Happy New Year!

Happy New Year everyone...we are spending NYE at home with the girls. Tripp is already sprawled out on the couch snoozing while a Law & Order re-run goes unwatched.

We brought in sushi from our favorite place which was a nice treat after 10 months of sushi-abstinence. Otherwise, it is business as usual at the Thompson house. I'm trying to keep myself awake for the last "official" feeding of the night.

We wish everyone a safe, happy and earth friendly new year. One of the best gifts (if not the best) I received for Christmas this year was a book with 1,001 tips on how to save the earth. I'll probably share some of my favorites over the next 12 months. Lots of love and peace in 2008...Tripp, Ali, Kyle, Abbie & Daisy.

Santa Claus Came to Town

Santa visited our home between 1 a.m. and 5:30 a.m. this morning. Kyle received a Nintendo DS and Abbie got a kitchen set. Both kids were very excited and thankful that Santa came by. Abbie's response when she went downstairs was, "Wow, wow, wow!"

We spent the early morning opening presents and playing with toys at our house then headed over to Grandma & Grandpa Marz's house for Christmas with the Marz family.

As usual, the kids grandparents, aunts and uncle were incredibly generous to our entire family. Grandma Sandy and Aunt Susie each sent large packages with gifts as well. Our entire family definitely felt blessed and loved. We hope everyone enjoyed their gifts as much as we charished ours.

Personally, I can't believe Christmas is over. With the anticipation and arrival of Daisy, this holiday season flew by. I don't feel like our family really had enough time this year to enjoy it. I guess that is something truly great about Christmas...it comes the same time every year so all we have to do is wait awhile and we can enjoy it all over again.

We hope your Christmas was full of thankfulness and a some "Wow, wow, wow!"s.

Holiday Activities

With the birth of Daisy this holiday season, we haven't found the time to do all the holiday activities normally on the schedule. We did get the Christmas cards out and delivered gifts to our friends/neighbors and we spent several days with Kyle at school doing various holiday activities. We took the kids to see the Festival of Lights and spent a FHE night at the Magical Forest. Unfortunately, I just didn't get the time to bake and build the gingerbread house we decorate each year. I am particularly sad that we couldn't fit this in as my mom used to bake one for me every year to decorate and that is one of my favorite holiday memories.

Yesterday Tripp and Kyle went to the Las Vegas Bowl. UCLA and BYU played this year in a sold out stadium (thanks again for the tickets Tara!!!). I took Abbie & Daisy to her (Abbie's) friend Amelia's second birthday party. Abbie had a blast with Amelia, her sister Charlotte, and all of their cousins and friends (thanks for the invite Angie!!!!).

This afternoon I baked and we decorated our holiday cookies. It was Abbie's first time and although she had a ton of fun, we had to take her straight up to the tub afterwards. We plan on visiting the Spring Mountain Preserve tomorrow for a short hike and some playtime for the kids before we head to Grandma & Grandpa Marz's for dinner. I'm sure we'll have Christmas morning photos to share within the next few days.

We wish you all the happiest of holidays!

Kyle decorating his multi-colored star

Tripp & Kyle's cookie men

Abbie & Daddy at the Magical Forest

Fro with a Bow

My good friend Nikki refuses to acknowledge that Abbie has a Richard Simmons type afro. Even Lindsay had a discussion with her at Barnes & Noble awhile back about it. Nikki just won't give in.

Anyway, the cute plastic little girl barrets don't stay in Abbie's hair...it is too fine and Abbie likes to pull them out. Nikki thought that maybe special bows from Salt Lake would stay so she was so nice and ordered Abbie a couple with her last order for Lulu and Ruby. They work! Not only do they stay in Abbie's hair but she hasn't really tried to pull them out.
Thanks Nikki! Maybe the crossing guard at the kids' school will stop referring to Abbie as a boy now. Any ideas on what to do with Daisy's Pat Benatar "Love is a Battlefield" hairdo?

Congratulations Kyle!

