Rockin Around the Christmas Tree!

I absolutely LOVE the Christmas season. It is, by far, my very favorite holiday! I love the special feeling , the Spirit, the friends, the family, the joy of just being here during the holidays. I love it all.
As soon as Thanksgiving is over, our tree is out and up. I was so excited to put it up this year with Weston (and a little nervous!) We had a blast. He made it through most of the nights festivities, and put up about 2 ornaments before he was worn out and ready for bed. He has done pretty well with the tree...well, the top half of our tree is it's normal-decked-out self. The bottom half is dedicated to Weston: with ornaments that are unbreakable and okay to play with. It started out with some rhyme and reason and now..well, I just throw things on at the end of the day!

I hope you are all enjoying this season and having a great time celebrating the Spirit of Christmas all month long! We love you all!

You can't tell very well...but we had just turned the lights on the tree and he LOVED it...he just kept staring. So cute!

As soon as I put the skirt under the tree, West crawled under to relax. Cozy, huh?

Weston had so much fun looking at all of the ornaments as we took them out of boxes. And, yes, he found last years Santa hat. Nice fit...I can't believe he's grown so much...this hat was too big last year!!! He loves hats now, it's so fun!

Putting on some ornaments. LOVE Christmas!!!!

These are for Amanda!!!

Puppy Love!!


So these pictures were both originally under the Missouri posting, but in my typical haste, I accidentally deleted them as I was speedily typing away. I don't know how it happens, but I seriously do it almost every time I post. I was too lazy to go back in and add them again, but after reading Amanda's comment, I had to give them their own post and put the original info under them. Here you go:

So cute!!!
I credit Weston's love of dogs entirely to Molly, Joe and Amanda's amazing Huskie. (sp) If I ever have a dog I want her to be as cool as Molly. She is beautiful, (okay, she does shed WAY too much) and she is so sweet. She even 'talks' to you. I can't explain it, but she does. Weston loves being around her and isn't scared!!! Which is not usually the case. I think he was okay with this adorable puppy because Molly is always so good to him. We're excited to see her again this month. (and of course the rest of our awesome family!)
After seeing my cousins cute cute cute husky puppy, and of course being around Molly, I now want one. Jeff still wants a golden. Since we're having a baby soon, I think we'll put off this decision for awhile. haha

Isn't he SO cute?!

Kapria

Just something else to check out:

So I don't take pictures very often....but Shar does. Check out Shar & Trav's blog for adorable and cute pictures of my little niece Kapria!!! Also, I didn't get any Thanksgiving pics taken, but Shar did and she'll be posting them soon. So if you get sick of waiting for me to do updated postings....just check their blog out...they usually have the latest info earlier than I get it up!

travisandshar.blogspot.com

A little about our Thanksgiving holiday:

We had a BLAST hanging out with Jeff's mom and dad for the first part of Thanksgiving week. Then my parents and bros came in town on Thursday and we spent the rest of the holiday with them. LUCKY LUCKY us to get to see both sides of the family. We feel so special and so blessed to be a part of two absolutely incredible families. We couldn't ask for more. Thank you to both Moms and Dads for making our holidays so special and for helping us become the people that we are today. We LOVE you!!!!!

Our Cute little guy!!!

Weston's photo session with Meg!!!

Meg is an awesome photographer and was so nice to take our pictures while we were in MO.!!! She caught a lot of Weston's fun expressions on film!! These were taken on a chilly day, so that's why he's bundled up! It was so fun to walk around my Granparent's property...that's where Meg got all of these cute shots.
Thanks so much Meg for taking the time! We love you!!!!
Hope you all enjoy!

Trip to Missouri!!!!

Here are the pics from Missouri!!!!


Welll....I finally am posting the pics from when Weston and I went to Missouri. We were able to plan the trip so that my mom went at the same time as us! We visitied Grandma & Grandpa Abreu, my aunt Meg, and her kids: Melissa, Tory, Christy, & Eric. It was so much fun to see them after so many years and to catch up. I LOVED the visit . Meg took us to so many neat Church History sites and we had a blast being with everyone for 10 days!!! It is sad to be so far away again! In no particular order!!!!!
Disclaimer: these pics are not the best, Meg took AWESOME pics on the trip but I have them on CD and my computer is being VERY slow....so I am just posting what I have on the comp. already since it has taken so dang long for me to get these up.
ENJOY!!!

