Time with family and friends

On 12/8, we drove (in the snow) up to Grandma's house to visit Stephanie and her family while they were here for her SIL's wedding.  Michelle was also there but only brought her baby, who is so cute and getting so big.  The girls had a great time playing with their cousin, Luke!

Playing on Grandma's piano with Luke

Makenna loving Grandpa throwing her around

Avery loved it, too!

They also loved Jason piling the three of them on his lap

I wrote this on FB later that night: Whew! We made it back over the summit and home safely! My hand hurts from gripping the door handle so tight. I did not enjoy the drive there and back but I did enjoy our day with family and the girls had so much fun playing with a couple of their cousins.

12/10--The girls had their 2-year check-up and I wrote this on FB:
So the size difference between my twins (2 years old on the 20th) is:
Avery = 23.6 lbs. (13th percentile), 32 1/4" (15%)
Makenna = 27.4 lbs. (62%), 34 1/4" (66%)

I took them to their appt. by myself today and they did really well--only cried for a couple of minutes after their shots. While Makenna was still crying, the nurse asked if they wanted a sucker and Makenna, through her tears, exclaimed, "Yes!" Never one to pass up a treat, ha ha!

Also posted later that day: I am laughing so hard right now! I was watching TV, waiting for the girls to wake from their nap, when I heard Makenna freaking out all of the sudden. Iturned on the video monitor to see she had pulled her shirt over her head; her arms were flailing and she was yelling, "Stuck! Stuck!" Ha ha! I can'tstop laughing!

12/11--I was asked to play my marimba at the Relief Society Christmas dinner for our old ward in Orem.  I wrote this on FB: So I played my marimba at a Christmas dinner tonight and, during "Silent Night", the music stand gave out and lowered right onto the marimba bars. No way I could continue playing with it like that so I paused to lift the stand up but it wouldn't stay up. While I was leaning over to try to fix the stand, my long necklace got stuck in between the bars! Thankfully, someone sitting right in front of the marimba helped me get the stand back up and I just started where I left off. Pretty funny now but I was really embarrassed at the time! 
 
12/12--Makenna checking out the Christmas tree from behind the gate.  No problems keeping ornaments on the tree here, ha ha!

12/13 on FB: Instead of napping, the girls are CRACKING UP at each other and I think they're kicking the walls. It's pretty fun to listen to but I do hope they sleep soon. They did sleep for 15 or 20 min. in the car on the way home from shopping, though; but they normally sleep 2-3 hours. They are being so funny!

12/17: A young couple, Alana and Travis, from our ward in Louisiana (I'm friends with both of their moms) came and stayed the night with us so they could leave their car at our house and I could take them to the airport for their trip home for the holidays.  Alana was one of the young women I took to girls camp when I was camp director there and she was a Laurel when I was in the YW presidency.  So weird that she is married, ha ha!  Jared was on a business trip but the girls and I had a nice time with them.  They brought a box of Ferrero Rocher and the girls warmed up to Travis right away when he gave them some of it.  :)  I made them dinner that night and breakfast the next morning, then the girls and I brought them to the airport.  They will come back on the 4th and we'll pick them up and they'll stay another night.  Cute couple.

Posted on FB on 12/19: I am driving myself CRAZY looking for the dang Mary from our Little People Nativity. She's been missing for days now. Every time I enter a room, I look around and wonder if there are any spots I missed where the girls could have put her. And I have searched the same places over and over again. Please come back, Mary, for my sanity! Why do I even care so much? Oh, yeah, because I'm nuts!

And later that day...

I found Mary! I went to empty one of the bathroom trash cans and there she was, lying behind it, smiling up at me. And I smiled back. Then I promptly went and gathered all of the other Nativity pieces (which were strewn around the living room) and set the Nativity back up. The trash still needs to be emptied. :P

12/20:  The girls' 2nd birthday!!!  I wrote this on FB:
I can't believe my baby girls are two years old today! I waited so long for them to come into my life and now I can't remember what it was like to not have them and can't imagine a single day without them. They are my everything and bring immeasurable joy to me every single day. I thank my Heavenly Father for sending them to me and I words can't describe how happy and fulfilled I am to be a mother. And I still wonder how I got so lucky to not only have twins but to have two girls who are amazingly beautiful, sweet, well-behaved, smart, funny, and the list goes on. :)

That night, I had 20+ people from Louisiana over for dinner!  We had seafood gumbo (by Kiki, YUMMO!), red beans and rice, salad, corn bread, and bread pudding (made by me) with almond sauce and rum sauce.  Everything was awesome and we had an amazing time and were even treated to some singing--and I was forced to play the marimba, ha ha. 

