Jersey's all the way from Argentina!

May '07 - Today Lexy and Nathan are wearing their favorite shirts. These are shirts that Aunt Julia sent them all the way from Argentina. For some reason Nathan REALLY took to this shirt. There have been days where he has worn this shirt three days in a row. I know I am a bad mom for putting a dirty shirt on my child, but it was easier than dealing with the tantrum that came if I didn't let him wear it. I'm such a push-over! Now we have to hide it in our dirty clothes hamper so he can't find it or else he will insist on wearing it.

We really miss Aunt Julia. It is hard having her so far away, but we are so proud of her for serving a mission. We know that she is having some wonderful experiences and we can't wait until she is home and telling us all of her stories in person.

Silly Faces

Nathan loves to make these silly faces where he closes his eyes and pinches his lips together. It is so cute. We were at P.F.Changs in Chicago when he started his little act. Luckily I had the camera and caught all of his cuteness on film! :)

I also have to mention the fire truck seen in the first picture. He got this from a Cracker Barrel store and took it everywhere he went for at least a month. If we didn't have it with us we were in big trouble. He is a true boy because he loves all trucks. Tractors, dump trucks and fire trucks are his favorites.

Lego's Galore!

These pictures were also taken during our trip to Chicago. The man and woman that Lexy is sitting next to are completely made out of Lego's. The downtown scene with the Marriott hotel is also made out of Lego's. It was neat to see. They put my childhood Lego creations to shame.

Our Trip to Chicago

April '07 -This month we took a trip to Chicago. Aaron and I had a Dental course that we were going to be taking for three days. My mom said that she would watch the kids for us. I have never left them that long before, so I was having a hard time with that idea. After looking on-line for plane tickets we found a really great deal and decided that it would be even more fun if we all went to Chicago. We had a really early flight so you can see my dad, Lexy and Nathan admiring the big plane while we were waiting to board. This was Nathan's first plane ride, but Lexy was a pro. Aaron and I were able to do a little sight seeing , but my parents and the kids were really able to enjoy Chicago. They went to Navy Pier, the Children's museum (multiple times), the zoo, a great park by the water, and the aquarium. Aaron and I really enjoyed our course and we also snuck in a trip to the aquarium and Children's museum. We had a few "firsts" on this trip. I had never flown on an airplane with my dad, and it was the first time the kids and I had ever ridden in a Taxi. Also, Nathan had never slept in a room with anyone else and he and Lexy slept in the same room. It was an adjustment, but both of the kids were great. Our room was on the tenth floor. Nathan and Lexy loved to sit up by the window and look down at the ground and at all the really tall buildings around us. It was really cold the day we arrived - we actually saw little snow flurries -(even flurries are exciting for us Floridians). It warmed up a little each day and was gorgeous for the remainder of our trip. We had such a fun time. We would love to go again and would recommend it to anyone.

April '07 -Here are a couple of pictures from Easter. We took the kids out to the back yard and let them pick up Easter eggs. I think we must have "re-hidden" the eggs at least four or five times. I say "hidden" because we have a very flat back yard with no trees or plants or anything to really hide eggs in, so the eggs were more just laying out in the open. They still had a great time.

It is fun to watch them with all of their excitement about things. I can remember how much I loved Easter egg hunts myself.

Kitchen Fun

January '07 -I love this picture for a couple of different reasons. The first one is that it takes me back to my childhood. I remember playing in the kitchen with my little brother. We would empty all the cabinets of their pots and pans and climb inside. My mom always likes to tell the story of when she developed a roll of film and as she was looking through the pictures she came across a picture of a cabinet. Wondering why on earth someone would have taken a picture of a cabinet, she asked me if I had taken it. When I told her I did, she asked me why. I then told her that my brother was inside.

The other reason I like this picture is because it shows Lexy and Nathan just how they like to be. It is hard to see but Nathan has a shirt, diaper and shoes on. He is such a "shoe" boy. He will wake up in the morning and immediately want to put his shoes on. Alexys hates to wear shorts or pants. Any time we will let her, she will take them off and stay that way until we make her put something on.

Who can lay out in December?

December 30, 2006 -Even though we don't get to enjoy the beach as much as we would like, I love the fact that we can go to the beach and enjoy a beautiful day by the water in the middle of winter. I guess that makes up for not having the opportunity to enjoy the gorgeous fall colors that everyone else gets to see.

After years of waiting and wishing Aaron finally bought a boat. It is a nineteen foot, center console. He mainly wanted it for fishing, but we try to go out as a family whenever we can. Today we went out with Jonathan and Val and my parents. The guys tried to get some fishing in, but they didn't catch anything. The kids and I made a turtle out of sand. Alexys helped put the eyes on him. She is a water girl. Nathan is not a fan of the water, but he loves to pick up and throw the sand. On this particular day he got into the sunscreen and you can tell by the look on his face that he knew it was a 'no-no'.

A New Park! - Dec. '06

This past November we had a new park open in Estero.
It is located directly behind our office. It has a huge playground for the kids and an indoor recreation center. They also made a big hill for the "Florida" kids who don't get to see hills very often. There are basketball and volleyball courts, a weight room, game room, craft room, and dance room. Lexy took her ballet classes there over the past year. On this particular day we had gone over to the new park to play for a little while. There are rocks for the kids to climb on - some big, some small. Nathan enjoyed playing the bells and Lexy liked sliding down the pole.

Look at all the birds! - Dec. '06

I have decided that I am going to try to catch up on the last year as much as possible. I will at least get the most cherished moments on here before the memories are buried too deep to remember the details. Last Christmas I received a new camera. Some of the first pictures I took were of the kids in the back yard. We had gone outside to run around. We looked up in the sky only to see hundreds of birds. They were everywhere. I don't think I have ever seen so many birds in one place at one time. Nathan and Lexy decided to lay down in the grass so they could watched the birds. They also played "ring around the rosy". I am so grateful for two healthy children who can run and play and do all the things little kids enjoy doing.

Starting our Family Blog

I have been thinking about starting a blog for our family. We have a friend who blogs and I really enjoy reading hers. She lives far away and it helps me to stay up-to-date on how she and her family are doing. I don't feel like I am the most computer savvy person so before I had the chance too inquire on how to start my own blog I received and e-mail from my brother stating that he and his wife had started a blog. So, I picked his brain and he was kind enough to share his wisdom (don't get a big head from that bro) and helped me get started.


I have always wanted to make regular entries into my journal, but after having lost it for a while (a year or more...oops..we did move) I feel like I have missed recording so much of my life - especially the precious moments of my children. I am hoping that this will allow me to pick up and start recording the the most "cherished" parts of our lives.