Christmas in Oregon

We left on December 14th for Oregon and had a very uneventful day of traveling. No delays, cancellations and Tanner did fantastic on the flights. We were all tired by the time we got in to Portland, but we were glad to finally be there.
Unfortunately, the day after we got there Tanner got really really sick. He ran a temperature of about 103 and threw up all over. It was horrible. After about a week he started feeling a bit better, but for the first 7-8 days all we did was hold Tanner and snuggle. He gets really clingy when he's sick and he spend the majority of his time laying on me. It was really sad. I loved getting to cuddle him but wish it could have been under better circumstances.
The next week we played a little with his Aunt Stephanie and his cousin Chase. At night Aunt Natalie, Uncle Brad and their two boys would come over. The four grandsons spent a lot of time playing together. It was really cute to see them all interact.
All of the Grandsons with their shirts off. So stinkin' cute!

Grandma and Grandpa have so many fun toys.


Tanner absolutely loves other kids. He had a blast with his cousins. He seriously needs a sibling to play with.
Tanner having so much fun

Here is a picture of Tanner and Stephen, snuggling up to watch 101 Dalmatians

Tanner and Great-Grandma Bertie. He loved her and her wheelchair!

One day Aunt Natalie brought their new puppy over to Grandma's to play.
Tanner wasn't sure about the dog at first

But then he couldn't get enough of her


Then came Christmas. We had a wonderful Christmas this year with Chris' family. On Christmas Eve we had the traditional fish fry. We actually didn't fry a ton of fish though- this year we tried some new things- we did potstickers, egg rolls, coconut shrimp, onion blossoms and broccoli. Then we had sushi on the side. It was pretty good. Then we got the boys ready for bed and Grandpa read them some Christmas stories.
Chase and Tanner in their Christmas Pjs.



Christmas Eve before we headed to bed.

Love these boys



The next morning we opened stockings and then presents. Tanner opened his first Christmas present and then he was too obsessed with that gift to open anymore. It was so funny. It really was a great Christmas. We had a delicious Christmas dinner with some more family and then visited until bedtime.
Santa found us.


Tanner going through his stocking and loving it.

Mom and Tanner opening his first present

Tanner's new slippers. So appropriate because we're always calling him "Tanner-bear" or "Little Bear"


Tanner loved Christmas! Doesn't this expression just say "This is the coolest thing ever!"

Chase and the other little boys loved the play fort I made. They took turns smashing their faces against the netted window. It was pretty funny to watch.

Chase inside his play fort

I couldn't resist this picture. I know their eyes are kinda creepy- but it totally captures how silly these boys are!


The rest of our time there was spent shopping and playing.
We did get to see some old friends from college. We spent one day at the coast with them. We had a great time catching up and Tanner was a good sport about all the driving. We took him to the "Marine Wildlife Center" to keep him happy. He loved touching all the different wildlife.



The last night in Oregon we stayed with Chris' brother Phillip and his wife Stephanie. The little boys had one last night to play and then we had to get up at 2:30 am to get to the airport in time for our 6:30 flight.CRAZY!!! We were exhausted but it was a great visit and we look forward to going back.
Tanner and Chase on their last night together. Aren't they cute in their matching sleepers?

Tanner loved his Grandma and Grandpa

I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas too. It really is the most wonderful time of the year!

Don't Judge Me

So its 11:30 pm on a Sunday night, my sweet husband is asleep in the bed next to me and I'm wide awake.
So I've spent alot of time indoors and after I put Tanner to bed, I've been filling my evenings with Internet browsing and netflix instant play movies.
Well tonight I got the party planning bug. Its ridiculous because Tanner's first birthday was just 4 months ago and I can't throw him another BIG party until he's three. (Chris and I have a deal that I will only spend the money to throw big parties every other year) So his 2nd birthday will be totally low-key, but his third birthday is going to be really fun.
I've already planned most of it. Its going to be a MONSTER BASH. I can't even explain how excited I am to throw this party. I'm out of control- I know!
Tonight my party planning got a little out of control and I actually bought stuff for a party almost 2 years away. AHHHH! What is wrong with me?
Well I don't regret it. I actually can't wait until it gets to my house so I can start going through everything.
I bought the party hats- which are monster visor hats, I bought three different favors and the favor bags and I bought these monster stompers. I LOVE LOVE LOVE Oriental Trading Company!!!! They have such cute stuff at REALLY good prices.
I spent 60 bucks and have enough for 12 favor bags. which may not sound like a good deal- but it is when you see what I bought and what it would have cost to make it myself. I'M SO STOKED!

