Turkey Day 2008 part 2

Since I had to work on Thanksgiving and all the family went their seperate ways, we had a second Thanksgiving the Sunday after at my house. It was my first time making a turkey and a whole dinner for that many people. I started off using my faithful Pillsbury magazines and the internet for recipes. I tried to do a few easy recipes so I wasn't stressed the day of. I made cranberry orange relish and smashed potatoes in the crockpot ahead of time. I began cooking and preparing at 8:30am and didn't stop until we served dinenr at 5:30pm. I was so tired and physically sore. It felt like I went to the gym all day!! The dinenr was finished off with cranberry apple stuffing, rolls, and seasoned corn. It was nice having both families over and celebrating together.

Turkey Day 2008

This Thanksgiving I had to work... booo!! Jorie and Izzy went to his cousins house for the holiday. They met up with Auntie Jasmin and all the other little cousins. Izzy ate lots of turkey and stuffing and played all day long! Wish I could have been there, maybe next year!

Our little Goofball!

Izzy is 17 months. Even though she has grown up and changed alot since she was born, she still has the same energy and personality as she did when I was pregnant. She is always on the go, plays hard and sleeps hard. She also loves to make us laugh.... she totally gets that from Jorie! She will put a bucket on her head and try to make her way over to us just so we will laugh at her. She will make funny faces and show us her "eyebrows".

Camping on the river

We went to visit my grandma for a few days in Arizona. Izzy had her first road trip in an RV and first camping trip. We got to stay on the river in the RV with some cousins. Izzy was in the water everyday. We even got to go on a boat and cruise the Colorado River and see some HUGE fish.

Halloween 2008

Nana, Papa, and Uncle Chad came over to celebrate Halloween with us. I made Halloween treats that I found in the Pillsbury recipe book, I love those books (Thanks My-Anh!). We had pumpkin sloppy joes and pumpkin patch brownies. After dinner we walked the neighborhood and trick or treated to a few houses. Izzy still can't say trick or treat but she can say "trick". I also taught her how to knock on doors and ring doorbells the last few weeks in preparation of Halloween! As we went house to house she kissed everything! The plants, people, walls, stucco! After trick or treating we went to a family friends house to see all the decorations she puts up and eat some more. Izzy was done by about 9pm!

Bates Nut Farm

Today we went to Bates Nut Farm. Jorie and I have been going here for our pumpkins for years. Last year Izzy was only 4 months and she just stayed where we put her for pictures. This year it was much more fun with her. She was excited to see the "pum" (her version of pumpkin). She attempted to kiss every pumpkin around her, so we were there for a little while. There were even some bigger then her! She also played in the petting zoo and chased the sheep yelling "baa, baa". There were some chairs in the petting zoo and Izzy decided to arrange and organize them. She completely forgot about all the animals around her! So we moved onto the pony ride. At first she cried when they put the seat belt on her. But as soon as the pony started moving, she was cracking up! I think this was her favorite part. When it was over, she kept telling the guy "again, again"! We then moved over to the tractor ride that takes you around the pumpkin patch. Izzy thought it was a trash truck, so we of course let her think she was riding a trash truck. We ended the day by walking through the country store and looking at all the homemade goodies and holiday decorations. Jorie picked out a hot sauce called ass kicker and I picked out an apple butter. When Izzy started telling the employees "night, night" we knew it was time to go home. It was a good fun day.

Halloween Pictures

I finally got myself a fairy princess! Yesterday I took Izzy to a local photographer for Halloween pictures. Normally I don't pay someone for them but the price was so good I couldn't pass it up. Izzy of course was popping out of every chair we sat her in and running around to explore the room. The only chair she couldn't get out of was a taller wicker stool. I had to sing kid songs, play peek-a-boo behind the photographer, and tickle her with a feather. I looked like a clown! But we got some pretty good pictures. She was so cute running around in her little fairy outfit and spout on top of her head!

Pajama & Pancake Party

Today Izzy and I had over some friends from Carlsbad Munchkins and Mommies. We had Pancakes with all types of toppings and the best part is, we all got to stay in our pajamas! Izzy had so much fun playing with all her friends and kissing all the new babies. She of course got a little jealous when I held one of the new babies. Izzy decided she "needed" to sit on my lap at the same time I was holding the baby! She was very gentle though with them, which surprised me. We had about 10 or 11 babies and 7 mommies over. It was alot of fun, but I am ready for a nap now!

Introducing Isabella Grace

Izzy was born on June 14, 2007. She is our petite and crazy monkey. Isabella has changed every aspect of our lives. Because of her, we cherish each day and milestone she meets. When you see Izzy she is usually running by, climbing, or her new trick.... getting naked! Izzy is a mini version of Jorie with a dash of my attitude! She is very vocal and outgoing, we lovingly call her our Walmart greeter. Right now Izzy can say too many words to count. They range from mama to airplane. She can also do about 7-8 baby signs and lately she is picking them up after a few minutes. Her big accomplishment this week is going down the slide by herself, and she is sooo excited about this! Ok, enough bragging!

A little about my hubby Jorie

Where can I start..... he truly is our hero. He is always striving to move forward in his career so he can provide a comfortable life for us. As of today he is a Firefighter/EMT. He is attending a local college to get his Paramedic degree and graduates in May 2009. His plan is to work in the north county at a fire station full time, hopefully next summer. If you know Jorie well, you know he is outgoing, energetic, fearless (except for spiders!), and comical. He never smiles "normal" for a picture, always makes a face.... making it hard for me to get a frameable family picture! He is a hands on Dad, which actually surprised me a little. I always knew he would be a good Dad, but never thought he would change diapers and get up in the middle of the night. He is my soulmate and my puzzle piece. He is my EXACT opposite and it works for us!