It's almost that time!!!

Well we are heading off to Rhode Island for what I have entitled "Monsonfest 2008-09". We are all going to be together for Christmas this year, and I am very excited. We want to wish all of you a VERY Merry Christmas and a wonderfully Happy New Year!

Christmas Card 2008

If you lived in Boston, this is what you would have gotten from us...one of my favorite Christmas traditions, baking!

Joy School Nativity

Thatcher had his Joy School Christmas party and Nativity Program this last week! He was the angel, which we thought was very appropriate because that is what Daddy was when he was in Joy School. He did a great job, and all the kids were VERY cute. We have LOVED this Joy School experience, and hope to continue with this cute group next year when Thatcher is 4!

Thatcher and Elijah as the angels coming to Mary.

Our little Shephard Tagg.

All the kiddos with baby Jesus. Notice that cute little Ella is Joseph. We thought it was totally fine since this Joy School is in Cambridge, and in the Cambridge 1st ward, that's how we roll. :)
Side Note: Some members of our ward were "Mormon's against Prop 8". Lets just say that it has been pretty WILD in our ward
the last couple Sundays. I might blog about it soon, let me tell ya, it has been NUTS!

Thatcher the angel...

I will have a SHE someday and she MUST have this....

So, Todd is at a basketball game tonight with my Dad and brother. I am surfing the net, while I should be Christmas baking. Look at what I found while browsing on Etsy...

No this isn't an announcement. But WHEN (trying to be optimistic here) we have a little girl, she WILL have this dress. It is perfect.

Even though I long for a little girl, as I looked in the rear view mirror at my boys today eating McDonalds chicken nuggets and sharing fries all while playing with their happy meal toys, I was overcome with gratitude to be their mommy. I wouldn't trade them for 100 girls.
They are perfect.

It's beginning to look a lot like....

SEATTLE! Seriously. It has been raining here for THREE days straight. I don't even know why I blow dry my hair in the mornings. By 10:00am my hair is a frizz ball that slightly resembles shrubbery. Rain, rain, GO AWAY! Where is the snow people? Are we not in New England?

Last weekend was the Westgate Christmas party. It was delightful. The theme was international holidays, and it was awesome. I love things like this. There were several booths set up about countries from around the world and how they celebrate the holidays. We did an Italian one. I wanted to do the table half Italian and half Maltese to be true to my heart, but didn't have access to any pastizzi. Maybe next year if I research ahead of time. Luckly for us, we live in Boston, aka: Italy in America. You don't have to go very far to get Pandoro, or Panatone, both of we served at our booth. When I opened that box of Panatone and smelt that unmistakable smell, I was brought right back to Consenza, and my heart was warmed. Such good memories. Anyway, it was a very cool night topped off with a visit from the big man himself. Santa. The boys almost died. It was pretty much the same reaction as when they saw Micky Mouse for the first time. Thatcher reminded me of little Ralphie on "The Christmas Story". He was half in shock, so much so that he almost forgot to tell Santa what he wanted. Just before he got off his lap he told him and was very relieved. HO. HO. HO!

Todd and the boys sampling some of the international goodies...

The Hanukkah Booth...a big hit with all the dreidles, donuts, and candy money! I couldn't keep Todd away from the dreidles, I don't know what is with that guy! :) Also, I learned something so cool. They serve donuts and basically anything fried because of the "miracle of the oil". Very interesting, and very yummy!

My cute friend Kate with her Irish booth

Germany

My friend Pam did a French booth, because they lived there for a few years.

My good friend Becky did a Swedish booth, her mom is Swedish and she has a lot of fun traditions that go along with her heritage.

The shock factor of Santa.

Trying to smile, but still in shock that he is on Santa's lap.

Tagg on Santa's lap.

A little shout out!

This is a little shout out to my friend Amberli McCoy who took our family pictures last Saturday. She was awesome! So fun to work with and the boys really loved her. For those of you in the Boston area, she is starting up her business, and she is great! Thanks Amberli, you are the best!

Christmas Cheer!

If you read this blog, and would like a Christmas Card from us, please leave a comment with your current address...

Thanksgiving

We had a wonderful, relaxing, and very yummy Thanksgiving Holiday. It was wonderful to enjoy the Holiday all together as a family. I LOVE this time of year!

Wednesday we took the boys to get their pictures taken, and after to the carousel and to see Santa. They loved both. Thatcher was so excited to see Santa he started screaming his Christmas list at him while we waited in line.

Taggy just relaxing on Grandma's couch...

Thanksgiving meltdown...

My Mom and I were cooking fools, which was so fun.
Here is the product of our all our work. The spread.

