It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year

My, my how time has flown by! I couldn't believe it when October was here and now we are well into November. I must say that this "season" is my absolute favorite because so much fun stuff occurs. Yes, it is super busy, but it is a fun kind of busy with celebrations, events, cooking, baking, and just getting together. People seem extra nice and the weather starts to get a little cooler here in AZ (finally dropping out of the 90's). I love the smells of Fall (lots of candles going) and the excitement of my kids as each holiday rolls around. Keegan is a little frustrated by the fact that Christmas stuff is already out when Thanksgiving has not happened yet, but I will admit that I am, too!

Here are some pictures of what we have been doing:


Keegan at Disney on Ice...can you tell she is amazed?


Little Bo Peep and Sheep


Klayton and Keegan at the Pumpkin Patch


Keegan's First Camping Trip to Mt. Lemmon

Vacation and Celebrations

Whew...it's hot here! Not transitioning too well to this heat after being in Colorado for 3 weeks. Even Keegan said "Mom, can we please move back to Colorado? It's too hot here!" Our trip was wonderful. I didn't really know how the kids would do away from home for 3 weeks and without Kevin for 2 of those weeks, but I had no reason to worry. We stayed plenty busy collecting bugs, pinecones, hiking, and picking flowers. Keegan had some special days with Oma going to the Wildlife Park and asking why some of the animals were "dead" and how they got "dead." Oma also took her hiking one day and let Keegan pick the path. Then, when Nana came for a visit Keegan chose to go swimming for her second time (I took her once and Oma took her once). Klay just hung out following his sister around, picking flowers and trying to put them in his hair. Oh, and Keegan caught her first fish; although, I don't think she actually touched it because she thought it might bite!




We also celebrated Oma's birthday and Keegan's birthday while we were there...it was so much fun. Keegan helped make Oma's cupcakes (she chose pink frosting). And for Keegan's birthday we had a Cars theme. I cannot believe that she is 4 now...the time has flown by...and little Klay-boy is 17 months old!



Keegan has decided to take a break from gymnastics and try a dance class again...we will see how that goes. It will be creative dance which might be more her speed! Kevin has also offered to take an art class with her so that should provide some interesting stories (pictures to come of the art projects).

Summer Fun

Even though it is not officially summer the heat has settled in here in Tucson. We have been enjoying the sunny days outside with lots of summer fun. Klay isn't a huge fan of our pool, but Keegan enjoys it and has decided to name it (actually, the giraffe pictured below) "Velma." She loves Velma lots and lots...it's pretty silly! Klay is more of a fan of our water table, especially when I fill it up with ice for him to play with. He also like the water hose a ton...just a slow trickle for him to drink from and he is one happy camper. Along with the summer temps comes his first big boy haircut. This is actually his third cut, but his first one that makes him look bigger. Looking at it now I wish I would have gotten it even shorter!

Where Has Time Gone

Yes, yes...I know that I am months behind on this whole blogging/keeping people up to date thing. Sorry! I always thought February was a busy month but never could figure out why...maybe because it has fewer days and everyone tries to fit stuff in? Maybe because vacations from Christmas and New Year's are now over and February seems like the first "real" month? But that's not right because now we are in May...yes, May! Well, I don't have an answer to where the time has gone but it seemed packed full even when it was still January (and it's MAY)...maybe it's that there are 2 kids involved now? Okay, enough of the guess work; the updates are going to continue!

The first of February was difficult for us all...Kevin's brother, Jimmy, passed away. That might be one of the reasons I haven't posted in a bit...I just didn't know what to say...and still really don't. Jimmy is so loved and greatly missed. To be quite honest, I really never thought this is something that our family would be going through at this point in our life, but it is in God's hands and that is what is a comfort to our family. I think my sister-in-law is so good with words so if you get a chance read her blog at www.theyorkhouse.blogspot.com.

Klay has now turned 1 (is 14 months at this point)! WOW! Where has the year gone? It passed by so quickly. Everyone that has more than 1 child told me "the time will pass so fast with this one...just soak it in." Man, they were right. I just look at Klay and really cannot believe that it has been a year. We celebrated with my parents and Kevin's parents here in Tucson. Klay loved his soccer ball cake. When Keegan was 1 she was so sweet and shared bites with everyone, but not our Klay-boy. That cake was his and nobody else could have any.

Keegan has decided that dance isn't her thing and has moved on to gymnastics. It suits her well, and she loves going. I will try to get some pics on here of her in her cute little leotard! She is actually pretty good...always has had good coordination, but she just loves going which makes me happy!

We had our first trip to the E.R. with a child. Klay fell out of his dump truck right onto our patio. Oh, it was AWFUL! I called our neighbor to help me "assess" the situation and of course, she wasn't home. So, I called Kevin just frantic...interrupted him while he was hitting some balls at the range and asked him to get here and fast. We waited it out that day and then the next I decided that I wasn't comfortable with it anymore and wanted him to be looked at. Oh, and I decided this while Kevin was playing golf...oops! So, off we went to the ER...surrounded by masked swine flu people. Luckily, they got us in a room quickly! Turns out it is probably a slight fracture but nothing needs to be done. Whew...at least it put my mind at ease!

So, that's where we are at right now. Summer is getting ready to be here...I think we hit 100 degrees today! Yikes! I will see what I can find as far as pictures go and get them up as soon as I can.

The Kiddos: An Update

So, some of you might know and others may not that Klay had an ear infection in each ear at the beginning of December, which was news to me because he wasn't fussy or anything like that (it was discovered at a well baby check). We waited it out until after getting home from Colorado to see if it would treat itself and it did so his ears are all clear! Now, he is either a little sick or getting another tooth (high possibility), and is a little grumpy but nothing too bad.

