It wouldn't be Christmas without throw up

So I don't think it can be Christmas without someone getting sick. This year it was poor Mason. He woke up the day after Christmas throwing up and just feeling pretty bad. He spent the day on the couch with his tool set, Curious George and the throw up bucket. He is doing much better today so I think it was just one of those 24 hour flu things. Hopefully the rest of us can avoid it. I think I've already done my fair share of throwing up this year.

Merry Christmas Part 2

I couldn't fit all the pictures into that first post so here are the rest.

Merry Christmas!

We had a good Christmas. It was our first time not going anywhere. It was kind of sad to not be with family but it was still nice to just do things here. Maddy and Mason got lots of fun things from a lot of nice people. Here are some pictures of them opening their presents. Mason looks mad at Curious George but he actually really liked it. Maddy picked that out for him all by herself. We made donuts for breakfast on Christmas morning. They were shaped liked stars but you really can't tell.

Going Un-private?

So................it's kind of a pain to make the blog private. I keep having to invite people over and over again or else things expire and blah, blah, blah. I guess I'm just not in the mood right now to figure it out all the way so I'm undoing it for now. So all you weirdos out there, if you're going to look at the blog just don't leave a comment and then I won't know and ignorance is bliss, right? In a few months when I feel more like myself I will be switching it back to private, so if you would still like to look at it now you have lots of time to give me your email address so I can put it on the list.

Getting Ready for Christmas

We put some lights out on the bushes this year just for fun. Maddy and Mason helped decorate the tree. I like how all the decorations are on the very bottom. We have a bigger tree then last year so we will have to make some more ornaments to fill it up because it still looks pretty empty.

Happy Thanksgiving

We had a really nice Thanksgiving this year. Grandma and Grandpa Nickerson and Erin, Ryan, and Grant all got to come for a quick visit. It was fun to see everyone and there was way too much good food to eat. I got to go see Twilight with my mom and sister and Maddy and Mason got to spend some time playing with their cousin........and with grandma and grandpa of course. Grant, Mason say's he is sorry for sticking you in the mouth with his sword/crowbar. He gets a little carried away sometimes :). We know it was a long drive for them but we are really glad they came! We definitely have so many things to be thankful for.

Maddy's Dance Class

Maddy has started going to her first dance class. Someone in the ward who used to dance decided to start a little class and Maddy just loves it. I stayed and watched on the first day and her little face was so happy the whole time. I'm glad Maddy has something that she likes that is just for her to go do. She didn't get to go to preschool this year and I was feeling a little guilty that she didn't have something to do.............but now my guilt is relieved just a tiny bit.

Mason's Big Boy Bed

Mason has been sleeping in a real bed for a few months now. He actually seems to really like it. We were not sure how well it would go since he is not the worlds best sleeper. He still won't get out of bed by himself in the morning. He just cries until someone comes and gets him........ but I guess at least this way he's not running around the house by himself at 5:45 in the morning........yes, that's when Mason gets up.

Family Home Evening Halloween

I guess I should have put this post before the actual Halloween one, but oh well. On the Monday before Halloween I usually try to make something Halloweeny for dinner and then we carve the pumpkins for FHE. This year we had a mummy sandwich and chocolate pumpkin cake. The kids really loved digging the insides out of the pumpkins. Mason took forever with his pumpkin and cried when we finally made him be finished. Sam is pretty good at coming up with good pumpkin faces. Mine is the generic one with triangle eyes and nose. Maddy designed the face for her pumpkin all by herself. Happy Halloween!

Happy Halloween!

Halloween was a day early this year in our neighborhood. For some reason the city decided that trick-or-treating for kids in Hilliard was going to be on the 30th instead of on real Halloween........but Maddy and Mason didn't mind one bit. Maddy decided she wanted to be a cat and Mason wanted to be a firefighter. We went out to get candy with some friends and I think they all had fun and got way too much candy. So far they havn't noticed that most of their chocolate candy is missing from their bags...... I guess moms and dads should get some treats on Halloween also :).

Circleville Pumpkin Show

Last week we went to the big Pumpkin Show in Circleville. We saw a lot of pumpkins and a lot of carnival type people. We got some pumpkin ice cream that was really good and the kids got to go on a few of the rides. Mason liked the truck ride but had a worried look on his face for most of the ferris wheel. It was fun and definitely a lot bigger than I was expecting.

Going Private

I decided to make our blog private because some weirdo I don't know is leaving comments. I just feel a little weird knowing that people I don't know are looking at pictures of my kids. So if you would still like to see the blog just let me know and I'll put your name on the list.

Circle S Farms.......Yeah, Pumpkins!

We got to go to Circle S Farms last week and the kids had a lot of fun going on the hayride and picking out some pumpkins. We got 4 pumpkins this year. In the past we've only ever gotten one pumpkin so we are feeling pretty fancy right about now. There was a maze at the farm called the scare crow cave. It was just bails of hay stacked up and then covered over the top. Maddy and Mason both went in but then quickly came out because there were chickens in the maze..........guess they wern't expecting that. We are going to go to the Pumpkin Show in Circleville later this week, so if you're lucky you'll get to see a picture of the kids looking at the world's biggest pumpkin pie.

Halloween Projects

Maddy loves to do projects. We've been making some Halloween projects this month and she is very proud at how some of them have turned out. The only problem with doing projects is that they have fun and then want to do more and then I have to keep coming up with things for them to do............. which is okay as long as I'm not feeling project lazy. Mason painted his spider all by himself and Maddy worked for a very long time painting the haunted house all by herself.

