Our Merry Lazy Christmas

...the best kind!
We had a quiet Christmas eve and day. It was very pleasant.

'Twas the night before Christmas and the Thatchers had a plan
Homemade pizza they'd make as best as they can
They rolled and they stretched and twirled them up high
But it still didn't look much like round pizza pie!That's ok, they still tasted great
We ate and we ate 'til we emptied our plates.

The kids got in jammies like they were told to do
Then back downstairs for a reading from Luke 2.
The Christmas story we read so the children could hear
All about the real reason behind Christmas cheer.Then on to the presents, each child got just one
Slippers for all, they thought they were fun!We snuggled up tight and turned on a movie
So far our Eve has been pretty groovy!

Then kids off to bed so Santa's helpers could prepare
Wrapping and stuffing, homemade cinnamon rolls if we dare!Miracle of miracles, we were done by 10 o'clock
Look under the tree, you'll find it well stocked!Now time for Mom and Dad to settle in for a rest
Morning will be here soon and Christmas morn' is the best.

Okay...enough with the rhyming, my brain hurts!!
Christmas morning was really fun and relaxing. The kids opened their presents, enjoying each one. Then we had a yummy breakfast. The cinnamon rolls were my first try (thanks Shay for the recipe!) and they turned out really good...well at least the parts that were all the way cooked, the middles were a little gooey. But, Jess declares that I make the best cinnamon rolls ever. They're still pretty easy to impress at this age...I know the time is coming when I will not be so lucky.
As we were eating breakfast, I observed that this was the first Christmas since we have been married that we have eaten breakfast in our own home and without rushing to be at several locations throughout the day. It was definitely a relaxing, lazy day. The kids played with their toys, Danny watched the Lakers and I didn't have to change into jammies for bed...I was still in them. It was a good day. Here are some pics:I hope you had a wonderful day, too!

Happy Birthday Mom!

Number of years she has been alive
60

Number of siblings
2

Amount of drugs she used when I was born
0

Number of children
4

How many years she's been a mom
37+

Number of grandchildren
10 (and counting!)

How many years she's been a grandma
14 1/2

Number of miles she will have to travel to visit her favorite daughter and grandchildren ;)
815

How many generations Californian
3

Number of years that she has owned her landscaping company
25 +/-

Number of people blessed by her undying generosity
Too many

Number of people that love her
numberless

Amount of fun that we have had together
infinite

Number of reasons why I love her
countless

The opportunity to have the best, most loving, most fun, caring Mom in the whole world!
PRICELESS

I wish I could be with you on your big 6-0! I love you, Mom and hope that you have a great day!

Quick baby update

I just went for my 5th ultrasound and found out that the baby's kidney is back within normal range...no more extra fluid and no more ultrasounds for this little guy. I was given the all clear and everything else looks great. Yeah! I wasn't too worried, but it's always nice to have it validated.

