what to do when #2 is in double digits

in honor of savannah's 10th birthday i thought i would give you the top 10 reasons why we love her and have kept her around this long

#10- she is thoughtful

  #9 - she is quick witted

#8 - she is an extraordinary writer

#7 - she has an incredible memory (well, at least for things unrelated to parental requests)

 #6 - she is freakishly strong for a child

#5 - she has a vivid imagination 

 #4 - she is still our little girl who needs us when she's scared (especially on the scary rides at disney ;)

#3 - she is a bit of a cynic and a tad bit on the sarcastic side (hmmmm.....where does that come from?)

 #2 - she is so DANG cute!

and the #1 reason is because she is definitely one of a kind!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY SAVANNAH! WE HOPE IT IS A MAGICAL ONE!

WE LOVE YOU!!!

ciderella's castle it is not

i have some serious pictures to upload of our family trip to disney and universal in november.  yeah, yeah, yeah, it's been a while since we went but they are gettin' posted anyway!  

we drove into orlando at night and crashed.  the next morning when we woke up we looked out the window and saw universal studios right across the street, which was pretty fun.  we were quite a way from disney, but we saw something off in the distance and mauricio says, "hey! it's cinderella's castle!"  to which savannah quickly replied, "um, dad that's the angel moroni on top of that building, so i think that's the temple." HA! she was right!  we could totally see the temple from our window! 

i'll post more pics soon.  so stick around if you want to see a boatload of goofy family vacation pictures from us.  it's mostly for our enjoyment and we understand if you decide to pass on the family slide show.  we won't even be offended. ;)

it's still christmas right?

well, hey! i know we're already halfway through january and all, but who doesn't like to extend the holidays a little?  and besides, all my decorations are STILL up!  so it still feels like christmas?

we had a blast this christmas.  my parents, brother and natalia, a friend of theirs from ecuador, came down to celebrate with us.  everyone received wonderful gifts and some in the family some not so fun gifts.  (you know the kind that involves puking your guts out for a day or two.) but we survived and enjoyed ourselves in spite of 5 out of the 8 of us getting sick. we bought and opened gifts, ate candy, had yummy turkey and all the fixings, watched a ton of movies, went to some fun places (pics to follow later.), and had a grand old time just spending time together.

grace got her bell from santa's sleigh this year.  

and grandpa got a really fun toy too!

what makes a 12 year old movie buff more excited than a new blue ray?  two new blue rays! santa, oh how we love thee.

grace really wanted to get EVERYONE in the family a gift. including brady. even if the toy is almost as big as he is!

 this barbie was uber special because it is an older version, so the elves had to break out the mold from storage to make it just for grace.  she almost thought she'd have to wait til next year. santa you rock dude!

for the sewing buff. two super cute purple bears to make herself.

 

 

grace, already using one of her gifts.  anyone for play-doh cake?? yum.

and of course it wouldn't be christmas without a BIG OL PILE of trash!