Saying goodbye to Grandma (my mom) at the airport. We were able to fly to Arizona together and then we split up. We miss you, mom!!!

Weston thought it was so funny to feed grandma ice! Hey, whatever works on the airplane is good for me!

Me and my adorabley cute and wonderful cousin, Melissa. I miss you!!! We had so much fun getting to know each other and having late night chats. You are so awesome Mel!!!!

We LOVED staying with Grandma and Grandpa Abreu. It was so fun to see them again and have them meet our cute Weston now that he has so much personality!! (they saw him at about 6 weeks...cute, but not too much going on then!)

Tory, Meg, Melissa, and Eric I love you all!!!

Christy drove down from U of M (I think that's what school she' s going to??!!!) and brought one of the adorable Huskie pups she is selling. Isn't he SO cute?! I don't know who was more scared of who.. Weston or the puppy! We're glad we got to see you Christy!!!

Weston loved snuggling with Melissa...she was so cute with him! Thanks for having so much fun with him!

We look goofy, I know, but Weston thought it was hilarious when we would spit these balls out. They would go so far! It was a fun game that we started to entertain Weston and ended up cracking ourselves up. Maybe you had to be there....

Weston loved playing with Grandma, especially allt henew cool toys she brought with her!
I miss and love you mom, not just because of all your cool stuff!

It took him awhile, but Weston finally warmed up to Grandpa! He sat with him for a little while and it was so adorable. Meg got this cool picture of their hands below. I love it!

We loved our trip and wish we could have stayed longer! We love love love you all and miss you very much!!!!!!! Thanks for everything you did for us!

Pumpkin Carving!!!

The Pumpkin!!

Ever since there have been pumpkins outside of Macey's, Weston has been fascinated. He always wants to stop and pat one and has started saying pumpkin. Well...it kind of sounds like "bump bump". So Jeff and I were super excited to have him help us carve one. We couldn't wait to see what he would think of all the gooey stuff inside. After all, he loves getting dirty, so it would be great, right?! HAHA He WAS fascinated with it all...but he hated having the gooey stuff on him. He did OKAY if it was on his hands, but his feet, NO WAY!!!! Here are a bunch of fun pics from that night:

I just love this one...it's so cute how intently he is watching!

Mmmm...sort of okay with touching, kinda

He's digging with a spoon...there was no way he was touching it free-handed again!

I know it looks mean that Jeff is laughing, but it really was pretty funny...the gooey stuff had touched his foot in this picture, and that was it, he was DONE!

We finished carving our cute face (I determined no scary faces yet!) after Weston went to bed.
What a fun Halloween activity!!

By the way, I baked pumpkin seeds for the first time this Halloween!! It was so much fun and they are delish!! I love holidays!

Some pictures..in no particular order

WEll, here are some pictures to enjoy, finally!!


I have a bunch more pics coming, but I have to go make potato salad for dinner. And I say have to because even though it takes time and I am tired....I am craving it so bad that it is a necessity. haha. Last pregnancy it really was pickles...this time potato salad. It's a good thing it's such a process to make, that ensures that I don't eat all the carbs too often. haha

Enjoy the pics!!!

I just thought he looked so sweet in this picture. And here's my plug for BYU: Go Cougs!!!

Weston might be a mama's boy (okay there's no 'might' about it) but he sure LOVES playing with his Daddy. I love seeing them laugh together and have so much fun. Jeff is such an amazing dad and he comes up with some of the coolest and most creative things to do with Weston. I am so lucky to have a husband who loves playing with our son so much!!! Thanks babe!

My boys. I love this picture!

Jeff was a good sport to take these pictures in front of Johnson Mill on our little mid-week getaway. Doesn't it look so fall-ish?! Love it. :)

What a beautiful fall display. :) I liked it anyways.

Me and my awesome sister in law Amanda...I miss you!!! I love all the chats, though. Only 7 weeks 'till Christmas!
By the way, these are the only pics I have from that weekend, so I really need people to send me more!!

Having fun with Cole!

