Happy New Year!!

I have always loved New Year's eve.  As a kid, my cousins and I would spend the night at my Grandparent's house.  We would watch movies and drink sparkling cider.  Then we would watch the ball drop in Times Square on TV, at least the ones that made it to midnight.  We would go outside and very loudly beat pots and pans and scream.  I think I loved it so much because it was the one night that it was OK to be loud and obnoxious at midnight.  I was never too much in to resolutions and have never really made any.  Of course I have jumped on the lose weight band wagon, who hasn't?  This year I have decided to make a resolution, one I am almost guaranteed to achieve.  This year my resolution is to enjoy every moment of every day that the Lord choses to give me this year.  I always hear parents talking about how time goes so quickly and in the blink of an eye your little baby is leaving the house.  So I am going to sit back this year and take it all in. 
Happy New Year everyone!!

I Love Days Like This

Despite setting my alarm for 7:30AM and rolling out of bed at 8:15AM, I was still able to check my email, read for 15 minutes, exercise for 20 minutes and shower, all before the kids got up.  This doesn't happen very often, but I love it when it does.  I am sure the fact that Aurora is coming down with a cold might have something to do with it, or the fact that this crappy weather made it look dark outside until 9:30.  Whatever caused the kids to sleep in until 10:30 this morning, I will consider it a gift.  So I would like to take a moment to say "Thank You" to my wonderful, thoughtful, considerate, cute and did I mention wonderful? kids.  Mommy so much appreciated it.

Washer and Dryer

I just purchased my first new washer and dryer. They won't be delivered until January 8th, giving me time to check for better deals or just in case I come down with some buyers remorse.  It should be criminal the amount of money they charge for washers and dryers, especially considering that they are not made like they use to be.  Our current washer is going on a good 20 plus years and my guess is that it would probably go another couple of years.  Our old washer uses A LOT of water and energy, so I am looking forward to the savings.  I do about 1-2 loads a day, so I am hoping for a cut back of that.  I guess we will see.  You know you are a mom when you get excited about purchasing appliances and research them like you would a car.  I am crossing my fingers that we don't have any installation issues, which always seems to be the case around here.  Wish us luck!! :)

Success!

Aurora and I managed to find a delicious recipe for cinnamon cookies, for Santa.  We made them today and they are YUMMY!!!  Here is the recipe I used.  I had to stash Santa's cookies so we wouldn't eat them.  I am pretty sure that Santa will love them. :)

LOL!!!!

Laughter is the best medicine. So I bring you the 5 things that made us laugh hysterically this year, in no particular order.  Enjoy!

The Shake Weight:


Antoine Dodson (watch the videos in order):





Justin Bieber runs into a door:



Muscle Man Light Switch Cover:
click here!

Bobsled Split:

A Well Deserved Break

Russ somehow managed to get the entire week of Christmas off.  This is something that we probably won't see happening again for a long time.  It just kind of unexpectedly fell into his lap and he jumped at it.  The kids are super excited and can't wait to spend time with Daddy.  And of course I am super excited too, because it lightens my load a bit and I love spending extra time with my husband.  So the plan is to get all the shopping done tonight, so we can sit back and relax and enjoy Christmas. 

Cookies For Santa

Aurora has been telling me all week that Santa needs cookies on Christmas Eve and she is convinced that his favorite cookies are cinnamon cookies.  So now I start my quest to find the perfect cinnamon cookie recipe.  So, Santa be on the look out for the best cinnamon cookies you have ever eaten. :)

Spider-man

Things go in waves around here.  After getting off the Barney and Thomas wave, we are now riding the Spider-man wave.  The kids are in love with the Spectacular Spider-man cartoon series and lucky for me we have a ton of them on our netflix.  I now know entirely too much about Peter Parker.  I guess I always knew that being a mom of 3 boys would lead me down this road.  The cartoons and toys I avoided as a kid have now become a HUGE part of my life.  I used to always skip the boy section of any toy catalog when I was younger.  It was always an insult to me, when it was at the front of the catalog.  Not only do I look at that section now, but I know the names of all the characters and I actually shop in that section at the toy store.  Flipping through the boy section of the toy catalog is like catching a glimpse of my future. 
So I will continue to ride the Spider-man wave, absorbing all things Peter Parker.  And then when that wave comes to the shore, I will catch the next one. I am crossing my fingers for Batman, he is my favorite. ;)

Happy Anniversary!

Blue is my favorite color and my wonderful husband remembered that.  It truly is the small things in life that matter.  Love you babe!  Happy Anniversary!

Aurora Rocks!!

