Our Christmas Baby

John with his hot date Miss Zaylee Jane. She calls him Johnny. Something no one else is allowed to do. =)

Can you tell how excited he is to be the center of attention?

Christmas 1981 was one of my best Christmas's ever. On December 23rd my Mom delivered my first and only brother, John. I can still vividly recall our trip to the hospital to pick them up on Christmas Eve. We girls were so tickled when my Mom brought him out in a red stocking. Best present I ever got in a stocking! Those were the days when you did not know the sex of your baby until they arrived. We were all so excited to have a boy in the family after three girls! Yesterday we celebrated his 28th birthday. I had been teasing him about starting to loose his hair now that he is an old man, but he still has a full head of luscious hair. Happy Birthday John!!! We are so blessed to have you in our family! You have finally made it onto the world famous blog!

Christmas Photos

Landon was so thrilled with his new shoes, I had a hard time getting him to look anywhere but at his shoes! Lesson learned: introduce new shoes prior to attempting a photo shoot. This little guy has something of a foot fetish. He loves his own feet and the kids have found if they put their feet within his reach it will keep him entertained for quite some time. The germaphobe in me couldn't stand this and I had to put a stop to this practice. He loves his sleepers with the little animals on the feet and will spend lots of time trying to get them. The older three were good little models for me, even Ashlyn! Yay! I had bribed them with pizza and ice cream which might have had a little something to do with it. =) I turn into something of a beast when in the pursuit of the "perfect photo" and have to apologize in advance and after photo sessions.

Tradition Resumed

Me and my girlies ready for our GNO.

When we lived in Colorado Wit and I started a tradition of going to see the Nutcracker. The first year I took her she was almost 4. It was a first for both of us and a magical experience. When we moved to Alabama it was just too far of a drive to keep up this yearly tradition. This year I saw an ad in a local paper for a holiday concert that the Tucson Orchestra Symphony was doing. I asked Chris to get us tickets since he can usually get us great seats for a deal. He totally came through for us and we had some of the best seats in the house (we were front and center in the 5th row) at half price. I had debated long and hard on whether or not to bring Ashlyn with us. If it had just been a performance of the Nutcracker I would have taken her for sure. But since it was 2 hours of mostly music performed by the choir and orchestra I didn't think Ashlyn would do well. Chris went ahead and got Ashlyn a ticket too. I think he thought I was mean to not include her. She was enraptured by the ballet numbers which only took up about 20 minutes. She spent the rest of the time yelling that she wanted the ballets, rolling on the floor and trying to climb around the seats. Did I mention that about 75% of the people there were over the age of 50? I'm sure they were wondering what on earth I was thinking to bring a 4 year old along and cursing me. =) Whitney loved the whole thing and was fascinated with the playing of the violins. They had a southwest spin on the Nutcracker costumes and a Mariachi band from a local high school also joined in for a few numbers. It was a great performance and I am looking forward to enjoying more of their performances!
I asked Chris to take a photo of Ashlyn and I. Then I wanted one of Whitney and I. This was Ashlyn's reaction. She did not want Whitney and I to take a picture without her. Yes, she is struggles with a jealousy issue.

Landon at 7 Months

Oh, how I love my Baby Bear!!! He is 7 months old today. I have been calling him Baby Bear because he has fallen into a pattern where he wakes up around 7 a.m. by 10 a.m. he is down for a nap after eating a 6 oz. bottle, followed by a jar of baby food, followed by another 6 oz. bottle! He is like a bear getting ready to hibernate. =) He usually naps until 2-3 p.m. Then around 6 pm he repeats that eating schedule and it is in bed by 9 p.m. Growing so fast takes lots of food and sleep! He went to the doctor on Tuesday. Here are his stats:

19 lbs. 7 oz. 50%

29 1/2" 97%

Head circumference off the charts!

Since this was a new doctor they were concerned over his huge melon. I had to explain that his father and I both have huge heads and this is normal for him.

He is extremely social and loves nothing more than for people to notice him and pay attention to him. He will smile and stare at people until he gets the attention he craves.
Yesterday he got a little trim on his hair from Aunt Hollee. His hair was starting to grow over his ears and he was growing a bit of a mullet. She also took a tiny bit off the top. He is so wiggly I had not dared attempt it on my own.

He loves splish splashin' in the tub.

The Commissary

I really should be doing 100 other things but. . . For those you have been in the military you will know that the Commissary is just the grocery store on post. Chris and I are devoted Commissary shoppers. I think we are in the minority in this area. I know a lot of people that refuse to shop there or hate to shop there for some of the following reasons:

-It does not always have the widest selection or latest products.