Merry Christmas

I had the best of intentions to get Christmas cards sent out this year, but alas, I have failed yet again...so this will have to suffice. I will get my act together next year (hopefully!)Here are the Thatcher ABC's of 2008 (in no particular order!):
A - After 2 years of work, work, work...
B - Danny graduated from BYU in April with his MBA. We were (and still are) very proud of him. Way to go!
C - Chicken nuggets have become extinct at our house as we are trying to develop some better eating habits among our offspring. It makes for quite an interesting dinner hour!
D - Dylan turned 2 in August. The terrible two's hit seemingly overnight. Although he can be a little destructive and such, he is so funny and fun to watch. He learns a lot everyday and is growing up so quickly.
E - In June, we learned that we were Expecting our 4th little one...a boy!
F - Got a job with Ford...lost a job with Ford!
G - Over the summer I lost two loved ones, my dear Grandma that we affectionately called GG and my dear friend, Ginger. At those times we were especially Grateful for the Gospel that gives us hope in a joyful reunion to come. (Many G's this year!)
H - Hot air balloons grace our skies daily and the kids never tire of pointing them out. They have become a little less frequent with the colder weather, but we still see them a couple of times a week.
I - After a scary turn of events, Danny was given a job at Intel...we were definitely blessed and looked out for in what otherwise could have been a very difficult time.
J - Jesse will be 7 next month...he's so grown up, I've already rounded him up! He is doing really well in the first grade and his teacher has nothing but good things to say.
K - He is also loving his Karate class.
L - Our new home abounds with Lots of rocks, dirt and overall brown-ness and very Little trees and grass...we Love it anyway!
M - We made a Move to...
N - New Mexico. And we actually love it...who knew?!
O - The kids are looking forward to Opening their presents on Christmas morning.
P - Poppy enjoys her little family and is looking forward to her new addition (and wishes that it wasn't still two months away!)
Q - Danny and I celebrated our 8th wedding anniversary in September and were amazed at how Quickly the time has flown. Time flies when you're having fun...at least that's what they say!
R - Rio Rancho is our new city.
S - Grace just turned 5 in September and missed the cut off for School by a few weeks, so to keep her occupied and socialized we started our Sugar and Spice club that meets once a week. So far, we have baked, made crafts and had a pajama party. Grace loves it. She loves learning to read and has a habit of Spelling out all the words she knows in regular conversation. She also loves her gymnastics class.
T - The kids love their Trampoline (with net, for those of you that were concerned!)
U - Many, many Ultrasounds for this little guy because of my Advanced Maternal Age status and the baby having fluid around his kidneys...what a blessing that he is all right.
V - We feel Very, Very blessed with how everything has fallen into place for us.
W - We love the Weather here in New Mexico although it can get pretty Windy at times. (we're told that we haven't seen nothing yet...apparently it gets crazy Windy in the spring time.)
X - We are eXcited to see what 2009 has in store for us! (I know...cheater, cheater!)
Y - Another Year down and many more to go!
Z - We enjoy our Zoo pass. The zoo here is a lot of fun and it also includes the botanical gardens and aquarium.

OK so that was way harder than I thought it would be and didn't turn out as cute and I wanted it to be...but it's late and it's what you get!

On a more serious note...
We are so grateful for this time of year that helps us to focus on the Savior and reminds us of the great love that He has for us. It is a time to reflect on our blessings and how we can better bless those around us. It is a joyous time and we are thankful to have this time to share the Christmas story with our children and help them to remember the true meaning of CHRISTmas. I love their innocence and their ease of believing. I pray that we can all have that child-like joy that Christmas brings in all its goodness.
Here's hoping that you all have a wonderful and blessed Christmas and a happy, happy new year.

Love,
The Thatchers

Random Saturday

We had our ward Christmas party/talent show last week. It was nice. Our family sang Santa Claus is coming to town and I sang What Child is This? Danny bowed out of Kermit this year, we didn't have enough time to get prepared and he claimed he had a "frog in his throat!" (haha!)
Here are a couple of pics (sorry, no videos of the award-winning performances-really not our best work!)We had our first snow-ish day. It's funny how excited the weather people get about the Big Storm that is headed our way. Here's the height of the storm:Doesn't that look intimidating?...the "drifts" were gone in minutes. But the kids had fun and I guess that's what it's all about. We are hoping to get a little bit of snow built up in our yard, we have a fun little hill in the backyard that the kids are looking forward to sledding on. I am told not to hold my breath, it's rare that they get a good snow pack here in the valley. Oh well, I'll take it!
Here's a funny pic of Grace and Dylan. Dyl got a little scared on a part of Scooby Doo (one that he has seen a hundred times) and grabbed onto his big sis. I wanted to get a picture before they realized what I was doing, but Grace saw me and posed quite effectively, it was better before I snapped!Here's how Grace fell asleep last night. She's my little night owl, she "reads", colors or does puzzles after we put her to bed at night...sometimes for a long time. We don't mind as long as she stays in her bed.Finally, just this morning: "Mom, take a picture of dis"Cute boy.
Hope all your Christmas plans and projects are getting done and you are able to enjoy this time of year. Except for a few stocking stuffers, we are all done with our shopping. We just finished last night...Yeah!

