday at the Park

We enjoyed a gorgeous day of sunshine in Boise today!

Hope you're all enjoying a lovely weekend!

Celebrating--Chuck E. Cheese Style!

Congratulations to our Big Boy, Gordon!

He is officially potty (and most importantly, poopy) -trained!

We celebrated a great week of no accidents at Chuck E. Cheese on Thursday evening.

Gordy, we are so proud of you!

Having a great time at Chuck E. Cheese, Gordon is proud of his accomplishments too.
Brave little fella -- For the first time, Gordy found the courage to climb up

into the vaulted, tunnel tubes, play gym.

This was the first visit where Grayson really enjoyed participating also.

Here he is, driving a little car.

Oooooo, Wow!
Way to go, Gordon! We are so proud of our little boys! :)

Field Trip to MK Nature Center

Gordy's preschool class enjoyed their 2nd field trip of the year last Thursday.

They learned about birds, fish, and all kinds of animals in nature at the MK Nature Center.

The tour guide, Sue, did a wonderful job with all the curious children.

Each child got to use a pair of binoculars to look for birds and other critters.

It was a beautiful day and so much fun!

Better Pics of Grayson's New Do

Here's a "before" picture, taken the night before Halloween.

After I got scissor-happy, this is the result:

Side view of new big boy haircut -- don't look too closely; I'm not at all a licensed hairstylist.


The other side -- Again, not a precise cut, but aww.... Someone this cute can totally get away with a homemade haircut!


I can't believe how just a few snips here and there could transform
our baby into such a little man! He looks so grown up now.

A Great Day!

We've had a great day today!

After much success with toilet training this past summer, we'd slipped into a little regression phase with Gordy, not with potty so much as with #2.

Though Gordy has had no accidents at all while at preschool, we've struggled with them at home.

Well, today was a day of celebration!

Gordy is back on track and such a BIG BOY now!

Right away, we called Daddy to tell him the fantastic news.

As soon as he could, Daddy drove home from work and presented Gordy with a pack of sugarless gum, as promised.

Tonight, after dinner, Gordy and Daddy went on a special outing to get TCBY,

and we all celebrated Gordy's achievements with frozen yogurt for dessert!

Now just 4 more poopies in the toilet and we'll enjoy a family trip to Chuck E. Cheese!

'Tis the age of incentives, I guess.

Gordy and Mommy made gingerbread cookies today! Yum-yum!

Grayson is now 18 months old, as of November 4th!

We can't believe what a big boy our little Grayson has become.

He has such a comical and sweet personality.

He continues to be quite a daring child, climbing and exploring all he can.

He loves books and enjoys pointing out certain things in books when asked to find them.

For example, he can find the doggies taking a nap, holding flowers, reading a book, jumping rope, playing with a yo-yo, handing out cake, and swinging --in one of his favorites -- Go Dog, Go!

He also likes to give 'goodnight kisses' to any illustrations in his story books where a character is tucked into bed.

Grayson enjoys singing, talking and mimicking things we say, wearing his cowboy boots, playing with cars and blocks, swinging, and much more.

He is very inspired by things that big brother "Bubba" does. Animals, dirt, rocks, the moon, airplanes, and choo-choo trains are all very special things to Grayson.

Here is Grayson, enjoying a book today after returning from his 18 month well-baby check-up. He weighed in at 27 lbs, 3 ounces and measured 33 inches long.

(Like his Mommy, he obviously enjoys eating -- he's a big boy).

Today has also been special, in that Grayson had his very 1st haircut!

Until today, his hair has been whispy and flowing, with little duck tails forming in the back and by his ears. (Photo on left)

After several occasions where we've been asked our daughter's name, along with Grayson's growing annoyance with the hair tickling his ears, we decided to say good-bye to his baby locks. Here is the the new 'big boy' look he's sporting now! (Photo on the right) Sorry, Myra & Jen. I know you wanted to keep it growing, but you know me. As untrained as I am, I love to give haircuts. It hasn't been fun trying to comb through the little rat nest that forms in the back of his head as of late,

so that will no longer be a problem.

Though it's a little difficult to see in these photos taken with my cell phone, I didn't go too crazy, and there's still much length to the top. He seems very happy with his new look too. :)

Hope you've all had as great a day as we have had here!

Disney on Ice

We had a very special "family field trip" today ~ Disney on Ice!

It was pretty dark in the arena, but you can still see the look of awe on Grayson's face and Gordon's perpetual smile in the photo below.

Gordy and Grayson loved all the music, lights, Disney characters, and skating tricks.

Gary and I loved seeing the great big smiles on our little boys' faces -- Priceless!

Another Weekend in the Mountains

Here are some pictures from a couple weekends ago.... Gary and Gordon built a really cool bridge behind the cabins. Grayson and I went for a couple nice, long runs in the forest. It's the best time of the year for enjoying the great outdoors -- so nice and cool, and the mountains are so bright and colorful this time of year.

Farmers' Market

Here are a few more pictures from last weekend when Jen was here visiting.

After a fun night of trick-or-treating Friday evening, we spent Saturday morning at the Farmers' Market downtown. The boys were still in cowboy mode from their Halloweening, and thoroughly enjoyed the noisy click of their boots on the pavement.

After running around and playing, Gordy took a breather in the sculpture garden.
We enjoyed a delicious prosciutto pizza, with kalamato olives, feta cheese, and capers.

These little guys are not fussy eaters -- they loved it.
Both boys loved the gourmet pizza and also enjoyed tasty & healthy green salad.
This is Grayson's attempt at winking, one of his newest tricks.
Snacking on some crackers and watching all the sights downtown.
Gordon enjoyed the people-watching, a couple trips up and down an escalator, and the talents of a street musician playing guitar & singing.
A true fan of farmers, Gordy greeted folks with a friendly, "Howdy, Pawdner!"
What a lovely way to spend a Saturday!