-It is chock full of slow retirees. (This is actually a bonus for us. Chris and I both really love senior citizens.)

-Around paydays it can be ridiculously crowded.

-It is not unheard of for them to be completely sold out of a common item such as bread.

-The baggers work only for tips, therefore you feel obligated to tip them.

-I'm sure I could add a few more reasons but I think these are the most common complaints.

The biggest advantage is that it is way cheaper if you buy name brands. Also if you live on post it is convenient because it is the closest grocery store. Chris and I were delighted to find that there is an Air Force base here in Tucson and thus a commissary!!! It is a bit of a drive for us but worth it to us for our bi-monthly big shopping trips. Now the Air Force has the best of everything where it comes to the creature comforts of its families so this commissary is huge.

Yesterday, we made a trip to the commissary and it was a particularly fun trip! The retirees were out in full force and full of the holiday spirit!

Ashlyn was singing a song she had made up that basically just repeated I love Christmas over and over. This was greatly appreciated by our fellow shoppers. Particularly one lady who joined in for a duet with her. Ashlyn, being the unfriendly little gal she is, promptly stopped and and looked annoyed. Apparently she wanted to sing a solo and this lady was stealing her thunder. I am afraid she is usually a bit of a disappointment to these folks. =)

Ashlyn was lovingly holding a bag or festive green and red marshmallows while sitting in the cart. When an older gentleman whipped by in his motorized shopping cart and with much glee mock snatched them from her. He said, "Oh, are these marshmallows for me?!?" Now Ashlyn was not nearly as amused by this as he and I were. She gave him a look that could have killed a lesser man. Then went into a fetal position around the bag of marshmallows. We shared a hearty laugh though!

Next was a little lady who was trying to snag the last bottle of maraschino cherries on the top shelf with her cane! This act stopped me in my tracks because it was a comical sight as she hopped up and down trying to get that jar of cherries. (I am often called on while shopping to help those who are vertically challenged.) I really was rooting for her and wanted to see if she could succeed. But my better sense won out and told me this would probably end messily or even possibly in injury. This is where I stepped up and came to her rescue by getting that much wanted jar of cherries. =D I was profusely thanked and wished a Merry Christmas.

Then there were just the usual various individuals who love small children and are looking for a little conversation. It is always a great reminder to slow down and smell the roses. I have had so many ladies wistfully tell me to fully enjoy the time while my children are small because it passes so quickly. And that I will look back on it as the best time of my life. (What?!?!? I thought that was supposed to be high school?!? Just kidding.)

Chris was particularly thrilled to be there after a recent trip to a local grocery store chain called Fry's. He became unhinged over the prices. He vowed never to step foot inside this store ever again and I was forbidden to ever shop there. Periodically he would joyfully shout out prices to me and remind me of what they had wanted at Fry's. The bread we buy was $3.50 at Fry's. At the commissary it was $1.50 AND there was a nice vendor handing out coupons for .50 cents off!!! What can I say? We love a good buy! I guess we are just old people at heart and like being surrounded by our peeps.

34

Yesterday I turned 34. Yippee!!! Another year older and wiser too. At least I hope so. =)

Chris always goes out of his way to make my birthday special. He bought this cake at a local bakery and it was super yummy! Even Chris who is not a big cake fan loved it. Let me tell you the effort Chris went to to light those two candles. We did not have any matches in the house. I told him not to worry but he said, "my wife is going to make a birthday wish"! He took some paper towels twisted them up and then held it to the heating element in the oven. It took a little patience but he was eventually rewarded with fire. I still can't believe he got the candles lighted and didn't suffer any serious burns cause once that paper towel lit it went up in flames fast!
After my breakfast of donuts, I got to open my gifts. Chris had taken the kids the night before to pick things out and said he was really impressed with Wit and Gavin's selections. Gavin said he wanted to get me a book and some black licorice. My boy knows his Mama! There is not much I like better than reading a good book while eating treats. Ashlyn got herself, I mean me some chocolates. As soon as they got home from shopping she had immediately told me she had gotten me flowers and chocolates. We have taken to calling her Loose Lips Ashlyn. =) Last week we had taken the kids to pick out gifts for each other and she immediately gave a detailed description to Whitney and Gavin on what she had gotten them along with what they had got for each other. Whitney got me a pedi-egg! Maybe you have seen the infomercial on TV? I had wondered aloud several times if this invention could possibly be as great as it seemed. It totally is!!! Worth every penny!!! Chris described it as a cheese grater for your feet. Lovely image, is it not?