Keegan started her tap dance class on Thursday. I had my fingers-crossed that it would go well and it did. She told me that she had a lot of fun...plus, there is another little girl in there that is more talkative than Keegan so this might keep her out of "trouble" with the teacher! Let's just hope that little girl and Keegan don't sit together at all...that would definitely mean trouble!

Kevin is a little sick...always happens when we leave AZ and then come back. I don't know what he is allergic to but something around here really gets him so we are hoping he is on the mend, too.

Welcome to 2009

Wow...it's been a busy time around the York house! Let's start with the weekend before Christmas and go from there. We went to a neighborhood called Winterhaven and took a horse-drawn wagon ride through it to see the lights with some friends. The kids were hilarious screaming out "Merry Christmas" to everyone they saw! Then on Saturday mid-morning we took Keegan to the zoo for brunch with Santa. It was great because it was a small group, they brought out animals for the kids to touch, there were crafts and then a story-teller, too. Keegan loved Santa this year...she kept going over to him to sit in his lap and talk to him...it was a huge change from last year with the crying! Fast forward a few days to Christmas Eve. Our Christmas Eve tradition is to eat tamales and get things ready for Santa. We actually ordered our tamales on time this year...except not quite early enough to get the ones we actually wanted (green chile and corn). Oh well! We did learn, however, to order in October of next year so that we can get the exact ones we want. After eating our yummy dinner Keegan made a plate of cookies, cashews, carrots, and milk for Santa. Then we headed outside to sprinkle some oatmeal in the yard for the reindeer and some glitter so that Santa could find his way. Keegan was super excited and went to bed...except she stayed up for a while chatting away about what was going to happen that night (Kevin and I were downstairs listening on the monitor). Christmas morning came and our sweet little Keegan was an EARLY riser. We heard her chatting away at around 5:30 in the morning. Kevin went in to tell her to hush and then around 6:30 we heard her again (we were up already) saying something about us being "mean because she just wanted to look at her presents." Feeling slightly guilty at that point (it IS Christmas and she IS 3) we met her at the top of the stairs (she "snuck" out of her room) and let her come down. Then the fun of the presents began! She had a blast opening presents and seeing what Santa brought. Klay liked crawling around in the mess and was probably a little confused by it all, too. We took a break for breakfast (honey-pecan baked French toast) and then continued with our Christmas fun...opening, playing, and just hanging out with each other. We were also in the process of packing and getting ready to leave the following day for Pagosa Springs, Colorado. To end the night we had our traditional Christmas dinner...a brisket...yummy! Even Klay liked that...he was reaching across the table to try to get the scraps of it!

The day after Christmas we loaded up the car and headed out for Colorado at 7:45 in the morning. The trip went well...we stopped in Albuquerque and spent the night with our friends the Dalton's. Sleeping didn't go too well there for the kiddos. Keegan and Klay were sharing a room and Keegan felt that her brother "needed" some animals in his bad and was throwing them in the crib which woke him up. This happened 3 times or so and then she finally gave up and went to sleep (sort of). The next day we got up and headed for Pagosa (only about 4 hours away) with our friends Kim and Matt and their boys Caden (3) and Lance (2). It was so nice to just get away and hang out with friends! We tried out snow-shoeing for the first time and it was a lot of fun (I was a little sore the next day, though). We also went to the springs, out to eat, played lots of games, and of course playing in the snow. Kevin and Matt worked for hours on a sledding hill for the kids. It might have been more for them, though, since they ended up being the only ones to really use it! They even tried to use one of the cars to pull the sled up the hill after people were finished using it (the end result was a broken roof rack on Kim and Matt's car). We even actually stayed up past midnight on New Year's which is amazing! The trip ended with a steak dinner (after the kiddos went to bed) and a lot of talking and relaxing. It was a fantastic trip, and I was a little sad to come home (as always).





So, there are no huge New Year's resolutions from us. My "goals" are trying out 2 new classes at the gym, be a better listener, and read the Bible cover to cover. Kevin's is to eat a little bit better.

Now it's back to the normal routine. It's actually good to get back into the swing of things. Keegan starts back to school tomorrow so it's just me and Klay-boy. She starts tap this week, too...she told me she only wanted to take a class where she can have her tap shoes on (so, no ballet this time). Kevin will probably be slammed at work being that he took a week off but hopefully, it's not too bad for him! And me...well, I will just be doing the usual plus getting the kiddos back into a routine after 2 weeks out of preschool and 1 week of vacation!

Happy 2009 to everyone!

Being Thankful

I absolutely cannot believe that Thanksgiving is now over and Christmas is on its way. Wow, what a fast November! Our really good friends, Heath and Andrea (along with their boys Heath and Haydan) came out from Austin to visit us in Tucson. I have been looking forward to this for a long time because we don't see them too often so it's a treat to actually get to spend some quality time together. They arrived on Wednesday evening to a very excited Keegan who had been asking all day if they were here yet. We enjoyed a wonderful Thanksgiving Day together...Kevin smoked a turkey all day plus all the rest of the good stuff! Friday Andrea and I got to go workout together, and the boys got to play some golf. The rest of the time was just spent playing, laughing, and talking. We all had a great long week/end together, and I was very sad to see them go but am excited to see them again in the near future!

What we are thankful for this year:

Keegan: carrots, broccoli, school, and family
Klay: I will speak for him and say food
Kevin: healthy family, a good/stable job, relationship with God
Kelli: wonderful husband, healthy kiddos, being content, friends