Christmas 2009

I am so blessed!! We have truly had a magical Christmas this year. Ella is the perfect age for capturing the wonder and amazement of the Christmas spirit. And the fact it was the first Christmas with our beautiful baby boy, made it extra special. We feel like a complete family after all these years!

Our Christmas started yesterday afternoon with dinner and presents at Nana and Papa's in Nevada. Dinner was delicious, the kids were super good, presents were perfect and the time together was priceless! I love that Mom and Dad live so close so that the kids (and Chad and I) can spend such quality time with them!

After we got home and put lil' man to bed, Chad, Ella and I had movie night. Ella decided on the movie ELF. She loved it. She laughed through the whole thing. She was still talking about it today. After we got her into bed, we were able to "set the stage" for the big Christmas morning. Well, one of us anyway...Santa retired early and hit the sack. :-)

The kids actually slept in until about 7:00 this morning. But after they got up and saw the presents, it was happy chaos! Paper was flying, toys were torn open, smiles were all around! Chad and I just sat back and watched...what a true blessing our children are. Ella was so good with Avinn "helping" him with his presents and she was so thankful for all she received this year. She has such a beautiful soul!

After we wrapped up the festivities here at home, we piled in the truck and made the very snowy and slick drive to Grandma and Papa's...boy was it worth it!!! The kids had such a blast!! Because of the weather, it ended up being just Mom & Dad, the Mataya's, Dan and his kids and us. The food was beyond delicious!! OMG, they outdid themselves on the turkey and all the fixings! YUMMY!!! Avinn was digging the sweet potatoes and Chad was all over the oyster dressing! After we ate, we opened presents and sat and visited for the afternoon. It was a perfect day!

My house is trashed and the presents are strewn about, but the smiles on my kids' faces make it all worth it! I will say it again, we are blessed beyond words. Our kids are the light of our lives and every second with them is a treasure!

Merry Christmas!!!

The Stuffed Animal Brigade

The ones that got away...



I am super proud of our Ella Belle for making the wise decision to go through her stuffed animals. This has needed to be done for many many months! With Christmas right around the corner, I was able to convince her that there are so many little girls out there that don't have a stuffed animal to snuggle at night like she does and maybe it's time we pick a few out that someone else could love for their own. So she agreed...finally!

After going through her collection one by one, we were able to part with a HUGE garbage bag full of misc. animals - over 30 in all! Which, I was very happy with considering I told her initially she only had to get rid of 15. When we were done sorting, she proudly exclaimed, "it's okay to get rid of those because I still have SEVENTY left for my own!!!" That was a totally accurate statement. She did in fact have 70 left!!! Not only did she have a name for each of them, but she could tell you when she got each one and who gave it to her. Amazing! She really does love her stuffed animals. I have to admit that I was a little sad to see some of them go. There was a giraffe she got the day she was born, a dog she got when she was in the ER in Indianapolis as a baby, etc...

Even though we have 70 left, I am so proud of her for making the decision to give some away. They are obviously special to her and they each carry a different meaning in her heart! So letting go of some was a big step! :-) And even though it was difficult and she may miss a few, it needed to be done! We had over 100 stuffed animals!!! Crazy! Good job, Ella! Mommy and Daddy are proud of what a wonderful young lady you are becoming!

Snow Day

We had our first major snowstorm not just of this year, but the biggest one we've had in 10 years! 14" of snow and blizzard like conditions. Ella was out of school for two days and for the first day, we were literally "snowed in". We didn't get plowed out of our drive until about 10:00 Wednesday night. We spent some good family time while we were all holed up together.

After it calmed down a bit outside, Ella and I went out to take advantage of all the snow! First, we played in the front yard for a while. Pulling her around in the sled, playing King of the Mountain in the piles they plowed out of the cul de sac. After about 20 minutes of that, we decided to go hit the neighborhood sledding hill. This hill is in the neighbors side yard and a couple of years ago, he cleared several trees out of the way to make the perfect sledding path. We didn't get to go last year because I was pregnant and boy was I surprised this year when we went and saw what a great hill it is! It is the perfect size and it goes straight down to the ravine with nothing in your path! Ella had a ton of fun!!!