Thatcher too hungry and anxious to eat to pause for a smile...

Grandma putting the final touches on the table.

The GIGANTIC Frog Eye Salad I made. It could have fed an army!
We didn't even make a dent!

Gettting ready for the grub!

Dave with "Thankful Tom"

Todd wrestling with the boys after dinner

Tagg

Grandpa reading our "Thankful Tom's"

Whistlin' Dixie!

We found out today that we will be heading to Lexington, Kentucky in February for Todd to have an internship with Amazon!! We are VERY excited as it was our first choice in company and location! I was born to be a southerner...can't wait to get a taste of the ol' south!

Twilight Time Y'all!

On Friday night I went with a whole bunch of girls (aka: MOMS) from Westgate and our Ward to see the HIGHLY anticipated Twilight. The movie theater was PACKED with tweens and teen girls, and when the lights went down, the screams and giggles began! The whole movie was like one big Hannah Montana concert. It was really fun and I had a great time. I personally do love the Twilight series. I think Stephanie Myer is awesome being a stay at home mom, and writing her books while her kids played around her. My dream. I am glad she has done so well. The movie was okay. There were scenes I loved, and there were scenes I hated. Lets break it down, shall we?
Cedric Diggory as Edward? Ummm no. Too much staring, too intense, too freaky at times. Biology class when he was plugging his nose? Laughed out loud. Climbing through the trees and calling Bella a "spider monkey", laughed out loud. Sucking Bella's blood, such a weird scene. His eyes were BUGGING out of his head. Calm down Cedric! He did grow on me, and was good in some parts, like the restaurant scene and the prom, and when he said, "the lion fell in love with the lamb", all the tweens were swooning at that point I am sure.
The girl who played Bella was great I thought. Loved how she portrayed her, just as I had pictured in my head. Her hair was awesome. Good job to the stylist.
Loved the Cullens, loved Alice and Emmett especially. Who would have known that Eva from Grey's was Esme? Loved Forks, just as I pictured in my head, grey and gloomy. Loved Charlie and Jacob Black made me laugh. LOVED the foreshadowing at the end when Jacob and Edward stare each other down. Yes! Werewolves and vampires, who could ask for more?
All in all it was entertaining and I didn't go to the movie with super high expectations, so it fit the bill I guess. I am trying to talk Todd into going over Thanksgiving break, but somehow I feel that we will most likely see James Bond. I will buy it when it comes out on DVD.

Let the festivities begin!

Friday night Westgate had a Thanksgiving Dinner. They provided this cute little Turkey cookie craft for the kids to do. The boys loved it. The dinner was great, we really do love living here for the community feel that Westgate has. We are thankful that we chose Westgate and for all our friends that we have here.

Thatcher, Elijah, and Tagg making thier Turkeys.

I really love this Westgate crew! They have been a lifesavor for me!

Elijah, Charlie, and Tagg. Tagg thinks he can hang with the
"big boys" because they are Thatcher's friends.

Sampling his Turkey...YUM!

Baby it's COLD outside!

It is officially winter. One of the funniest things is watching these little Arizona boys get used to the cold. They love their puffy jackets, so we took a little Winter photo shoot.

Joyful day at Joy School...

I have a love/ hate relationship with Joy School. It is a true fact. I LOVE Joy School because it teaches wonderful values. I love that I can drop Thatcher off for 2 1/2 hours 2 times a week and a home where I can trust that he is safe and welcome, and he is learning. He has loves it, and has already grown so much. I HATE Joy School because every 5 weeks I am STRESSED to the MAX about having 6 kids in our small little apartment for 2 1/2 hours 2 times a week. I am STRESSED that I won't teach them well enough, or someone will get hurt, or all the other stresses of having six kids under 3 in a 600 sq. foot space! Last week at institute I taught a lesson based on President Monson's talk "Finding Joy in the Journey". I have decided to not stress so much about Joy School and really try to find Joy in it, kinda ironic, but true! So Thursday we all, including me, had a very Joyful Joy School day! This is what happened when our game of "duck duck goose" turned into a free fall.

A Little Update...

