Warren Family Christmas Cards

One of my favorite parts of the Christmas season is receiving Christmas cards in the mail. I just put ours in the mail on Monday so hopefully you all should be receiving them in the next couple of days! Over the summer, my Grandma moved out of her house. My parents did a lot of cleaning and organizing and they came across many old Christmas pictures of my Dad and his siblings from the 1950s and 1960s. I thought that many of you would looking at them as much as I did. Take a look at the Warrens Christmas pictures from throughout the years….

Beaver Creek 2015

Our annual Colorado ski trip has come and gone already. We had a great trip despite a rocky start. Last Tuesday night (we left on Wednesday afternoon), Madeline was up all night. She was miserable and kept complaining about her ear hurting ear. Fortunately, I was off all day on Wednesday and was able to get a doctor's appointment for her that morning. It turned out that she did have an ear infection. They prescribed her antibiotics which we were able to pick up right before we left for the airport. They seemed to kick-in quickly and she was totally fine the entire trip. Phew!!!

We love going up to Beaver Creek and we look forward to this trip every year. I think this was our 7th time up there. We stay at the beautiful Timbers Resort right on the mountain. The trip is spent skiing (I obviously didn't ski this year), relaxing (they have a beautiful spa with a "grotto"), and spending quality time with family. They have a awesome game room and a play area that they kids loved. Here are some of pictures from the trip...

Madeline and Parker got to play in the snow a few times. We definitely bundled these two Arizona babies up well! :)

 

On Thursday, Madeline, Parker, and I spent some time together while the others were skiing. I love watching the two of them interact. They hold little conversations with each other. It's adorable.

On Thursday night, we went to Beaver Creek Village for dinner. The rest of the trip we stayed in and ate at the hotel. The rooms have full kitchens which makes it easy, especially with little kids who get very restless when you take them out to eat!

 Paisley and Parker relaxing with Grandpa!

Paisley took a full day lesson on Thursday. Doesn't she look the part with her ski outfit, goggles, and helmet? :) She really enjoyed her lesson and learned a lot!! Parker was begging to get out there on skis. Another year or two and he'll be on the slopes, I'm sure! Madeline, on the other hand, didn't seem too interested. 

 Madeline did, however, get the hang of throwing snowballs. Daddy taught her how to make and throw one and she picked up on the concept pretty quickly! I love this picture of the three of us with the beautiful resort in the background. 

Grandpa, Paisley, and Aunt Emily getting ready to hit the slopes!

Grandpa took the kids down the bunny hill a few times. Like I said, Parker couldn't get enough of it! 

Santa

Tonight, we were over by Bass Pro Shop and decided to stop by to see Santa! Madeline was SO excited....up until about 10 seconds before we saw Santa and then this happened!....

I think every kid has one of these pictures ;) 

She was fine as soon as she got back in my arms. And then daddy took her on the carousel and she was a happy camper again! 

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving!! We started the morning off bright and early. Madeline usually sleeps in until at least 7:30AM on the weekends, but today she woke up at 6AM. It is "cold" here today and she kicked off all of her blankets so I think the cold woke her up. After an hour or so it was clear that she needed to go back to bed. We made pancakes and bacon and then it was back to bed for Madeline (after some tears). So, George and I are currently enjoying a lazy morning, watching the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade on the couch. Not complaining :)

Today, we are heading over to my parent's house around noon for Thanksgiving dinner at 3PM. Normally we eat two Thanksgiving dinners, one with my family and one with George's family, but this year George's family is at Roosevelt Lake for the long weekend. My mom is making the turkey, mashed potatoes, stuffing, and vegetables and Terrisa, Emily, and I are each making other dessert/side dishes. I made corn bread, cheddar biscuits, and a dutch apple pie. I'm also in charge of sparkling cider (very important job). Before George's family decided to go to Roosevelt, I had bought the ingredients for an appetizer for their house. It is a prosciutto, fig, and mascarpone bruschetta. One of my favorite restaurants, Postino, serves several types of bruschetta and that one is my very favorite. I'm planning to bring the ingredients over to my parent's, but I'm not sure we'll need an appetizer with all of the other food that we have!! 

I have been enjoying some vacation time over the past two weeks and have more to look forward to over the next several weeks. Last week, I took one day off for our long weekend trip to Houston (more on that in a second). This week, I took a 1/2 day on Tuesday and a full day on Wednesday (Thursday and Friday are company holidays). Next week, we head to Colorado so I'm off another 3 days for that. Then I am off for 2 weeks around Christmas. We aren't allowed to roll over vacation days over to the next calendar year so it's "use it or lose it". I had about 6 weeks of vacation time this year b/c I opted for an additional 2 weeks of vacation time (at a cost). I'm basically like a European with all of this vacation time. Haha. 

