And I Thought the Bike Was Too Big...

Isaiah got a bicycle from his Auntie Kristine and family for Christmas. Unfortunately, the weather has been so cold and rainy since Christmas, he hasn't been able to go for a ride on it.....until today! I was worried that the 20" would be too big for him but, clearly, I was very wrong.

Thanks Auntie Kristine! He loves his new ride! He can't wait to ride it to school on Monday and impress all of the girls. :)

Christmas Has Come and Gone....4x Over!

PHEW!!! What a crazy Christmas adventure we had this year! We traveled throughout the greater bay area as we visited each grandparent's home. Shawn and I cursed the hectic process, but it was definitely worth it to spend the holiday with all of the people we love.

Christmas Eve was spent with my Dad, my siblings and two of my aunts at my Dad's house in Hercules.

Lolo with some of his grandbabies.

The train table from Lolo is the greatest gift ever! ALL THREE BOYS can stay occupied with it for hours. I love it.

We hurried home afterward, but the boys were fast asleep before we got home, so Mommy had to make sure cookies and milk were left for Santa by the fireplace. Woke up Christmas morning to find that sloppy Santa left cookie crumbs around the fireplace and didn't even finish all of his milk! The nerve of that man....Good thing he filled the boys' stockings with goodies or else they would never have forgiven him for making a mess that Mommy would have to clean up!

Brunch on Christmas day was Grandma Eden's house in Fremont. We enjoyed delicious, homemade food thanks to Grandma! The mimosas were quite enjoyable as well. :) The boys always have great fun spending time with their Grandma Lovey and their super fun Aunties and Uncle.

The boys and their loot at Grandma's!!!

Final stop was Grandpa Don and Grandma April's house for Christmas dinner. The boys were able to enjoy some time with their grandparents and their Nana (great-grandma Shirley). How lucky are they!?!? I say EXCEPTIONALLY lucky, since I grew up without being able to meet even a single grandparent!!! Such fortunate little boys to be loved by so many...

Three generations of Adams boys.
Isaiah was busy playing with Grandpa's xbox. lol

Christmas, I bid you farewell. It was another great year and everyone enjoyed the anticipation as much as your arrival. Thanks for more wonderful memories. 'Til next year!

Merry Christmas Eve!

It is the Eve of Christmas...we have 3 family parties to prepare for and what am I doing? Blogging....sigh. This is a sure sign I'm addicted.

I just had to share these adorable little birdhouse ornaments I made. A friend of mine has them all over her tree this year and I thought they were the cutest things ever. I did my google research and found them on Nichole Heady's blog, {capture the moment}. You can find the original post and template here.

Cutest things ever, or what?

Now back to stuffing the back of the truck with prezzies. I have a train table to shove in there for the boys and all of the presents for my family and Janice's (my bff) family. Then I have to make sure I still have room for a fully-assembled bicycle that Isaiah will be bringing home tonight also! Three words...OUT OF CONTROL!!!!

Happy 1st Birthday to Our Little Liam!

I can't believe it has been one entire year since we met our third little miracle. Bringing a life into this world is truly a miracle, but it is even more miraculous that Shawn and I have survived the entire first year! lol And this time is even more noteworthy, with the other two little miracles also needing our undivided attention. It has definitely been a wild ride, but also the most fun I have ever had.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, LITTLE MAN. I hope you know that you are VERY MUCH LOVED. I don't expect you to know EXACTLY how much you are loved, because that is something that even I cannot comprehend or quantify. You and your brothers are MY LIFE. I LOVE YOU WITH EVERY FIBER OF MY BEING!!!!

Mikey's Outfit Choice For the Evening

Rain boots and diaper were sooooo last season. Now, it's all about snow gear and pull-ups.

Jammin' In Their Jammies!

Isaiah's Kindergarten class performed in their Winter Program last night. They sang three songs: "Santa Rock", "Colors of Christmas", and "We Wish You a Merry Christmas". It was a wonderful program and the kids did such a great job! The only bummer was that we couldn't have chosen seats with a worse view! Isaiah was the second-to-last child on the left on the top-most row; the disadvantages of being one of the tallest kids in the class, I guess. And, of course, we chose seats on the far left side! So, unfortunately, he was covered by the curtain for most of the performance, but was able to sneak a few peeks and waves at us between songs.

Isaiah and Sloane, one of his friends from school. Conveniently, their moms have become friends as well, so we were able to continue the celebration with dinner at their home after the program. Sloane has a little brother that is 6 months older than Mikey, so those two hit it off very well. Liam, well....Liam just kind of scooted around and mingled with everyone. :)Mikey refused to attend the program unless he could wear his jammies, just like his Kuya.

Isaiah and a friend right before the program.

