Happy Birthday, Travis!

In addition to the tooth fairy and Easter, it was also Trav's birthday. Mom had made secret arrangements to take him to the infamous Cowboy Dinner Tree in Silver Lake for his birthday dinner. My dad had been to this place several times and loved it. It was legendary in Trav's mind, and he was thrilled to find out where we were taking him. We were a little surprised as we pulled up and saw an old shack... what were we getting ourselves into??

Once inside, everything was perfect. We sat down and immediately started eating all that had been prepared for us... and it was a lot of food! The steaks were just about the size of Ali's head, and I had an entire chicken on my plate!! Everything was delicious and it was a bit nostalgic knowing that my dad had always talked about taking Travis there.

Ali's Lost Tooth!

We were surprised to find that Alison had a loose tooth. It seemed so early! After Travis checked out everything he could on the internet about baby teeth, we realized that little girls can start to lose their baby teeth at age 5. {Even as early as 4!} I guess Ali's right on track! Still, we thought it would continue to wiggle for a little longer... but as Alison was helping me make Trav's birthday cake {she was using her teeth to open the box of pudding!} her tiny tooth flew out of her mouth. Ali's words were, "Oh, Mommy! I'm starting to freak out!" It was a little scary for her, {especially after she saw blood} but she soon recovered and kept looking at her new reflection in the mirror. So, the Easter Bunny and the Tooth Fairy came to visit Ali on the same night! It was very exciting!

Alison's Shows

Ali loves putting on shows. She has us come out to the couch and watch as she makes up dances or songs, plays piano, or acts with puppets. Little Sister would really like to be a part of every show. It reminds me of a certain set of sisters with a love for Donny & Marie.

Here Comes Trouble

My little one is a busy, busy girl. Merilyn likes to keep up with big sister, Ali, and when she isn't doing that she has a very full schedule. First item on today's agenda: 1. Find a marker and draw on my shirt.


2. Attempt to clean my mess with all of the wipes in the container.


3. Make a quick cup of tea to relax with after all of my hard work.


3. Let Mommy know how I feel about being told, "no".

Happy Valentine's Day!

Alison had her Valentine's party at pre-school yesterday. She was very excited to pass out her Princess valentines to her friends! Today was my class party... a lot of candy, excitement, and happy third graders. {And one pooped teacher!} Travis sent me beautiful flowers at work, and then took all of his girls out to dinner. We are so lucky to have him. :)

Happy Birthday Alison!

Where does the time go? It is beyond my belief that just 5 years ago Travis and I became parents for the first time. It has been a joyful, crazy, non-stop, heartbreaking, unpredictable, and completely wonderful ride! Today Alison Marie turned 5-years old! {Although some days she seems much older!!} She has been waiting for this day for weeks... trying to explain time to a little one is a tricky concept! When she came down this morning she found a big stack of presents on the kitchen table. Instead of being elated {as we thought she would be} she was rather irritated. "What's going on here?! I have presents? My birthday is at JJ Jump!" But, after some thought she said, "Oh, alright, I guess I'll open these now" as if it were a huge chore.


Ali invited a few special friends to JJ Jump to play, have pizza and cake. {That place really gives you a great workout!} Later, she chose to go to Red Robin for her birthday dinner. {Surprise, surprise!} It was a long, happy day for our 5-year old. Happy Birthday, Ali! Thank you for all that you have added to our lives. We love you!

Merry Christmas!

We had a wonderful Christmas Eve and Christmas! Both days were spent with family - starting Christmas Eve with Greg's birthday lunch at P.F. Chang's. Later, we dropped Merilyn off at Gramma's {It was a late night and we knew she wouldn't last!}, and headed to Jamie and Kurt's for a fabulous dinner, Guitar Hero, and lots of laughter!

Travis and Ross jam out to Guitar Hero! Ross is an old pro!

After dinner, we spent the night at my mom's. On Christmas morning Ali could hardly believe that Santa knew exactly what she wanted! Merilyn was more interested in the paper than what was in the paper, and half-way through the morning she was ready for a nap!

And to top it all off, it was a white Christmas! It was beautiful and the girls were so excited. It was a great time with family and loved ones.

Merry Christmas to you!