Let 'er rip

Jackson is still too young to understand who Santa is and what Christmas traditions are; however, he isn't too young to rip wrapping paper off of presents.

A big THANKS for all the wonderful gifts from our friends and family.  It was harder than I thought it was going to be to be away from home for Christmas.  Thank goodness for Skype.

Christmas Crab Boil

Nothing says Christmas like a crab boil.  We had the traditional ham, rolls and sides on Christmas Eve so we decided to spice it up a bit for our Christmas dinner.

Jared worked his magic and made us a delicious meal, complete with crab, shrimp, sausage, potatoes and corn.

Jared preparing the meal 

The feast 

Yummy 

Lets dig in!

Help I'm Stuck

Oliver has found a new hiding place ... under Jackson's crib.

Problem is that he can only get under the crib, he can't get out.  Kind of like when a child gets his head between the stair rails but can't get his head out.

When we can't find Oliver he's usually stuck under the crib and I have to lift it up to let him out.

Fun with Boxes

I recently read a blog post about the top five gifts for toddlers.  I can't remember the exact order of the gifts, but they were:

a box
dirt
a rock
kitchen utensils
junk mail ...

... or something to that effect.

I'm pretty sure Jackson's favorite things to play with, aside from his train table, are on that list.

So, if you are having trouble figuring out what to get Jackson for Christmas or his Birthday, just make sure the present is in a box and he will love it.  Or forget the present and just get him the box.

A SeaWorld Christmas

We went to SeaWorld this weekend to see their Christmas decorations and play in the fake snow!  We originally went to go see the Christmas Shamu show; however, when we arrived we learned the show was 2 hours later than what we originally thought and we knew Jackson wasn't going to last that long.  

We hit up some of Jackson's favorite exhibits- the sharks, walruses and beluga whales.  We also visited their Winter Wonderland which had fake snow and sledding.  Jackson didn't know what to think of the snow- especially when he fell on his behind :)  

What is this stuff ??? 

Daddy ... get me outta here!!! 

Show me the beach, not the snow!

Checking out the beluga whales 

Bedtime Routine

Recently we have added a new activity to our bedtime routine.  

No, it's not a bath or reading another book or brushing our teeth.  

It's a quick game or two on the iPad.  **Sigh**

It's usually a game of Angry Birds or a Thomas the Train game.  

Gotta love technology.  

T is for Train

Jackson LOVES trains.  We were at the mall the other day and he caught eye of the children's train and went berzerk.  He ran over to the train, held up his toy train he was carrying and pointed.  I knew there was no way we were getting out of there without a train ride. And of course an adult has to ride with the child, so I was forced to got to ride along.

Ho, Ho, Ho

So ... Jackson was not a fan of Santa.

Andrea Bocelli

There is only one word that can describe the Andrea Bocelli concert we went to last night ... AMAZING.  Ok, maybe there are a few other words as well ... enlightening, moving, beautiful.  You get the idea.

Go here to learn all about Andrea.

Here are a few pics from the concert.

Wine tasting in Temecula

This weekend we went wine tasting in Temecula with some friends.  Temecula is about 45 minutes northeast of where we live and it is known for it's wineries.  There are over 30 wineries in Temecula and their specialty is a Syrah (red wine), which Jared and I are both fans of.

We took a Limo from San Diego to Temecula and went to three wineries; Ponte, Wiens and Leoness.  My favorite wine was at Ponte, but Leoness had an amazing atmosphere and view.

A Tucson Thanksgiving

This year it was our turn to make our way to Tucson to see the Harger Family.  Last Thanksgiving they came to see us in San Diego (see post here).  What a difference a year makes!

Campbell is the cutest, funniest, loudest and sassiest two-and-a-half year old I know.  I didn't stop laughing at/with her the entire time I was there.  This girl can wrap you around her fingers in seconds!  She was in LOVE with Jackson.  Unfortunately, Jackson did not feel the same way.  As we all know, Jackson likes his personal space, and Campbell wanted to be 'all up in his business'.  If she had her way, she would hug and kiss and dress Jackson up like he was her little doll.  It was so precious listening to her say "JACKSON" in her sassy voice and trying to love on him.

Look at that face!!

This was the theme of the trip- Campbell trying to get Jackson's attention

Coleman has turned into the most lovable little man.  He was so sweet and gentle with Jackson and was even understanding when Jackson didn't share or play by the rules.  Jackson followed him around the entire trip wanting to know what he was doing- he loved having an older boy to follow.  And boy oh boy, you should have seen his face when he saw Coleman going to the bathroom :)  You could just hear him saying in his mind "So cool ... I want to do that!".

With three kids all four and under it was hard to even make it out of the house with everyone clothed, let alone trying to actually get out and do something.  We went out a couple of times for lunch and, per the usual, we had a couple's night out.  The rest of the time we spent at home with the kiddos and it was PERFECT!  A few of the days I didn't even get out of my pajamas, which was nice because I was sick with allergies and a sinus infection :(

Thanksgiving dinner was delicious, complete with ham, turkey, cheesy potatoes, stuffing, green bean casserole, sweet potatoes and the infamous strawberry pretzel cake.  Cari did an amazing job with all of the food, as well as an amazing job of hosting!

Here are a few more pics from the week.

 Playing outside.  Look at the mountains in the background!

I taught Campbell how to put Olives on her fingers.   

Coleman checking out the dessert.  

Thanks for having us out Hargers.  We had a great time and can't wait until next year.  Love you!!!