Life is busy in our neck of the woods. The trees have lost their leaves in anticipation of the snow, and Thanksgiving is right around the corner. We have all had colds, spent some time in RI with Grandma, Grandpa and Uncle Dave for a long Veterans Day weekend, and trying to adjust to only having a few hours of daylight a day! I am busy planning Christmas festivities and gifts and crafting presents. I love this time of year! Although, is it just me or was Christmas just a few months ago? This year has FLOWN by. Todd is hanging in there at this busy time of the semester. He is pulling all nighters far too often and counting the weeks until Christmas break. He is also applying to internships, which is exciting, so stay tuned for an announcement on where we will be for 6 months! Thatcher and Tagg are getting used to spending most of their time inside, and learning how to share. Thatcher said the funniest thing. Todd taught him to say #1 and #2 in reference to bathroom matters, instead of the "other words". It got a little embarrassing when in the middle of church or a trip to the store Thatcher would scream, "I've got to go POO!". So, he now referes to his bodily functions as #1 or #2. Todd and I were talking the other day and we heard Thatcher yell from the bathroom, "What is #3? Is it take a bath?" I guess he figured that we are numbering all things related to the bathroom. Tagg is talking up a storm and comes up with the funniest phrases. We have realized that Tagg is no longer a baby, but a little boy. A hard pill for me to swallow. In short, life is good.

I stole this quote from my friend Jill's blog...

If you are still in the process of raising children, be aware that the tiny fingerprints that show up on almost every newly cleaned surface, the toys scattered about the house, the piles and piles of laundry to be tackled will disappear all too soon and that you will—to your surprise—miss them profoundly . . .

Stresses in our lives come regardless of our circumstances. We must deal with them the best we can. But we should not let them get in the way of what is most important—and what is most important almost always involves the people around us.

--Thomas S. Monson

I also love this one...

Mother, O Mother, come shake out your cloth,

Empty the dustpan, poison the moth,
Hang out the washing, make up the bed,
Sew on a button and butter the bread.

Where is the mother whose house is so shocking?
She's up in the nursery, blissfully rocking.

Oh, I've grown as shiftless as Little Boy Blue,
Lullabye, rockabye, lullabye loo.
Dishes are waiting and bills are past due
Pat-a-cake, darling, and peek, peekaboo

The shopping's not done and there's nothing for stew
And out in the yard there's a hullabaloo
But I'm playing Kanga and this is my Roo
Look! Aren't his eyes the most wonderful hue?
Lullabye, rockaby lullabye loo.

The cleaning and scrubbing can wait till tomorrow
But children grow up as I've learned to my sorrow.
So quiet down cobwebs; Dust go to sleep!
I'm rocking my baby and babies don't keep.

- Ruth Hulbert Hamilton

I want to vinyl letter part of that poem and hang it somewhere someday. I think about those lines almost every day. I sometimes beat myself up for stressing too much about this, or losing my patience about that. I am trying to have more joy in the journey. I often think about the day when Thatcher and Taggart will leave on their missions, and I hug them now a little more tightly.

On a less serious note...

For my mission friends...who knew that Uncle Gunnell was on Kath and Kim?? I didn't, until last night...

Love this show. It is hillarious. New favorite show of the Fall along with 17 Kids and Counting (Who has seen this? I still can't get over it every time I watch, the woman is a SAINT), John and Kate plus 8 (this isn't a new show, but I just discovered it and LOVE it), Chuck (very funny), and Biggest Loser (again, not a new show but the first season I have gotten into it, very inspiring).

Halloween in Boston

Happy Halloween! We had a great Halloween this year. Thatcher and Taggart are pretty much OBSESSED with anything spooky and scary. I don't know why, or what to say about this. We would stop at the Halloween displays in the stores, and I would be hearing the other kids whimpering or crying, "TOO SCARY", but my boys were chanting for more! I don't know how many times I pushed that button to the skeleton at Target that talked in a very chilling voice. Both boys were enthrawled.
So here is the recap of all our Halloween festivies 2008...

Last Saturday the Halloween fun was kicked off with HalloMIT, a carnival type party on campus.

Introducing the famous Sheriff Woody, and his bestest pal Buzz Lightyear!

Cutest Woody in the West, or East...

Cotton Candy for the first time...Tagg was a fan.

The Westgate kiddos, minus a few.

All of us with Tim the Beaver, the MIT mascot.

Cutest Bootiest Space Ranger

Showing off his Balloon that lastest all of five mintues...

Wating in line for the Balloon lady...aren't those glases to die for?

Playing some carnival games

Thatcher and Daddy carving Mr. Jack-O-Lantern

YUM!

Yikes. Thatcher with a knife.

Halloween night, getting ready for another party...
Tagg loving life knowing he will soon have a loot.

I love this picture with all the leaves on the ground.

Making a craft at the Westgate Halloween party.

Taggy chillin' with his homies.

My friend Christine with her cute cake...loved it.

Thatcher and his friend Daniel killing some time before the trick or treating frenzy begins...

Halloween parade. The MIT marching band came and all the kids paraded around the playground. It was really cute. These two little stinks held hands the whole time. Melts your heart .

The after math...two little boys content as can be as Mom lets them have at their massive loot followed by sugar highs...got to love Halloween!