Makin' Good

I'm making good on my promise to get more into cross country skiing this winter. John and I are able to go each tue and thur afternoon when the kids are all in school, but we, of course, have to drag the kids along too. We can be to the trails within 10 minutes of our house.

Here we gooooo....This is how Bailey got around the first time
John found some cheap skis in Addie's size. Look at her go

(we're still in search of some for Austin)
Then we got snowshoes for the kids
How cute is this chica?
Then John found a sled with a seat and a custom cover for super cheap, so we tried that out.
Big daddy pulling the girls
Addie hitched a ride when she got tired
Playing in the snow after the work out

(melt my heart!)
The parents brave enough to do this crazy stuff with 3 little kids
It's been heaven for me to get out of my house and into the fresh air. It's the only cure I have for preggie nausea (and over-eating)

Christmas 2010

FINALLY! I know. Here's what happened-
I got a new camera for Christmas, so half of our Christmas trip is on our old camera and half is on the new one. When I unpacked from our trip I never came across my old camera, which is full of pictures from Christmas morning and Seaworld. I keep waiting for it to turn before I made this post, but it just hasn't- SO SAD (and weird), but here you have it...

We drove to California to be at my Grandma Marilynn's house. It was a much needed break from the cold and my house where I had been throwing up for a month! Grandma's house is heaven; yummy food, fun games, soft beds, ice cream, and a hot tub.
There was rain, but there was also sunshine and who can complain about feeding the ducks and running in the park at the end of December?
I love to feed the ducks and am so proud that Bailey shares my love. She's a tough little chica too. Those geese got pushy and Bailey got kicky.



Cuddling on Gma's couch to watch a little Dora.
Insert pictures of Christmas morning and Seaworld here!

Then we went from the OC to LA to see John's Uncle Bob. Uncle Bob has a mini farm and some horrible spoiling habits- makes for paradise for my kiddos.
The girls did almost nothing but cuddling dogs for 4 days straight.



Addie put on a hat fashion show and spent a whole day running a hat store from the pool table


When the sun came out, the horses did too.


Don't let that white hair fool you...Bob is about as mature as Austin. And his wife Dawn is my fav, so I pretty much cried when we had to go home.
Like I said before- One of the best Christmases EVER!!!

Add Ons

• I'm adding a few things to my list of things I'm loving this winter. I'll also add a little more info about some of the things in my original post.

SUDOKU is the perfect non-committal, pre-bed relaxation technique. I just don't have the time or the self control to be into a good book right now (I tend to sluff off my responsibilities to read when I'm into a great book). I can do a puzzle (or 2) in the bath before bed then put it down and not think about it again until the next night. So perfect for me right now!I have a confession to make- I am a grocery store make up kind of gal, but I think I might be converting to the expensive stuff (don't tell John!) My conversion started when the seasons changed and I lost my pretty, sun kissed face and realized my grocery store foundation was the wrong color so my face looked like it was August and my neck looked like it was March. I decided to suck it up and go to the make up counter at Macy's. I have never done this before. I seriously grabbed the first girl I saw and made her match my skin tone to a foundation. I ended up with Estee Lauder foundation. It cost me almost $50 for one bottle (Ouch!) but, if I can't looked I've spent the summer in Hawaii, I want to look like a porcelain doll. It pretty much rocks.

And to help with that crystal clear look (and clear up my wacky preggy break outs) I've found this Clean and Clear Spot Treatment to be helpful.
Here's how else to be cool like me:

• I get my Yoga pants at Old Navy
• The best Mango smoothies are at Roxberry because you can get it with 100% fruit and it's only 100 calories for a 16 oz. (not like I'm counting calories)
• I love Downeast Basics long sleeved tees, but I also have some from Shade and I like them too
• I think I got my nude fish nets at Target. They are tough suckers too. I catch them on all kinds of things and they're still kickin'
  

Ode to 2010

JANUARY was survival mode!
FEBRUARY kept my husband 2 years older than me and was mostly spent preparing for March.
MARCH was only for sand and sunshine in The PhilippinesAPRIL made me 30
MAY married John's sister, Annie, to Carl in Virgina Beach
JUNE was for Girls Camp. What a hoot!
JULY found us in California for this...
AUGUST sent my children back to school
Austin 2nd grade
Adeline kindergarten
Bailey pre-school

SEPTEMBER took us to Paris and London. And you better believe I'm posting that kissing picture again!
In OCTOBER not only did I spend a weekend in North Carolina with one of my closest friends, I spent a week in St. Paul with another close friend AND we had family pictures taken.
NOVEMBER turned my oldest child 8 and he was baptized a member of our church
I know I haven't blogged about Christmas yet, but trust me when I tell you that in DECEMBER Christmas happened for the Jonas family and it was one of my very favorite Christmases of my life! The picture says it all...We had fun in the sun.Here's to a great 2011!

(new baby and whatever else comes our way)

Getting Through the Winter

I'm not gonna lie...

It's been a rough winter.

Let me share with you some things that will help me survive (and maybe you too!)

If you live in a snowy climate, you HAVE to pick up a winter sport if you want to keep your sanity. I'd like to do a little more cross-country skiingand snow shoeing (I just went for the first time over the weekend). It gets me out of my house and my blood flowing, great cure for cabin fever!
Yoga pants are a staple for me as I go through that "too fat for normal clothes, but not quite into maternity clothes" phase. I have 2 pairs and it's not enough.
Mango smoothies. MMMMMMMM. Who's body doesn't yearn for fresh fruit when there's snow on the ground? A smoothie always hits the spot for me.
Long sleeved tee in every color of the rainbow. What better to pair with your yoga pants while you cook dinner, have under a cardigan or down vest or use as a base layer during winter sports? I wear one every day.
Hounds tooth scarf. I got myself this in Paris because the hotel where we stayed had hounds tooth carpet and it was a fun way for me to bring that home. I've found that I love it. It's simple over a red long sleeved tee or dressed up with my white P coat. You don't have to do hounds tooth, I think any black and white scarf will do.
Flower hair accessories. Perfect way to dress up a ponytail (and you better believe I'm going to be sportin' a ponytail plenty over the next 6 months)
Gray cardigan. I can't stop buying them. I think I have 4 now in different shades, weights and sleeve lengths. I love them (again) over any color long sleeved tee, on top of a short sleeved dress or tee that can go from summer to winter wear or even with a white collared shirt. The last thing I am is any kind of fashion expert, but I am loving gray with every color this winter. I feel fun in toned down, wintery sort of way.
Fruity tootsie rolls. Much to my sister's dismay, I am no longer a chocolate girl (GASP). Seriously, if you know me, you may have just fallen off your chair. Pregnancy makes me crazy and this is part of it. Eat on!
Nude fishnets. I wear these to church almost every single Sunday of the winter. I hate it when my knees are the only skin showing between my boots and my dress. Let's be honest, knees are ugly. And extra white, unshaven knees that may or may not look like they're oozing out of my boots just don't need to be available to the eye. BUT (and this is where the crazy comes in), I don't like to wear the same color tights as boots because I don't want them to mesh together and look like I'm wearing leggings (I do NOT have the hips for leggings). Nude fishnets are the perfect fix to cover my chubby knees while not making me look monochromatic.


Better With You. This is my new favorite sitcom. It's on ABC on Wednesday nights. It's hysterical and clean!! The premise is how these 3 couples react differently to the same situation due to their different stages in their relationships. It's darling and totally worthy of the DVRTo all of you who struggle through these months with me...

I've got nothing else!

Good Luck