Visiting Santa

Tonight, I took the boys to the mall so they could visit Santa.  Isaac kept taunting A.J. before we went, saying "A.J....don't cry when you sit on Santa's lap"!!!  Both boys had no hesitations when sitting on Santa's lap and telling him what they wanted for Christmas.  I even snapped a picture with my phone before the lady told me the area was a no-camera zone (I was not about to pay $35 for a picture)!!!



Christmas with Santa 2011

Thanksgiving Feast

A.J.'s class had a Thanksgiving Feast on Wednesday.  They dressed up as Pilgrims and Native Americans, sang songs, told what they were thankful for (A.J.'s was his dad), and then ate the big feast!  It was fun to see A.J. in the classroom setting with all his friends...we can't wait until the next program!

A.J.'s the 3 pilgrim from the left in the back row

My little pilgrim

The kindergartners eating their feast

Man-cation

Andy's best friend, Kevin, flew in for Thanksgiving week, and the guys decided to do a little site-seeing for a few days.  Their first stop was the Hoover Dam.  They took a quick tour and then decided to do a little golfing.  That night, they headed to Las Vegas and took in some of the sites there.  The next day, they went golfing at Wolf Creek Golf Resort in Mesquite, Nevada.  Andy said it was the most amazing golf course he has ever played (I'm not that into golf, but the course does look pretty awesome).  The following day, they went hiking at Zion National Park in Utah.  They hiked Angel's Landing...then, back to Las Vegas for some more fun.  Thanks, Kevin, for letting my husband tag along...he had a great time!

The Hoover Dam

Kevin at the Hoover Dam

Wolf Creek Golf Course

Wolf Creek

Angel's Landing

Kevin at Angel's Landing

Andy at Angel's Landing

Serendipity in Las Vegas...I told Andy I didn't want to see any frozen hot chocolate with two straws on a guys' trip, so this is the picture I got!

A.J.'s Birthday

Wednesday was A.J.'s 6th birthday!  My, how time flies!!!  We started off the day by opening one present (from Isaac)...he loved his Star Wars rocket!  Then he had to go to school, but sharing Star Wars cupcakes with his class made it worthwhile.  After school, we took a couple of his friends to the arcade and bowling (we decided not to have a big party this year).  Of course, the boys wanted to play at the arcade first...Ryan played the giant crane game and won a gigantic shark his very first try!  A.J. won a tree frog, but it took him three tries!  The boys had a great time playing all the games and winning different prizes.  By the time they were done in the arcade, league play had started at the bowling alley and the kids were unable to bowl (I don't think any of them cared one bit).  So we grabbed a bite to eat and then went back to the house for cake and presents!  It was a great 6th birthday!

A.J. opening his present from Isaac

A.J. and Ryan with their gigantic toys from the crane game

The boys gave this expression a lot...I think they were mesmerized by the games and lights!

A.J. and Ryan trying to win an Angry Bird

Ryan and A.J.

Best buds...Ryan, Andrew, and A.J.

Words don't even begin to explain...

Blowing out the candles

Enjoying the cake (some more than others)!

A.J. LOVES his new Nintendo 3DS!

Baseball

Saturday was A.J.'s last baseball game of the season.  He had a great time playing this year and improved tremendously since last season.  After the game, the coach gave the kids their awards...A.J. can't wait to play again in the spring!

A.J. with his certificate, ball, and most importantly, a gift certificate for ice cream!

This is Royce...I think he's even crazier than A.J.!!!

Best buds, Ryan and A.J.

Marley Farms

On Friday, we went to a benefit at Marley Farms for a little girl in A.J.'s school who has cancer.  What a neat little park!  It is only a couple of miles from our house and they had the best petting zoo I have ever been to.  Everything was so clean and there were a ton of animals (goats, llamas, sheep, kangaroos, peacocks, camels, horses, cows, deer, ostriches, bulls, pigs, and even a zonkey--zebra/donkey--I'm sure there are many more I left out).  The kids had a great time feeding and petting all the animals.  They even got to ride ponies, ride a train, and jump in the bouncy house!

A.J. with the llamas and goats

Isaac and the llama

Isaac and the goats

A.J. feeding the goats

Isaac feeding the goats

Daddy feeding the llamas

Isaac's first pony ride

A.J.'s first pony ride

The boys with the camel

A.J. feeding the camel

The camel nibbling on Isaac's hand

A.J. getting a licking from the cows

Nibbles from the horses

More nibbles from the horses

The boys feeding the deer

A.J. and the "zonkey"

Having fun on the train ride

Isaac's 3rd Birthday!

Monday was Isaac's 3rd birthday!  He had a great day.  It started off by opening a present that A.J. picked out and bought himself.  A.J. was so excited to give it to him!!!  Then, we went to the store and Isaac picked out his own cake (he decided on a cookie cake).  That evening, we went to Chick-Fil-A for dinner (Isaac's choice), and then came home to open presents and have dessert.  Isaac got a new guitar, a baseball glove and pitching machine, bubbles, lots of money and gifts cards, and his favorite, a new LeapPad! He had a great day!!!

A.J. was so excited to give Isaac his first present of the day...poor Isaac still has bags under his eyes!

Isaac loved rockin' out with his new guitar

Opening his new pitching machine

Isaac and his LeapPad

His Toy Story Cookie cake

Blowing out the birthday candle...Happy 3rd Birthday, Isaac!!!