Anyways- The rest of the planning must go on- So this is mostly just me- getting all my ideas written down somewhere. Don't feel a need to read and comment. I just need to have a chance to think out loud and write everything down.

ROAR invitations
Favors:Individual felt monsters
Monster bags- inside lolly pops, pop monsters, sticker monsters, monster pens and tattoos
Monster visors-instead of party hats
Games- monster bowling, monster bean bag toss, monster stompers
Prizes: need ideas here
Food: monster munchies,monster watermelon head, monster finger and toes, monster cupcakes
Cake: Monsters
Decorations: see sidebar- future projects
Presents: monster quiet book

Sounds fun right? If I was a three year, I'd want to get invited to this party.
If you have any ideas for me-leave a comment. THANKS!

Tanner's Letter to Santa

Here is Tanner's letter to Santa this year.


Dear Santa,

I’m writing you again this year with a little more to say.
Since last Christmas a lot has changed; I grow a little more each day.

I learned to do lots of new tricks; I can walk, dance and run.
But there are still lots of things for me to learn, the adventures have just begun.

But adventures are so much more fun when you have a friend.
So, Santa please listen closely and I’ll tell you what to send.

I would like a baby brother or sister, someone to play with all the time.
Because let’s face it, parents are fun but I need a partner in crime.

Toys are great, you can bring those too, but it’s not what I really need.
I need someone to play with every day that will always follow my lead.

I know you’ll do the best you can to bring me what I miss,
but you may have to talk to Mom and Dad in order to fulfill this wish.

Travel safe this Christmas Eve and take care of Rudolph too.
I know you will keep my wish in mind, even though you have much to do.

Love,
Tanner
Age: 16 months


Merry Christmas!

Seeing Santa

We leave for Oregon in three days. I can hardly believe it. Tomorrow I have sharing time and then Monday I'll be spending my time doing laundry and packing, so I thought I'd go ahead and catch up on the past week.
Monday we went over to the ASU campus for the "Jingle on the Green" They have this "Jingle" every year, but this was our first time to go. They had live musical performance and some dancers, there was hot cocoa and cookies, face painting, you could make your own Santa hat and then of course, Santa was there in his sleigh.
We didn't do the face painting or hat making, we spent the majority of our time in line to see Santa.
We were in line for an hour and it was freezing. By the time Tanner got to have his turn he was too cold and tired to be happy. He just keep trying to squirm off Santa's lap.

We did get a family picture, but once again- Tanner isn't very happy.


He had a lot of fun with his Uncle David. He rode around on his shoulders and loved it.


Then he discovered the luminaries lining the sidewalks and we had to walk around and see those.

Here are my cute Parents


Despite being so cold- Tanner did not want to go home. We had to pratically drag him to the car.



We gave him a nice warm bath and then bundled him up in bed, but he was so cold that he didn't stay asleep long. He actually spent that night in our bed, nice and cozy between Mom and Dad.

Today I took Tanner to see Santa again. My favorite little Baby store was having Santa pictures and since I can't pass up an opportunity to get pictures, we went. Tanner took a little convincing- he didn't know how he felt about Santa today.
At first he just looked at him and tried to get down and come to me, but after a little encouragement- he warmed up to Jolly St. Nick.
You can see the apprehension in his face in this picture


But then he figured it was ok


He had a blast watching the other kids sit on Santa's lap and talking to them, but he wasn't a huge fan of sitting on his lap alone.

Well this will probably be it from us until after Christmas. I hope everyone travels safely and enjoys their Christmas. Even though we're going to miss my family- I know we will have fun in Oregon. Love to you all!

Nephew's Christmas Present

WARNING
---IF YOUR NAME IS STEPHANIE HERB---- DON'T READ PAST THIS LINE.