Kyle was awarded his Weeblos pin last night along with a bunch of other awards. He was the second to the last boy to enter his den and is the first to earn his Weeblos pin/badge? He works really hard in scouts and enjoys being part of the program. Tripp is already lining up the work Kyle needs to do for his Arrow of Light and Duty to God so he still has plenty of scout work to do before he turns 11 but I am so proud of him for working on getting that first accomplishment finished. If any of you have cub scout age boys, whether members of the church or not, I highly recommend looking into the scouting program in your area. It is one of the best activities Kyle participates in.

Monday Morning at the Thompsons....

This is baby Daisy at the hospital...looks similar to Abbie. After they finished cleaning her up the differences were dramatic. Although Daisy has Abbie's nose, cheeks and mouth, her eyes, forhead and hair is very different. I now have a big girl with a big fro and a little baby with crazy punk-rock hair. I'm not sure there is much I can do for either of the girls so they end up going around with unique hair.

We got home Saturday and have been settling in well. Kyle came home last night and was excited to see his newest little sister. Abbie was delighted to have Kyle home so all in all, everyone is happy.

The photos below are from our first Monday morning as a five person (plus two dog) family.

Sleeping through the morning chaos.

Reggie and Kramer trying to sleep in...

Abbie is definitely a morning person...

Giving Daisy kisses before heading out.

On the way to school...

It's a Girl!!!!!

Daisy Elizabeth Thompson was born this morning at 9:48 a.m. She weighs 8 lbs. 2 oz. and is 20 inches long.

Daisy is named for her my favorite flower and Tripp's only sister. Tripp, Daisy and I hope to go home tomorrow sometime. We will post photos within the next few days.

No Baby Yet...

Today is my official due date and we don't have a baby yet. Dr. Newton is allowing me to wait until my appointment next Wednesday but if baby Thompson is still snuggling in the womb-rooom, she is going to induce.

Anyway, you will hear from us sometime within the next week. Have a good one!

Happy Birthday Sweet Girl!

Abbie officially turned two today. I can't believe that two years ago today she joined our family. It's gone by so quickly yet it is hard to remember life without her. She is definitely a joy in all of our lives...mom, dad and big brother. I'm not sure what we would do without her big smile, enthusiasm, or afro.

We had her party last Friday (you can read about it in the previous post) so we didn't do a lot of celebrating today. We did tell her "Happy Birthday" all day and reminded her how happy we are to have her as part of our family.

It was a busy day today. This morning was the Holiday Outreach event at Kyle's school that I organize. We received a lot of donations for Corps of Compassion and tons of families came out to walk. All in all, it was a success.

After the event, I came home and prepared dinner with Sam. We didn't call it Thanksgiving this year for two reasons...1. I've never prepared a turkey and if it turned out totally yuck then I would have ruined Sam's holiday. 2. I really wanted to invite over our friends Tara and Scott and they don't celebrate Thanksgiving. This way, it worked out well for everyone. No real pressure on us to make the turkey perfect (Sam basically helped prepare the entire meal with me....thanks Sam!) and it was a Thanksgiving free environment (no turkey decorations, pilgrim outfits, etc.) so Tara and Scott were comfortable joining us. They are two of our closest friends and we just don't see them often enough so it was great to just hang out.

Hope everyone had a nice day and enjoys a long holiday weekend. Below are some photos of Abbie taken over the last two years.

Abbie's 2nd Birthday Party

This photo pretty much sums up Abbie's birthday party. She was tired and cranky the entire time and spent a good majority in tears. Luckily, everyone else seemed to have a good time. We had pizza and salads, watched movies in the front yard, played with toys and generally let the kids run around the house and yard playing with one another.

It was a small family party with a few really close friends. We had the big Halloween party a few weeks ago so we didn't feel the need to invite everyone we know all over again...thank goodness!

Abbie got some really fun gifts and when she wasn't crying her eyes out, enjoyed being with all her friends and their older brothers & sisters.

Thanks to everyone for being so helpful...didn't count on running a party with a crying baby! You were all fantastic as usual. A special mention for Sam...she came over a few hours early and helped me hang lanterns, assemble and hang the movie screen and put together the movie projector. Hopefully birthday number 3 will be a little more enjoyable for the birthday girl!

