Christmas Wishlist 2.0 – Santa Goes Online
I figure by this point Santa has been able to, at the very least, get dial up, and therefore should be able to read the blog to know what I am wanting for Christmas. I know that it is a little late to get the elves working on some of these things but that is why Santa is so awesome.

I will list a couple of the items and reasons for wanting them, and if you need additional ideas, I have also made a wishlist on Amazon to make things easier.

1. Audi Q7 Diesel –we can barely get 3 seats in the back of the Pilot, and certainly not in the back of my Accord. This seems like a perfect alternative. Quality German engineering, not a minivan, and fuel efficient to boot. What is not to love……except the price tag, which is why I would like Santa to bring me this for Christmas.


2. Mi Adidas – this is a website where you can “build” your own customizable shoes – I have always wanted to do this, but just never have taken the time to do it. More information at www.adidas.com

3. Bose Headphones – as hard as this may be to believe, Sarah and I don’t always agree on what we want to watch on the TV……Thank goodness for HULU – the only problem is we don’t have a quality pair of headphones so as to not disturb the other person. These would also come in handy on roadtrips because there is a good chance that at some point there will be 3 kids screaming in the back seat, and the ability to cancel out that noise and focus on driving would be invaluable. This is for the good of all mankind.

4. Books – I like the feeling of holding a book in my hand so I am not quite ready to switch to the Kindle just yet. I also like the way a house looks when it is full of books, just not the same to have your Kindle taking up shelf space. The list of books that I am currently interested in reading is listed on my Amazon wishlist.


5. Chucks - I would like a pair of black low-top Chuck Taylor All-stars - I wear size 11 in Chucks



6. Sometimes Santa doesn’t like to be restricted with a singular list of items so I also feel the need to provide him with a couple of websites where pretty must anything received would be AWESOME.

a. Bumpy Pitch – vintage soccer shirts
b. Nau – environmentally thoughtful clothing
c. Decoder Ring Designs – custom screen prints, usually concert posters
d. US Soccer or Fulham FC - soccer stuff is always great

School Baby Showers

Last week Sarah and I received a wonderful baby shower from the staff at BBE (Bluebonnet Elementary), and then this week the staff at CCE (Canyon Creek Elementary) hosted a shower for Sarah and the babies.

Sarah and I both feel very lucky to be working at such wonderful schools. We are both blessed to have such dedicated and hardworking group of people who are always looking to put kids first.

Here are a couple of picture for the shower at Bluebonnet. If we get any from the Canyon Creek shower I will post them.


Sawyer was a big fan of the punch, and also of all of the books....he took a whole bunch off the shelves before finding something he liked.

Handyman Jobs for the Holiday's

Two weeks from now we are going to have parents and friends coming and staying with us until New Years. Everybody is hoping they are going to be around when the babies arrive, but just in case those babies decide to stick it out in their current quarters for a little longer, we have another plan. We have made a list of all of the little (and not so little) jobs that we would like to work on while everybody is here. As the jobs get completed we will provide a status update on the blog as well as accompanying photos.

1. Breakfast Nook: As many of you will recall I built a breakfast nook over the summer. And as many of you will also recall, I said that I am not so hot at the details of finishing a project. Here is what needs to happen with the nook in order for it to be complete (rework the benches so they open and close easier, painting, sealing)

2. The door going out into the garage isn't hanging correctly, and it is getting progressively worse by the day, so we need to rehang the hinges and possibly readjust the lock set.


3. Move the gate latch down about 2 inches so that it opens and closes easier, also install something to make it easier to open from inside the yard, without having to reach over the gate.

4. Patio Addition - this is the big dream project that would really get Grandpa Jack's juices flowing. Since we are going to be adding a couple of additional bodies in the house, we (okay, I) feel it is important to have a little additional space outside to live.




5. Bed planting/planning - my dad has a degree in botany and a love of plants, and so I will be turning to him on this one. We have a bed out front that I tried to grow tomatoes in this summer, but despite my best efforts and large amounts of water, the 68 days over 100 degrees acted as a worth adversary and killed my every effort.


6. Nursery completion: now that I have finished painting the nursery all we are waiting on is the cribs (which are coming from my sister's twins), and various other furniture and baby stuff to be loaded and organized in the room. I think this is a job well suited for the female persuasion.

7. Picture Hanging: If there is one thing that Sarah and I can consistently disagree about it is how, where, and at what angle to hang pictures. This is a task where Sarah needs other women to provide advice, and then just agree with Sarah. The only involvement men should have in this process involves nails and hammers.

8. Garage - reorganizing the garage is always needed.

Halloween Fun

This Halloween is the first time that Sawyer actually had an understanding of what he was suppose to do. He caught on faster then I expected, after the first house Sawyer knew exactly what he needed to do and was jumping out of the wagon and running up to the house with Cousin Amelia.

Sawyer went as a train engineer (much like his old man at that age), however he didn't really like wearing any of the engineer things so he just looked like a kid in striped overalls.

Sawyer helping before the party.


The finished product.


This is the trail mix type thing that Sarah was making, but it was so sticky and we didn't have parchment paper, and this is what happens.


Sawyer's Trick or Treating buddy was Cousin Amelia, she did a great job being a guide and they had an absolute blast.






Sawyer in the candy mobile.


Glow sticks were a big hit.