It was a fun night for everyone and we look forward to many, many more!!!

Christmas Crafting

I have been having so much fun crafting for Christmas this past week. Every spare moment I have, I have been immersed in craft paper and glue sticks. Shawn seems to be getting a bit annoyed with not being able to see the top of the dining table and has been offering to buy different storage solutions. lol I should tell him that this wouldn't be a problem if I only had a craft room! Someday.....

I have finally mastered my paper cutter I made a ton of Snowman Christmas cards for the kids in our playgroup, the kids in Isaiah class, and the kids in Mikey's class. The cover frames a snack-size ziploc bag that contains all the fixings to make their very on Snowman ornament, carrot nose, top hat and all!
I was also inspired by a friend to make these super cute baggies of white chocolate peppermint bark for some of the moms in Isaiah's class and both of the boys' teachers. Soooooo stinkin' easy, it's unbelievable. Melt the chips, spread on wax paper, sprinkle with crushed candy cane, stick in the fridge to harden, then break into 'bark-like' chunks. But, I must share with you the ultimate secret of this recipe (at least it's ultimate to me, it could be I'm the only uninformed one regarding the melting of chocolate), MELT THE CHOCOLATE CHIPS IN THE MICROWAVE!!! Otherwise, you'll spend forever trying to figure out the best way on the stove, only to discovered that there isn't one...not that I had that problem...(haha!) This project is UNBELIEVABLY easy, not to mention DELICIOUS!! I couldn't stop munching while I was breaking the bark up into pieces.

Here's to a fun, exciting, and DELICIOUS holiday season!!!

Attn: SANTA

I did point out on my Wish List that Santa should visit often to check for updates. But, just in case he hasn't had the opportunity to do so, I should bring it to his attention that I have updated #4.

Thanks, Santa! ;)

Another Great Weekend Goes Down in the Books...

The Number 1 awesome thing that happened this weekend was that Isaiah won 3rd place at his very first jiu-jitsu tournament. At the tournament, he first learned what it was like to lose a match and he also learned, very quickly, that it was a feeling he did not like. This was obvious in his second match, where he was able to quickly submit his opponent, giving him the 3rd place medal!!! The submission he used on his opponent involved bending his opponent's arm backward until he 'tapped' or submitted. Afterwards, Isaiah apologized for hurting him, gave him a hug and offered to share a rice krispy treat with him. :) I'm so glad we have found HIS sport. This is what he loves to do, looks forward to, it brings out the best in him, and it makes him happy. Shawn and I couldn't be any more proud!

I've spent much of this morning trying out a Eggplant Parmesan recipe that I found on Epicurious.com (my all-time favorite recipe site, except for desserts. I've discovered that Allrecipes. com has the best dessert recipes.) Quite labor-intensive, but already smells like it will be worth it!Eggplant slices

Freshly made sauce from scratch.I had a curious little helper in the kitchen with me all morning. Liam was enjoying playing with the bowls and utensils. I hope one day he will also share our love for cooking.

Last, but not least, I finished my first crocheted dish cloth, another idea I found on Skiptomylou.org.
They suggest tying a pair with a nice ribbon and bottle of soap. Sounds like a great idea. But I haven't quite decided if I want to do that. I may use the same pattern, just a little skinnier and longer, to make some cute scarves. We shall see......

Christmas Tree, Oh, Christmas Tree...

...you have finally graced us with your presence this year. Please excuse the high population of ornaments toward the left side of tree. They are not there because that is where the most ornament resources lie, as many may initially think. They are there because that's where the step stool was placed and Isaiah was in charge of hanging ornaments. We've changed things up a bit and only decorated the top half of the tree in an effort to keep Liam out of the ornaments' business. Looks ridonculous, I know, but 'Safety First'! Read on for the background story.....I'm thinking ahead this year. Unlike last, when I went crazy and bought all new ornaments for our tree, half of which were GLASS! Yes, I know, so shoot me. I realized my poor decision immediately, as soon as the first ornament fell from the tree and shattered into a gazillion pieces (yanked down by Baby Mikey, who was 1.5yo at the time). Rest assured, all glass ornaments were promptly returned to JoAnn that same afternoon. I had to zoom in on my favoritest of my favorite ornaments...my Starbucks cups, in white and Christmas. Love them! Thank you, Ebay! My second favoritest of my favorite is our Yo Gabba Gabba ormament collection, all five characters gifted by Auntie Tracey last year. Those ridiculous, yet extremely cute, things were spotted at Urban Outfitters in Santana Row, and were damn freaking expensive. Obvious display of our obsession with the show, which far surpasses the childrens'. Thank you, Obsessive Auntie. I believe that is the primary reason the two of us get along so well. Love ya! ;)