Last weekend I finished my nephew's Christmas present. Tanner is so lucky because he has two cousins only about 3 months older than him and then one that is a year older. They are so stinkin' cute and I love those boys to death!

This year, we exchanged names and we got my sister-n-law Stephanie and her family. So we got Phillip, Stephanie and their 18-month old Chase. I was so excited to start working on this project. I knew what I wanted to do for Chase right away.
Chase is REALLY into TRACTORS right now. HE LOVE LOVE LOVES THEM! He's also a little country boy, so the theme for this project was easy.

I made him a card table play fort. The entire fort is farm themed.
The entry to the fort is a barn and the barn door opens so he can crawl inside.

It Velcros closed. I've tested the door on Tanner and he gets in and out just fine.


I sewed their name on the barn too- just so our little cowboy doesn't get lost and go into the wrong barn.

The next side of the fort is a garden.

With ripe lettuce, tomatoes, carrots and pumpkins. The lettuce, tomatoes and carrots come off and can be picked for his "Harvest"





The backside is my friend Betsy. I used the faux-cowhide material so it even feels soft like a cow.

There are also a couple of cornstalks nearby he can pick if he gets hungry. The corn just fits snugly in their husks.

The last side on the outside is a HUGE GREEN (John Deere is the only way to go) TRACTOR. It's made from the minky material and I'm guessing this will be his favorite side. The window of the tractor lets you peek inside the fort. And the entire tractor is stuffed so it has a 3D appearance.



That's it for the outside.
I went ahead and did a little fun on the inside too though, because I didn't want him to get bored sitting in there.

One panel has a hay bale and a lasso for when he needs to round up his cattle.


And because every cowboy needs a place to hang his hat at the end of a long day, this panel has just that. And a window to peek from.


The last panel on the inside has a book and flashlight pocket and inside is a tractor book and mini flashlight. Because cowboys need to relax after a long day's work.


Well- That's that. I'm relieved its done but I know I'll have to start on another one soon. Tanner has had such a blast playing with this that He'll be getting one for his second birthday.


I hope my sweet little nephew likes it- I know Tanner does. And if it doesn't get used- I'll fly back out there and take it home with me- OK just kidding- but honestly Tanner is going to be so sad to see this fort go.

Its the Most Wonderful Time of the Year

December is in full swing here. We are leaving for Oregon in a little over a week and we've been trying to get all our Christmas activities done before we leave. We picked up our tree the Saturday after Thanksgiving and decorated it on Monday for FHE. Tanner was a big helper this year with the tree. He pulled the strands of lights off, yanked on the ribbon and for every ornament we hung, we knocked three more off. Needless to say, we had to finish decorating the tree after Tanner went to bed. But now the tree is up and he has learned (very slowly) that he can't touch it. It took me a few very persistent days, but now he's doing good.
Dad teaching Tanner about the lights...trying to convince him not to pull them off

Tanner exploring the tree. He didn't like how much it poked him...

Our Tree- the final product after Tanner went to bed.

Friday was the annual Christmas parade and we were so happy that it wasn't as cold as last year.
Tanner before the parade- I love this little Christmas sweater


Tanner enjoyed the parade with his good buddy Austin. Don't mind Tanner's weird face in this picture.


Even Papa showed up for a while.

Our Family- NOT FREEZING THIS YEAR- at the parade


That night we went over to Nanny and Papa's to make the traditional fruitcake.

Tanner wasn't a huge fan of mixing it.


Then Today we had the National Guard annual Christmas lunch. It was actually really good. Tanner got to sit on Santa's lap and he loved it. As soon as we sat him down he started waving like crazy at Santa. So funny.



This coming week we have a couple more Christmas events to go to and then its off to Oregon. We're excited for the "Jingle on the Green" tomorrow at the ASU campus. Santa, hot cocoa and cookies- HERE WE COME.

Oh and stay tuned for my nephew's Christmas present. I finally finished it- after about two months.... I'm so glad its done. If its any indication- TANNER LOVE LOVE LOVES it. I'll post pictures soon. Just don't want my SIL to accidently peek before Christmas