Back to Houston...a week and a half ago, Madeline, George, and I traveled to Houston for a long weekend to visit our friends Marie and CJ. They moved to Houston from Mesa back in March for Marie's job. I've been to Houston once for work, but it was a super short, all business trip so this was basically the first time there for all three of us. Marie and CJ live in the Energy Corridor area of Houston. It's a really nice, centrally located area and they have a very cute 1960s refurbished home. I wish I had some pictures of their house to share, but you can take my word for it that it was a really lovely home. We spent most of the trip visiting with Marie and CJ and relaxing at their home. It was the kind of vacation we needed since we have both been pretty busy with work. We checked out different areas around the city -- there are some gorgeous older neighborhoods surrounding the downtown area! I think Madeline loved the extra attention, especially b/c Marie had Madeline be her big helper with their dog Layla. Madeline got to feed Layla and let her outside. She even got to take her on a walk (with some help). I love these pictures of Madeline and Layla...

 

Before I wrap this post up, here are a few more recent pictures....

Last weekend, Madeline enjoyed a "sleepover" with Parker and Paisley. I've mentioned it before, but Madeline always asks about Parker and Paisley. She misses them so much if she hasn't seen them in a while. Before bed time, we had them all lay out their blankies in the loft for story time. They were all drinking their milk and laying there so well. A rare moment of calmness when the three of them are together!

I was trying to get some good pictures to show you my ever growing baby bump, but sort of failed. George told Madeline to get in the picture. He captured her reaction to that request perfectly. Can't you just hear her saying "I don't want to!" She looks so inconvenienced in this picture. Haha!

Here is my bump at 28 weeks! Sorry, the black with the demin shirt on top makes it difficult to see it.  This baby is on the move. I can feel lots of moving and kicking, even as I type this. I'm still feeling really good and have been able to keep up with regular exercise. I think it was about at this point with my last pregnancy that I didn't believe that I would get any bigger....and then I did. I've been thinking that a lot lately, but now I know better. Oh well, it's for a good cause, right?! ;) 

 

Time to get off of this couch and go get ready for the day. Madeline is still napping.

Latest Happenings

Since I last updated, Madeline had her first trick or treating experience. Before we got started, she helped us answer the door for some other trick or treaters...she got a really big kick out of it. I wasn't sure how she would do trick or treating because she has been in a little bit of a timid stage, but she loved it. She kept saying "I'm coming!!" And, of course, she wanted to eat the candy as we went. In fact, she woke up the next morning asking for ice cream. She must have thought that anything goes after a night of eating endless amounts of candy. Here we are before trick of treating :) 

Madeline has started using her imagination more lately. It's so cute to see what she comes up with. Tonight, she was told George that santa is coming!! I think she picks up on a lot from the older kids at her babysitter's.  Last week, she decided to put daddy to bed. She was doing and saying everything that we do. Daddy even got a paci! :)

Madeline has also been really interested in what I'm doing in the kitchen. She wants to help with everything. I'm trying to figure out ways to allow her to "help" without getting too messy. Tonight, we made banana muffins and she helped by dumping some of the ingredients into the bowl. She was fascinated by the mixer...so much excitement for a two year old! 

You can't really tell by the picture, but she's imitating the mixer with her hand :)

We had a really nice weekend. On Friday night, George, Madeline, and I went to watch a Beatles cover band in Eastmark (my parent's neighborhood). A huge crowd came out and it was actually a pretty chilly evening. We have finally turned the corner weather-wise here. On Saturday night, we celebrated Nick's birthday. His girlfriend, Shelby, through him a surprise birthday party. We started out at Shelby's condo with dinner and then went to Escape the Room. If you haven't heard of it, Escape the Room is a real life, interactive game where you find hidden objects, figure out clues, and solve puzzles to earn your freedom from a room in an hour (took that description from their website). They have 4 different rooms and we did the bank heist. It was so much fun! We got super close to getting out, but ended up not quite making it. I want to try one of the other rooms. 

Here is the group from our Escape the Room. Everyone was from our group except the dad and daughter in the bottom left. 

We are off to Houston this weekend to see Marie and CJ. Madeline is excited for her airplane ride! Off to bed! 

Two Year Old!

It's been an eventful past week in our house. Madeline turned 2 on Thursday! I know that parents always say it, but time is going too fast!! I can't believe that our little baby is no longer a baby. 

Here is the first post I wrote after she was born: Madeline Marie Lucas.

Two years later, here's a little bit about Madeline:

-Loves to be on the move, but occasionally still likes to be held by mommy and daddy

-Very attached to mommy lately

-Talks all the time! She tells us stories about what happened during her day and gets very animated (the hand movements and facial expressions are priceless)

-Big fan of Elmo, Barney, and Doc McStuffins

-Has a sweet tooth like mommy and daddy

-Spends tons of time coloring..."I want my colors" is what she tells us

-Asks about cousin Parker (also now a big 2 year old) all the time

-Sings and dances around the house and loves to hear daddy play music

We love Madeline SO much and thank God that he blessed us with our little girl 2 years ago. 

