Our Nod to November

Oh my goodness, where did November go?  Talk about being over in the blink of an eye.  It must be because of all the fun things we were doing!  Hope you enjoy a few extra pictures and videos from November!!!

We love Garrett's crazy hair (this was pre first hair cut!)!!

Not sure where Tori picked this up from, but she has been doing it for the past couple of weeks and we think it's pretty entertaining!

This year we were really concerned about the logistics of being able to vote.  So we took our chances and went to vote early with both kids in tow.  It ended up being super cold and when we got to our voting location the line was out the door and halfway down the block.  We said a quick prayer and decided to give it a try.  As soon as we got in line, Garrett started to cry and I was really wondering if we had made a good decision.  A few minutes later one of the ladies that works at the county office came down the line letting us know we should be inside in about 10 minutes.  She returned about a minute later and asked us to follow her.  We were so relieved when she led us inside the building and showed us where we could wait for our turn to vote.  This woman was an answer to our prayers and another of Heavenly Father's tender mercies.  We still waited the same amount of time, basically just jumping back in line when the line made it to us.  But we were able to wait inside where Tori had a bathroom (she had to go potty while we were waiting) and where both kids could stay warm.  It really confirmed to us that voting is indeed important and I am so glad that we were able to take part in the election process this year!!!

On this day, Tori asked that her hair look like Tiana's.  We got it done and she looked at me and said, "where is my crown?"  So, we rounded up a tiara and Tori was satisfied- here is the finished product!

 Welcome to the Garrett and Tori dance party!!!

Garrett is learning to share!

 I bet you never knew that Garrett's car would make such an awesome fort!

I am starting to wonder if a fascination for,and the quick mastering of, the remote might just be a male trait...

because Garrett is already getting it down!!!

 And he is also starting to figure out the phone!

Tori has recently taken up fort making.  She did this on all by herself- not too shabby!

 Hurrah for fun packages from Grandma!!!

Yeah, Garrett finally, and just barely, hit 20 pounds!  Now he can ride in style!!!

Just in case you were wondering, this is how an angel with butterfly wings flies!!!

We won't be getting our big Christmas tree for a few weeks, so we decided to pull out our small tree the day after Thanksgiving.  Tori had so much fun helping Daddy put it together!

 Garrett was fascinated by the lights!

Ta-da!!! Tori did a great job putting all the kid-friendly ornaments on it!  We love out little Christmas tree!  

 Garrett was looking very dapper for church- what a stud!!!

Tori loves baking up some cookies!!! (Thanks so much Colorado Harrison's- it's a huge hit!)

Check it out- both of my boys participated in No-Shave November this year!!!

Thanks for all the fun memories November- we thoroughly enjoyed you!!!

Christmas at the Zoo

Tonight we were able to attend Christmas at the Zoo- a first for our little family!  The Indianapolis Zoo does an awesome job of putting up lights and decorations everywhere.  And you can see them even before you get to the parking lot.  As we were waiting to turn into the zoo, Tori exclaimed, "I'm so excited, it's so amazing!"  It was so fun seeing how excited she was.  She kept repeating both phrases as were were walking in and we noticed many people around us chuckling and totally enjoying her enthusiasm!

Tori requested a picture with the giraffe and the flamingo- she was having a ball!

Doesn't it look fantastic?!!

Another fun picture of Tori with the lights!

Garrett, Tori, and I got our picture with the visiting zoo animal- a reindeer!!!

Our last stop of the evening was to visit Santa and Mrs. Claus.  But before we found them, Tori was totally enthralled with this beautiful Christmas tree!  It was so fun watching her lovingly touch all of the ornaments and then make sure we had seen them too!

We found Mrs Claus in her kitchen and she was so wonderful!!!  Tori loved getting a hug from her!

She made sure to talk with Garrett a bit as well!  We are big fans of Mrs. Claus!!!

Then came the wait in line to meet Santa- I think the wait was worth it!  Check out this awesome moment we captured!

Jared stayed close so he could hear what Tori and Santa were talking about.  This was their conversation:
Santa: "What do you want for Christmas?"
Tori: "Miss Piggy (we have been listening to John Denver and the Muppets Christmas album a lot the past week!), Tiana, and Snow White!"
Santa: "Have you been a good girl?"
Tori: "Yes, I went poop on the potty!"
We had so much fun this evening!  It was the perfect first Christmas-y event for our family!!!

