Merry Christmas!

Breakfast Guests

Just about every morning we have at least one breakfast guest. One morning in November, we had three- Lamb, Piggy, and Puppy. Maia was super excited that they came. Each one had to have their own bowl, spoon and a little bit of oatmeal.

When I asked Maia who was in our family, she replied, "Maia, Mommy, Daddy, Lamb, Piggy, Puppy, Snow Bear, Moosey..." The list ended when she named every stuffed animal in her crib. She takes good care of her stuffed animals and makes sure they are all in her crib at bed time. No one is left behind. If they are, she'll let you know and won't go to sleep until they are all there. We hope she treats her baby sister the same way.

Thanksgiving in AZ

For Thanksgiving we went to Arizona to see Grandpa Voof and Grandma Grace. We had a great time and enjoyed the scenery and cacti. Maia was so intrigued with the cacti. According to Joe it was a successful trip since Maia didn't end up in any pokey cactus.

Every morning Joe and Maia would take "Buddy" the dog for a walk with Grandpa Voof. Maia looked forward to seeing Buddy in the mornings.

Maia also loved just walking with her grandpa.

Before we left Arizona, we were able to see Uncle Conrad, Auntie Kristin, and cousins. Maia misses them. She said, "I want to play with Brielle right now" as we were pulling out of the driveway to head back to CA. We hope we can see them again soon.

Halloween Pics

Lyla Bear dressed as the fairest of them all- Snow White

A-boy as the cutest pumpkin.

Maia as Bedtime Bear- how ironic. Maia? Bedtime?

Pumpkin patch fun.

Trying to figure out our new camera...

Our pumpkins: Maia wanted a piggy with it's tongue sticking out and a puppy. Joe was patient and creative enough to do both for Maia. I drilled holes in mine to make a lantern. Way easier than using a knife.

Penny Carnival at Grandma's: All 10 grandkids: Pocahontas, Snow White, Pumpkin, Dorothy, Bedtime Bear, Dancer, Pirate, Tinker Bell, Sailor Santi, and Nike

Joe dressed up too this year. I was supposed to dress up and do my part but never quite made it. We were going to be Juno MacGuff and Paulie Bleeker. Joe was very convincing in his costume.

We love Halloween!

December Birthdays: Jesus and Santa

Maia and I were talking on Sunday night in the rocking chair because she wasn’t quite ready to go to sleep. We were talking about Thanksgiving and then Christmas. I was talking about the tree we’ll put up and how we’re going to pick out a special ornament and put it on our tree, etc. Then I talked about why we have Christmas.

E- We have Christmas because it’s Jesus’ birthday.

M- And we have a cake and some candles?

E- We can probably have a cake or a breakfast cake (cinnamon roll) for Jesus' birthday.

M- And we sing Happy Birthday to Jesus.

E- Sure, we can sing Happy Birthday to Jesus.

(Maia starts whispering/singing Happy Birthday to you, Happy Birthday to you, Happy Birthday dear Jesus, Happy Birthday to you.)

M- And after Jesus’ birthday it’s Santa’s birthday. Santa brings presents. And Jesus brings presents too!

It's time to talk about the TRUE meaning of Christmas now.

Halloween Party #1: Trunk-or-Treat (Wood Canyon Ward)

This year we attended 3 Halloween parties: 2 at church and 1 with all the cousins. Our first Halloween party started like this...

Maia and I were in the car on our way to the church and I was trying to prep her.


-"We're going to a Halloween party at the church!" I said excitedly.
-"No! No church! I want to go trick-or-treating with Lyla Bear!" Maia responded.
-"Lyla is going to be at the church. We're going to see daddy there too! The party is at the church."
-"No! No church!"
-"We're not going to nursery. We're going to a fun party."
-"No singing and praying?"


She was relieved when I told her that we wouldn't be singing or praying. You can tell how much she usually loves church.

Maia Update

Joe and I found out over a month ago that we are expecting another girl! We are so excited for another girl. I think Maia will like having a little sister even though she has no idea what's going on. We keep asking her what her baby sister's name is and she says, "Big Cow." Should I be worried?

Lately it has been raining here. Maia saw the dark clouds and the wet ground today and said, "Mom, the clouds are sad. They're crying."

On Sunday we were going home from church and Joe was strapping Maia into her car seat. Maia didn't like how Joe strapped her in and said, "Be soft, dad!" (Just an FYI, he was being gentle and didn't hurt her.)

Today I was checking my email and Maia saw a peppermint candy and she said, "I NEED this candy." I'm sure that's what she needs.

Today Maia was also drawing with some markers and lost the cap to the gray marker. She said, "Mom, where's the gray top?" I said, "I don't know." She said, "Maybe you have it?" I told her I didn't have it and she said, "Maybe it fall?" I told her that I didn't see it and she said, "Maybe it playing hide-and-seek."

Last Sunday I was brushing Maia's hair and I caught her hair in the brush and it pulled her hair. She screeched and said, "I want daddy do it!" I laughed and put some detangler in her hair and continued to do her hair. I was putting a ponytail in when she said, "It's a yucky ponytail, mom! It's yucky!" She wanted me to redo it so it looked better. Joe should have done her hair from the beginning. He does a great job with her hair. She definitely prefers daddy to do it than mommy.

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Maia has been so fun lately because she can express herself so much better. It's fun to hear her talk. She just goes on and on.

Maia is also an incredible little artist. I will have to take pictures of her artwork. She is so creative and loves any kind of art. She prefers to work with the markers. It's her favorite medium.

Maia also loves animals, especially her stuffed animals. She has to have the following in her crib when it's time to go to bed:

Snow Puppy, Snow Bear, Lamb, Moosey, Donald Duck, Mickey Mouse, Pig, Baby, a sippy cup of water, a book, and her blanket. It's getting ridiculous. Time to clean out the crib. As a side note, Joe points out dogs to Maia and has also shown her a few chocolate labs. Since then, Maia often substitutes the word "brown" for "chocolate." A "brown marker" today may be a "chocolate marker" tomorrow. I don't oppose. I think everything sounds better in chocolate.

Some of Maia's favorite activities are:

Jumping on the trampoline, riding her tricycle, playing "Number 2" which is really "Connect 4," playing other games, singing songs, reading books, going to the library, watching Cars, Monsters Inc., Carebears, or Little Rascals, drawing, painting, going to "preschool" (when her cousin Andi comes over to play, sing songs, play games and do a craft), playing in the sand at the beach, playing with cousins, playing blocks with daddy, taking care of her baby, and getting into any creams, lotions, water, soaps, or paints- anything that squishes and creates a mess.

Maia is a good helper. She helps me load and unload the dishwasher and loves to "wash" the dishes (play in the water) with grandma. She likes to help me put clothes in the washer and dryer, and likes to cook with me. She has to drag a chair across the kitchen so she can see what I'm making. She loves to help with whatever she can.

Maia loves her daddy. This morning she woke up early and I was rocking her in the rocking chair to see if we could both fall back asleep for a little longer. At one point she looked up at me and said, "Daddy here?" I said, "You know what? Daddy had to go to work early this morning." She broke down in tears and said, "no! I want my dad!" I tried to explain to her that he had to go to work early to get some stuff done and that he was also going to try to get off of work early to see her. She didn't like anything I had to say and said, "I want my daddy." Later that morning I was singing, "If you're happy and you know it" and after my verse was over, Maia started singing, "If you want your daddy, clap your hands..." I texted Joe and told him what Maia was singing and how much she missed her dad this morning. Joe thought it was kind of funny but sad at the same time. His heart just melted. I love the relationship they have. It's so cute and endearing to see.

We love our little Maia-moos.