Unfortunately, poor Madeline was sick on her birthday and over the weekend. I took Thursday and Friday off last week. On Thursday, I had her two year old check-up scheduled and she ended up throwing up in the car when we were pulling into the doctor's office! She seemed to be getting better on Thursday, but it took at turn for the worse on Saturday and she got sick to her stomach a couple more times throughout the weekend. Terrisa and I did a birthday party for Parker and Madeline on Saturday and she ended up having to leave the party early because we realized that she was still sick (she was very clingy and very cranky). By Sunday night she was feeling a lot better and she's back to 100% now. Thank goodness George and I haven't caught it! 

Here are some recent pictures of Madeline...

We discovered that Madeline loves pomegranate. Luckily they are coming into season and should be cheaper now! 

Eating some frozen yogurt!

She loves filling up her backpack with miscellaneous toys. She tells us that she's "going to work" :) 

On the right, is a picture of her at one of George's gigs at Bergie's. She's got her coffee (milk) and is just waiting for the show to start. 

 

On her birthday, she managed to have enough energy to ride around on her little tricycle. She's not quite big enough so we end up having to do some pushing. 

And here's a few pictures of Madeline two years ago! Look at that dark hair!! 

 

I started this post yesterday, but didn't get around to finishing it. Today, it's George's birthday! October is a busy birthday month in our house! George turned 29 today....last year before the big 3-0! Of course, as an adult, you work on your birthday (boooo), but we still managed to celebrate with family at Joe's BBQ in downtown Gilbert. Low key birthdays are more George's style so he enjoyed it :) Maybe next year I'll throw him a surprise 30th birthday party...actually, he would probably hate that so I shouldn't! God has also blessed me with George as my best friend and partner in life. Madeline and I love you soooo much!! 

Here we are at our neighbor's annual Halloween party on Saturday night. George is the milkman and I'm a pregnant housewife :) I was looking for something inexpensive and easy and found this on Pinterest....gotta love Pinterest! 

Ok, off to bed! Happy Halloween!!! I will post some pictures of Madeline in her costume this weekend. She is going as Madeline from the children's storybooks! 

21 Weeks Pregnant

I'm writing this post from potato country....Boise, Idaho. I'm here for less than 24 hours for work. I flew in this evening and fly out tomorrow after a morning meeting. An evening alone in a hotel room means that I have time for a blog post!

I'll start with a pregnancy update. I'm about 21 weeks pregnant right now so a little over half way there. My original due date was February 14, but the doctor is pushing it back to February 21 because the baby is measuring small in the ultrasounds. I don't mind that it is pushed back because I'd prefer that the baby come on its own time. The hospital doesn't like expecting mothers to go beyond 41 weeks so if the due date is earlier than it really should be, they might try to induce unnecessarily. With Madeline, my water broke on its own and everything happened as it should without having to be induced. Plus, now that I've had a newborn once before, I will value the extra week of a full night of sleep!! ;) 

  

Like my pregnancy with Madeline, things have been very smooth. I was more tired than normal in the beginning, but now I have lots of energy and feel great. In the last few weeks, I think I've really "popped" because I am starting to notice the belly more and more. 

We have decided that we aren't going to find out the gender of this baby. It'll be an exciting reveal at the birth! :) I thought it was going to be harder not finding out, but I'm actually pretty excited about it. Lots of people are asking me if I think it's a boy or girl. If my pregnancy is an indication, I would say girl because this pregnancy is exactly the same as my previous one. I do feel like I'm carrying a little bit differently though so who knows! We really don't have a preference...and I'm not just saying that! 

Here's a couple of recent ultrasound pictures...we were joking that the baby is doing the ASU pitchfork sign with its hands in the picture on the left :) He/She has long limbs and long fingers! 

 

Here I am at 20 weeks pregnant. So far, I've been gaining less weight than last time. I'm also keeping up with regular exercise (I've been doing Cardio Barre!) and trying not to eat too much junk food this time around. Trying to get baby weight off is no fun so I'm hoping to make it a little bit easier on myself this time around! 

Last weekend, Madeline and Parker had a sleepover while Brian and Terrisa were at an ASU game and Paisley was at a friend's house. They had so much fun playing together...although there were a few little fights over toys. It's quite entertaining to watch them play together and hear them talk to one another. They are both communicating a lot these days. Both are talking in sentences and aren't shy about expressing their opinions. 

And finally, a few more pictures of Madeline from this past weekend. We went to a birthday party and she loved the frosting on the cupcake. She liked it all off and it was drooping down her chin :)

I got a kick out of these two pictures. Over the weekend, I took Madeline with me to Target, She asked to get out of the cart to walk. Next thing I know, she found a Minnie Mouse backpack and stuffed animal. I let her walk around with them for awhile. Needless to say, she wasn't a happy camper when it was time to put them back!