Fall Means Pumpkin Bread

As soon as the weather starts getting a little cooler I always want to make things with pumpkin in it. We especially like pumpkin bread and pumpkin cookies. I'm only allowed to make the pumpkin cookies once a year because they are my favorite and I can't stop eating them. Pumpkin bread is allowed more than once because I put whole wheat flour in it so I can tell myself that it's "healthy"........ okay, so we still put chocolate chips in it but I just don't think about that part. That's the only way Maddy will eat it. Maddy and Mason both like to help in the kitchen, especially the stirring part. Here is the recipe for the pumpkin bread. We kind of combined two recipes together to make our own and it turned out pretty well.
2 1/2 c. sugar
1 1/3 c. oil
4 eggs
3 1/3 c. flour
2 tsp. baking soda
1 1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. nutmeg
2/3 c. water
1 (15 oz) can pumpkin
1 small pkg. instant pudding mix (vanilla or we used white chocolate and it was pretty good)
Chocolate chips
Mix everything together and pour into 2 greased loaf pans. Bake at 350 degrees for 55-65 minutes. Yummy!

Nice Day for the Park

The weather has been really nice lately so we've been going to the park a lot. This is Mason's favorite hat. He actually has two of them and he keeps one in the car for when we drive places and one in the house for when we go to the park. If we forget to put it on him he will talk about the hat all the way to the park and then some when we get there. One of Maddy's favorite things to do is ride her bike. She is getting to be really fast on it and Mason and I have a hard time keeping up in the wagon.

Baby #3

So we decided that it wasn't enough for 2009 to be graduating from Optometry school, finding a job, moving and helping to sell a house..........lets have another baby just to make things interesting :). Baby #3 should be arriving around January 18 and the doctor said it will be another little boy. Sam asked Mason if he was excited to have a little brother and Mason said, "No, only Mason. Only boy, Mason." Mason doesn't waste time sugar coating things.

Raisin Bread

I made this bread while we were in Utah and I had to take a picture of it because it turned out so pretty. I'm not a very good bread maker so usually it turns out all lumpy and deformed looking. Now there is proof that at least once I made a good looking loaf of bread.........and it tasted pretty good too, if I do say so myself.

Left over summer pictures

So we are finally back from our summer in Utah..........and I"m finally getting around to putting some more stuff on our blog. These are just some pictures from this summer. We bought a really cheap kite and the kids had fun flying it. I think it was the best kite I've ever tried to fly.......or maybe windy Ohio is just a really good place to fly a kite. Even Mason could keep it up in the air. And then there are a few pictures of Maddy and Mason swimming at Grandma and Grandpa Kimball'ls house.

Happy Father's Day.........just a few days late

I just wanted to tell my dad happy fathers day. My dad would always say that he could write things better than he could maybe say them. I have kept all of the letters that my dad has given me and sometimes I even go back and read them again. Thank you for always writing what I needed to hear...... or needed to read. Thank you for being one of the greatest examples of giving service that I have known. You are always willing to help someone, even when it might not be the most convenient time for you. Thank you for being a good grandpa. Maddy and Mason were so excited to see you and mom when you came to visit last month. Thanks for being my dad. I love you!

I always knew that I wanted to marry someone who was like my dad in a lot of ways......and I think I did. Sam never looks at this so I can write whatever I want. Thank you for being a such a great dad. Maddy and Mason run to the door to see you when you come home from school and they are always a little disappointed when you won't be home until late. Thank you for also being a good example of serving others. You are always ready to help someone move or whatever they might need. I'm really proud of how well you have done in school. You've worked really hard and I know you are going to be a great eye doctor. I love you!

Our blog is on a bit of a summer vacation. I forgot to bring our cord to transfer pictures from the camera to the computer with us this summer..............so that was really smart. Anyways, there might not be much on here for awhile.

Happy Mother's Day

I just wanted to tell my mom happy mother's day. Thank you for being a good mom. You were always there when I'd come home from school and when I had a bad day. Even when I went away to college I knew that I could call home and you would be there. Thank you for being patient with all of us when we were not being the best kids. I know it wasn't always easy for you when dad had to be away with the navy. I wish that I had done more to be helpful, but I guess when you are a kid you don't think about those things as much as you should. Thank you for being the kind of mom that I hope that I can be. Thank you for being a good grandma. I know that all of your grandkids love you and grandpa very much and are always so excited for any chance to see you. I love you! This is a picture of my mom and dad........I think it was one of their engagement pictures. Now everyone can see where Maddy gets her red hair from.

Family Picture......sort of

We tried to take a family picture by ourselves with the timer on the camera. I think it turned out pretty good considering.......until I started getting a little carried away with the editing. I was just trying to get rid of some sun that was on my face and now I have a huge dark spot instead. Everybody else looks good though.

Maddy and the Chocolate Cake Mystery

Last week we had a mystery on our hands. We made root beer float cake for the family home evening treat. We ate some of it for dessert and then I left the rest on the counter. I had to put Mason to bed so I turned on a cartoon for Maddy to try and keep her busy and out of trouble. When I came back out I found Maddy with her mouth covered in chocolate and she had changed into new pajamas.......I think she was trying to hide the evidence. I asked her is she had eaten the cake and Maddy thought for a while and then said, "No." Who could have possibly eaten that cake?
In the kitchen I found the cake with most of the icing eaten off the top. Hmmmm...... the frosting is Maddy's favorite part.
There were crumbs all over the floor, just like if a four year old had been reaching up on the counter and grabbing cake with her hands.................well, I don't know. I'm stumped. Somebody better call Columbo.