When did our little boy turn into such a ham?!
Too funny!

Getting ready for a bath one night, this is where his pants ended up. HE thought he was so funny and ran around like this for quite awhile. Hmmmm....he won't wear hats much, but sure loves to wear things that make people laugh!!

He LOVES stuffed animals now!!! He picks a different one to bring to bed every so often!! Too cute!!!

This is what Weston looked like after eating a sucker. He LOVED it and now wants one all the time.

I forgot to mention that Annie came to visit and it was SO great to see her!!! Al & Evie, Annie & Joshua, Alli & Jordan, Nicole & Weston We had a blast visiting!!!!

Halloween and the Pumpkin Patch!!

Dressed up for the Halloween party! Jeff and I went as different era's (we raided Shar's Halloween bin!) and West, well, you can see is a dragon! Too cute!!!

Weston and I at the Pumpkin Patch!
We went with some good friends from our old ward. Thanks for inviting us Carley!
This is Weston with the pumpkin he picked!! He tries to say pumpkin, it is so cute!

He was so excited to get a pumpkin, but as soon as he saw the hay he totally forgot about it! He loved picking it up and throwing it in the air, so funny!

All the cute kiddos we went with: Abigail, Tanner, Brayden, & West (who was much more interested in all the kids than the camera!)

He either needed a nap, or just woke up from one! He WOULD NOT crack a smile!

These are the coolest pumpkins!

Happy Happy Birthday!!!!

Happy Birthday Dad and Shawn!!!!!

Happy Birthday. We hope it was fantastic!!!! (despite the craziness)
Since we all know that Shar is a much more eloquent writer than any of us, I am just going to say
DITTO!!!!!
to everything she wrote. And please know that I agree and think the world of both of you. I am so glad I am part of your family. Thanks for everything!!!!

A very late update!!!!

Hello family and friends!!!

For those of you who have been wondering and questioning my being alive-- here I am. Finally!!!!! Life has been busy and crazy since last time I posted. Since I am overwhelmed with the thought of catching you up on the last 2 months, complete with pics and lengthy explanations, I am just going to do a summary and then move on to the here and now!! (It's kind of like when you miss an entire year of writing in your journal...it could take months to catch up and then that only puts you behind even farther, so we're moving straight to the latest!)

Here is a brief synopsis:

September:

• Our new niece was born, pics are below.

• We had a fantastic visit from Mom. She was here for Shar & Kapria but we were able to have a blast with her too! We miss her so much
• We found out we are expecting baby number 2!! Yay!!! We are due May 10, 2008 and we are SO excited. Maybe a girl is in our future?! We'll see! I had about 2-3 really hard weeks of feeling sick, but after that I have just been extremely tired. But, hey, I'll take fatigue over dry-heaving any day!!! sorry if that was too much info!
  

• Dad came to visit the last weekend Mom was here and then they drove home together.

• Weston was horribly sick the entire weekend Dad (aka Grandpa Dan) was here, BUMMER, but he did manage to crack a smile once or twice so that Grandpa saw a tiny bit of his sparkling personality!
• Weston is turning into a little boy more and more everyday. He is signing tons of words and trying to talk all the time. He RUNS, not walk, wherever he goes and LOVES to make people laugh. He is definitely a little ham.
  
• We miss Mom and Dad VERY much since they left!!!!
• We cancelled our internet because the price jumped way too high, hence the no blogging. However...I STILL get email....

October:

• Conference weekend for the LDS church. Need I say more? It was fantastic and inspired me to be so much better and try harder in a lot of personal areas. I love listening to our Prophet and the leaders of our church.
  
• Conference weekend Joe, Amanda, & Cole came for a quick trip. It was so great to see them and get all the siblings together!!! It made us miss them even more!
• Jeff and I were able to use our gift certificate for Johnson's Mill Bed and Breakfast (where we went for our anniversary!) It was so beautiful there in the fall!!! We saw about 7 does, 2 baby deer, and 2 bucks. How cool. Also, there was a pair of swans who followed us around the pond while we canoed. We finally asked the receptionist for some feed and were able to feed not only the swans, but about 10 geese, and a few ducks and some fish. That was so fun. We even saw a snake in the basement common room. How's that for a great get-away?! We were so lucky that Jonathan was able to watch Weston overnight!!! Weston still had a smile on his face when we got home, so way-to-go Jonathan!!! What a great uncle!!!! (Thanks to James and Amy for coming to help put Weston to bed!!!)
  
