Parade of Lights

Alexa and Isabella, who is our friend's granddaughter


Alexa harassing boys she does not even know.

With Papa watching the parade. PohPoh is over to the left there trying to get out of the photo.

Plugging her ears when the marching band went by.

The Chief in the parade. Isn't he cute?

Last night was the Christmas Parade of Lights in Carefree. Two of our fire trucks were in the parade. The guys decorated them with lights and they looked really great. I wasn't able to get any really good shots, it's tough to shoot while you are holding a 30 pound child wearing a fur vest in your arms! Alexa was so excited to see her Daddy in the parade.

Happy to be home...

We are back from Sin City. I accomplished 4 out of 5 of my plans and added one miscellaneous ;)
I did not managed breakfast in bed but sure enjoyed a lot of good food. We had fun and actually relaxed with is basically an oxymoron in Vegas. We did not stay up late and instead took advantage of the incredible bed at the Wynn, some quiet and no little one waking us up at the crack of dawn. The highlight of the trip for me was the most incredible massage I have ever had. I decided prior to the trip that I was going to treat myself. I never do stuff like this for myself, and as all you moms know we usually take care of everyone else before taking care of ourselves. I think it is so vital to recharge the batteries every so often. So after choosing my massage and paying what amounted to two weeks of groceries, I got naked and got ready for 80 minutes of pure relaxation. If you ever stay at the Wynn I highly recommend the Arabian massage. Oh my goodness. At one point I almost started crying... seriously it was like I finally let go and was just in the moment. I have some self admitted control issues and for me to clear my mind is really tough. At the beginning I was actually laying there thinking, " Hmmm, what am I supposed to tip her?, Am I going to shower in the spa or go up to my room?, What time do I have to get up in the morning?" etc... It's insane. Finally, I was like "Okay, for what I am paying I better enjoy every freakin moment of this." Once I let go it was pure bliss. I am still feeling the positive effects today so I know it was much needed. So, Vegas was a success and we were very excited to see Peanut when we got back home. : )

Viva Las Vegas!!!!

This is what we used to look like before becoming parents...note...we do not look like this now, but....for the next three days I am going to pretend that we are still wild and crazy as we whoop it up in Vegas! We are off Tuesday morning for a much needed break. Since Feb. 2006 we have literally been away from Alexa one time when we went up to Sedona for a night. We haven't even been out to dinner alone, only lunch twice, but who's counting. ; ) My folks are going to watch Alexa which is awesome for everyone. My plans for the next 3 days are...spa treatment, breakfast in bed, sleep, video poker and liquor..just kidding about the last one, well not really. ; )

The Velveteen Rabbit

Today my mom, Alexa and I went to see The Velveteen Rabbit at the Tempe Center for the Arts. It is an amazing place to see children's theater and this was our second play we have attended. It has this really cool back patio with fire and water and I had about 10 minutes before the show to shoot Alexa. I loved the industrial feel to the backdrop and could have spent all afternoon there taking photographs. Unfortunately, I had a bit of a uncooperative subject today. She was not in the mood to give me what I wanted with the smiles but I did get some cool shots. I am also still shooting with my point and shoot and cannot wait to get my new camera for Christmas!

Pinkalicious

We love the book Pinkalicious and decided today to make some pink cupcakes with pink icing. We'll see if we turn pink from eating too many. ; )

Zoo instead of zzzz's

This one was blurry but I love the look and excitement on her face.


The Stingray exhibit where you get to stick your hands in the water and touch them...very cool!

Alexa was a bit afraid to touch them but really loved watching them.

Much bigger than our tortoises!

Basking in the beautiful Arizona sun.

Hmmm...maybe I should have been doing that at home.

Alexa and her PohPoh.

My girl!

What do you do after you have had a stomach virus and been up late at a concert..sleep? Nah, go to the Zoo!

Concert

Getting ready for the concert tonight.


Amy, we've created a monster....a Smashbox monster! ; )

Working the bows...and the gloss.

We were super excited!

It was actually cold in AZ tonight so I got to wear my boots!

I love this picture.

