Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas!!

I hope that everyone had a great Holiday season and a great Christmas.  I have to be the first one to say that our family was extreme blessed this holiday season.  The main reason for that is being able to be together with each other.  To me this is the best gift that I could ever receive.

I am a sucker when it comes to traditions, and it has been interesting developing new traditions with my own family.  I will admit though I miss having my parents here to celebrate those traditions but thanks to technology we get to have time with them.  Our family is very lucky though that we do have my wife's parents just down the street from us and they have been a huge part of our lives and the kids lives.  

We started this Christmas off by going to church with our family.  The kids got all dressed up and were good kids during the service.  I am a sucker for Silent Night by candlelight in the church.  There is something special about this son and singing it on Christmas Eve. We sadly had to break away from our normal tradition of going to Texas Roadhouse for dinner, it was a two hour wait, but we went to dinner and had some good conversation.  We also had a great time tracking Santa, thank you NORAD, and finding where he was going next.  

After a great evening with family the kiddos left out cookies, carrots, and milk out for Santa.  They put on their Christmas Eve pajamas that the elves brought and headed to bed.  After a little while the little elves got around to helping Santa.  I spent three nights earlier in the week building all the gifts so that I didn't have to do it on Christmas Eve, thank goodness I had the time to do that otherwise I am pretty sure I wouldn't have slept, as it happens I got very little sleep as it is.  Jude was so excited he woke up almost ever two hours to ask if we could open presents.  The kids were very excited to see the gifts that were out for them. 

The kids made quick work of all their presents, they are expert unwrappers.  I don't know where they get this talent but they have perfected it.  We opened presents at home then went to grandma and grandpa's opened more presents then had Christmas lunch.  The kiddos did well despite being completely exhausted and over stimulated.  I was a proud dad!  We were able to talk to our family in Amsterdam and Grandma, Grandpa, and Great Grandma in Arizona.  Again thank goodness for technology and Skype!!

Jude challenged me to his Rock em' Sock em' Robots, and I have a ringer in the family.  He was an expert but we had a great time and have played a couple more times since last night already.  We even had a white Christmas!  People think that this happens every Christmas in Colorado but is is not!  

I hope that you had a great Christmas and got everything that you wanted and needed.  I look forward to sharing more and more with everyone in the upcoming year.  Here is to a happy and healthy 2016!!!

Daughter

Daughter are angels sent from above to fill our heart with unending love. -- J. Lee

Everyone tells you that when you are dad and you have a daughter that they will have you wrapped around their little finger quicker than you ever think.  I am here to confess this little girl has me wrapped around her finger and am a sucker for her smile!  I love being a dad to a son and I love being a dad to a daughter.  It is the most amazing feeling I think that I can ever experience.

If you have ever spent any time with Teagan you know that she is a Firecracker in all senses of the word.  She is very independent and has a troublesome side to her!  I think that she is going to make me go grey very quickly, and you add Jude on that I am hoping to still have hair by the end of the year.  This girl though can also melt my heart at every single little Daddy and Please that she tells me.  She is my little cuddle buddy and we do a lot together.  I enjoy all these little moments that I get to have with her and cannot imagine missing out on any of them.

(Yes that is me doing pigtails in her hair)

I hope that all of these special moments that we have shared together and continue to share together will hold a special place in her heart forever.  

Amazing Family Time!

I LOVE SPENDING TIME WITH MY FAMILY!!!!

I have to say I have had two amazing days these last two days.  Yesterday Censie and I decided that we wanted to take Jude to the zoo.  It was a little cooler but Jude loved it because the animals were up and moving around a lot more.  Jude did really good and he walked quite a bit and held onto my hand most of the time very well.  

Censie and I rode the train with Jude at the zoo.  He had a great time he loves the "choo-choo."  

It was a special day and I got to ride the Carousel with Jude.  He wanted to ride a cheetah, we had seen them earlier in the day.

Then since today is Columbus day I got to stay home with him and hang out with him for the day.  We slept in and then hung out and watched some of his shows.  

 Jude helped me make waffles this morning for breakfast in his pajamas, he had fun stirring the batter.  We then got dressed and played with toys and then we headed out to one of his favorite places, Chuck E. Cheese.  

Jude had fun dancing with the Big Chuck E. Cheese while we were there because they gave out free tickets to the kids dancing, he even got a hug from Chuck E. Cheese.

Jude had fun riding his rides and playing his games, he got to ride in a monster truck there today. 

He loves eating their pizza there, it is not great but it is good for lunch.  We ate our pizza and played more games he had a great time.  He was so tired he didn't make it home before he fell asleep.  It was such a great weekend.  I am so lucky that I get to be a dad to such a wonderful boy and a husband to such a wonderful woman.  We had a great time this weekend with him.  He makes me smile so much and knows how to make me smile and laugh,  Again I am one lucky man!!!