• West and I took a trip to Missouri to visit Grandma & Grandpa Abreu and Meg and the girls. My mom was awesome and came too!! We had a connecting flight in Vegas where we met her and then the three of us flew to Kansas City. Missouri is such a beautiful state. We had a blast and are so glad we were able to spend some quality time with the family we don't get to see often enough. Some of the highlights from the trip include:
  

1. Weston actually sleeping on the plane!
2. Spending quality time with wonderful family
3. Late nights playing cards (hand and foot is the coolest game)
4. getting to have my mom all to myself. I miss her.
5. Visiting Liberty Jail. The spirit there was amazing. My favorite sections of the Doctrine and Covenants were received there!
6. Visiting Independence and Adam-ondi-ahman. Again, what a spiritual place to be.
   
7. Getting to know my adorable, fun, and amazing cousins and my awesome Aunt better. She also took Weston's pics. I don't have all the pics fromt the trip yet, but I will so those WILL be posted because they are just too dang cool!
   
8. Watching Weston warm up to everyone. He also started doing some very daring stunts. too funny!
9. Weston learned to say cow, moo, and pumpkin. Okay, it might not sound just like it, but he definitely makes the same sound over and over for each of those words. too cute. Cow and moo came from visiting the cows that live, yes, right next door to my grandparents house.
   
10. Visiting historic Weston, MO. YES, it is a town and you can imagine how picture crazy I went. Again, those pics will come soon!
11. Bonding with Melissa. I miss you tons!!! Thanks for all of the texts!
    
12. We learned about the fires that were ravaging So. CA. (more on that below)
    

The trip was a blast and I am so glad we were able to take the time to go. Thank you, Jeff, for putting up with 9 days without us. I know it was lonely!!!

• Okay, back to the rest of October: we had a great weekend back after missing Jeff very much, but now I miss my mom very much.
  
• West and I had a fun trip to Pumpkin Land with some friends from our old ward. It was so good to hang out with friends! Thanks for inviting us Carley!!
• We were able to go to cute little Abigail's first birthday party last night. She is so adorable, I am sorry Jonathan, but you have a heartbreaker on your hands. Good luck when she can start dating!!!
  
• We have the internet again. Jeff found a great deal, way to go babe!
  

And NOW, that is the latest. SO...I realized that I wrote a TON. So much for a brief synopsis. Haha. I really hope you read it all, though, because that has been our life up until now.

And now for the fires:
First of all, a big, huge THANK YOU to everyone who has called and sent emails of concern for my family. I can't tell you enough how much it means.
Here is the update on what happened:

Valley Center was evacuated. The fire did go through the ranch and my dad and brothers stayed to try to save what they could. You might think this is not smart. That's not the case, my dad helped out the firefighters during the fires 4 years ago. He is not a dumb guy, in fact, he's very smart and I would want him with me during any natural disaster!!!! There are also fire hoses at the ranch, NOT household hoses. If people are trying to fight a fire with a typical garden hose, yeah, that is dumb. Also, right in front of our house is a fairly large pond. The plan was to jump in the pond if the fire got out of control, which they didn't have to do.
All but 2 of the home were burned down. For some reason, the fire hoses stopped working, otherwise my dad says they could have saved more. The shop and various other buildings were burned. The shop was a huge bummer for our family because it housed the boat, wave runner, a car, and all of my dad's tools, auto books and a lot of things that he has spent his lifetime aquiring. The books are really sad because many of them are out of print. They were able to save the house, but it is not livable. So my dad says that he saved our stuff (inside the house) but not the house, really.
But they are okay and that is the most important thing. I admire my parents so much because they have such a good outlook on things. They are being really optimistic even though they lost a lot of valuable things and are, essentially, without a home.
Thanks to everyone for your thoughts and prayers. You are very appreciated!!!!

So there is the update. I hope you enjoyed finding out why we've been missing from blogging for so long!!! Since I have to get on a different computer to send pics, I will do that very soon!!!