Early Birthday

Joseph on his friend's Power Wheels

(now you know why we had to get one).

Joseph and Audrey in the Jeep

Katelyn in the outdoor swing

(I wish I could ride in the Jeep)

So Joseph and Audrey got early birthday presents this year. Daddy saw a Power Wheels Jeep Rubicon that was on clearance at Walmart and could not resist buying it for the kids. On monday, Mommy was at Toys R Us because she was in the neighborhood and had an unused $25.00 gift card from when Katelyn was born. Mommy saw that the train table and train set she had been eyeing for the kids was also on clearance so she bought it. Of course, the kids are so spoiled that they did not have to wait til their birthdays to play with the new toys. It was rather difficult to hide the Jeep since the kids were there when we bought it. It was also difficult to hide the train set and table because the box was enormous.

Mommy doesn't have any pictures of the train set yet because she wanted a picture of it all set up. Unfortunately, Mommy should have snapped a picture of it before Joseph took it all apart saying it was a "tornado" that had destroyed everything. Mommy wonders why he had tornadoes on the brain...hmmm.

Anyway, Mommy used Katelyn's $25.00 gift card towards the purchase of the train set so it is partly hers too. Poor Katelyn is too little to play with the train set or the Jeep. Mommy got some cute pictures of her in the outdoor swing while the kids were driving around the yard.

Mommy and Daddy are glad that the kids like their new toys. However, we have decided that all they get for their birthdays will be cake and ice cream. No more toys....yea, we'll have to see how long that lasts.

Scary Tornadoes

So last tuesday morning, Mommy dropped Joseph off at a friend's house for a couple of hours of "preschool." Mommy is part of a preschool coop. Mommy took Audrey and Katelyn to Mitch Park to play for a little while. The morning was sunny and the temperature was great! It was a little breezy, but Oklahoma is a windy place.

After Mommy picked up Joseph and we all had lunch, Mommy noticed that it was rather gray outside. Mommy realized that it was still early in the season for tornadoes, but Mommy decided that maybe she should check the internet to see if there was anything she should be aware of weatherwise. Weather.com reported cloudy skies for Edmond and scattered thunderstorms, but nothing about tornadoes or hail or anything in the nature of severe weather warnings.

So, Mommy decided that everything was fine after all. Mommy put Katelyn down for a nap and Audrey as well. Not long afterwards, Daddy called and told Mommy to check the news. Daddy said there was a tornado in Yukon and that it was possible that there would be tornadoes in Edmond. After Daddy called, the next door neighbor called and said that there really were tornadoes and to listen to the radio. She said the radio or TV station would track the tornadoes and warn us when to take shelter.

Mommy wasn't sure how serious the situation was. Our satellite kept cutting out because of the storm. Joseph wanted to watch a movie and Mommy told him no, she was trying to watch the news. Joseph pushed the button and changed the channel so Mommy yelled at him because she was feeling a little anxious by that point. Mommy finally gave up on the satellite and got out the radio. After listening for a few minutes, Mommy decided that she should wake the kids up and we should hunker down in the hallway as the safest place in the house. Mommy had a hard time hearing anything on the radio because the kids were talking and playing in the hallway. Mommy had flashlights and snacks. A few minutes later, our neighbor called again and said that we needed to get in our storm shelter. She came over with her son and we all got in the storm shelter in the backyard.

The tornado was a couple of miles away when we got in the shelter and had been projected to come straight thru our area. When we got out of the shelter maybe 15 minutes later, our other neighbors said that the storm had turned east and missed us. The only damage we had was to our roof from the golf-ball sized hail that fell from the accompanying storm. We'll probably be getting a new roof.

Only a mile or so down the road from us, there was alot of damage from one of the tornadoes. Several tornadoes actually touched down in Edmond. Mommy found out that a tornado had hit between a middle school and Mitch Park where Mommy had taken Audrey and Katelyn just a few hours before. The Oak Tree neighborhood where the million dollar homes were destroyed was where Doss' corporate Christmas party was held. It was weird to drive along the roads a few days later and see the damage...of course Mommy forgot her camera so she didn't get any pictures.