This is about the best smile we saw all night

Ruby enjoying a strawberry cupcake

Nate enjoying the party

Auntie Lindsay & Auntie Sammy

Kristen & Grover helping blow out the candles

Abbie hanging out in her brand new wagon...thanks Gubler and Butler Families!!!!!

Abbie opening her presents with Elise & Lulu

Two of my favorite things...

Yesterday I got to do two of my very favorite things...run a race with my family and go see James Taylor.

Tripp, Kyle, Abbie and I ran the Nike 5k for Kids yesterday morning. Abbie still rides along in the jog stroller but Tripp, Kyle and I ran. It was a beautiful day for a run and so much fun to see all the kids out for the race. Tripp and I aren't really into sports...we don't watch football, basketball, baseball, tennis, etc. on television and we aren't big supporters of either my college team or the UNLV team so it is nice that other than golf, there is a typle of activity our entire family can be involved in. Kyle really enjoys running and we hope that as we continue to particiate as a family in the 5k runs and I participate in the longer ones, Kyle and the other kids might develop a love for it as well. This was probably my last race before new baby comes but I hope he/she has enjoyed joining us in the races while in the womb room.

My parents invited Tripp and I to see my favorite singer/songwriter/musician, James Taylor, last night. I've seen him more times than I can count but it doesn't diminish the enjoyment of each additional concert I have the fortune of attending. My parents invited two other couples to join us and one asked if we knew who James Taylor was. I explained to her that I think children develop a love/hate relationship with the music their parents listed to...they either love it or they hate it. I happen to love it and besides my very favorite, James Taylor, also enjoy listening to Carly Simon, The Beatles, Kenny Loggins, Carol King, Neil Diamond and many more. I'm thankful that I had the opportunity to listen to and appreciate artists other than what the radio was targeting to my age group. Having said that, I think my dad will forever be sorry that none of his girls took to The Limelighters.

As a quick note...as it comes times to go to the hopsital for the arrival of new baby, one of us will post that we are heading there and we hope to post a quick note announcing it's arrival shortly after the birth. We may not be able to call everyone right away, but check the blog for updates on arrival, gender, name, etc.

First Day of School

Abbie started her first day of preschool this morning. She will being going for 45 minutes once a week until she hits three. I think at that point she gets to move into a bigger girl class.

She was the only kid with a backpack but she was probably the only kid with a 10 year old brother who wears one to school every day. She knows what this school thing is all about!

Anyway, she had fun learning about the letter F, coloring, making a project (she got introduced to scissors and glue), singing songs and having sharing time.

I apologize for the quality of the last two photos...they were taken with my phone. At least I was able to capture them!

Big Girl Bed

Abbie is officially sleeping in her big girl bed. She made the change over the weekend. The nights have been going really well but she's had two rough nap times and one great nap time. It takes her awhile to fall asleep for her nap. She gets too excited about being in the big girl bed and being able to reach the blinds and open them (I may have to do something about that).

Luckily, she isn't trying to climb out of bed, which was my greatest fear. With the gate up and us placing her in the bed, I think she thinks of it as a crib situation. Kyle is so excited to have her finally sharing their room!

Halloween

I hope everyone had a wonderful Halloween. Ours was a busy one.

Tripp and I joined Kyle for his class party. It was fun hanging out with the kids for pizza, games and cookie decorating.

Samantha and Lindsay came over in the evening to take photos of the cousins in their costumes. These photos are courtesy of Lindsay. Sam took some as well but it could take me a little while to get my hands on them. I should have just uploaded them before she left.

Our little family went trick-or-treating for three hours. Both kids had a wonderful time but watching Abbie run up to each door with her brother was so fun. She was running so fast and waddling around in her chicken costume...if it wasn't dark I would have recorded it for the blog. She finally pooped out and rode around in her big red car watching everyone as Kyle ran from house to house. We ended the evening with a visit to Grandpa Marz who was handing out candy solo on his front porch. Both kids went to bed after 9 p.m. but I think this once it was worth it.

Next year we will have a third musketeer as part of the Halloween Party...can't wait!

Halloween Party

We had our annual Halloween Party last night. It was fun this year to invite both Kyle's and Abbie's friends. While the big kids played on the huge bounce slide, participated in the mummy and donut eating games and a scavenger hunt, the little kids used Abbie's slide and swing, played little guy games and jumped on the trampoline. All the kids joined together at the end for pizza, cookies and costume contest & scavenger hunt prizes.

