Worst Mom EVER....

I didn't take ANY pictures on Christmas this year. I suck.

See what I have to work with?

Whew....

~Warning~ Major picture overload to follow....
We have been so super (but oh so wonderfully) busy the last month and so that I don't forget what fun we had here is our life in pictures from the last month....
I'm sure my bank account will recover, some day.

Carson and Camryn's Preschool Thanksgiving Party

Big Bear....

Weather was crap but the company was awesome

Yo Gabba Gabba Live...

We would do this again in a second.

Disneyland. At Night. Whole different experience

Oxnard Harbor

Parade of Lights at my Dads house....

And now it's time to get ready for the Holidays.... I've got five days right?

No words required...

"Welcome to Holland"

My homework this week in my Inclusion Class has been enlightening, to say the least. I read this passage in my book and thought that this may apply to all parents. I needed this this week, I needed to know that it's ok to be in Holland and that Italy really isn't for me

"Welcome to Holland"

By Emily Perl Kingsley

I am often asked to describe the experience of raising a child with a disability-to try to help people who have not shared that unique experience to understand it, to imagine how it would feel. It's like this...

When You're going to have a baby, it's like planning a fabulous vacation trip-to Italy. You buy a bunch of guide books and make your wonderful plans. The Coliseum. The Michelangelo David. The gondolas in Venice. You may learn some handy phrases in Italian. It's all very exciting.

After months of eager anticipation, the day finally arrives. You pack your bags and off you go. Several hours later, the plane lands. The stewardess comes in and says "Welcome to Holland."

"Holland?!" you say. " What do you mean Holland?? I signed up for Italy! I'm supposed to be in Italy. All my life I've dreamed of going to Italy."

But there's been a change in flight plan. They've landed in Holland and there you must stay.

The important thing is that they haven't taken you to a horrible, disgusting, filthy place, full of pestilence, famine and disease. It's just a different place.

So you must go out and buy new guide books. And you must learn a whole new language. And you will meet a whole new group of people you would never have met.

It's just a different place. It's slower-paced than Italy, less flashy than Italy. But after you've been there for a while you catch your breath, you look around... you begin to notice that Holland has windmills... and Holland has tulips. Holland even has Rembrandt's.

But everyone you know is busy coming and going from Italy... and they're all bragging about what a wonderful time they had there. And for the rest of your life, you will say "Yes, that's where I was supposed to go. That's what I planned"

And the pain of that will never, ever, ever, ever, ever go away... because the loss of that dream is a very significant loss.

But... if you spend your life mourning the fact that you didn't get to Italy, you may never be free to enjoy the very special, the very lovely things.... about Holland.

I've said this before and I am sure I will say this again, I must've needed this this week because it touched my soul.... And what a hard week it's been.

I will survive.

I hope. My crazy friend Susan enlisted me in a 13 week running program. This is the beginning of week 2, it was A LOT harder than week 1. But I WILL FINISH IT. I WILL RUN A MARATHON. I WILL GET BACK IN SHAPE. There, it's in writing, in cybersapce, now I can't back out. EVER. Here's hoping I don't die.

You're Two...

You make us laugh

with your silly ways...

You make us cringe

on your daredevil days...

You make us smile

with your constant chatter...

You make us love you

more every day...

You're silly and sweet and full of spunk and love (you kind of remind me of Grandma Knight)... and while most days all I do is shake my head at you and picture what the future will be like, I can't help but love you more every day.

Happy 2nd Birthday Camryn Geneva Elizabeth

(yes I know I am late)

And so it begins....

Cole has been looking forward to starting Kindergarten for so long... and now that the day has finally arrived he couldn't be happier... If I had one thing to say to him today it would be this: Be true to you, love life, always be a friend, be respectful, and learn, learn, learn... Knowledge is power and will take you far... My heart...

Lining up to enter his class...

Following directions.... Like a pro.

We're ready for this chapter.

Lime Popsicle Heaven

Could life get any sweeter?

Kids say the darndest things...

My kids make me laugh DAILY... Especially when they say out of the blue crazy things... Like...

Me: "Cole, why don't you use your brain?"

Cole: "Mom, I can't my brain hurts"

WOW!

Carson: "I can't go outside to play, It's too COLD!"

Ummm.... It's 100 plus outside

Camryn: "Yeah BUDDY!"

I know, old pictures... but I love them..

I think if I wrote down everyday the things that the kids do that make me laugh, giggle, cry and sigh, I would never get off the computer.

I LOVE MY KIDS!