3rd Times A Charm???

Well once again Brynn decided to give herself a haircut. Seeing that Christmas is just around the corner, we went to Lollilocks to "even it out". Brynn and the stylist made a deal that if she didn't cut her own hair she could come back, ride the elephant again and get her hair cut, styled and of course sprayed with her choice of sparkled hairspray....even be treated to a lollipop. We shall see if she will live up to her side of the bargain.

Reegan Turns 9- Day at the Spa

Reegan's first camera

Can't get any better than this!

Make a Wish


Reegan had a wonderful birthday. She started by opening a gift from us which was a digital camera.... which of course was used extensively throughout the day and some great American Girl books from the Russo family. Seeing that we have only been here a month we didn't do the traditional "kids" party this year. Instead of the party our good friend Karen and I took Reegan to the spa and out to lunch. We went to this really swanky place called Dolce Salon and Spa where Reegan was treated to a nail polish change and full Spa Pedicure. It was so much fun to see Reegan's delight as she sipped a glass of lemonade, sat back in the massage chair, soaked her feet in a warm jetted bubble bath and had her legs/feet massaged and toes painted. I even got into the action with a Pedicure too! After our time at the Spa we went to a fun little place called Arcadia Farms for lunch. Incredible food and desserts. Seeing that it was her birthday they even put a candle on her brownie and ice cream! On our way home we stopped at the Hallmark store so Reegan could spend some of her money that Gigi and Boppa sent on a cute little Reindeer Webkinz. To top off the day Kevin surprised her with her favorite for dinner..........steak. Reegan chose not to have a cake so we toasted with Root beer floats. It was a great, great day!

Zoo Lights

We had a really nice and busy weekend which started out on Saturday night at the Phoenix Zoo. Zoo lights is a BIG event down here. It was amazing with over 2.5 million lights. I guess it takes them over 3 months to put up. We wandered through the zoo and the girls really enjoyed the light shows, music and most of all the carousel. The weather was great... cold enough for the girls to don their winter gear (coat, hats and gloves) but NO rain!

Where we are today

Just thought I'd try taking some pictures of the house as it looks today. We have been decorating for Christmas slowly. Man, where has the time gone! We are flying back to Seattle a week from tomorrow!!! We are having our pool resurfaced and the house completely repainted inside (trim/doors/walls, etc. etc) starting in January. I can't wait. I know that everyone back home has had a wild month of weather..... but I have to say waking up to rain and temperatures not above the low 50s has made me feel like we are NOT in Arizona. The sun finally decided to show itself after 6 days of constant rain. When I drove the girls to school this morning it was 41 degrees. I probably won't be posting until after the new year so here's hoping you all have a very Merry Christmas. Blessings to all of you. Remember to enjoy!

Thanksgiving and Trip to Sedona

A Great Family shot

It's hard to believe that Thanksgiving has come and gone and Christmas is right around the corner. We had a wonderful turkey dinner with good friends/extended Arizona family. Dan and Karen invited two other friends who were not able to be with their out of state families for the Holiday. Marie and Harry (Kevin's parents) flew in Thanksgiving night and spent 5 days with us. We enjoyed having them. Thank you Harry for all your work around the place. We had one major issue with the garbage disposal that was shooting water THROUGH the cabinet doors which needless to say was replaced. Kevin and his Dad also hung some great Xmas lights and decorations out on the tree in our front yard. We are amazed at how many people down here decorate for Xmas.....It's very strange to see cactus wrapped in white lights!!! We were also able to spend the day sight seeing- went to Sedona for the first time and all I can say is God sure knows what he/she was doing when the Red Rock country was created. Amazing! Also drove up to Jerome which at one time was a booming mining town. So much to see here. We are looking forward to taking day trips when we can.

Reegan and Greer's first day of School

Reegan and Greer are having a GREAT time at their new school, Anasazi Elementary, home of Sammy the Friendly Scorpion. Reegan's teacher is Mrs. Coleman of all things and her class gave her a very warm welcome with notes written by each student. Greer's teacher is Miss. Whitten who is awesome! Greer was given a buddy to show her around and she had to introduce herself to each student by shaking their hands and saying "Hi, my name is Greer" and the kids followed suit. It's been a great relief to know that we made a wonderful decision in placing them into this school district. It ended up being one of the most difficult decisions in the whole moving process.

Before Pictures of our New Digs

I am sooo behind in keeping everyone updated. I am going to post a bunch of "before" pictures of the house when it was empty, carpets being replaced and some from our lovely moving-in day. Things went well and we are feeling somewhat at home..... but it's going to take awhile to find everything! We are so grateful to my parents who drove the Sequoia down for us, watched the girls while the movers were delivering the 500+ stickered items into the house and even gave Kevin and I an opportunity to go out to dinner all by ourselves! Within a couple of days they helped us unpack almost everything. Thank you Mom and Dad! We could not have made the transition without you!!! One of the first things we did was tear out the window treatments and built-in desk that was in our master. The girls decided to christen the pool even though it's not heated- but they didn't seem to care! I will post more photos of the "after" shots as well as more in depth details of the process. But at least this is a start. Blessings to all!

My favorite view from the backyard

Brynn's wonderfully painted room in "Baby Diaper Yellow".......

and our lovely "Rapsberry" master.... but the previous owner insits that it's "Merlot"