Happy Birthday Gigi!

Today is a special day, it's my mom's birthday. I wish we were there so we could celebrate in style. We did have the chance to sing and open presents last week when we were all together, but it just doesn't feel the same. Mom, I hope you have a wonderful year. One that is filled with many rich blessings and special wishes. We love you.

I love Gigi for many reasons and these are just a few:

She is my best friend, one I want to talk to each and every day and several times in between.

Gigi loves to play with the kids. And I mean "down on the floor" kind of playing. Make believe, princess play, games, reading, going to the park, watching kids videos, making cookies, riding bikes around the block.

She is patient and tolerant.

She is always on our side. We can count on her to support us in all of our endeavours.

She is interested in the little things, simple details of our life.

I can call her with very important news or just the boring details of my day and she will listen intently as if it's all the same to her.

She is stylish, and loves to decorate. I wish I had the same sense of fashion.

She is always willing to help and offer service to us, many times at her expense.
She loves us all. Unconditionally.

Thank you, mom.

Thanksgiving!

This is what it's all about. The perfect Thanksgiving weekend. We spent a wonderful weekend with our family. My parents and my brother came in town to celebrate together. We spent our days playing games, watching movies, chatting, laughing, computer fixing (thanks again, Robby) shopping, eating, eating, and more eating. As I reflect on our many blessings at this time of the year, I would say being together with my family tops my list. Thank you to mom, dad, Robby for making the trek to Omaha. We sure loved having you fill our home with love and laughter and memories to last a lifetime.

It's always hard for my kids to say goodbye! Saying goodbye to Uncle Robby was no exception. But until next time, they have lots of fun memories to hold on to.

From New York to Omaha

Oops...keep your eye on the ball, Avery

Uncle Robby flew in today for a Thanksgiving visit. We are so excited to see him and have him all to ourselves. In Denver, when Rob visits he usually books so many" play dates" our time with him is limited. Here in Omaha he is stuck with us...the whole crazy bunch. Uncle Robby brought a little bit of New York with him and gave us all a few gifts.

"Rock your socks off"

Ellie and friends before the show started.

Daddy and Avery after the show. Someone looks happy to be in daddy's arms.

Last night was Zachary and Ellie's 3rd grade concert. What a special treat for us. They performed in the High School Auditorium and each child was dressed up in 50's attire. Ellie's class performed the song "Jail House Rock", while Zachary's class was spotlighted on the song "Rock Around the Clock Tonight". The kids were very nervous beforehand, infact Ellie begged us to let her back out of the show. Zachary mentioned having "stage fright" at least a dozen times. For several hours prior to the show I heard a steady stream of comments like this, "Please, don't make me go." and, " I can't remember my dance moves" But, lo and behold we were able to coax both kids into performing. And they were fantastic! We were so proud of them. What super STARS! Ellie knew her dance well and really shined on stage. She did a couples dance, and her partner was...a boy." EEK". She secretly loved that part. Zachary had a special chance to "Rock out" while playing the guitar during his song. He really showed us who is boss up there on stage. "Bust a Move, Zach"! Who said he was nervous....it appears he loved the attention. Like I said before, we are really proud of both of them. After, the concert we celebrated the fine performance at Dairy Queen with the Enlow family. This was a special night to remember and one for the twins to discover the power of accomplishment. They did it!

Hit play to see Zach's guitar action-Live!

Fall into Fun

What do you do when your kids are bored and have already watched a solid hour of t.v. ..We run outside and play in the leaves. At 5:00 tonight,without a moment to waste the kids and I raced each other outside and began "Operation Leaf Pile" (a very professional sounding code word) We quickly attempted to rake up the leaves into a huge pile. Ellie used a rake, Zachary used a shovel (don't ask) and Avery used a tiny bucket to scoop. Needless, to say we were not very effective but we sure had fun. Jumping in and then throwing the leaves at each other...oh what fun it is! I was able to catch a few moments on camera. I couldn't let this opportunity slip, however it did put a damper on Zach's mood ( still not a fan of the camera) so, only a couple- I promised him.