Happy Birthday Gubby!

We hope you had a wonderful birthday weekend Gubby! Weston and Merrick's great grandmother Emily, aka Gubby, is the cutest great grandma ever. Seriously, I hope when I am her age (I won't disclose numbers), I am half as stylish as she is. I would trade closets with her any day, and her hair is always perfect. We love you Grandma Emily!!!

A little venture

Fortunately we had a couple of days that were dry enough to venture out. Weston loves to be the "leader" on our hikes, very much an oldest child... Merrick is so happy being out doors. I think it makes all of our days better. Freyja loves baby Merrick, although they're almost the same size! It's such a treat for me to have a little girl in the house. She's almost two, snuggles me, lets me brush her hair, and is as cute as a button.

The boys

There's nothing like a little wrestling with Daddy. Merrick even starts doing a sort of growl like noise when he sees his brother wrestle. Boys...

"Shred the mountain with my Dad!"

It was a great day at the mountain, blue sky was seen for the first time in days! There were tons of great 'firsts' in the snow, with lots of smiles and laughs. Only a few time outs were had by West... and a couple outbursts... but it was a GREAT day.

Ryan and Weston (along with a couple of friends), spent the day at Mt. Hood. It was a huge hit! Weston loved snowboarding and skiing... yes, his dad is quite proud.

Skiing all by himself!

Happy 3rd Birthday Weston!

Today Weston is three years old! We had a wonderful weekend full of fun; ABC School on Wednesday turned into a party, and all sorts of West's favorite people made the long drive down to spend the weekend with us. His first bowling experience with Grandma Joyce was a hit (he even had a strike!), and he devoured a huge chocolate cupcake covered in sprinkles!

He is quite the character (if you haven't already noticed from the past three years...). Weston never ceases to surprise me with his enthusiasm, stories, reactions, and creativity. There's never a dull moment with this little man.

He sure likes his PlayMobil toys. He had them all lined up perfectly on his windowsill, animals, cargo, people and all. He told me they were going to Sellwood Park (a park we love to spend time at when it's not pouring rain). Thanks to our family for making this weekend such an important time for all of us, especially the birthday boy.

Snuggles

It is so incredible to watch the relationship the boys already have together. Merrick admires every move Weston makes.

My special friend

Thank you Karen so much for a very special day! She flew up from CA to spend the day with us; playing with the boys, much needed girl talk with me, and she brought the best home made cookies. Not to mention the coolest book for Weston. Thanks Jared, baby Audrey, and Scott for helping your mommy and wife slip away for the day... It was wonderful. Can we do it again?

We even snuck in a family photo... very rarely do we get any of these.

'O Palm Trees, O Palm Trees, how lovely are your branches...'

We celebrated Christmas, sunshine style, in Palm Springs! We were so lucky to be together; Grammy, Grandpa Bob, Grandma Joyce, Grandpa George, Chi Chi, Auntie, Uncle Jim and best of all, DADDY! Talk about a 5 day party!

It started off a little scary, like Ralphie on 'A Christmas Story'... We arrived too late on Christmas Eve to get groceries, and I'm afraid to say the only thing open on Christmas day was Panda Express and a Carniceria. We made the best of it and ate Daddy's BBQ'd carne asada. Yummy.

With the sun shining, Weston becoming a permanent part of the swimming pool, and Merrick getting tons of snuggles from family, we sure loved our time in the desert.

And the reason for it all... Baby Jesus' birthday! Thank you Lord for loving us so much that you gave your only son. We are eternally grateful.