It's Swim Season Again

Or should we say, dive season again?  Yep, this year Jared is Pike High School's new dive coach!  So, before the season began Jared had pretty much zero experience with diving and coaching diving.  But he has been working hard and has learned a lot in the past few weeks.  It has also been a huge help to have his new assistant coach- Kevan is awesome and has taught Jared a ton.  So, this being Pike's first home meet, the kids and I showed up to support our coach!

Tori loves watching the "swim kids!" 

Garrett was having a blast exploring the bleachers!

Garrett and Tori cheering on the Pike divers!!!

It was just a tad hot on the observation level.  So, after diving we headed down to a classroom right off of the pool.  It is perfect for us!  First off, it is much cooler!  Second, the kids can run around and not get in anyone's way!  Third, we can still see the pool and watch the meet!

By the end of the meet, we had two very tuckered out kiddos!!!

Go Pike- we had a grand time cheering on our divers and swimmers!!!

Walking Practice

Just a couple of disclaimers to start off with: Garrett is not officially walking yet.  He has taken his first steps! And he is getting more brave every day in his walking skills and ability.  But his preferred mode of transportation is still crawling.  So, we have been practicing a lot.  Over the past two days we have gotten some pretty entertaining footage- hope you enjoy!!!
He always seems to forget how to stand up or walk as soon as we turn the camera on!

Perhaps I shouldn't have been trying to take a video while Garrett was walking to me! (Don't worry- our camera is fine!)

Our best video yet!!!

And here are a few more awesome steps!

We have a feeling that as soon as Garrett realizes that he can get around much quicker walking over crawling, it will all be a done deal.  We'll just have to see how long it takes him to figure that out!  In the meantime, we are having a blast with our walking practices!!!

Happy Turkey Day

For the first time since our family began, we had Thanksgiving with just us.  While we missed being with family and friends, it was also really fun planning out what we wanted to do with our little family!  When considering the turkey, I jokingly suggested we should just go buy a rotisserie chicken at WalMart.  Jared and I laughed about it a bit and then realized it wasn't that bad of an idea.  So, Jared stalked the WalMart deli counter to make sure we ended up with one of the six chickens cooking (he said at least 12 people asked about them while he was waiting- I guess it was our version of black Friday!)!  And here he is with our awesome chicken!!!

Tori did an awesome job putting together our centerpiece this year!  And here is our bounteous feast!!!

My boys were so excited to start our Thanksgiving dinner!

Tori and I were excited, too!

Garrett thoroughly enjoyed eating his Thanksgiving dinner!!!

This evening we pulled out the kids' nativity set!

They both loved getting it all set up!!!

Garrett liked the idea of putting the trees on top of the stable!

Today was just plain wonderful!  We were able to spend the day together as a family and we were also able to talk with most of our extended family!  We really have the best families ever and are so grateful for all of their love and support in all we do!  Jared and I are so blessed to have Tori and Garrett in our family.  They bring such joy and meaning into our lives- and they are definitely teaching us patience!!!  It is amazing how blessed!  We are especially thankful for this time of the year when we get to celebrate the greatest gift any of us has ever been given- the birth of our Savior Jesus Christ!  Wishing you all a very happy Thanksgiving and a very Merry Christmas!!!

1st Hair Cut

Garrett's hair has been pretty scraggly for some time now.  So, tonight we finally took the plunge and gave him his first hair cut!

Here is our cute boy and his before picture!

He was super curious about the clippers!

And seeming a little concerned, but still doing okay when Daddy started!

And then he decided he didn't like this game anymore! (I'm so glad Jared was doing the hair cut- I think I would have just aborted the mission.)

Daddy persevered and we ended up with a somewhat more happy Garrett with his first cute hair cut!!!

Bubbles, Bubbles Everywhere

Garrett has always enjoyed bubbles, but now he has figured out that it is even more fun when you pop them!

He got one!

Get those bubbles Garrett!!! (And way to go on letting go and standing up on your own!)

Reach for it!

Tori has also discovered that she enjoys blowing bubbles to Garrett- perfect!

Along with the bubble theme, Garrett had his very first bubble bath tonight!

Tori made sure he got the full bubble bath experience!!!

Yep, he's a fan!