Whitney also got me this cute apron she is modeling in the above photo. You might notice that is fits her perfectly. Since I am just a smidgen bigger than a size 2 in juniors it is not fitting me so well. it sure looks cute on her though!!! And it came with one in Ashlyn's size too so they can be twinners. Then Chris handed me an envelope, inside was a letter that said Dec. 16th at 1300. Wouldn't it be really (really was repeated for two pages of type) nice to never wear glasses or contacts again? He has set up a consultation appointment for me to see about having Lasik eye surgery. We shall see if these eyes of mine can be fixed to 20/20 eyesight! I have worn glasses since the third grade and cannot see a thing without corrective lenses. To wake up and be able to see the alarm clock? To go swimming and be able to see? I can only imagine the wonder and delight of it!!! I was also treated to an excellent meal at Carrabba's.

Visit With Santa

Saturday we visited the mall so Ashlyn and Landon could see Santa. Ashlyn had been very excited to see him but got a little shy when she got up on his knee. She told Santa she wants a Whoopsie Doo baby doll. Whoopsie Doo can be fed and needs her diaper changed. Really??? Don't we have the living and breathing model already?!? Whitney and Gavin did not want to visit with Santa this year. I told them that was fine. Chris told them kids who didn't visit with Santa wouldn't be getting any presents. They saw Santa. We did pay for a photo with all 4 kids but my scanner is still MIA. They told me I could only take 1 photo with my camera but I cheated and took two. Every now and then I like to walk on the wild side. Later that night we went to our ward Christmas party which was incredible! All we knew was that they were having one and it started at 5:30. It had "A Night in Bethlehem" theme. Whitney said it was the best Christmas party she had ever been too. They had Santa there afterwards. We totally could have saved ourselves a long wait and 17 bucks for 1 5x7! Though Ashlyn and Landon were pretty dirty by that point of the night. Whitney and Gavin wanted to see this Santa. I think it had a little something to do with the candy canes he was handing out. =)

Tree Trimming & Cats

I almost forgot that I promised Gavin I would blog this photo. He said I was to call it,"Cat in the Hat". =D Oddball did not find this as funny as Gavin did. They are actually at the vet today getting neutered. Gavin is feeling pretty badly for them. We actually got our tree up Tuesday night which you can kinda see in the background. The kids were feeling pretty neglected that it was not up yet.

Whitney looks like she is choking Aladdin in this shot.

Ashlyn was so excited to decorate the tree!

Landon loved looking at the lights!

Blogging Overload

Today after three weeks of incessant work, I decided I was in need of a day off. I have really missed blogging! Lots of posts to read so be sure to scroll down if you are in need of a Weaver family update. =)

1st Day of School

November 30th was Whitney and Gavin's first day at their new school. We had gone down Wednesday afternoon and met their teachers and walked around the grounds. We found out that Whitney's class is Gavin's buddy class and they do a lot of things together. I was a little disgruntled that we had to buy school supplies twice this year but that was the best part for Whitney! She loves buying school supplies!!! I walked them in and we noticed all the kids were heading to the playground. We wanted to drop off some of their school supplies so we headed to Gavin's classroom. His teacher said that the kids go to the playground until the bell rings so that they can make sure all the rooms are secure. Rattlesnakes have been found in the classrooms in the past. Gavin loves reptiles and was ecstatic at the thought of finding a rattlesnake in his classroom! Before I share this next part I'd like to preface it by saying this school is very PC, Gavin's teacher could be the poster child for aging hippies and they have a big emphasis on peace and being peaceful. This prompted Whitney to share a great story about her old school with Gavin's teacher.

Whitney: One time when we were running the perimeter at our old school.

Gavin's teacher (puzzled and amazed): They made you run the perimeter???

Whitney: Yes! There was a snake and our PE teacher got a big stick and killed it!

Gavin's teacher (look of horror on her face during long pause of silence): At our school we have a special stick we use to pick the snakes up. That way we can replace them to their natural habitat.

That's not the way things are done in 'Bama lady!!! This had me laughing to myself for days to come. She's really gonna love Gavin's descriptive paragraphs on the capabilities of the M4 and drawings of battle scenes.

All in all it sounded like they had a great first day. Whitney won her class spelling bee and was relieved to find herself still at the head of the class. And Gavin said he couldn't move at recess for the ring of children that surrounded him wanting to hear all about him.

Thanksgiving at Cracker Barrel

Warning: These photos were taken with a camera purchased back in 2002 and are not of the best quality. My camera was missing so I had to make do. Makes me appreciate my Canon all the more though!

Let's eat!!!
Ashlyn enjoying her chocolate cake.

Gavin you have a little something in your teeth. =)

Whitney plotting her next move or her evil plans for world domination???

