Bass Pro Christmas...Again

I swore we'd never come back. Bass Pro Shops are getting too busy now that everyone has caught on to the beauty of free Santa photos inside a winter wonderland of free fun. But, here we are again. Call us cheap. Call it a tradition. Whatever. At any rate, I stood in an atrocious line while the kids roamed the store with Chad. Bree took the time to write a letter to Santa, while Mason reminded me that he had already mailed four letters, so he was good. Lincoln rode the carousel for the first time. I think he had fun, though it was difficult to tell by his expression. And the atmosphere is pretty cool. And if I'm completely honest, we'll probably be back next year.

Mason's Latest

On our way home from school yesterday:
Mason: "Mom, I met a girl today who I want to be my girlfriend someday."
Me: "Oh yeah? What's she like?"
Mason: "She's, like, in 6th grade. She's SO beautiful. She has blond hair."
Me: "Is blond hair your favorite?"
Mason: "Yeah! She's the most beautifulest girl in the whole world....well, except for you Mom."

Also, on a completely unrelated note, I have grossly underestimated the rate at which my children would lose their sweaters and hoodies. We're not even officially into winter yet. Heaven forbid it dips below 50 degrees here...THEN they'll be sorry.

Christmas At Our House

I gave the kids free reign on decorating the tree this year, and only intervened when the tree started to sag in places from too many ornaments in one place. The placement drives Chad crazy (my wonderful OCD husband), but I am surprisingly okay with it. And I finally agreed that we should add some blue ornaments this year, and I don't know why I resisted so long. It's gorgeous. AndI love how the entry way looks, all welcoming and Christmasy. And the Christmas Village fits perfectly on the "mantle" Chad built for me.

Photos taken November 24th and 25th.

 And our elves impressed us this year. They are so helpful!

November Tidbits

1: The season of letters to Santa has begun. Mason got off to an early start. On the list: Cloud Cuckoo Palace, Bad Cop's Pursuit, Zoomer Dino, Millennium Falcon, Toxikita's Toxic Meltdown. All Legos except for the Dino.
2: November 8th was the first game of the soccer season for Mason and Bree. A perfect time of year for being outside.
3: I tested a new cupcake recipe in honor Thanksgiving: Sweet Potato Marshmallow. They turned out delicious, though I couldn't really taste the sweet potato. Which was actually fine by me.
4: Soccer practice under a gorgeous Arizona sunset. My pictures never do it justice.
5 and 6: Chad has been looking forward to the Reptile Expo for months. I went with him, and we made a day of it. I thought it was hilarious that they were selling reptiles in tupperware. I'm not sure what I expected...
7: Chad and I got new smartphones! Thanks to a great deal because of his job, we got a great monthly price, and awesome phones for free. This was my first selfie with the new phone. Everything about my LG2 makes my old "smart" phone look like a joke. I can't believe I used that thing for a whole year.
8: The kids' soccer league is Christian-based, and they say a prayer before every game.
9: I don't know if all bearded dragons are as weird as Ash. She rests in the strangest positions.
10: Ever since discovering Legendary Doughnuts on our trip to Washington this year, I have been trying to find somewhere that sells doughsants (half doughnut, half croissant) like theirs. I was so excited to snag this at Dunkin, but was hugely disappointed. Nothing like that crispy, buttery, chewy croissant-like doughnut from my memories. But I will not stop searching.
11: I have a couple friends that sell Jamberry nail wraps. This design was actually for kids, but it was too cute for me to pass up.
12: Mason and my dad spent most of Thanksgiving day playing video games. Mason was, of course, in heaven.

Thanksgiving Tradition

I has become a tradition for our family to take pictures together on Thanksgiving. Just in time for sending out Christmas cards. They are, in fact, the only pictures I took on Thanksgiving. I blame the 85-degree weather. It's just unnatural. But the photos turned out cute.

Happy Thanksgiving! 2014

Christmas Open House

I decided (with some prompting from Chad) to host an open house to showcase all the "stuff" I sell, in time for friends' Christmas shopping. I still had tons of flower hair clips, headbands, etc. from the Sweet Whimsy booth business in Globe. And I also have nursing covers, Mary Kay, and baked goods. It took a lot of prep (probably more than it was worth!), but the result included an impressive spread of goodies that I had to document.

Free samples for everyone:

Chocolate Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Cupcakes, Chocolate Almond Toffee, White Chocolate Cashew Toffee, Cream Cheese M&M Cookie Bars, Pumpkin Cream Cheese Cupcakes, Peanut Brittle, Pecan Pie, Soft Sugar Cookies, and Chocolate Peanut Butter Cupcakes.

Getting to know you...Ash

 A month ago we welcomed a new member of the family. Ash is a bearded dragon.
She's just an adorable little baby, and so calm and fun to hold. The kids were so excited to finally get a pet after our long petless period.

One month later, Lincoln gets to know Ash, up close and personal.