We are SEEING the LIGHTS!!!

We spent Thanksgiving week up in Utah and what a time we had. There is nothing better than being around family 24/7. The kids love to spend time with their cousins and I could spend days on end just hanging with my sisters, chatting about life. The day after Thanksgiving, we decided to go up and visit Temple Square and see the lights. We haven't done this in years and thought it would be a great idea. I have to admit, it was somewhat humorous trying to outfit each of my children (southern california children) with enough 'stuff' to keep them warm while spending a few hours outside on a cold Utah night. We were a modge podge group at best - but it was a great time. All my family came along - we saw hundreds of thousands of beautiful lights. We were able to listen to the Christmas story while looking at the Nativity they have set up. A great way to start the holiday season.

Ethan was cold, cranky and wouldn't get out of the stroller.

Raegan has such attitude and just wanted to run around by herself the whole time. She is definitely 2 going on 16!

Kylie all bundled up with her cousins.

Lauren thinking I've got so many layers on I can't put my arms down!!!

LOOK WHO"S 2!!!!!

Seriously - can't believe I'm here already. Another milestone in my life - my BABY is 2!! I know, I know - it is way cliche to say it just seems like yesterday that she was born - but I remember it so clearly. She was my best baby, I loved every moment with her since she was born. My dear husband kept warning me "You know - she is going to be a 2 year old someday, " but I just thought that would be sometime WAY in the future . . . and now here I am. And let me tell you - she is definitely 2. She began that day by throwing a major fit while I was out walking with my girlfriend. I tried to leave her on the street corner, but she was making SOOOO much noise, I ended up keeping her with me (LOL!). Her favorite thing to say right now is NO-w, NO-w, NO-w (she enunciates the end of her no, no's with a w . . . it is hilarious.) What a monster she is, but how much I love my baby - forever my baby. We had a little party with family and ate cake. It was a fun day, but I still get that lump in my throat when I think of how fast she is growing up - and soon, I will not have my baby anymore -she will be big and I will miss these days more than I can say!! (tantrums included!!)

Pumpkin Patchin' It!

Grandma Pat and Grandpa Brent came into town for a short visit. The kids always love to have them come and visit. We made a last minute trip to the Pumpkin Patch - as somehow both Matt and I had expertly avoided it until now - and spent the night riding the rides and picking out a pumpkin with grandma and grandpa.

Raegan was beyond thrilled to ride her very own pony named Snickers. The six tickets it took to ride the pony was the equivilent of about $5 - but how could we help but ride them over and over when Raegan would smile and laugh the whole time. We are such suckers for her adorable smile!!

You know how kids never do what you asked. We couldn't get Ethan in the picture - or even to smile. So we tried the whole "Ethan - don't get in the picture. Ethan - don't smile. In fact - nobody smile - I want to see a whole bunch of frowny faces." I guess being 4 years old means we always do the opposite of what mom and dad ask. Gotta love how that works!!

Kylie and Lauren hanging out with Grandma and Grandpa Griffin. We had so much fun - thanks for the visit.!

Conversations with a 3 year old boy

So the other day I am driving in the car with Ethan. Just the two of us out running errands together. All of a sudden Ethan yells my name- he is all excited of course. Here is how the conversation went.

Ethan: "Mom - guess what!"

Me: " What Ethan."

Ethan: "Guess how big my poop was."

Me: "How big dude?" I am thinking - what the heck? We are talking about poop?

Ethan: "It was this big!" He says this very proudly as he stretches his arms out as far as they will go.

Me: "That is so very cool!" What else do you say when you are talking about poop with a 3 year old boy?

So, I grew up with girls. 5 sisters - no brothers! We never talked about poop that I can recall. Matt has tried to warn me that this is what guys talk about, but I keep thinking - NO . . . why would anyone want to talk about this. But I guess that I am getting initiated into the boys club. It is going to be an interesting ride.

Okay, alright already, I will BLOG!!!

So, my sister keeps giving me LOTS of crap because I haven't kept up on my blog. I guess I just haven't figured out exactly what I want to write about, so I am pretending that it doesn't exist. But, since MEG keeps getting on me, I've decided that I will start off by doing a TAG that she sent along to me. So - I've been TAGGED . . .