Mommy and Daddy feel blessed that we are all safe and that there was minimal damage to our home. The kids actually thought it was great fun to get in the shelter so there was no crying or "freaking out" or anything like that. This was our first tornado of the season. Mommy is not really looking forward to tornado season. This one was really a bit close for comfort.

A full day

Joseph and Audrey came running into Mommy and Daddy's room at 6:00am this morning. Joseph was shouting "Audrey's got to go potty!" Audrey was screaming "Go potty!" She even seemed hysterical almost. Mommy took her to the potty and she did go pee-pee. It was strange because even though Mommy and Daddy have been working with Audrey on potty-training, we haven't really been pushing it very hard. Plus, she still wears a diaper at night anyway. After she went potty, Mommy still had to hold her until she calmed down. Then she went back to sleep until 7:00am.

Unfortunately for Mommy, Joseph never did go back to sleep. Later in the morning, Mommy took the kids to a friend's house so Mommy could work on some crafts and the kids could play with other kids from church. After coming home and having lunch, Mommy took the kids to the park. The weather was great temperature-wise. It was a little windy though. Our neighbor and her little boy also came with us. We spent a couple of hours at the park.

When we got back from the park, Joseph wanted to go and play at the neighbor's house. So, he spent the rest of the afternoon there. Audrey fell asleep on the way home and took a short nap. Katelyn did too. While the girls were sleeping, Mommy started making dinner since the missionaries were coming over for dinner. Mommy took some eggrolls and dumplings to the neighbor's house and brought Joseph home.

Joseph played some Lego Star Wars with Daddy after the missionaries left. He insisted he was still not tired when it was time for bed. Mommy is worn out after a long day. Apparently children do not get as tired as parents. Anyway, after much complaining, Mommy and Daddy finally got all 3 kids to bed.

After the kids went to bed, Mommy attempted to make baklava since Daddy had a craving. Mommy thinks it looks pretty, but she is not sure how it is supposed to taste since she has not had it in years. Now it is way past time for Mommy to go to bed so this is the end of this blog.

Chinese Niu Year

Mommy is a little behind on posting. Katelyn was blessed on Sunday, Jan. 18th. Nai-Nai and Yeh-Yeh and Uncle Michael as well as Granny and Grandpa were able to come for the event.

Katelyn in her blessing gown.

The day after the blessing, Mommy took the kids to Arlington in anticipation of the upcoming Chinese New Year's celebration on saturday (Jan. 24). Mommy loves Chinese New Year. This year is the year of the ox (Niu). We always go to Dallas to celebrate with the Chinese branch where Yeh-Yeh and Nai-Nai went to church for many years.

The kids had a fun week. Even though it was cold, the kiddos got to spend lots of time at the park feeding the ducks and playing on the playground. Joseph also got to spend lots of time playing his favorite video game (Lego Star Wars) on Uncle Michael's x-box.

Since Daddy had to work all week, he bought an Amtrak ticket and rode down on the train the day of the party. Mommy and clan picked him up in Ft. Worth. Mommy noticed that the Amtrak Station was near the Ft. Worth Water Gardens so Mommy insisted that we take a look around even though it was freezing cold. Joseph had a fun time. Audrey was not impressed and looked very miserable. Luckily Katelyn was home with Nai-Nai where she was nice and warm.

The Chinese New Year's celebration was fun though it was rather long for the kids. We didn't get home til 11:00pm. The kids got to enjoy the good food, see the Lion dance, and get red packets (hong-bao) from the Money Man. They all fell asleep on the way home.

We traveled back to OKC on sunday. Monday morning, Mommy had to make a Wal-mart run to get diapers. By the time we left, there was a sheet of ice on the roads and the Mazda was sliding everywhere. Mommy even slid past a turn on the way home and the Trash truck driver coming out of our neighborhood was laughing at Mommy. Mommy was very annoyed. Mommy didn't go out again til thursday when the snow and ice had mostly melted. Daddy came home early on monday and worked from home the next few days. Some snow fell on the ice and the kids enjoyed playing in it the next few days even though it was very cold outside. Now the snow is all gone and the weather has been beautiful the last few days. The weather here sure can't make up its mind.