Huge thanks go out to Sammy and Cassie who not only ran the donut game and judged the costume contest but took the girls on the scavenger hunt. Thank you to Rich & Mr. Rosensteel (Kyle's teacher) for taking the boy group; Dad, Barb & Nikki for helping me with the little kids and Tripp for generally being a super Halloween Party Dad and setting up the system for watching scavenger hunt photos and a GooseBumps movie in our front yard.

Happy Halloween Everyone!

Kyle & Abbie's cousin Nate at his very first Thompson Halloween Party.

Donut eating contest....

Mummy wrapping. (Abbie let Grandpa Marz wrap her up and she walked around the party for awhile without being able to move her arms.

Abbie and her best friend Ruby....

The Butler Family wins for best family costume!

My Best Buddy

After next month, Abbie will no longer be my baby....for two reasons really: 1. She is turning two and I think actually being a baby probably stops there 2. We will have an actual baby in the house. I've been thinking about it a lot lately and I'm so excited for her and all of her big girl things but I don't know if I'm ready to give her up as my baby girl.

A few things about Abbie at approximately 23 months...she loves toast and prefers it to almost anything else for breakfast; she loves Halloween decorations, especially the blow up ones and she says "Hello" and "Goodbye" to them each time we pass; she has an uncontrollable baby-fro; she likes to feed the dogs treats and occasionally shares her toys with them (which end up chewed to pieces); she is a big marshmellow baby and will let other kids push her around...even the smaller ones; she sleeps not only with her blankie but her snoopy as well (just like mommy did); she loves her big brother and wants to be just like him in every way; she runs in the park like Phoebe in the Friends episode where she and Rachel go jogging together; she gives wonderful "Loves" (hugs and kisses); she likes to pretend she is cooking and uses all of mommy's kitchen stuff; I could go on and on.

I have LOVED spending almost every second with her these last two years. I really hope that we can spend some Mommy/Abbie time once the baby arrives because I will truly miss it so much. Tripp will always be my best friend/loving husband and Kyle will always be my very favorite little boy...none of that changes with the addition of this baby. Abbie's role does change a little and I hope that although she will no longer be my baby, she will want to continue to be my best buddy. Being her mom has been one of the happiest blessings of my entire life.

Last Two Weeks in Nursery

Tomorrow is the first of Tripp and my last two Sunday's in the nursery. We were sad to learn a week ago that we are being moved to the 10/11/12 year old boys. We've loved nursery so much. It has been such a pleasure hanging out with the little kids (18 months - 3 yrs.). We play, sing, read stories, color, go on walking adventures around the church, play instruments, blow bubbles, toss balloons...you name it and we've done it almost every Sunday for the last 10 months. Church won't be quite the same anymore.

I was also sad to learn last week that Kyle's second grade teacher is suffering from cancer. She is such a darling lady and Kyle loved her so much. We were sad when she decided to teach at another school this year as we hoped Abbie would have her for second grade too. Luckily, we know where she lives so we can leave treats on her doorstep at regular intervals. We hear that you should put on a few pounds before and during Chemo...helps out the process a little. Our family is always happy to assist with that! Stage Four cancer is yucky so send a nice thought her way if you don't mind.

Last, but not least, I started brushing with my recycled toothbrush yesterday and it is fabulous! It's made out of recycled plastic and even comes with a container to send it back free to be recycled again. Many of you hear my Go Green! tyrades on a regular basis but for those who don't, it is easy to make simple changes in your life that greatly impact the environment. Every little bit helps and every bit that is looked over hurts. Start with a recycled toothbrush (Whole Foods & Trader Joes carry them) and save a little bit of the planet today!

A slight change of plans....

We'd been planning to spend this weekend in Salt Lake for several months now. There was a bike race that Kyle wanted to enter and it was family friendly so we were all going to do it together. Unfortunately, the Utah weather report kept getting worse and worse so in the end, Kyle decided he didn't want to ride in a race with rain/snow and 30 degree weather...we certainly didn't argue. We ended up staying home and for a weekend without plans, we did quite a lot.

