Merry Christmas!!

The kids could hardly wait for Xmas morning...  After leaving milk & cookies for Santa, and a few carrots for his trusty reindeer, they continued to beg to stay up to see him!  Xmas morning is such an amazing, magical event at their ages.  Mia couldn't believe that Santa truly knew she wanted new gear for dirt bike riding with Daddy!  Aubs got all of the doll paraphernalia she could dream of, and Bubba got Ninja Turtle gear, along with the 4,000 piece Lego Death Star that he's been dreaming of all year...  All were happy!

Vegas, Baby!!

For the past 2 years Daddy & Mia have done an 'alone' trip to Vegas on the slowest weekend of the year in Vegas, the weekend before Xmas.  We've had so much fun that Mia decided this year the whole family was going...  The Twins absolutely loved seeing the volcanos, pirates and fountains. We went for gondola rides at the Venetian, ice skating at the Cosmo, dinner at Bellagio, and culminated with the dinner show at Excalibur which featured fighting knights, real kings on horseback, and jousting.  The kids thought they had died and gone to heaven!  They are already planning the itinerary for next year!  Here is Bubba doing his best cool guy impersonation during his first limo ride.  Note that the fedora did not come off all weekend...

Ice Skating in Vegas!

The kids absolutely loved ice skating in Vegas! The roof top pool of the Cosmopolitan was converted to a winter wonderland. Ice skating, fire pits and smores...  What more could a kid ask for!!  As expected, Mia has become damn near an Olympic skater and pushed her brother around all weekend.  So sweet!

Happy Hanukkah!!

The kids absolutely love Hanukkah! Mommy developed a system of wrapping a giant moving box, but leaving the bottom open.  Each night we place one gift on the floor, cover it with the box, and on the count of 3 they each lift their box to uncover their surprise!  It's so much fun, as you can tell by the smiles of anticipation above...

Dance Class!

Aubs continues to be quite the ham!  This semester she chose an after school extra curricular activity of dance.  Here she was dressed up at her recital, and quite proud to be showing Mommy & Daddy, and Aunt Cathy, all that she had learned...  She is a quite challenging child, but unbelievably cute and sweet!  We love her deeply...

Ostrich Farm!!

On the way home from Tucson at Thanksgiving, we stopped off at Rooster Cogburn's Ostrich Farm!  It's a roadside attraction we've driven past hundreds of times, but never made time to stop for.  This time the kids made sure we did...  After petting donkeys and deer, and Aubs getting bitten by an ostrich, we found the Lovebird enclosure.  Daddy & Mia quickly decided that being trapped in a cage with hundreds of aggressive birds was, well, for the birds!!  So Mommy ventured in with the Twins, who were holding cups of nectar, and were quickly inundated by Lovebirds.  Aubs was in heaven, as her obsession with all things living and breathing has only escalated of late.  Bubba was a great sport to support his sister's odd obsessions!  A really cool experience...

The American Bumble Bee!

Mia continues to thrive in school.  Her charter school is extremely rigorous and challenging, and a perfect fit for her personality.  The Twins will be joining her there next year, and well, let's just say we're not as confident that it will be the perfect fit for them...  She was assigned the American Bumble Bee for her insect segment this month, and had to recite an interesting fact to the class each day.  The culmination was making an actual bee, and presenting it in a showcase to the entire school.  Here she is with her crafty bumble bee!  She takes such pride in her work...  Something Daddy doesn't recall ever doing as a child!!

Happy Thanksgiving!

All dressed up and ready to head to Grammy & Papa's for Thanksgiving!!  Fred & D'Anna's family joined us for a long, relaxing weekend in Tucson.  The kids are growing so quickly now, and Bubba has found his groove...  He loves to do his hair and put on a tie for any special event, including a normal school day!  He's quite the handsome little man.  Aubs has decided she is done being told what she can and can't wear, and selects all of her own outfits now days. Thankfully she has moved past the 'lesbian living in NYC phase' and is selecting really cute outfits! Mia, as always, has her own incredibly cool style that can be best described as beach chick.  They are all amazing kids!