Update on James!

James will be touching down on US ground tomorrow!!! He has to go through whatever process they have to go through and that requires a day in BWI, and then he will go on to PHX. I am sure he is just going to be thrilled to be back in the states!

Ok, so I heard from someone very special in James' life that he actually won't be coming back w/ a mustache! LOL! We are really looking forward to meeting this "someone special!" Her name is Amy and she is from South Carolina but was in Iraq when James got there. They met while working out...imagine that! :) Here is a picture James sent us shortly after they met. James is going to think I'm such a dork...but I get excited for him! LOL!

He's on his way!!!

We are SO EXCITED that James is on his way back to the United States! He has quite a few stops before he finally makes it to the US. He is supposed to arrive in Phoenix within the next week and then will be arriving in Atlanta on the 7th!!! We are just counting down the days and praying for his safe return! Looks like he is coming back with a mustache!

Hayley's 1st Birthday!

Our sweet little baby girl, who we feel was just born, will be turning 1 in less than a month and she is walking!!! It really hit me today when my close friend Tammy held a small get together for her baby girl's 1st birthday! Hayley (Tammy's daughter) was born just 3 weeks before Ansley! Today was the 3rd 1st birthday party we have been to in the last couple of months, and the last one before Ansley's!

Here are a few photos of Hayley's birthday today! She is so animated and just adorable!

I DO NOT like this photo of me, but it's the memory that needs to be captured, it's going to be fun watching our daughters grow up together!

This picture of Tammy and Ansley makes me smile! I love it!

Opening presents! Ansley really liked Heather (Tammy's sister)!

Hayley got a radio flyer for her birthday and Ansley would not sit in it w/ her initially, then when she was comfortable, they put Hayley back in w/ her and Joe made Hayley cry by trying to be silly! So much for the cute and smiley picture we were hoping to get of the girls in the wagon! That's Tammy's little sister, Heather in the photo w/ the girls. She is the one who baked the cakes! She is a great baker!

SILLY KIDS!

One day we hear Ansley huffing and puffing so we go into the kitchen, and this is what we find!

Another day, while I am showering, Joe goes into the kitchen and finds Ansley fascinated w/ matches....of all things! She found them in the cabinet inside a giftbag that holds a bunch of tea lights. She has gone back to that very cabinet for the past 3 days and empty's out the bag only to find there are no more matches in there! Don't we deserve the parents of the year award!!! :)

Here are a couple of videos we captured tonight!

Holiday Visit

My cousin Andrea, her husband Elliot, and two boys Brock and Scott, came and stayed w/ us after christmas. AJ and Brock hit it off and were totally entertained the entire time! Aleigh and Scott did really well to keep up with them too! We had a nice visit!

The guys played a competitive game of States and Capitols Sequence! It got even more competitive when Andrea and I decided to play against the guys! They cheated ;)! Not really, but it makes me feel better to say that!

My mom and the kids were pretending that all of the kids were falling down the well like Giselle does in Enchanted! They had so much fun!

Scott is one of the cutest little boys!

While Andrea was here, I hosted a "Scentsy" party for her and got to learn all about the product she sells! Its AWESOME! The orders are already here and we have been burning ours non-stop! It is the newest and safest thing in wickless candles I have ever seen! They sell the prettiest warmers! The warmers warm up w/ a light bulb and the plate that sits on top is removable so when you are done w/ one scent and want to burn another, you can easily just pour the wax back in to use later and break off a piece of a new scent! The best part is how safe it is! You can stick your finger in the burning wax and its not hot! I feel safe w/ my kids around it and comfortable leaving the warmers on when we leave the house. There are 80 different scents to choose from and I was able to smell every single one! I have several favorites, but was able to narrow it down to about 15, and then was able to narrow it down again to my top 6 for the package I ordered. I am not trying to sell this to anyone, I just really love the product and think everyone should know! Our house has smelled liked "Cinnamon Bear" for the past two days! :) If you are interested in checking out Andrea's website: www.scentsy.com/snookems

MERRY CHRISTMAS - AJ

AJ helps Ansley open her first wrapped gift!

AJ's Christmas was fun and exciting! He got the Air Hog he asked Santa for and a Nerf Gun, some DVD's, etc. At Nana and Papa's house he got a lot of great gifts, but was being a little bit of a booger and just didn't want to show any enthusiasm when opening his gifts! As usual, Nana and Papa spoiled him and he got a lot of great clothes, games, movies, and a book. He was a little over stimulated and tired until.....dad brought out the puzzle box sent by Uncle James that gave us all a reaction we weren't expecting from AJ! Here are the photo's that tell the story:

Papa presents AJ w/ his puzzle box from Uncle James.

Papa carefully explains the secret to finding the key, and then discovering the keyhole to open the box.

AJ get's to use the key to open his box

AJ is amazed at how cool that was!

Papa says "See look, there's even a mirror in there so you can stare at your goofy face!" That gets quite a laugh out of AJ!

He quickly studies the box on his own until he has it all figured out!

And he even falls asleep with it!

The next morning I asked AJ what his favorite gift was and w/ out hesitation he said "My box!"

THANK YOU UNCLE JAMES!!! :)

MERRY CHRISTMAS - Aleigh

Aleigh was definitely the most excited for Christmas this year! She was up and ready to see if Santa had come by 4 a.m.! We were all up by 6 a.m. to open gifts! She reminds me so much of myself! I used to wake up as early as 1 or 2 in the morning and make myself a bed on the living room floor right in front of the tree! I am sure Aleigh would do the same thing if we weren't so willing to let her crawl in the bed w/ us! Aleigh was so cute, she got excited over every gift and was quick to express her appreciation for every gift! Aleigh was just way too easy to shop for. She is in to everything that I was interested in when I was her age! She had no idea that she would be getting an American Girl doll from Nana and Papa later in the day. She was SO EXCITED! She told us that her American Girl doll was her favorite gift ever! Her and I have had a lot of fun coloring , painting, designing w/ "Pixos" and creating snowglobes together w/ all of her new art stuff. She has already baked a little cake in her Easy bake oven w/ AJ and Chelsea!Aleigh is very fond of her "Special Box" from Uncle James! It's so cute to see her and AJ walk around the house, proudly carrying around their special boxes!