Baby pics

Poor Audrey doesn't have very many baby pictures. Mommy and Daddy seemed to have followed in the footsteps of many parents where the first child has the most pictures. Actually, Daddy said we should just not take pictures of any of the kids so no one feels left out...silly Daddy!

Daddy is actually not very good about taking pictures of anything except trucks and wild hogs so Mommy took her own picture of herself with Katelyn using a tripod and the self-timer. The kids will wonder if Mommy ever did anything with them. Mommy will have to tell them, "Who do you think took the pictures?"

So, since Mommy can't do anything about Audrey's lack of baby pics, Mommy decided that she should try and take lots of pictures of Katelyn.

Laughing

At her 2-month visit on monday, Katelyn's doctor asked if she was laughing out loud or squealing in delight yet. Mommy said, not yet. This afternoon, as Mommy was talking with Katelyn and she was cooing back, she laughed. It was so cute! Happy babies are the best! Katelyn also discovered her hands. She has been playing with them off and on.

Today, since the weather has been so nice, Mommy and all 3 kids went outside to play in the backyard. Sushi normally likes to play with the kids, but she was content to sit in the grass and enjoy the sunshine. The weather is supposed to be really nice until saturday so we plan on having lots more outdoor time.

New Year

Katelyn and her Great-Granny

Joseph and Audrey playing with Katelyn



The kids and Uncle Robert

Audrey and her BFF Zoe

Mommy can't believe that it is already 2009! After Joseph recovered from his illness, we had lots of visitors. Aunt Neva and Uncle Robert came and stayed for a couple of days. The kids had alot of fun playing with them. Then Aunt Hollie brought "the cousins" as Joseph calls them, for a fun pre-Christmas visit. Because we were all planning on going to Nai-Nai and Yeh-Yeh's house on Christmas day, we celebrated Christmas on Dec. 24th.

Joseph's favorite present was the Lego Star Wars game for the playstation. He had been asking about the game since he first played it at a friend's house. Joseph would play all day if he could, but Mommy and Daddy have limited him to 30 minutes in the morning and 30 minutes in the afternoon or evening. When he starts pre-K this fall, Joseph will only get to play for 30 minutes total. Mommy does not want him to be a video-game junkie.

Audrey got lots of dolls and doll accessories though her favorite toy is whatever someone else is playing with. She kept provoking her cousin Noah until he finally bit her in a fit of frustration. Audrey cried, but then she started messing with him again. Daddy had to intervene before Noah could bite her again. You would think she would learn her lesson. Audrey has a hard time sharing.

Mommy and Daddy ordered a roof rack and bag for the top of the Mazda 5 for all the holiday traveling. On the way to Nai-Nai and Yeh-Yeh's was not too bad since we spread out some of the kids and stuff in Aunt Hollie's van. Christmas at Nai-Nai and Yeh-Yeh's was fun. The kids got more stuff and we were able to enjoy another fun family meal.

The next day, Mommy and Daddy, 3 kids, and Sushi headed to the Anchor Ranch to see Daddy's family. It was a long drive that took even longer because the traffic was so bad on I-35. Sometimes Daddy could only go 10 mph. We had another Christmas celebration at the ranch.

Mommy and Daddy's friends from Katy came up to the ranch to meet us on Sunday. Mommy and Tania and Zoe went back to Katy on monday morning and Daddy and Jake stayed to go hunting.

We celebrated New Year's eve with Zoe's family. Audrey loves Zoe and Zoe loves Audrey. They are so cute! We were not planning on staying until New Year's but Sushi had a seizure on New Year's eve so Daddy spent all morning at the vet's office. When we left Katy, it took us 14 hours to get back to Edmond. Mommy and Daddy will probably not be making very many long trips with the kids.

Anyway, overall, the holidays were fun. 2008 was a year of changes. We are all excited to see what 2009 will bring!