Gavin was taking the game a little more seriously.

Waiting for a table.

Since we had yet to unearth our pots and pans we ventured out in the hopes of finding something open for our Thanksgiving meal. Chris did not think anything would be open, I said I thought we'd be able to find something. Love it when I'm right!!! Cracker Barrel was having a booming business day! Who knew so many people choose not to cook on Turkey Day??? We got there around 6 and were told we had just missed the rush but yet still had to wait for a table. Giving us time to browse the store and suffer through several Ashlyn fits of the I wannas. I was feeling a tad sad about the whole thing but I think the kids actually preferred it! We told them they could order whatever they wanted. Gavin had his usual plain hamburger with fries and lots of ketchup. Ashlyn ate mostly fries. Whitney had chicken fried steak with mac n cheese, mashed potatoes and fries. Followed by chocolate cake with ice cream. Landon loved the sweet potato casserole!!! Chris and I stuck with the traditional holiday fare.

Our Trek West

The girls only van.

The boys - ready to hit the road again!

The kids love when Chris does the balancing baby act complete with circus music! I am not so crazy about it. I say, if he had had to suffer as much as I, to carry and bring that baby into the world he would not be so cavalier! He would not stop until I took a picture.


We partook of the hotel's complimentary continental breakfast each morning. Lunches were usually had at rest stops out of our cooler. Nothing like dining al fresco with the smell of exhaust and the sounds of the interstate to create just the right ambiance! Check out Ashlyn's nutritious lunch of chips and chips. We were then allowed to eat one restaurant meal each night.

Our trip westward equalled about 25 hours of driving and covered around 1722 miles. I am not a fan of long road trips especially when children are involved. I did not even have the luxury of sleeping most of it like I usually do. I actually had to drive the whole way. I wouldn't have made it without low carb Monster energy drinks and my dramatized CD's. Landon hates, hates his car seat and usually screams if he is in the car for longer than 20 minutes. Because I hate to drive and I cannot take loud noise Chris bravely took him in the moving truck. Chris said he slept almost all of the trip! We are thinking in large part due to the vibrations and white noise of the diesel engine. Plus he still slept at night time!!!! This was a huge blessing as he normally doesn't nap during the day much. Blessing number 2 was that the moving truck hauling a good sized trailer was actually able to go 75 mph most of the way! We were actually passing people!

Day 1 of our trek started out with Chris finishing up clearing while the kids and I breakfasted at "The Diner" in Daleville. My four kids and I were quite the entertainment for the locals and flight students. We stopped for lunch in the parking lot of a GIANT Baptist church somewhere in Mississippi. Which turned out to have a playground that we were invited to enjoy. We left with some yummy homemade sugar cookies and thanks for our military service. You gotta love Southerners!!! We stopped for the night in Shreveport, Louisiana.


Day 2 was all Texas all day long! Whitney and I were loving listening to our dramatized CD's I had gotten when I joined Living Scriptures but had somehow never listened to. They were mostly dramatized church history stories, scripture stories and stories of American heroes who demonstrated great values. She loved them so much she did not want to take a turn in the moving truck. Gavin did not want to take a turn in the van until the final day of travel. After a few hours he was ready to go back in the moving truck. Chris said he was a big help with Landon. We ended the day in Pecos, Texas. Despite all of the amazing blessings we had enjoyed I found myself becoming progressively crabbier once we stopped for the night. The room was too small for all of us, the kids were too loud, I did not want to hand wash Landon's bottles...then I thought of Mary Fielding Smith and was immediately ashamed of myself. She was our last CD of the day. What an amazing woman! I want to find a biography on her. As many of you may know, she was Hyrum Smith's second wife and Mother to Joseph Fielding Smith. She crossed the plains as the head of a household of (I think it was)10 people, with a wagon captain who had it out for her and she did it with an indomitable spirit. I thought of myself in my climate controlled van eating my homemade sugar cookies and suddenly didn't feel quite so sorry for myself. I had a little repenting to do that night.

Day 3 started out with me re listening to the Mary Fielding Smith CD. We were parallel to the the Mexican border for much of the day. That was my first time driving through El Paso. I never knew it was such a big city! We saw lots of Border Patrol vehicles. They also had a lot of stretches on the interstate that would say safety corridor though I never found out what they were exactly. We went through a check point where I think they just randomly check vehicles. My sweet husband asked the Border Patrol Agent to stop me and tell me I would have to have a full body search. This nice man stopped me and said, "your husband wants me to give you a hard time but I'm not going to." He seemed to enjoy tattling on Chris. We arrived in Tucson around 4:30 pm. I was amused to find that we left a land of cotton and pecans for a new land of cotton and pecans! Really it was a very smooth journey and went much better than I had ever dreamed it would. Even the cats were great travellers!

