{ oh christmas tree }

i am determined to get back up to date! life is so busy but i know when i blog, it gives me a way of journaling and editing my pictures when i do our family scrapbook at the end of the year. so, let's start from the beginning of the holidays, oh wait, i don't even think i did thanksgiving yet! another thing to add to the checklist but our christmas was magical, but even more special with it being holland's first christmas.

i love when ricky wears the baby bjorn!

it is just so cute and really makes him look like a dad!

on a search for the perfect tree!

fatherly love

love this precious girl! her first time getting a christmas tree!

hayden is such a charmer

little blue eyes

hayden always loves staring and entertaining his baby sister

daddy's #1 helper!

"i did it! i carried the tree!"

watching the tree get ready to go home!

family griswold!

i am seriously so over the pine needles all over the place and the "tree hugger" in me wouldn't mind getting a fake tree, but it's these wonderful memories like these that come with having a live tree. not to mention the fresh pine smell that fills the house. we love christmas!

{cg reunion }

november was the annual charger girl reunion game and i'm so glad i went! i met fellow-cheerleaders from the different decades, including a member of the first 1961 "chargettes" team as they were called back then. it was fun to see friends and attend the charger game. it's quite a different experience watching the game from the stands as oppossed to right on the field! we got to go out on the field for the opening ceremonies which brought back a lot of memories.

me and my bestie alex, we made the team together in 2003!

squad pictures through the decades!

me, alex and danielle

us with our charger girl director tammy

it's so nice to be on the field again!

me and lacy

kristina and i

go chargers!

amazing excitement!

there were over 50 of us there!

cheers!

{ the infamous santa picture! }

every child needs to have an unhappy picture with santa, right?

i was expecting total disaster, but have to admit that our visit with santa actually went pretty well! (besides the 1 hour wait- we totally deserved it for waiting til christmas eve and not to mention the kid in front of us was screaming bloody murder!) but out out of the few pics we got to choose from, we picked this one because we thought it was so classic- a typical 3-year-old that wants nothing to do with a scary "stranger" and sitting on his lap. if you think about it, it's pretty terrifying for a kid, i remember being scared too! there weren't even any tears! there actually was a half-smile one we could've gotten, but this one was perfect. holland was looking too so we couldn't resist!

hayden told santa he wanted a "talkin tay-toe" (toy story's talking mr. potatoe head, not sure why but he's been talking about getting it for months even though he already has the regular mr. and mrs. potatoe heads) and he also told santa that his sister wanted a doll. afterwards, he was so proud and called grammy and said, "i did it!"

(i think this will be a great black mail picture in the future, don't you?!)

{ birthday cake }

happy birthday daddy!

dec. 6th was ricky's 31st birthday and we had such a fun day. i asked hayden what he wanted to do for daddy and he said, " i wanna bake a cake!" so off to the grocery store we went and i let him pick everything out- sprinkles, frosting candles and the cake mix- so happy he chose the funfetti mix! we came home and i made sure i let him do everything he safely could do, he did a fantastic job!

making a cake, hayden-style!

i was shocked at how good he was at cracking the eggs into the bowl. he was a trained-professional because no shells ended up in the mix!

stirring up fun

almost done!

holland enjoying watching her big brother bake away

hayden "dumping" the star sprinkles on the cake!

coloring a card for daddy

happy birthday daddy!

hayden had the idea to hide under the kitchen table and jump out and surprise daddy with the cake. he then ran upstairs and told daddy, " come downstairs! we made you a cake!" i took ricky out for a night on the town to dinner at "island prime" and we had a beautiful view on the water at downtown. we had a delicious meal and then came home and had some yummy cake!

{ 1 month! }

we just love having miss holland in our family! we love her so much and she is an angel baby. multiple family members have commented they haven't even heard her cry yet! hayden is very protective of his baby sister and he likes to always know where she is and makes sure he sneaks in some kisses. people have asked me what's different than having a boy, the only major things i've noticed is that she loves being held where hayden didn't mind hanging out in his papasan, and of course accessorizing! i'm having so much fun with the hair bows, flower clips and leg warmers!

{ 1 month milestones }

you love to smile daily

eat every 3-4 hours

wear 0-3 month clothes

transitioned from newborn diapers to size 1 diapers

your eyes get big when you hear mommy's voice

you track really well with your eyes

you sleep better with mom and dad

you snore just like your dad!

tummy time isn't your favorite

you enjoy bath time!

{ halloween happenings }

wow! what a busy month of october! fall is one of our favorite times of the year and what made it more special was having a newborn and adjusting to our new routine. ricky and i both have family leave so we had all the time in the world to be with each other and the kids. we took a trip to disneyland for a few days, visited 3 different pumpkin patches and got into the halloween spirit.

here's our adorable "tortoise and the hare" kiddos!

omi's pumpkin patch

hayden wanted to paint his pumpkin and make a potatoe head version

our pumpkins!

ricky's "hamburger" won the best pumpkin at l & c's party

ricky and i dressed up as the referees for the big race

all the cute cousins

victoria gardens

our silly little turtle

one cute little bunny

well, the hare didn't stand a chance, so it looks like the tortoise wins this one!

(there goes the moral of the story!)

bates nut farm

ricky hid in the cornstalks and hayden couldn't find him... BOO!

AHHHH! so appropriate for halloween!

our little pumpkin

hayden has gotten so great at writing his favorite letter, "H"