7 Random and Weird Facts that you Never Knew About ME!!!

1. I don't like eating fruits and vegetables. If it was up to me - I would probably completely remove these two food groups from my life. As it is - I eat them because I'm trying to at least pretend that I am healthy!!
2. I am a very NERVOUS hostess. I hate being in charge of a party - whether it be friends over for dinner, girls night out, book club, even birthday parties - I worry so much about whether everything is just right - is everyone having fun - will anyone show up, etc.... that I can never settle down into the party.
3. I have to eat pasta every day - and I mean EVERY day.
4. I am addicted to the TV show 90210. I saw every episode of the original TV show at least 4 times each and now I am watching the new one . . . sad but true!!
5. Chick flicks are fine - but I love a good war movie. The more intense, crazy, bloody (I know, so weird), the more I love the movie.
6. I love broadway musicals - I love plays. I love listening to the music, I just love it all!
7. The most listened to music on my ipod is my 80's mix - I still love my old 80's music!!!

And there you have it . . . . 7 things you probably didn't ever want to know about me. I will try to be more faithful about blogging . . . . for you Meg!

Potty Practice!!

So you may wonder what this picture is??? A few days ago my little one Raegan (currently 21 months) said she needed to go potty. Her big brother Ethan just potty trained, so of course she is fascinated with the potty and always has to go with him. So I took her into the potty to give it a try and this is what my lovely little girl did - she lifted up the seat - pulled her shirt up to get it out of the way - and then stood there. What is she trying to do? I thought. Then she looked at me with a big smile and said 'potty mom', like she was all proud of herself. So Raegan has learned to go potty like a BOY!! What a shocker it will be when she learns that it is not really possible.

The End of the Garden!!

So - this was the summer of the Combe's first garden. Lauren got it in her mind that she wanted to plant a garden - so Matt cleared out a section of the backyard and planted a garden. All that I can say is that it was a very good learning experience - since we were never actually able to EAT anything that was planted. The corn we planted ended up being some weird variety and we couldn't convince anyone to eat very much of it. The birds pecked holes in all of our watermelon and we only got about 3 strawberries off our bushes. Oh well - as you can see from the pictures, the sunflowers grew well. They were over nine feet tall and Lauren is holding the biggest flower. I think it weighs more than she does. It was fun to see the whole process and maybe next summer we will have you all over for a big BBQ to help us eat our home grown food. (hmmmm . . . we'll see if it happens!)

ok - so another LOVE I discovered was the English Bakeries. Oh my - it was pretty funny - any place we went, when a bakery was discovered - almost everyone from our tour (all 90 + people) would descend upon the bakery and pretty much buy them out. I probably gained 10 lbs. just from eating their Iced Fingers - but oh were they good.

The Lake District in England - one of the most beautiful places I have ever been. This is the place that I want to take Matt back to and spend a week just enjoying ourselves. Maybe once the kids are older . . . .

The Scottish Highlands - and the Lochs (this is Loch Lomond). Another one of those places that are so beautiful - you can barely take it in and realize that pictures will never do it justice - but we try anway. We just drove throughout the Highlands and listened to amazing stories of the people who lived here.

This is a castle ruin along of the coast of Ireland. It was so beautiful perched on the cliffs overlooking the ocean. So - what else can I say except that this was a trip of a lifetime - one of the greatest experiences I have ever had. I am grateful a million times over to a great and understanding husband who survived for 2 1/2 weeks without me - I think I will owe him for many years to come.

The British Isles!!!!

okay - so I had the opportunity to go on a trip to the British Isles this summer with my mother in law Joan. Here we are standing in front of Buckingham Palace in London. What a trip this was - I have never had an experience like this in my life. First off - I left my husband and four kids at home to fend for themselves for 18 days - talk about a once in a lifetime opportunity. Then I was able to tour all through England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland with an incredible group led byMichael Wilcox (who is amazing). Every stop we went to, Michael would tell us the history involved, personal stories of people who lived and died at these places . . . and since I am an absolute history lover - this trip couldn't have been any more wonderful!!!

one of my favorite stops - the Tower of London. Here we heard the stories of Anne Boelyn, Lady Jane Gray, Sir Thomas Moore and others who were taken to the tower and beheaded by the kings command. I am telling you - English history is better than any fiction I could ever come up with.

okay - so since I love Harry Potter - I had to get a picture at Oxford - this is the stairway used in the first movie when the kids first enter Hogwarts. I know - kind of silly, but I love this stuff.

this is the pub where C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkein used to sit and discuss their books - again - there was something so cool about being at places where historical figures did great things.