I can safely say that we have the most beautiful, smartest girl in the entire world.  Enjoy the video of her showing off her skills.  And yes we homeschool in our PJ's, who doesn't?

For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God. Romans 3:23

Meet Chip

Our new friend Chip

And his older sister.

These tea cups were in a safe place and soon after they were broken, I realized that no place is safe in this house.  These tea cups belonged to my Great-Grandma.  One of the boys got a hold of them and clanked them together.  I guess they don't call it fine china for nothing.

Welcome Back, Christmas Tree!

This is the first time in a loooong time that we put up a Christmas tree.  I can't remember exactly, but it has been at least 3 years.  When you have little ones in the house, a tree isn't top priority.  But now that they are older and will more than likely start making Christmas memories, it was a must this year.  Our tree looks a little bare because we only have a total of 8 ornaments.  We plan on adding a few every year until our tree is full.  Aurora is very worried about our ornament shortage and brings it up constantly.  I bought our first complete family ornament a few weeks ago and I have to say it is my favorite.

Here is our tree in all its glory:

We also hung our stockings by the chimney with care.

And since everything else is breakable, that is all the decorating we will be doing. Nothing is safe when the Jones kids are around. :) 

The Dam Just Broke One Day

As I am writing this, I am listening to 3 kids actually holding a conversation.  Literally about 2 months ago, I would have said it wouldn't have been possible.  The boys, being boys and twins, had two strikes against them when it came to their speech.  We were tossing around the idea of speech therapy, but we wanted to wait it out.  One day Wyatt woke up and decided he wanted to talk and that was that.  Trevor followed a few days later.  They went from one word sentences to 3-4 in about a week.  So I guess when people say they will talk when they want to, they aren't lying.  At least in our case.  Trevor still lags behind Wyatt, but he is making huge strides each day.   Wyatt has somehow developed a New York accent.  Not sure where he got that. :)  There is nothing better then hearing "I love you mama" from your little boys.  Today Wyatt told Trevor, "No, No Trevor Robert." I guess that either means I use their middle names too much, or they get in to trouble too much. :)

SURPRISE!!!

Yesterday was Russ' day to play.  We decided to celebrate his Birthday early this year, so he could have a day all about him that had absolutely nothing to do with Christmas.  He thought we were going out to eat at Red Robin, but I had a few tricks up my sleeve.  During the Civil War game, his cousin Erik showed up.  Surprise #1.  I made Erik tell Russ that he had to work and wasn't going to be able to come.  Then while the game was still on, I made them leave.  I know, I am a horrible wife. :)  We headed to the next Surprise.  BOWLING!!  We ended up at Rose Bowl, because 20th Century was packed.

The Birthday Boy

Chuck Norris, Steven Seagal, Danny Bonaduce and Justin Bieber bowling together. :)

Look at that form!  It is hard to believe that Chuck didn't break 100.

There are some action shots of us ladies bowling, but they aren't blog worthy. :)


In case you are wondering.  Justin Bieber dominated the first game.  And tied with Bonaduce the next game.  Chuck and Steven didn't bring their "A" game. :)


After we got our bowl on, we headed over to the Mall 205 Red Robin.  Where we had a wonderful meal and a great time.

Cheers!

First attempt to get a picture of all of us. 

Second attempt was even worse. :)

Then it was back to our house for cake and presents.

Creepy!!

Cheese!

Action shot!

I found the most delicious cake recipe online and had to make it.  It was awesome.  Best chocolate cake ever!!  I may just have to make it again for his real birthday on the 21st.


Rachie got him a Justin Bieber magazine, which is just what he wanted.  Everything you wanted to know about Justin Bieber in one place. :)
Then I sent him on a wild goose chase for his present.  I was going to make him look in 30 different places, but I could only manage to come up with 15.  I have video, but it takes too long to upload it.  So maybe another day.  So what did I get him?  An XBOX Kinect of course.  So we finished up the night making fools of ourselves. 

Thanks Rachie and Erik for the great company!!

We all had a great time, especially the birthday boy!  He deserved a good time and that is exactly what he got.  

He Works Hard For The Money!

And I just spent it all in one night.  Russ is working overtime this week and I spent his overtime pay before he even finished his week.  Even when you limit your kids to 3 presents a piece you still end up spending an arm and a leg.  As I was putting these items in my cart, all I could see was the fights they would have.  It is hard buying for twins and even harder buying for our triplets.  I am sure it will take about 3.5 seconds before someone starts screaming on Christmas morning.
There is some good news for my hard working husband.  After his long and exhausting week, there is something to look forward to.  We are celebrating his 30th Birthday this Saturday.  It will be a day filled with fun, surprises and really wonderful gifts.  Stay tuned for pictures!