Conversations with Grace

Yesterday in the car (and recapped tonight at dinner):
Grace: I wish that I could be a kid forever and that you could be a mommy forever, too.
Me: But I will be your mommy forever
G: Not when your a grandma
m: When I'm a grandma, I will still be your mommy.
G: But I wish you could stay just like that. You're gonna get older and older and older....Next year I hope that you can get the first wish bone so you can wish to be a mommy forever and I will get the next wish bone so that I can be a kid forever.
I don't know where the fear of growing up has come from lately, but she often expresses a desire to be a kid forever. I want to, too!
Today, again in the car:
G: Do you know that they have phones that have a GPS?
M: yeah...
G: I wish I could get one of those, that would be really cool.
M: oh, yeah...
I don't know where she thinks she will be going that she needs her own cell phone with a GPS...I tell you, those advertisers know how to get their message across. Jesse has also said that he wants a cell phone for Christmas...nope, sorry, you can have one when you can pay for it yourself!

Thanksgiving down....On to Christmas plus a Family Fun Day

We had a fun Thanksgiving. It was the first time that I hosted it at my house. We had a family in our ward over for dinner, The Hatches, because they were family-less, as well. The food was great and we have been eating it everyday since. I made some yummy sweet potatoes that ended up being my favorite! The pies were great, too, I just wish I had made a couple more! These are the only pictures that I took. I was too busy eating, serving and visiting to remember to be the photographer, too!The day after, we stuck to tradition and decorated for Christmas. Only one ornament was broken. It was a snow globe type that broke on the couch with water, glitter and glass. Luckily, it cleaned up a lot better than was expected! This year we bought a fake tree with the lights already strung....best way to go! I have pine-scented candles that will be just fine. We've had bad luck with trees dying before Christmas was even over. We also have a little tree that the kids got to decorate all by themselves, that way I was able to do mine without too much help! it's fun to finally have a house to be able to decorate. We had fun.Dyl lately looks like he is in pain when we try to take pictures...it's his best "Cheese" face!
On Saturday, we took the kids to the New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science...it was a free day! The kids had fun exploring the universe and taking a trip through the ages.This one is my favorite, Dyl would close his eyes to "look" into the microscope and say "dark"! But he's really good at sports!Wow, take a look at that belly...and I'm not talking about the triceratops!
So, that was our holiday weekend. Nice and relaxing, for the most part...now bring on Christmas, I'm almost ready!

