We did it!

We finished reading the New Testament as a family! HOORAY! The more kids we have, the more difficult it is to read things in a timely manner. But, we can now say that we've read the Book of Mormon twice (English and Spanish), the Doctrine & Covenants, and the New Testament together! Next year, we're going to try to read the Book of Mormon again, but also finish it in one year. Wish us luck!

Four Months

Austin is four months old! He started to roll over at the beginning of the month (he surprised himself). He's only done tummy to back, but he's pretty close to doing back to tummy (just that darn arm, you know?). He is super ticklish under his neck and in his armpits. He loves being held while sleeping. He also still chomps on his hands,but now he opens his fingers a bit more and will also suck on a couple of those.

 Height: 25 inches Weight: 15 lbs

Christmas!

This year, we decided to stay home and have Christmas in our home. It was nice. We got several texts this morning letting us know that church had been canceled because of the weather. It was nice to take our time with everything. The girls slept in a bit (Clark was waaaaaay more excited about presents), we went through our stockings before I made chocolate waffles for breakfast. Then we took about two hours to slowly open all our gifts. The girls really liked seeing who all the gifts were from and reading their names on the tags. (Note to self: put labels on everything so the girls have more to read next year.)

Santa brought the girls umbrellas and PJ Mask costumes. They loved them! They were also given jewelry, books (LOTS of books), some new pajamas, and a few toys and movies. They were excited about all the FINDING DORY things they have now.

We're very grateful we could Skype and FaceTime so much family, too! The girls got to talk to Abuelita, both sets of grandparents, and their uncles and aunt.

Merry Christmas!

Snow!

Our corner of the world got snow! We also figured out where we'd stored all the snow pants, so we finally had some outdoor fun! Azucena and Adelaide have been obsessed with the "Snowy Day" story and they wanted to do everything that happens there--snow angels, sledding, snowballs, snowmen, etc. Unfortunately, the snow we got doesn't pack well, so snowmen and snowballs were out. Plus, it's freezing! So, mean mommy made everyone come back in after about twenty minutes. :D

Adelaide's Dance Recital!

The recital portion of our lives has begun! Adelaide had her first dance recital at a local senior nursing home. She LOVED performing with her class!

Check it out here!

Harry Potter Christmas Party

Our library throws a themed Christmas party each year. This year was a Harry Potter Christmas! Clark and I dressed appropriately and Azucena enjoyed finding all the magical touches around the library. We also got to see Santa again! We love our local library and all the thoughtful family activities they host.

Adelaide's 4th Birthday

Grandma and Grandpa came up to spend some of Adelaide's birthday together. They brought a gingerbread house kit to share with all the girls and had fun putting it together.

 

 After Grandma and Grandpa left, we got the family gathered up and went to the theater to see MOANA. All of us loved it! The music was great and the animation was beautiful. We will definitely pick up a copy when it's released on home video.

Adelaide enjoyed opening her presents and picking out a cake (she saw it at Smith's and asked for it, specifically, even though we'd planned on making one ourselves).

Happy birthday, baby girl!

Ward Christmas Party

Our ward's Christmas party was so much fun! Santa was there before it all began. The girls were so excited to meet him. He was very kind and patient and gifted a clementine to each one.

The dinner was tasty and the program was delightful. The Primary sang "The Way to Bethlehem" and we watched a few LDS videos about Christmas and the "Light the World" campaign. Clark and I were blessed to be part of the live Nativity--that's what happens when you have a baby a couple of months before Christmas. ;)

Clark has a few more pictures on his phone that I will add later.

Three Months!

You're so much better at holding up your head. You're also much to large to be carried around in a sling, now. You love looking around at everything. 99% of the time, you cry because you've got a wet diaper or you're hungry. You're an intense eater. You try to eat every 90 - 120 minutes. You also comfort nurse to go to sleep. You'll cry to let me know you want to nurse, then you'll suckle for less than a minute before conking out. It's adorable. We love you!

Decorating for Christmas!

Spent the morning decorating our home to get ready for Christmas! Azucena and Adelaide did a great job helping with the tree!

Thanksgiving

The good pictures were on Clark's phone, of course, but here are two shots I got:

(Someone is very scared for the turkeys today!)

Spent the morning watching the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade. Well, the girls did. I was in the kitchen cooking turkey, cranberry and apple cider glazed Brussel sprouts, maple glazed sweet potatoes, twice baked potatoes, Rhodes rolls, and making a chocolate peanut butter cup pie for dessert. It was all worth it and very delicious! We're grateful for each other, our home, Clark's job, loving family, and our brand new baby!

Silly Outtakes

I know I often share nice pictures here and on Facebook (not professional, and not perfect, but definitely nicer than normal). Just wanted you to see for yourself that for every decent shot I have, there are about two dozen ridiculous ones!

These pictures were taken because it was nice outside and the girls were fairly well-coordinated and their hair wasn't completely woebegone. (And, yes, Azucena is in shorts, because this fall has been unseasonably warm!)

(Second note, shortly after finishing taking these pictures, the boy had a poop-splosion on his outfit, and one of the girls broke my blue pendant necklace. Because, you know, kids. Eep.)

 I start with this shot, because the girls are old enough that I can *mostly* get them to look nice for a picture together. Like, 55% of the time. But, add another child, and you get these!

 

Azucena's Halloween Parade

Since Azucena attends school every other day, her class missed participating in the school-wide costume parade. The school makes up for it by having a Kindergarten-only parade the next day. It was fun to watch her and all her classmates walk down the hallways proudly showing off their costumes!

Halloween!

I know I'm weird when I say this, but I love dressing my kids for Halloween in regular clothes more than in costumes! Costumes are fun, but black and orange striped tights are even more fun! Yes, yes, total Mom fail, but whatever. :D

 Aurora's hair can be explained by one thing: HALLOWEEN. (Or, she just woke from a nap.)

 Mom wins Grandma-of-the-Year because Azucena told her she wanted to be Rapunzel with her long, beautiful hair, so my mom went and made this wig for her. YUP. Thanks, Mom!

Two Months Old!

Austin is now two months old! We love our little chub-a-lubs! He's a growing, healthy boy and his older sisters adore him. Stats to follow!

 Height 22.25 inches Weight 12 lbs 9 oz