Finally!!!!

Edward did not want to put his juice down for the picture!

There we go!!!!!

I finally got a picture of both boys looking at the camera and smiling (at least half of a smile from William). This is a FIRST!!!! Of course, there were many pictures to take before I got a good one.....

Christmas Cards

My sister-in-law, Nikki, gave me a great way to display Christmas cards. She sets up a separate tree just for cards. I'm assuming she puts up lights and a star, but the rest of the decorations is cards. By the time Christmas gets here, the tree is filled with cards! So cute. We didn't do it this year because we didn't bring our tree, but next year, I definitely want to try it. This year, I tied the cards on a wreath that is hanging in our kitchen. Let's just say the wreath is exploding with cards--a tree will be better!
Also, don't you hate throuwing away the cards after Christmas? I always just stick them in the Christmas decorations box and forget about them until we get the box out for the next year. Nikki also inspired me to keep all the cars in a small basket and choose one every night at dinner. Then, you can pray for that family when you bless the meal. A great way to keep using the cards throughout the year. I love it!!!! Thanks, Nikki, for the great tips!
Keep sending the cards--I love seeing everyone from back home!!!!
Emily

Taos

Crashed after a fun weekend!

William was snoring here!!! So tired after all of that skiing!

Learning to do the "steering wheel"

Ready for another run!!!

This is as close as I could get without him seeing me! He did such a great job learning the basics of skiing!!!

Gabriella and William

John and his buddy, Jamie

Sweet Eva Jane

Gabriella

We had a great time visiting the Worthens in Taos this weekend. John and I got to ski and visit with our friends and the boys had a blast in the ski daycare/playroom. William even got to have a quick ski lesson. He did a great job!!! We also had fun at a Christmas party with Jamie, Bevelle, and their sweet girls, Eva Jane and Gabriella. We are already planning our next trip!

Polar Express

Here are the pictures from our ride to the North Pole on the Polar Express. So much fun!!!!

Busy, Busy!

We have been so busy lately!!! I am hoping to post some pictures of our Durango trip, plus our visit to Santa, AND... our weekend in Taos! We are actually still in Taos this morning. The boys are in the daycare and John just left to ski a few runs before we have to leave. John and I both skied yesterday with our friends Jamie and Bevelle. They moved here the same time we moved to Albuquerque. Jamie and John were in residency together in Birmingham. They have two sweet little girls that are about the same age as William and Edward. We have had such a fun weekend with them!!! Today, William is supposed to have a one hour ski lesson. That should be hilarious since he HATES being cold! They don't want parents to be there, but John and I found a spot where we can watch and hopefully be close enough to take pictures!

Pictures coming as soon as we can get home and upload them to our computer!!!!

Durango, Colorado

We leave today for Durango. We are riding on the Polar Express tomorrow night. Should be a chilly, chilly night at the North Pole. This morning in Albuquerque, it was 12 degrees!!!! Burrrrrr!!!!! I'll post pictures of our weekend when we return!

You Serious, Clark?

LOVE. THIS. MOVIE!!!!!! I'm recording it tonight to watch after the little ones are in bed!!!! Although I can quote the entire movie from memory, I cannot wait to watch it again!!!!! Let the Christmas fun begin!!!!

Florence, Alabama: My Dream Hometown--(Sort of )

First of all, let me say that we are super excited to be moving to Florence in August. We had several places to choose from, and we finally decided that Florence is where we want to raise our family.

HOWEVER........ I am realizing that I really like my big city perks. Growing up in a much smaller town than Florence, I never thought I would feel like Florence was super small. My hometown's population is approximately 9,000 and the closest big city is at least 1 1/2 hours away. But, after living in Birmingham for 9 years and now Albuquerque, I'm finding that living in Florence may be a slight adjustment for me.

SO..... I would like to see some changes before August 2010: (in no particular order)

1. Publix----please, please let this wonderful grocery store come to my future hometown soon. I may be forced to get my groceries in Huntsville. LOVE LOVE LOVE the customer service not to mention the very clean and large produce section!!!!! They seem to welcome kids with free cookies from the bakery and they have even been known to put my kids in their car seats for me!