Aunt Kiki and Avery.  Aaaaw!

I know Jared's eyes are closed in this one but I love Makenna's expression

 These next few pics are of 4 of us girls who spent a LOT of time together my senior year (over 20 years ago!  Ack!)--me, Chani, Amiee, and Kiki:

Doing our model faces--we did a runway show one time in one of our living rooms and the families still remember it

Our Wanda impressions (from In Living Color, which we used to watch and quote ALL THE TIME)

Our Fire Marshall Bill faces, also from In Living Color

Just cracking up at each other. :)

I love those girls and their families so much and it was so, so fun to hang out with them and some of their families that night!  I hope we get to do it again soon!

In the next day or so, I will post about their birthday party.  Merry Christmas, y'all!!!!

Christmas season is in full swing!

I got the Christmas decorations out on Dec. 1.  The girls had fun "helping" me and wearing some antlers and a Santa hat I pulled out of the bins:

 There were some plastic baby bottles with a Christmas tree my mom had decorated for their baby shower; Makenna got one and started feeding a little Christmas bear:

 On 12/3, we went as a family in the afternoon to pick out a Christmas tree at a local farm by our house.  They had fun smelling the trees and checking them out.  They almost had more fun picking up rocks and stuff, though, especially Avery:

 

 

 We decorated the tree that night:

Avery helped Daddy put the lights on the tree

Makenna was checking out a little book with pictures from their very first Christmas

 They both enjoyed helping us to put ornaments on the tree and did really well waiting their turn:

 

 

 

I need to get a picture of the finished product and post it.

We went today (12/7) to get Santa photos taken.  It wasn't what I hoped for but I did expect it:

I think it's pretty funny and think everyone should have one of these kinds of Santa photos from their childhood, ha ha!

For memory's sake, here's the one from last year:

I played a piano solo at our Relief Society Christmas dinner last night.  It went really well and the dinner was nice.  I thought I was gonna have to get the girls ready and take them to the nursery provided but Jared surprised us (SCARED the heck out of me!) and got home a day early, just as I was cleaning the girls up after dinner before getting them ready to go.  He came to the back door and just started shaking it, as if he was trying to open it.  The girls were in their high chairs, just a few feet from the door and I froze as I was wiping Avery's hands and thought about going to get the gun and calling 911.  I yelled, "Who is it?" and he started laughing.  Such a stinker!  It was nice to not have to get the girls ready and take them with me, since I was already feeling hectic and nervous about my solo.  It all turned out great, though.  Now to get through these next busy 2+ weeks!!!

We miss you, Praia!

We went to Jared's cousin's wedding reception in Heber on Dec. 1.  When we got home, I was getting ready for bed and Jared went to let Praia in and she didn't come to the door, so Jared went looking for her and found that she had passed away.  She was getting old and we figure she probably had a heart attack or something, as she looked like she died in her sleep.  We got her as a 6-week-old pup the weekend that we moved into our first house--the weekend after Thanksgiving in 2000; we got Chloe, our cat, the same weekend.  She was such a great dog--sweet, loyal, loving, obedient, and smart. She was awesome to take

camping and fishing, which she loved. We enjoyed 12 great years with her and will miss her terribly. We are sad but somewhat thankful that she didn't have to get even older and suffer any more on this earth. We love you, Praia!

She was such a cute puppy!!! (this was in 2000)

And she grew into a beautiful dog (this was in 2005)

Cont. of 11/17: After getting back from our walk/hike, we all went to the McComb Train Depot. Uncle Raymond loves trains and knows pretty much everything about them. He was telling us how everything on it works.

We then went back to the cabins and had an early Thanksgiving meal--ham, artichoke casserole, mirliton/shrimp casserole, sweet potato casserole, homemade mac & cheese, rolls, and pie.  It was all so good!  We were supposed to be watching the LSU game but the cable in the cabins had gone out.  Even the radio station kept going out, so we just got updates on our phones.

Playing another game with Ben and his girls

Patty, Dad, and Raymond hanging out after the meal

The view from our cabins--it use to be a lake but had to be drained after its dam was nearly breeched during the passing of Tropical Storm Isaac back in Aug.

Our cabins

The silly glasses from the game

The girls cuddled up with daddy by the fire outside the cabin

Avery loves sweeping; she helped Brenna sweep the porch

Makenna thought she'd play some Chutes & Ladders by herself

The next morning, we got up early, ate breakfast, packed, and got ready and drove straight to church in Hammond. I accompanied the choir for their special musical # and played the hymns for sacrament.