My 101st Post

I wanted to do this for my 100th post, but I am one too late! To celebrate my 101st post, here are 101 things about me. You may or may not know them, you may or may not find them interesting, but here they are (let's see if I can come up with 101, I'm really not that interesting!)
1. I lived in the same house until I was 20 years old
2. I've moved about 19 times since!
3. I grew up in the San Fernando Valley (just outside of LA)
4. I am an original "Valley Girl"-Like, totally! Oh my gosh!
5. I was the only Laurel in YW for a year before a couple of Mia Maids moved up.
6. I am a Camp Crafter (in the YW's camping program)
7. That was back when we actually camped in tents, cooked our own food, and had no flushing toilets!
8. I have one terrific big sister
9. and two good-looking (not so) little brothers
10. My parents divorced when I was 20
11. My mom is the most fun mom
12. My dad is the hardest working, most creative guy around
13. I served a mission in Boise, ID
14. I was never going to be a missionary!
15. I joked about going to Idaho
16. so much so that my mom and friends did not believe me when I told them
17. It was the best mission ever
18. I was married 9-9-00
19. makes it easy to remember
20. My husband, Danny is the best (he even does dishes without being asked...I know you are all jealous!)
21. I was engaged twice before Danny
22. Third times the charm!
23. All I ever wanted to do growing up was to get married
24. I was 27 before I saw that day
25. I have 1 smart, beautiful girlie-girl
26. 1 smart, handsome, conscientious boy
27. 1 smart, cute, destructive boy
28. and one more boy on the way
29. I wonder what he will be like
30. I don't love being pregnant
31. but am grateful for the blessing that it is
32. I get pregnant really easily
33. I am not looking forward to delivering this little guy
34. but I can't wait to meet him
35. I love my bed
36. I sleep on the edge
37. often with limbs hanging over
38. I do not like to snuggle or be touched while I sleep-sorry, Danny!
39. I have to be able to stick my feet out of the covers
40. I hate to get up
41. especially before 7am
42. Dylan has been getting up between 5:30 and 6am lately
43. and he can get out of his bed
44. I am buying a child-proof door knob cover today for the inside of his door
45. I watch too much TV
46. but not as much as I used to
47. I play on the internet too much
48. I let my kids do the same
49. I'm lazy
50. and a terrible procrastinator
51. I hate this about myself
52. I would love to be "super mom"
53. and have a clean and tidy house
54. my body will not comply!
55. I hate clutter and get rid of stuff constantly
56. or don't get anything to begin with
57. yet I can't keep my house clean...what gives!
58. I have too much hair
59. I hate onions
60. I don't like coconut
61. Bananas are not my favorite, but I can tolerate them.
62. ....sometimes
63. I have a horrible sweet tooth
64. I have to eat dessert with almost every meal
65. baked goods are my favorite (cookies, cake, brownies, etc.)
66. candy will sometimes suffice
67. but not always
68. I really don't like nuts in my baked goods
69. I used to beg my dad to leave them out...he wouldn't
70. I've gotten really good at picking them out
71. I have to have the toilet paper roll coming over the top
72. and squeeze the toothpaste tube from the bottom
73. I rarely eat the last bite of my sandwich, burger, etc.
74. It drives Danny crazy
75. Out of sheer habit, I still tap the top of my soda can before opening, I don't even know that I'm doing it...Danny does!
76. I love Dr. Pepper
77. I wear flip flops nearly year-round
78. I don't like close-toed shoes
79. I hate when windshield wipers squeak
80. They must be going only as fast as is necessary
81. Jesse says that I sound like a trumpet when I blow my nose
82. I blow my nose a lot lately
83. I used to have a photographic memory
84. now I am a 35mm in a digital world
85. Kids did that to me
86. and the lack of use over the past several years
87. I need to upgrade!
88. I've never been out of the country
89. Except for Tijuana, Mexico
90. That doesn't really count
91. If money, time and children were not a factor, I would travel the world
92. I wish that I had done that before getting married
93. I had the time, but not the resources
94. I hate carpet in main living areas
95. My kids destroy it
96. My dream house has wood floors throughout
97. Except the bedrooms
98. I would love to design and build my own furniture
99. I will someday
100. Almost there!
101. I love the blogosphere!
Whew...we made it! I hope you stayed with me through that all. Now you know a little more about me...the good, the bad and the ugly. Don't love me any less for my faults, I was just trying to be honest!
Happy 101st!

Baby Boy Thatcher update

I had yet another ultrasound the other day (it's my 4th-this baby is already high maintenance!) This is partly because I am of "Advanced Maternal Age" but mostly because one of the baby's kidneys continues to have fluid around it. I have to go back for another ultrasound in 5 weeks and see if it is still the same or bigger. If it is, I have to see a Pediatric Urologist soon after the baby is born. Now, it's not as bad as it sounds, apparently a baby's ureter (the tube that runs to the bladder) can get a "kink" in it and 90% of the time it fixes itself soon after delivery, so it is just precautionary at this point. I am not too worried about it, we will just wait and see. Anyway, here are some pictures of the ultrasound. I never got the 4d ones with my other kids, they are still kind of alien-esque, but his little guy sure has a cute little nose.You'll have to click on it to make it bigger, I was too lazy to crop them all!
There you have it, the latest on the baby front. We are now 3 months away from d-day and I am still trying to decide if I am going to have a planned C-section or try a VBAC. Both options scare me and so part of me is wondering why there can't be a third option! As the time gets closer I get a little more nervous about how this one is going to enter this world...please be a lot less eventful than last time!!
The days seem to drag at times and at others it seems to be flying by. Time is funny that way!

Girls' Night Out

While down in CA, I had a mini reunion with some of my oldest (read longest-time!) friends. We went to dinner, got massages, spent the night at the Marriott and then had breakfast the next day. I've known some of these gals since I was 5, but all of them since 12. We all grew up in the same ward in CA. I had such a great time with these wonderful women and only wish that we had more time to catch up. We'll have to do it again in the next few years. Maybe a fun trip somewhere.They had this really cool Chinese foot massage place that was wonderful. For $25 you get your feet, neck, shoulders, etc. massaged for an hour. I think that they need one of those places here in NM, I'd much rather get one of those than a pedicure any day and they're the same price! Thanks, ladies, for a fun time...we missed you Dannielle! You'll have to make it next time, so don't go buying any more houses! See you all in a few years-maybe sooner!