2. STARBUCKS!!!!!! Oh, my. I'm so addicted. I never, ever drank coffee until I moved here and I am so hooked on the skinny lattes. Oh, and this will need to be a drive-thru since I usually have two little ones with me. Believe me, Starbucks, you don't want them coming in with me!!!!! They will destroy your cute little displays in mere seconds!!!! Since I'm dreaming, let's make it several Starbucks spread out all over town--I would hate to be too far from one at any given time. :)

3. Panera Bread or any other yummy deli/bakery type restaurants. I've tried Lennys--not a huge fan.

4. Chick-fil-A: that is not in the mall or just a drive-thru. Maybe one with an INDOOR playground????? Is this too much to ask????

I'm sure there's more, but that will be a great start. Once again, we are super excited to be moving back. I know it won't kill me to push my own groceries out to my car and I GUESS I could try the coffee at McDonalds, but wouldn't it be nice if all of our wishes could come true?

Let me finish with some things I'm looking forward to in Florence:
1. FAMILY!!!!!!!

2. FRIENDS!!!!!

3. Crosspoint

4. LAKE!

5. Rosie's

6. First Friday (I've heard this is great!)

7. UNA games. another first for me!

8. small town atmosphere

......... Many more, just can't think of them right now!!!!!

The Manns Come to Visit!!!! (Pictures are in reverse chronological order!)

Lights at Botanic Gardens!

Burr!!!!

Santa Fe!

This is William's new camera face!

Riding the train to Santa Fe!

Anna Claire and Edward playing after bath time!

Fun bath with cousins!

Eating ice cream during the Iron Bowl!

Kate was a great babysitter!

WaR EaGlE!!!

Before the game....

Ella and William on their way to hike up the mountain! Once again, best buddies!

Ella and William decorating his little tree for his room!

William waiting patiently for the tree to be set up.

Andy and John doing the hard work!

The kids thought this was so cool! A tree on top of the car!

Edward and his look-a-like, John

About to eat Thanksgiving lunch!

Best Friends!

Andy and the babies.

Edward with Uncle Andy

Edward is not very happy as you can tell!

Ella and William in their playhouse. They stayed in here most of the time!

Thanksgiving morning breakfast with the cousins!

Before the big race!

William helping make the turkey cookies!

Taste testers!

John's brother, Andy, and his family, along with John's mom, all came to visit us for Thanksgiving!!! We had the BEST time! They got here last Saturday and stayed until yesterday. William and Edward had so much fun playing with the girls. William and Ella really hit it off--you will notice they are in most of the pictures. I don't know how I will be able to entertain my boys now that life is back to normal! Here is a list of some of the things we did:

1. Andy, Nikki, John and I all ran in a race on Thanksgiving morning. It was very cold and the course was harder than I thought. We all earned our yummy meal later that day!

2. We enjoyed Thanksgiving lunch cooked by John's mom, the best cook EVER!!!!

3. We watched the Iron Bowl Friday afternoon. Andy and his crew cheer for Alabama, so we had a house divided. Sad game, but let's move on!

4. Saturday, we rode a train to Santa Fe. This was another beautiful but cold day. The kids all did great. We ate at Blue Corn Cafe--super food!

5. Last night, we headed out to see the big light show at the Botanic Gardens here in Albuquerque. The lights were great, but the kids weren't too excited. I think it was just a bit too cold. William kept asking for the lights to be turned off.

We were sad to see them all leave early this morning! Only 3 weeks until we see them all again for Christmas!!!!

John's Birthday!

John celebrated his 32nd birthday last Sunday. We were lucky to have his mom here to visit, so she made his favorite dessert, fruit pizza. William loved helping make the dessert and also opening John's gifts. Happy Birthday, John!!!

Edward's First Haircut

A couple of weeks ago, I decided it was time for Edward to get a haircut. He needed the back trimmed to get rid of the baby mullet. He cried the entire time! I didn't let her touch the sides or the front, so you can barely tell it's even been cut! He calmed down at the end and I got some pictures.