To the zoo!

As much as I enjoy our wintry visits to Utah...I DON'T enjoy the inevitable smog cloud that lurks above the valley like a dirty bathtub ring.

Blech!

We decided to keep the cousins out of the filth and find an indoor adventure to explore instead.

Luckily, a brand new museum of natural history just opened up!

Isn't the building beautiful??

Unfortunately....EVERYONE in the Salt Lake valley with kids home from school for the holiday had the same idea we did....

...sigh.....

....after waiting in line to buy tickets for what seemed like an insane amount of time....

...we decided to find different indoor entertainment.

And then, Lisa had an epiphany.

There is an inflatable playground near her house called Kangaroo Zoo.

It's basically a giant, heated, warehouse full of bouncy play structures!

Her van full of kids SQUEALED at the mention of the name....

...passing their enthusiasm on to Ezra...

...so everyone tumbled into the car again and away we went!

There was climbing.....

....and obstacle course running...

...and general bouncing, laughing, tumbling and playing.

(I laughed so hard when my camera captured my nephew folding in half after a particularly rambunctious jump!)

Talin invented a new form of play......cousin tossing!

Round after round of little bodies tossed high in the air....

...arms and legs flailing, hair flying....

...it was the hit of the gym!

Oh how I wish we could play with cousins EVERY day!

A NEW CAMERA!

That's right friends....Christmas brought me a new digital camera!!!

YAY!

No more janky cell phone shots or relying on sweet Talin to document our life with his i-phone. Thanks Mom and Dad!

I couldn't be more excited!!!

Here's a few shots from our first day with the families.....

A little Aunt Heidi love...

...book reading with MeeMee...

.....boys building Legos....

...sister joy and gorgeous big eye'd baby Kingston...

...present time at Grandma's house...

...late night NICU visit with my Wadsworth sisters....

....meeting sweet Ivy for the first time...

...she is SO beautiful!!!

Get ready blog town.

I fully plan to post on a regular basis now that I have a camera again. =)

Scenes from a Christmas morning v.2011

Last night, Santa took a secret picture with Daddy's phone before he left.

How thoughtful was that?

He must have known that the quiet organization wouldn't last long. =)

Our Christmas morning went something like this....

...Ezra charged into the front room...

...and excitedly found what he'd asked and asked and asked for...

...remote control TRAINS!!

Presents were opened (behold the glory of Legos)....

..treats pulled from stockings...

...and the train set was played with....

...and played with some more

(can you see our "fireplace"? HA!)

Finally, we sat down to a delicious little breakfast.

Merry Christmas everyone!

We hope your morning was as joyful as ours was.

Look out Utah....here we COME! =)

3

I don't remember much of the pushing stage of my labor with Ezra.

I remember Talin's anxious face, my doula diligently feeding me ice chips and soothing me into a calming rhythm.

I remember the midwife's look of concentration....but to be honest a lot of that time is black.

I think I spent most of that hour with my eyes closed, sinking into myself rather then engaging in what was going on around me.

And, then I had the most incredible feeling I have ever experienced, nothing has come close to matching it....

...I heard the midwife call my name and I opened my eyes to meet the tiny, blinking, baby blues of the boy who would change my life.

As he gazed in confusion around at all of us staring back at him I had no idea that little face would become my entire world.

I don't think I'd fully grasped that I would leave EVERYTHING behind to spend my days, nights, sorrows, joys, laughter, tears, frustration, pride...all of it with this new tiny person who had just slipped out of his quiet dark world to join ours.

I DO remember his wet warm body being laid on my chest. I DO remember him looking up at me. And, I definitely remember the surge of love and absolute contentment I felt as we looked at each other for the first time.

I don't think any mother can forget that feeling!

You're not a baby anymore, my sweet son, you've grown into a kind, loving, adventurous little boy with a hilarious sense of humor and a sensitive heart.

In 3 years you've mastered the control of your body

(you are king of the spring board in gym class),

you've learned to communicate

(yesterday on the beach you told Daddy and I you were feeling "exposed"!

We are always amazed at the words that enter your vocabulary),

You sing like a songbird and attack art projects with a reckless creativity that I wish I possessed. You can read most letters and count to 15.

You know what you like

(anything with wheels and an engine!)

and what you don't

(haircuts, crowds, men dressed up as Santa).

I am in wonder at what that squirming, wrinkled, red person I met on his first day of his existence has become and all that he will continue to blossom into. =)

Happy Birthday Ezra man.

We love you more then you will ever know!

Oh dreidel, dreidel, dreidel....

