Merry Christmas!!!

Celebrating...A Little Early!!!

Santa came to our house a little early again this year. We celebrated with our immediate family on Saturday. A.J., of course, was so excited to open all of his presents. He had them open in no time! Isaac was content shaking a plastic candy cane filled with M&M's. He really didn't tear into his presents or play with the paper, but he did have fun playing with all of A.J.'s new toys, much to A.J.'s dismay!!!

Brothers!

A.J. getting presents from his stocking

Isaac shaking the candy cane

Double-fisting the silverware and ready to dive in...

Literally!!!

Airport Days

Last weekend, our local airport had Airport Days. They had a lot of small planes on display, including some WWII bombers and Apache Helicopters. A.J. had a great time getting up close to the planes...he even got to "fly" a small helicopter. Who knows? Maybe we have a future pilot on our hands!!!

A.J.'s Soccer

A.J. has been improving greatly in his soccer skills. Here's a little clip of him scoring one of his goal this morning!

Happy 4th Birthday, A.J.!!!

Monday was A.J.'s fourth birthday! We started the day on a not-so-good note, as we had to take both boys to the doctor for their yearly check-ups. A.J. had to have 5 shots and Isaac had to have 4...I must say, I was quite impressed with A.J. He didn't even cry! Isaac's head is still growing faster than the rest of him. The doctors were concerned and ordered a head CT, but thank God that was normal! After the doctor, we went to Chuck E. Cheese's for lunch. By the time we got there, poor A.J. didn't want to go in...his arms were hurting. But he was a trooper, and we had a good time. Then, of course, we had to have cake. Andy decided he was going to make a cake this year, and he did a pretty good job on Spiderman! Very tasty! Anyway, Happy Fourth Birthday to our Austin Jacob!!!

A.J. with his Spiderman cake

Riding his new bike

Isaac having a great time at Chuck E. Cheese's

Snuggling with Frosty...his new Build-A-Bear present!

Miscellaneous Fun

This week, we have been keeping busy by doing different things. Grandma and Grandpa Davis kept us busy for the first half of the week before they had to leave. On Wednesday, A.J.'s preschool class got together for a picnic in the park. It was really a lot of fun (especially to see who A.J. played with and how he interacted with the other kids. We also went to the mall this week and had a soccer game as well.

Amanda, Peyton, Ryan, Reese, Isabella, Makena, Ryan's sister Lauren, Grace, Max, and A.J.

Isaac being the daredevil that he is

A.J. and Isaac at the soccer game

Happy 1st Birthday Isaac!!!

Saturday was Isaac's 1st birthday! I can't believe it's been one year already! Grandma and Grandpa Davis flew into town to help us celebrate. We started off the morning with Isaac's favorite breakfast...pancakes! He inhaled them ;-) Then we spent the morning playing in the ball pit (we hadn't open this since we moved...re-gifting is great)! Then we went to A.J.'s soccer game and ate lunch at McDonald's. When we got home, we opened presents and had cake. Isaac loved the cake! He was a pretty neat eater too...he got his hands and face messy, but look at the highchair tray...it was still pretty clean when he was finished!

Isaac loved the "new" ball pit!

One of his favorite gifts, Cookie Monster

Standing (he stands by himself and is taking a few steps)

" Cheese!!!"

Isaac loves his new swing

Not quite sure how to blow out the candle

A little on the hands, a little on the face, a little in the hair, but the highchair was clean!

Happy 1st Birthday to me!!!

Pumpking Carving

Last night, we decided to carve one of our pumpkins. A.J. wanted a spider, since he was going to be Spiderman. Both boys were very intrigued with the pumpkin. At least A.J. didn't cry this year when he had to scoop out the pumpkin guts!

At the beginning

Isaac enjoyed beating Daddy over the head with the pumpkin scoop

He also liked licking the pumpkin

No crying this year

The boys with the finished pumpkin

Trick or Treat!

