Snow Storm

Here are pictures of the snow storm we had today. I know, we live in El Paso right? We couldn't believe it. We, (especially the kids) were so excited about the snow. We made several phone calls to family and friends to tell them that is was snowing for us. We have missed the holiday weather, and so this was so much fun.

AJ liked the whole idea and look of the snow, but when he picked it up to play he did not like how cold it was. However, being only 20 months, he kept shaking his hands and yelling, "hot, hot, hot". We're a little confused I guess, but we'll get it eventually. :)

Turkey Bowl

Typically "Turkey Bowls" are for football, which in fact Adam did go and play in this morning. But when he got home, while our turkey was roasting, he continued in the spirit of athletics and played basketball on his 9'2" Nerf hoop, that I have so graciously allowed him to bolt down in my living room on my plant shelves. (this is how much I love my husband!)
Having a Nerf hoop in a vaulted ceiling area is something that Adam always thought would be cool when he was a kid. Now that we live in a home with a valulted ceiling, he wanted to fulfill this life long dream. How could I crush a little boy's hopes and dreams? So we have a basketball hoop in our living room. Anyway, here are some pictures of his amazing skills (and his smoking hot six-pack) for you to enjoy! Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Shaving

Here is one of Lydia's favorite things to do with her dad. Good bonding time, I guess. She thinks this is so much fun! Maybe when she hits her teenage years, she'll work on her legs in the sink while Adam shaves his chin. We'll see how long it lasts.

Brothers

I can't believe I have 2 sons! I love it! Here are some pictures that we took of just my boys. AJ loves Tate so much already. This morning he sat for 40 minutes just holding him; and surprisingly enough, he is pretty gentle (for the most part).


This is AJ smiling.

He's Here!!!

Well our beautiful new son is finally here! We are so thrilled! We were actually not due until the 13th, so going into labor and having him 4 days early was a wonderful surprise. He is 8lbs 3oz and 20 inches long.
He came so miraculously for us. It stresses me out to be away from my kids for too long, and so we thought it would be ideal to go into labor around 5:00 pm, have the baby around 9:00 and all be asleep by 11:00pm. That way the kids would just sleep through it, and wouldn't have to spend all day at a neighbors, or something and things would be normal for them. So a few weeks ago Adam and I started praying for just that to happen.
My friends laughed when I told them what I wanted to have happen and told me there was no way and thought it was funny that I would try and plan a birth. But we felt so good about it, and I kept thinking, "ask and ye shall receive. . ."
To make a long story short, I figured out I was in Labor around 4:30 yesterday afternoon, the mid wife came around 8:00, and the baby was born perfectly at 9:10pm. Everything looks super healthy with him, and we can already tell he has a wonderful, calm spirit. It already feels like he has been here forever. We named him Tate Mark Hudson. We love him so much, and I am so glad not to be pregnant anymore!!! :) Here are many pictures of him.

Happy Birthday Adam

So the big news in our family lately is Adam has entered his 30's. His birthday was on October 4th and turned 30. He has been freaking out about this a little bit this year. I had a big surprise party in the works for him, but then decided that maybe it would make him uncomfortable, and so I canceled all the party plans. He told me later that he was glad that there was no party and that he just wanted to relax. Instead, he played golf, we watched General Conference, had Steak and Salmon for dinner, opened presents, ate cake, he got a back/foot massage, and we just took it easy. It actually turned out to be a great day. I love you, Adam. Happy Birthday!!!



All the kids decided that Adam was not qualified to open his own gifts. Knowing this about their father, they all graciously offered to help him, and took over the present department. I don't think that Adam opend even one of his own gifts.

This a picture of the kids participating in the opening prayer of General Conference. They were so cute that we had to take a picture. Now if it had only lasted for the whole 4 hours that they had to sit there. Wishful thinking.

New Swing Set

Here are some pictures of our new swing set. We are very excited about this, and the kids love it even more. We're glad that we live in a climate that is warm enough for them to enjoy it year-round. They are out there all the time, and we are happy that they are enjoying it so much.



AJ couldn't clime up the slide with his shoes on. He is usually barefoot and able to get up there really well. But the shoes were too slippery and he was unhappy about that.

Here are some pictures of the kids on our slip 'n' slide. They love this too. Grass is one of the most wonderful creations ever.

Poor Gabby

I feel like I always have an "accident story" about Gabby. Well here goes another one. She got bit by some type of bug one night while she was sleeping. She woke up and her eye was swollen shut. I started to panic, but it quickly began to go down, so I decided to wait and see if it returned to normal. Her eye went almost completely down, but stayed a little puffy for about a week. At the same time, we were over run with a mosquito/spider invasion. She woke up every morning with 5 or 10 new bites all over her body. Nobody else seemed to be getting bit, other than one or two. However, her eye did not like the bug venom and it puffed back up. It stayed that way until I convinced Adam that we really needed to call pest control and have them spray. The day after we sprayed she had no more bites and her eye began to go down. I am glad to say that she looks like her old self again, and we are bug free.
Here is what she looked like as it was going down. Poor thing. :(

Back Yard!!!

Well we finally completed our back yard! We, (I) thought that it would only take a week or so, and that we would be able to do it way back in May, right after we moved in. But as it turns out, our tax refund (that was paying for it) took longer to get here than planned, then Adam had to read and study how to build a whole sprinkler system, and then install it. We had so many rocks that had to be removed, and trenches to dig, and then we had water pressure problems to figure out, and then. . . well let's just say it was a much bigger project than we (especially I) thought.
Adam worked so hard whenever he got the chance. Right as we got going into this project, things got really busy for him at work as well. He worked a lot of late nights, and there just didn't seem to be much time for this back yard project. But he persevered and trudged through it, and now we have the most beautiful grass!!!
I can't believe how much better it makes us feel. We used to look outside and see nothing but the death of the desert. But now it's green and comforting and I swear it even makes the temperature seem cooler. I am so proud of Adam for all his hard work. He really had to do the whole thing almost all by himself. I would have burned out.
But the most fun thing is, to see how happy and proud Adam is of his job and all the work he put into it. He had it so organized, and color coded and working perfectly. He went from not knowing anything at all about this, to Mr. Plumber, landscape expert. It is such a huge accomplishment for him, and he beams with pride. He loves to just look at it, from the patio, the window, the back door, everywhere. It is very fun to see him so happy and pleased with himself. Great Job Babe! We love our new yard!!!



Adam's color code.


This is one of the sweet Elders who helped us lay sod.

The kids thought that the sprinklers were so much fun. They are having a hard time knowing that they have to stay off the grass for a few weeks to let it take root.

TADAH!!! All done!!! Sooooo Pretty!!!