Vacation Fundraiser!

Please go visit my friends, The Buitenwerf's blog post today. They are the family trying to raise funds to assist in their adoption of a 2 year old boy from Ethiopia...they need our help! I've purchased 4 of the vacation raffle tickets myself (they were stocking stuffers for Jake's Christmas stocking!) and I urge you to take a look and see if it is something you may be interested in for yourself!

Thanks all and best of luck to all of us in the drawing!

Christmas Recap

Oh how we love Christmas at our house! Christmas Eve is traditionally spent with the Fagundes clan! Christmas Day with the Avila's always changes location - this year was our turn to host Jake's family on Christmas Day.

First things first, we headed to Mom & Dad's (without a nap for Ryan) pretty early in the afternoon on Christmas Eve. David, Michelle and Natalie had drove in earlier and were there to greet us when we arrived. Later, Kevin, Shannah, Bruiser, Porky, Doyle and Arline joined the fun and festivities. The day was spent with lots of laughter, food, pictures, passing Natalie, watching Ryan dance and playing pool. Oh, and we let the kiddos open their Christmas presents! Ryan (and Natalie) were blessed beyond belief with thoughtful and wonderful gifts. Ryan's room and my house will never look the same! Here are some photos of the fun:

We capped off the evening with dessert before heading back home so Ryan could get in bed at a reasonable time and so Santa could get busy setting out Ryan's gifts!

Christmas morning was SO MUCH FUN! We had to wake Ryan up so we could open our gifts as a family before Jake's entire family came over for the day. Ryan was so excited to see what Santa had brought for him, sleepy-eyed he ran to the living room and opened his stocking. Our Christmas Day celebration began around 9:00 a.m. and lasted through the evening, I believe our guests left at 9:00 p.m.!

It was fun to watch all the kids opening their gifts and Jaylynn and Ryan playing with their toys together all day. My Mother-in-Law and I sat in the house and played several rounds of the board game "Sorry" while everyone else played washers out in the back yard. I started getting a head cold so I didn't want to be out in the cold all day. It was fun to sit back and play some board games, I wish we would have taken more pictures (I should not be in charge of the camera!).

Happy New Year!

Something interesting

I've been thinking about something interesting to post today -- I WILL update on our Christmas once the pictures are uploaded - but I wanted to say something funny and all I can think of is Ryan's bedtime routine the past few weeks. It will make you smile!

Normally Ryan does not put up a fight when it's time for bed. We ask him if he's getting tired, he usually says, "yes" or shakes his head in that direction. I tell him to go give daddy kisses (because I like to be the one to lay him in his bed) then if he hasn't already, he grabs both his blue blankets, I pick him up, give him kisses and tell him I love him, lay him in the crib and turn off the light. Then before I close the door he asks, "raining outside?" and I usually answer, "no" and he asks, "cold outside?" and I usually answer, "yes, it's cold outside" and he says, "love you!" and my heart melts and I say, "love you too. Good night."

I Love my sweet little boy!

How can it already be December 13??

I seriously have not bought 1.single.Christmas.gift.YET! Sorta waiting for that money tree out front to sprout new branches and start blowing dollar bills instead of leaves!

Anyway, I've been getting the e-mails recently asking what to get Ryan for Christmas. I really have no clue. My son is a die-hard quad and dirt bike fan! His new favorite activity is to sit on mine or Jake's lap and watch quad and dirt bike videos on YouTube. How did this new-found love of YouTube start, you may ask? Good question - he is only 2 years old and no, he does not control the computer on his own, but if he continues to beg and cry every time he wants to watch videos on YouTube, I might just teach him how to navigate the internet next week! I think it was an attempt by Jake to get Ryan to calm down one night when we couldn't decide what he wanted to do and offered to let him watch quads racing! That's where our mistake began, because the kid is smart! He knows that he can sit here for 20 minutes each day and never have to watch the same video twice!

Anyway, back to Christmas gifts...Ryan's birthday was only 3 months ago. He was stocked up with winter clothes and enough new toys to fill his already full toy box. So if I'm hesitant when I respond, "Not sure what he needs, really." it's not because I don't know my kid well enough to know what he likes, it's because I really do not know what he needs for Christmas! Fingerpaints, Playdoh...something fun!

I also decided today, December 13, that I would order some photo Christmas cards to get out in the mail approximately sometime before Christmas morning. Another reason I need that money tree out front to start branching out - so I can afford postage!

Happy Christmas shopping everyone! Who else will we see Christmas shopping at the mall next week??

Who wants a FREE Computer?

That's right, I said a FREE Computer! Head on over to BooMama's page to enter a giveway for an HP Touchsmart 600. You have until December 24 to enter and will receive an extra entry if you blog about it! This computer looks like the coolest thing since sliced bread, I would love to win - Merry Christmas to us!! I can't even remember how long has Jake been dreaming about a new computer monitor. We can share!

So what are you waiting for??? Go...now...

OH, and cross your fingers that I'm the lucky winner!! haha!