Enjoy this, it doesn't last long

Grandma Nori & Joey

Celebrity Status

Luke asked if we are "a famous family" the other day at church because someone mentioned seeing an ad featuring Derek in the paper.

WE'RE SPENT!

This is what the house looks like now...

Adin's Christmas!

Adin had a rough start to Christmas morning, but he was back in true form before long! "I'll never doubt Santa again," he said.

The Kid's Sleeping Tradition

Our kids all pile into one bed on Christmas Eve. They were pretty cozy but we didn't even hear a peep out of them!

The Walk

Here we were on our way out after reading Mom's story. It was a beautiful Colorado night. No snow at all and a beautiful sky!

'twas the night before Christmas

Missing the Little Weavers :(
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Derek's kind of "shop"

I have to give Derek credit. It's 12/23 and he doesn't have any last minute shopping to do. So he's enjoying a day off out in "the shop", a detached garage on our property far enough away that he can't hear the chaos caused by 9 children and 7 adults at our house for Christmas. At least it's his family and the Weavers know that this is classic Derek-- quietly slipping away to his own retreat when things start to get crazy.
He is finishing a ladder for Jane's indoor playhouse that he, my Dad, and his Dad have been building.

Mia is 6!

HEY! Mia is 6!

Learning to read

Party at the Weaver's!

We're having a huge bash at our house, actually right now! I decided it was the perfect time to update the blog. What's Alyson doing? KARAOKE! You go girl!

Preston made HONOR ROLL!

I could not be more proud of Preston! He finally made honor roll at school! He has been working very hard forever in school and this semester it finally paid off! He averaged 94.2% which put him into honor roll! We told him that he could pick the prize if he ever made honor roll! THE PRIZE...a PHONE! We swore he wouldn't get one till he was 12, but he deserves it!

Piano Recital!

After the wrestling tournament we had to make a mad dash to their piano recital. Adin and Preston rocked the house!

Preston takes 1st!

Preston had his best tournament EVER! He went 5-0 today. I was most impressed with his fourth match when he was down 10-5 going into the 3rd period. He was down, did a beautiful sit-out then a stand-up, escape, head and arm to a pin! UN-BE-LIEV-ABLE! The crowd and me and Alyson went NUTS! Way to go Preston!

Adin takes 3rd!

Adin got himself another medal! He took 3rd place today! One of our friends said, "He looks like a spider monkey!" He is very INTENSE when he wrestles, it is something to behold!

The Nutcracker

Christmas would not be complete without seeing the Nutcracker! To see it with our darling princess Mia was AWESOME! Her brother's gave her a standing ovation!

Christmas with Grandma and Grandpa

We loved celebrating Christmas last Sunday with Grandma and Grandpa before they headed out to Washington.

Decorating!

This was a few weeks ago, but we just haven't posted. Until now...

Oldest & Youngest

Very 2

Since Joseph was born Jane's 2-year-old-ness has really come out.
Wednesday I came down from my shower to find Jane had doused the new
ottoman in cinnamon Febreeze-- we are talking puddles all over the
leather.
Thursday evening Derek noticed a chunk of her hair missing-- and sure
enough I found scissors and the missing strands under the kitchen
table-- she admitted that she did it while I was in the bath (I
thought she was playing Wii with Luke-- so much for a 5 year old and
tv for a babysitter).
This morning, while I sat feeding Joseph only 8 feet away from her,
she managed to discreetly apply to longest-lasting, darkest lipstick I
own.

At least she hasn't tried picking up the baby... Yet.

No more raisin!

....A.k.a. Umbilical thingy....

I know some of these details might be a little silly to post, but
grandmas and grandpas read the blog, so we just have to keep everyone
updated!
And don't worry, Jane just had a shower (her finger is in Joe's mouth)

She's a natural

The best way to spend the morning

What a blessing to have my wonderful mom here taking care of us,
cooking, cleaning, getting kids off to school so I can enjoy time
recovering and snuggling baby Joseph and my favorite little girl.
And my dear husband who is committed to providing for our family, and
had to return to work yesterday after a wonderful week at home with
us. I love you, Derek!

Someone is being naughty...

Joe's first trip to church in the Bronco

We aren't entirely neglegent parents.... Everyone is buckled in and
there is still room for one more. Since the guy who built the seats is
trying to charge over $1K per seatbelt, we figure we'd better start
trying to get our money's worth right away.

6 Days Old

Still cute

Happy Birthday Papa Phred

We love you, Phred, and are so grateful for your righteous leadership
in our family. Whenever we have a question that we can't answer or
problem we can't solve, our first inclination is to come to you. ;)
Happy Birthday!

Waking up!

Good morning!

Baby Joe was perfect last night-- only woke to eat once. I'll enjoy it
while it lasts ;) We will be home today, relaxing while Daddy does
laundry and snuggles us. The boys are all off to school.

Proud big sister

Let the holiday season begin!

Rudolph says "Thank you" to Grandma Nori for the cute ornaments! What
a fun tradition!

Puppy for a day or two

All of you who know we have never been big animal people can laugh now
that we have taken in a stray kitten and today we couldn't resist
picking up this shivering puppy that we found in the middle of the road.
We aren't naming her because we don't want to get attached, although
Luke is calling her "p-o-o p-o-o" since I told him I didn't really
like the name "poo poo" that he was insisting on.
Even Derek admitted that she is super cute and couldn't resist holding
her during FHE last night.
But alas, I'm expecting a puppy of my own within 11 days, so we aren't
keeping this one.

Good help is hard to find

In case you didn't know, Dawn liquid dish soap does not equal Cascade
dishwasher detergent. I really can't complain that I have hard-working
boys who know how to clean the kitchen. Sort of. I would have been
more upset if Derek hadn't made the same mistake 8 years ago while
doing an overnight home healthcare job and the parents of the patient
were sleeping upstairs-- except the entire kitchen floor was covered
in suds before he realized what was going on. At least i was sitting
in the kitchen when I saw the suds emerging.

Back to Wrestling on Saturdays!

Yes, we're back to wrestling on our Saturdays! Adam is now the head coach for the Legend Jr. Titan's program. Adin and Preston both had great days today! Preston had a little tougher bracket, but fought hard! Adin was 3-1 today with his only loss to the eventual champion. As you can see by his t-shirt, that earned him a solid 3rd place! Way to go Adin!