Friday was a day off for Kyle so once we made the decision to stay home, we headed to breakfast, Barnes & Noble and Babies R Us. Tripp, Kyle and Abbie all picked out some new books and used the pile of gift cards we had stored up to pay. We then headed to the dreaded Babies R Us to get the rail for Abbie's place in the bunk bed. We are going to try and talk to her this week about moving into her "Big Girl Room" then try it out next weekend while Kyle visits his mom (I'll update you on the progress later...cross your fingers for us). That afternoon, Tripp and Kyle went to a movie and I worked while Abbie napped. Later that day, we all went for a bike ride here in town. It was terribly windy but we still had fun.

Saturday morning was spent on a little yard work then hanging up our Halloween decorations. We are big fans of Halloween! That afternoon, Kyle had a football game then we headed to Playhouse Disney Live! thanks to Grandpa Marz (we were having trouble buying tickets but he managed to get us some from a friend). Abbie really enjoyed it and Kyle was a good sport and did all the little kid stuff so that Abbie would be exited too.

Sunday was a relaxing day for us...General Conference. Although it started at 9 a.m., just like our ward, we enjoyed watching it at home in our PJs. After conference we went to my parents' house for brunch then came home for a relaxing second session, dinner, a walk and hopefully bed soon.

Hope you all had a lovely weekend too!

Happy Birthday Tripp!

Happy Birthday to the very best husband and father in the world. Tripp turned 37 yesterday and although he isn't big on celebrating his birthday, we did get to have dinner at the house with the kids, his parents and my aunt Susie.

Tripp is probably the most selfless person I know. All of his actions are motivated by trying to help others whether that help is emotional, financial or otherwise. He always puts his our family's needs before his own and does the same with his family and my family. He is 100% about family and I appreciate the example he sets for me and our kids.

I am so grateful that my family introduced us. There isn't a more wonderful husband in the world...especially for me. Many people say girls marry men like their fathers and I think in some respects I've done the same....both call their moms almost daily, both try to keep in close contact with their siblings, both put their wife and children first, both always try to do the right thing (even when it isn't popular) and both are smart and a ton of fun.

Happy Birthday Tripp. You are well loved.

Grandma Marz

I wanted to say a little something about my Grandma Marz...not to be confused with Barbara, my stepmom, who my children refer to as Grandma Marz (and I've refered to as such in my blog as well). Wonda Marz is my dad's mom. She had a total of 10 children, a mixture of step and her own, that she loved and cared for. Two didn't make it very long on this earth but eight grew up to be wonderful moms, dads, aunts, uncles, and grandparents thanks to her.

I have fond memories of her, especially as a young child. After my parents divorced, my mom and I went and lived with them for awhile while she went back to BYU to earn an additional degree. I spent a ton of time with them and my aunt Tina and her family. Grandma and Grandpa Marz always showed me how much they loved me and took good care of me. When I got older, my Grandma invited to me visit her during the summers and I would go and stay with her and Grandpa and she would take me different places in Salt Lake, just us.

My dad calls his mom every single day (yep, he is definitely more of a talker than I am...didn't pass that along to me) but he is also super busy so I know he doesn't do it out of duty but out of the love he feels for his mom who loves him a ton right back. My dad's middle name is Fisher, her maiden name, a tradition I was happy to pass along with Abbie (Abigail Marz Thompson). I feel happy that he has been able to carry her around in his name his entire life.

My Grandma died yesterday. She was in failing health and I think all our family agrees that it was a blessing for her to pass on. I'll miss just knowing she is around but I am happy to know that one day (hopefully not for 50 or 60 years) I'll see her again and she will feel good and be happy and not sick and uncomfortable like she has been for many years.

Goodbye Grandma Marz...you were/are much loved.

Kyle's Birthday...Again!

Tripp and Kyle's mom take turns throwing his birthday party and this was her year. She decided to have it last weekend so we had another chance to celebrate Kyle turning 10. The party was at a bowling alley near our house. A few of Kyle's football teammates came, a couple of school friends and some of our friends and family were there as well. I think Abbie had the most fun of all!