Beach House 2008

Ok, so I have been back a few days now and I have been "procrastinating the day" of this post because I knew it would be a long one....so, here I am because I know that so many of you are on pins and needles just waiting for the run down!!!
We left for the long drive on Thursday Oct. 30th after Jesse got out of school and made it to Flagstaff, AZ by about 8pm. Here's a picture of the beautiful sunset that evening: (no I am not the best photographer even when I have both hands and am not trying to keep the car on the road!)The natural beauty is still there despite my lack of photo skilz! (I've never used that word before...does it make me sound cool?!?)
We stayed in Flagstaff for the night and were on the road bright and early the next day. As we drove into Carpinteria (9 hours later, ugh!) they were having trick or treating on the main street in all the little shops, so we pulled over and put on costumes so we could join in the festivities (and I knew that it would get me out of going door to door later!) It was so much fun, they had a little haunted house set up and face painting. The kids had a great time and I was done with Halloween for another year!The rest of the week was spent relaxing on the beach, playing with cousins and just having a grand old time. We love going to the beach house, it's always a good time. Sometimes we head up to Santa Barbara zoo and the wharf, but this year we just stayed put and relaxed the time away with my family. Here are some of the good times:Grandma Christie (my mom) with all her grandkids...Grace was having a moment and would not look at the camera! Notice how all my nieces and nephews are smiling and looking cute...what happened to my kids???Cute cousins ready for a pajama party! The uncles (my two bros.) dug this big hole for the kids and they played in it for hours. It was their little restaurant and they kept serving us their delicacies non-stop. A little sand anyone?My s.i.l, Melissa (the young, fun aunt!) doing a silly dance with the kids, they loved it. I should really try to be more fun...nah! That's what we have aunts for!Dyl with his newest cousin, Addison (she's only 4 months old!) She was such an amazingly good baby and I am praying for one just like her. She spent most of the time hanging out in her bouncer and watching all the fun go on around her. Where do I place my order?Jesse's impressive, never-ending shell collection. I'm glad we made it away without the bulk of them!Dyl loved sliding on his belly into the "restaurant". I'm afraid that his shirt didn't make it (I forgot to spray it before I washed it, bummer!)My three little beach bums (don't ask me about the "statue of liberty" boy...I don't have an answer!)Another beautiful sunset. It's times like these that I wish that I had a really cool camera and some picture taking know how. It really was a lot more beautiful than depicted above. There really is nothing like a sunset over the ocean.Just a little shadow fun...check out that belly!
I was originally going to just put up a slide show, but this was much more fun. I have more fun pics so here are the rest in slide show format.

Make a Smilebox slideshow

So, that was our week. We had a little rain, some cool days and some 75 degree, sunny perfect days. Well worth the long drive. We love spending time with the family and playing at the beach. Thanks, Grandma Christie for making it possible.

PS... from sunny California to this:We ran into a snow storm in Flagstaff on the way home...welcome to winter! It was beautiful, though.

Signing off for a week!

Tomorrow we are leaving to go to CA, it is our annual beach house trip to Carpinteria, We are looking forward to lazy, sunny days on the best beach in the world. We will see you in a week and report on our adventures.

A Fall FHE and other goings-on

We went for a little nature walk on Monday for FHE to enjoy the limited fall beauty that we have. It was actually really nice. Own by the Rio Grande river there are lots of large beautiful trees and they were sporting their fall colors...Mostly just yellow and brown. I told the kids that the first person to find a tree with red leaves was the winner...I won, but the tree was to far away and it was getting dark, so I didn't get a picture of it! Here are some pictures from the "trek"!


































On Thursdays I decided to have a little girls' club at our house for some socializtion for my socially deprived little girl. We call it the Sugar and Spice Club (Danny calls it the Spice Girls-which makes Grace laugh!) Last week was our first official meeting and we made Halloween cookies. I was really good and let all the girls (plus Dyl) roll and cutout their own cookies (even though they were not perfect, nor anywhere near it-which is really hard for me!) and they had a really good time.


























Finally, last night we had our ward trunk or treat, we showed up a half hour late because I got the time wrong, but the kids had a fun time anyway. I just enjoyed visiting with some new friends.