Tonight was the Celtic Thunder Concert that we have been waiting months to see. They are a group of 4 Irishmen and 1 Scott and my parents discovered them first on PBS. When Alexa and I were on the farm this summer we got hooked too. If you ever get a chance to see them, they are really fantastic. Alexa and I always listen to the CD in the car and she knows all the songs. She was really excited tonight for her first real concert. She took a two hour nap this afternoon since she knew she would be up way past her bedtime. The concert didn't start till 8:00 and she usually goes to bed at 7:00. She was the youngest person at the show by far and as usual people were quite taken with her( which she hates). She really enjoyed the music, knows all 5 guys by name and liked to give a little scream for her favorite numbers. She fell asleep with 3 songs left to go in the show. It was a really fun night with my folks too. Robert couldn't make it because he was home with the stomach flu...oh yes, the bug visited us this Thanksgiving. I spent all of Wednesday sick in bed...well let's clarify that by saying "sick and wanting to be in bed". I felt worse as the day and night went on and by late Wednesday it felt like a bus ran over me. I was so worried about being sick on Thanksgiving ( thank goodness I was not hosting but I was cooking so I needed to be functioning) that I was stressed on top of it. I managed to get up Thursday morning and cook/bake most of what I was supposed to, shower, get Alexa dressed and myself and get over to my parents. Then 2 minutes after we sat down to eat, Robert gets up and announces that he is sick, grabs the car keys and leaves immediately. I managed to eat a little, Alexa had no interest in eating which is rare for her. Finally my mom just looked at me and said " Why don't you guys just go home." So my dad drove us home and that was Thanksgiving. Robert is still recuperating and thank goodness Alexa did not get the worst of it. I am feeling much better and I hope we are all back to normal tomorrow.

We are Thankful

We have so many things to be thankful for this season. Good friends enrich our lives and we are thankful for all of you.

Park Playdate

Today we met our frineds Jenna and Jay at the park. Jenna had asked me if I would photograph Jay so I jumped at the chance. I'll take all the practice I can get. He was a great subject and it was fun to shoot someone else's child. His energy is totally different than Alexa's and it gave me the chance to try some new things. I think I get in a rut shooting Alexa ( a trillion photos will do that to you) and this was refreshing.

For Christmas I am getting a new camera ( I guess I was a good girl this year; ). I can't decide between the Canon Xsi and the Nikon D60. The Canon seems like a no-brainer but the Nikon was a nice fit when I tried them out. If anyone has any thougts about either of these or shoots with one, I would welcome any comments.

Wordless Wednesday

Spirit Day at School

"We've got SPIRIT, yes we do! We've got SPIRIT! How 'bout you?"


Ummmm...not too much.

"Yikes, get that thing outa here!"

What's wrong with this picture?

Yes, that's my dog on my kitchen table. Sometimes I feel like I live in a loony bin! Alexa spotted her after I had cleaned up from dinner. She said "Mom, Georgie's on the table." So of course I grabbed my camera and Georgie got to pose for some pictures, which is funny because I could tell she was into it...then we all had a good laugh. (and then I recleaned my table)

Breakfast Buddies

Alexa eyeing that little cup of butter on her plate...when I wasn't paying attention I caught her eating that straight out of the dish and right in her mouth!! Ugghh...gives me willies thinking about eating butter!


Amy and I cracking up...we're like two Chatty Cathy's together.

The girls.

Today we met our friends Amy and James and our previous adoption social worker Marcy, who is also their social worker for their current adoption, for brunch. Marcy is actually the one who introduced us to each other. Marcy and her husband Warren are moving back to the East coast so it was a farewell brunch of sorts. Marcy was fantastic throughout our adoption and I know James and Amy are sad to say goodbye to her before their adoption is completed. We are all hoping Amy and James don't have too much longer to wait. They will be such fantastic parents. ( Alexa adores them!)

Just wondering....

Tonight Alexa and I were talking about her birthday in February. I asked her what type of theme she would like for her party and she said " I want a 'Dancing with the Stars' party." Hmmm....might be a tough sell for the preschool crowd.

Wordless Wednesday