Landon at 6 Months

Landon turned 6 months on November 18th. Due to the craziness of moving I have not had a chance to blog about it till now. Can I just say that I have been more than a little annoyed by how this whole moving mess is depriving me of enjoying Landon's baby time? The older I get the more I love babies! I seriously think I would like to have a 4 month old for forever. He is still in need of his 6 month check up so I don't have any stats. Though everyone thinks he is a year old and he needs 12 month size clothes length wise. In that chunk of time he had some pretty big firsts! He mastered sitting up. He loves to stick out his tongue when he's really happy. Something else that reminds me of Wit when she was a baby.


He also started solids and is loving them! I should have offered them earlier because he will eat anything with gusto! My other kids wouldn't take solids for the longest time and then were really picky about which baby foods they would eat.

Sadly, I never did get to have the ducky photo shoot I was wanting. The angle of this shot is making his feet look huge but his feet are actually the only small thing on him. He is very social and loves when people interact with him. He is also really enjoying his toys.

She's Only 10!!!

Tuesday afternoon I took the kids down to Lyster's flu shot clinic. It was a bit of a madhouse and of course fell during Landon's usual nap time. The children were not happy to be there. I was the picture of the harried mother. I noticed a boy who looked to be around 14-15 staring at Whitney. I asked Whitney is she knew this boy though I couldn't imagine how she might. She said no. I was then distracted by Ashlyn who was doing a great job of being in some one's way at all times. Then as we were walking out to our car, I noticed another adolescent boy staring at Whitney. As he passed us by our eyes met and his face was overcome with embarrassment and it finally dawned on me . . . he was checking Whitney out!!! Of course, I knew this day was coming. I even knew it would come earlier than expected because Chris and I were both early bloomers. But it was still quite the shock to my system! I wanted to yell at him, "she's only 10"! I wasn't nearly as prepared as I thought I was. Thankfully she is pretty much oblivious to the opposite sex. She still spends a lot of her time playing with her LPS toys. I just hope she is not forced to grow up before she is ready. I was actually pretty traumatized by my own early maturation because emotionally and socially I was simply not ready to deal with the expectations and assumptions that people make when they think you are 3 years older than you actually are.

Introducing Oddball...

Oddball

July 24, 2009

2009 has been quite the year for boys at our house! Oddball makes #3 to be exact. We brought the newest addition home this past Saturday and he is settling in nicely. I feel kinda bad naming any living creature Oddball but it seems to have stuck! Chris and the kids would make trips to go visit Aladdin while he was still too young to come home. While they were visiting they got to know Kathy (the ragdoll breeder). Chris thought Oddball was really cute and had asked about him. Kathy said she was glad someone thought so because he does not fall into any of the color patterns ( Aladdin is a Blue Colorpoint). Almost all of the people on her waiting list have very specific requests as to the sex and color of the ragdoll they want. When she said that, Whitney said, "he's a cute little oddball!" "Gavin said that's what I would call him if he were mine." Plus he had some health problems and she did not want to place him in a home until she knew he was completely healthy. She called Chris about a week ago and said she would like to give us Oddball as a gift because she was so impressed with "our wonderful family" and as a thank you for our military service. She said, "Ever since your little boy called him Oddball it has just stuck." Bless her heart! I think she could see that the math wasn't adding up either, 1 cat to 3 kids just isn't a good ratio. Wit and Gavin were both really excited for Aladdin to have "a partner in crime".
I love how he looks like he is wearing a mask. I suggested Zorro or Bandit but the kids insisted on Oddball.

Sleeping with Gavin his first night at home.

Getting some loves from Ashlyn.

First Helicopter Ride

On Saturday, Chris treated Whitney, Gavin and I to our first helicopter ride! Ashlyn was not old enough and thankfully did not want to go. Chris has been a pilot for over 8 years now and it was fun to get a small taste of what he does everyday. I have always been curious about what it was like. It kinda reminded me of riding a motorcycle. Same vibrations, very loud and wind whipping your hair every which way! Whitney and I agreed to let Gavin have the front seat since he was probably the most excited out of the three of us. I just wished I could have seen his face while we were flying. It was about a 10 minute ride around Ft. Rucker. Whitney was a little scared when we first took off and held my hand the whole ride. Since there were no doors on this helicopter it was a little freaky to know the only thing keeping you inside was your seat belt. I double and triple checked to make sure our seat belts were secure!

Getting ready to land.

Gavin didn't stop smiling all day long!!!