Makenna discovered the princess vanity at Maw-maw's house after their post-church nap

That night, my mom got a phone call telling her that Uncle Kelly had passed away.  He was found in a hotel room in Kenner.  He had been staying at my parents house for a couple of weeks and I talked to him a bit the night we got there.  He wasn't able to come with us to MS because he had to work.  I so wish he had come!  We were all kind of bummed and tired from the weekend and just hung out at home on Monday (11/19).  Jared left that afternoon to drive up to his operation in Memphis to do some work there.  He ended up driving down to his operation in Bessemer, AL the next night for some kind of last-minute thing.  He got back Wed. night.

11/20: The twins and I went with Becky, Belle, Brenna, Nikki, Maw-maw and Paw-paw to the Audobon Zoo in New Orleans.  It was a beautiful day and we all had a lot of fun.

Paw-paw and Belle

Makenna enjoying the playground

The girls loving the sea lions

That night, Uncle Mike, Aunt Kathy and their three girls came over for dinner; Uncle Wayne came over, as well--he flew in town just for a couple of days to take care of some things regarding Kelly's death.  He had to get back to CA immediately due to his wife being due to have a baby that week--she ended up having her on Sunday.  Makenna started getting sick right before everyone got there.  She got a fever and started coughing--she puked on me from coughing so hard just as Uncle Mike gave me a hug goodbye.

Cousins (except for the little baby--that's Tiffany's friends baby that she brought)

Makenna had a rough night and was feeling terrible so my mom and I took her to the dr. on Wed., 11/21.  The dr. said she had an ear infection, some infection in her throat and a cold.  Poor thing!  We were supposed to go to the French Quarter in New Orleans that day with Ben and his girls but that obviously didn't happen.  We pretty much just stayed at home pretty the whole rest of the trip, since Avery and I also got pretty sick on Thanksgiving.  We were all coughing and miserable for days.  Completely ruined the rest of our trip as far as going places, eating out, and visiting people.  Another bad part was Makenna is AWFUL to give medicine to.  Since she wouldn't eat anything, we had to use medicine droppers to give her the penicillin.  She is so stubborn! She refused to take her meds, which consisted of penicillin, a cough med, and Tylenol. She screamed the entire time and spit out what we did get into her mouth. We ended up using the end of a wooden spoon to keep her mouth open and she still somehow was able to not swallow, then spit it out if she could get it to her lips.

We still enjoyed Thanksgiving dinner, though, and the girls were feeling good enough (after cough med. and Tylenol) to go outside and get some pictures taken:

Makenna reading a book to me while I was trying to rest on the couch

On Friday, 11/23, we decided to take the girls out for some fresh air and go to the swamp walk (only 15 min. away) for a short walk; they weren't feeling too good but cooperated pretty well:

The walk got messed up a little during Isaac--there were spots where it looked like the walkway had floated up and didn't got back into the right spots, so it was uneven and some parts had even become disjointed.  And a tree partially blocked one part.

We wore the girls out so much that, when we got home, Makenna went and lay on an air mattress in the living room with Jared and conked out.  Avery joined them not long after.  We watched the LSU football game that afternoon and watched football most of the next day (Sat.), as well. 

11/25: We skipped church on Sunday because we still weren't feeling all that well and didn't think the girls would put up with sitting in church.  I was really sad because we were supposed to go to our old ward in Denham Springs.  They hadn't eaten much for days, so we were happy that they finally ate just a bit that evening.

11/26:  While still not 100%, the girls and I started to feel much better on Monday.  We went out to eat at a seafood restaurant with Ben, Belle, (Brenna had croup and didn't go) Maw-maw, Paw-paw, and Nikki.  After dinner, we drove to a hotel right by the airport in Baton Rouge so we wouldn't have to get up quite so early in the morning and drive an hour to the airport.

Belle and Ben

Maw-maw

Nikki

There is a huge (dead) alligator in the lobby at Don's Seafood; I really thought the girls were gonna be scared of it but they weren't at all!

Belle and the gator

We woke up at 4:15 the next morning (11/27) to fly home.  The girls slept on the flight from BR to Memphis and were pretty good from Memphis to SLC.  I just wish Avery and I hadn't coughed so much.  Jared started getting sick the day we came home and all of us are still coughing--mostly Jared and I.  I hope I get over this soon 'cause there is way too much stuff to do this month!!!

Overall, the trip DEFINITELY wasn't ideal but there were some fun times.  I just feel like we missed out on so much we wanted to do and I didn't get to see many of my friends.  There's always next time, right?