In honor of our beloved Doron, Ezra and I picked up a pack (that's right they come in packs) of dreidels as Target the other day.

I've never played...and our original intention was to get Heidi and Doron to Skype-play it with us.

Buuuuuuuuuuuut...as is often the case, those two are off on jet-setting adventures for most of December, so we were left to muddle through with the internet as our guide.

(there's nothing Pintrest can't teach us...right?)

So, we read the instructions...

...completely butchered the beautiful Hebrew words (giiiiimel?)...

...probably created a few of our own rules...

...but all in all had a fabulous time!

Can you guess who won??

This kid has more luck then anyone I know. =)

Happy Hanukkah Doron!

We can't wait to spin the dreidel with you soon.

(be warned...Ezra is a regular gelt fiend now...he'll do anything for a bite of that sweet sweet chocolate coin. HA!)

The goings on...

Sometimes I feel like I write too much about the events in life and not enough about the day to day.

I want to look back at these posts years from now and remember not just the adventures and occasions, but the simple joy of everyday.

So without further ado, here's a snapshot of our commonplace life.

Playing in the park...

...Christmas parties with friends....

....and work...

...making beds and doing laundry...

...commuting to and from work....

....more playing at the park...

....watching favorite childhood Christmas movies...

...a random trip to the ER for what turned out to be an incredibly painful bout of stomach flu...

...finally finishing up my largest order ever.

It's good to remember the fun and adventure in everyday life. =)

Tannenbaum

The day after Thanksgiving, we decided it was time for the holidays to come on home.

(Granted, Talin's been playing the Charlie Brown Christmas soundtrack since Nov. 12th!)

But, as much as I love trekking around in the Half Moon Bay sunshine looking for the perfect tree to chop down and shuttle home....

...I'm not really a fan of the Christmas tree farm prices.

UGH!

So, we kept things easy this year and headed to our local Home Depot parking lot.

Not as magical...

...true...

...but still full of deliciously green, fragrant trees just waiting for a the right home.

We walked up and down the aisles searching, inspecting, trying to discover the"one".

Some of us did more playing then searching.

(he informed me that the chunk of wood in his hand was axe and he was just looking for a tree to chop down....

...see...

...he's not messing around...he's still working!)

Talin hauled out tree after tree to be held, spun, shaken, tamped, and inevitably dropped back into the pile.

Until it appeared!

Our Christmas beauty, just waiting to be tressed up and hauled home.

Let the decorating fun begin!

Ezra's secret smile

I've been looking at pictures lately and discovered that Ezra has a secret smile.

Oh sure he grins at almost everyone and is generally a happy little guy...

...but every now and then he busts out those dimples and that bright, happy, sunshine face....and my heart melts.

He must think you're pretty great Aunt Jill!

Not everyone gets that look of pure joy. =)

We're so glad you came to visit!

Pancakes+fire station+Santa=Awesomeness

Ahhhh yes....what a lovely winter morning here in the land of San Mateo.

The trees are green....the sun is shining (65 degrees worth of shine)....the gentle breeze smells like eucalyptus and fresh ocean air.

Like I said......ahhhhhhhhh....

...except....it IS December 3rd after all.

My childhood heart cries out for icy sidewalks, giant puffy coats, and bare, frost covered trees.

I wonder if I will ever lose that Utah girl in me who begs for seasonal changes.

Probably not.

Well.....sunshine or freezing snow...it is still December.

Let the holidays begin!!

Have I ever told you about how awesome our little ("little") town is?

I love that there is a community feel in such a large town.

This morning was the annual "Breakfast with Santa at the fire station."

Ezra could not WAIT to get dressed and out the door.

As we walked down the street he chattered on and on about meeting Santa Claus and the fireman. He was SO excited to meet the firemen. =)

We filled our plates with warm pancakes, sausage and yogurt.

There wasn't much eating going on to be honest, how can you eat in a fire station and NOT ask what every house, pole, or tool is?

HA!

The firemen brought out their beautiful old engine from 1921

Of course, within, minutes it was swarmed with kids climbing, playing, and ringing the old silver bell (can you see it there on the left?)

Somehow Talin managed to grab a picture of Ezra alone in the cab driving that HUGE steering wheel!

HA!

Way to go Talin. =)

We waited and played...

...waited and played.....

....and then who should come sliding down one of the shiny brass poles???

SANTA!!

With the appearance of the man in red, Ezra clung to my side like a baby monkey.

No amount of explaining, discussing, and general comforting was going to convince this little guy to get anywhere near that big stranger with a beard.

Oh well....the pancakes and firetrucks were cool anyway. =)

Happy December California!