Today, we went Trick-or-Treating at a nearby retirement home with my MOMS Club. We had a great time and got a lot of candy...so much, in fact, that we are debating skipping trick-or-treating tomorrow night. A.J. went as Spiderman and Isaac went as a doctor. Notice the big bruise and bump on Isaac's forehead...long story. On the way home from IL, A.J., Isaac, and I were boarding the plane. Our seats were the very first row, so we had to place our carry-ons in the overhead compartment, as there was no seat in front of us. So I put Isaac on A.J.'s lap and told him to hold his brother while I put the carry-ons away. The next thing I knew, Isaac had slipped out of A.J.'s lap, head first, right into the magazine holder on the front wall of the plane! He started wailing, the flight attendant had seen the whole thing and ran to get us ice, etc, etc. He calmed down after a couple of minutes, but his head looks terrible! What a fun first flight by myself with the kids!!!

Spiderman spraying his webs

Dr. Isaac and his big bump on his noggin

IL Trip

Last week, we made an unexpected trip back to Illinois (unfortunately, Andy's grandmother passed away). We weren't sure if we were going to be able to make it, as Isaac had just been diagnosed with pneumonia, but fortunately, he was fever-free for exactly 24 hours before the flight, so Monday we loaded on the airplane. It was a fun ride, as our friends were on the same flight and we were actually seated across the aisle from each other. Under the circumstances, we had a great time visiting with all our family and friends. Unfortunately, I got the flu at the end of the week and didn't get to see my sister and her family (second visit back to IL, second bout with the flu...I don't think IL likes me anymore). We'll be back at Christmas!!!

The Davis Clan

A.J. dancing with cousin Katie

A.J. and I meeting Brynleigh...she was SO cute and such a good baby!!!

A.J. and Keegan

The boys kept watching it rain...I don't think they knew what it was!

The Grand Canyon

After 2 years of living in Arizona, we finally made a trip to the Grand Canyon on Tuesday! It was super cold!!! I'm guessing it was probably in the 20's in the morning and it was very windy (something we Phoenician's are not used to)!!! The canyon itself was massive!!! I guess that is why they call it "Grand"! We were going to do a hike, but since it was so cold, we just drove along a scenic drive and stopped at different points to take pictures. By the afternoon, the wind had died down and it was a balmy 50 degrees (but felt much warmer compared to the morning weather). It was a trip well worth the wait!

Trying to stay warm for a family picture!

The Grand Canyon (you can see the Colorado River in the middle)

A.J. and I hopped out of the car for a quick picture

"That is a long way down!"

Another family pic after the weather had warmed up

Look closely...yep, that's Andy and Kevin!

"Wow! What a view!"

Another pic of the Colorado River

Too much fun

Sedona

This week, one of Andy's best friends, Kevin, came to visit. We have been having a great time catching up and hanging out, along with seeing some of the sites our great state has to offer. On Monday, we went hiking in the famous Red Rock Country at Sedona (thanks to our friends for letting us borrow their hiking backpack for Isaac...thanks Buttons). It was amazing! The Red Rock was beautiful, and the hike was great as well. I was surprised that A.J. did as well as he did...in all, we probably hiked 3-4 miles (as the van could not take the "dirt" road, so we had to hike to the trail). Kevin was a great help with A.J. and even carried him for the last stretch of the hike (thanks Kevin)!!! It was definitely worth all the effort!

The family at Canyon Lake on Apache Trail

Some of the famous Red Rock

My boys

More Red Rock

The family at the beginning of the hike

Andy and his buddy Kevin

I think A.J. is going to be our hiker...he was scaling everything!!!

The hike was pretty steep

Andy and Kevin

The family

Isaac needed a resting point so he could have his lunch

(Mommy was glad, as she was sweating like a pig)!!!

The view from our pitstop!

We've almost made it to Devil's Bridge

Kevin, A.J., Andy, and Isaac atop Devil's Bridge

I just thought this was too cute not to post...all the guys holding hands ;-)

Yay!!! Mommy made it to the top too!!!

Kevin

My boys taking a rest

Poor little fella...all worn out from the hike