Our Christmas

This year was sooooo awesome and very special for us. We thought long and hard and finally decided that we really wanted to stay home for Christmas. We were excited to be in our house in Beaverton, and just got settled in and decided to just stay put for the holidays. This was the first year Emmalee got to see ALL her grandparents on Christmas. We are blessed that our family was able to travel to see us and spend Christmas together.

For Christmas, Emmalee received clothes and puzzles and a personalized electric quad (says Emmalee Grace on it), a bubble-blowing lawnmower, a small Dora table with chairs, a tea set, a watch, a OSU Beavers sweatsuit, and tons and tons more. She is enjoying all her new things right now with her friends Abby and Hannah.

Here are some more pictures of our holiday:

Yep, we had Popeyes for dinner that night.... and it was YUMMY!

Nana opens her 'Nana' necklace and shows Emmalee

Perfect for a Blazers fan!

Great Pa's turn!

Emmalee helps Uncle open his presents.

Auntie is delighted at her Ipod gift!

The boys' traditional Beaver huddle.

Emmalee's 2nd Birthday Party

I was too busy hosting out big birthday bash for Emmers, I never took a single picture! But here are some photos that were sent to me from family of Emmalee opening gifts..

Bath Photos

I have always loved taking bath photos, and these ones did not disappoint.

She's growing up!

(Yes, those are Beaver pants!)





While waiting in line to see Santa, Daddy shows Emmalee a Christmas snowglobe. She says "pretty!"

the interior

Emmalee's bedroom:



























The neighborhood view from upstairs









The Office/Guest Room:



















Master Bathroom:



















Walk-In Master Closet!












Kitchen:








Living Room Area:

All Moved In!

So here it is, our home in Beaverton, Oregon. So far the location has proven to be just great. We are not used to having SO MUCH SO CLOSE! Everything we could ever dream of wanting or needing is within 3 miles, no kidding! Except for the beach and family members. We used to make a 25 minute drive just to visit Costco and now there is one about a half-mile down the road. It's those little things that has made life a bit more convenient.


As we get settled in we find things that we just love about having this house now and we find things we do not like so much, but I guess that'll just prepare us for when we buy a home; we'll know what to look out for. I'm sure we have twice the square footage now (3 bdrm, 2.5 bath), including a small yard and a one car garage. But there is very little parking and very little water pressure (for what we're used to).

Emmalee has made some new friends already! We have found two wonderful families that need a nanny/playmate, so what better fit than me and Emmalee? They are doing a 'nanny share' so each family comes over 2 days/week, giving me and Emmalee one day/week to ourselves. Our new friends are brother and sister; 18-month-old Cedar and 4.5-year-old Sage, and sister; 3-yr-old Hannah and 5-yr-old Abby. It's going to be a fun year, we are so excited.



Yes, that's me in our tree! We just decorated our tree and the rest of the first floor just in the two hours Emmalee napped on Sunday, we worked quick! And it looks pretty cool if I may say so myself! It was fun bringing Emmalee downstairs after that nap to show her all the lights and the new Christmas tree. She kept repeating "Wow! Lights! Wow! More lights!" She still says that when we come downstairs each morning.