When we were ready to head home, Ella decided she wanted to walk the "back way", through the ravine. This is over 1/2 acre of hills/"ravine" territory. Lots of fallen trees, etc... It was quite the hike. Especially for a five year old and 14" of snow!! Some places were deep for even me. But I went first and kind of "cleared a path" for her and she followed along and did great! She made it about 3/4 way before she started complaining. HAHA! By the time we made it to our backyard, she wanted pulled in the sled. I don't blame her, that was quite the hike for a little girl! :-)

Basement

IT'S STARTED!!!! After 5 years of wishing our basement was done, we finally found the perfect person to do it! Tim started on Monday of this week, had a snow day in there and has made a ton of progress on the framing and it's only Saturday!! I hope his motivation lasts through the whole project. He anticipated it only taking 4-6 weeks and at this pace, I think he's spot on! The framing is almost done and it looks great!

We are so excited to be able to do this. It is going to add 2K sq. ft. to our home and provide a place for the kids and the adults to hang out! 1/2 will be a toy/game room and 1/2 will be a family room. I can't wait to spend family movie/game nights down there!!!

It's going to finally feel like our home is finished!

Movie Day

Today Ella gets to go see The Princess and the Frog with Nana. She is super excited. She has been waiting for the release date (yesterday) ever since she saw a preview about a month ago. I am going to meet Nana in Ames and they are going to the movie and then out to lunch together.

Hopefully, Chad and I can take the opportunity to get our Christmas shopping and basement shopping done!

Dad's 61st

Last night we celebrated Dad's 61st birthday at our house. Shera, Matt and the boys came to help us celebrate. We grilled steaks, had cake and ice cream, opened presents and then watched the Cyclones blow the Hawks away in basketball. It was a great night!

The boys wanted to spend the night, which I love!! I love the fact that they are 11 and still want to stay with us. We always have a good time. During dinner, Tyler told us that is science teacher had an experiment for him. If you mix shampoo and something acidic (he suggested lemon or orange juice), the mixture would taste like salt. I questioned his teacher's logic - she wants them to eat shampoo??? I asked Tyler, "that sounds a bit flaky to me, was your teacher a child of the 60's??" To which he responded very excitedly, "Yes. Oh my gosh, she even taught us the Macarena"!! HAHA! I know I'm old, but I'm not THAT old!!

Well, of course, I had to let them try the experiment. They were so excited to see if it would actually work. Hey, if you want to eat shampoo, that's your decision. HAHA. We modified it a bit and used Dawn dish soap. They mixed the concoction up and all three (including Ella) gave it a try. Before they tried it, Trevor said, "I bet it just tastes like sour shampoo". After trying it several times and adding more lemon juice hoping it would taste better each time, 3 out of 3 agreed...it tasted like soap. :-) Maybe it only works with shampoo.

Another new trick...

Aside from crawling, Avinn's other new trick this week is to pull himself up from a sitting position. He will do this with whatever is closest to him. The couch, his toys, my leg, the granite fireplace (my next post - his black eye), etc. He loves to do this and he's so proud of himself when he gets into a standing position. I have a feeling that cruising is only days away! He's growing up so fast!!

Crawling

The little man is a crawlin'!! How exciting! He started about 3 weeks ago, but he is 100% efficient at it now. He can even race the girls - and they usually let him win! He just loves that he's mobile now. He figured out pretty quickly that he can get from point A to point B with this new little trick. Watch out world, he's on his way....

We have a tooth!!!

About 2 days ago, Avinn sprouted his first tooth!! The bottom right one. Just today it actually started to surface above the gum line enough for him to feel it. Aunt Shera said he was fascinated with it today. Putting his finger in his mouth to feel it. :-)

I'm going to try to get a picture of it, but I'm not sure how cooperative he will be with that one!

Family Game Night with my nephews

My 11 yr. old nephews decided to spend the night tonight and to pass time, we decided on family game night. Oh my, I haven't laughed that hard in a really long time! I had tears in my eyes!!

First, was an intense game of Uno to start the night. Once Uncle Chad joined us, the boys wanted to try the game Taboo. Taboo is where you have a "guess" word with 5 "taboo" words under it. You need to try to get your teammate to guess the "guess" word without saying any of the "taboo" words. The boys were really getting into it. And towards the end, they were coming up with some really crazy stuff. For example, one of the "guess" words they had was "fudge". Trevor kept saying "it's something you eat and you can get it at SEARS". Chad and I were stumped!!! Finally, Trevor says, "OH, I MEAN YOU CAN GET IT AT SCHEELS"!! LOL!!! Of course Chad wouldn't let them live that one down - "I've never once had a piece of fudge in SEARS". About two words later, the "guess" word was "crabgrass". Tyler started out saying it's a "vegetable". WHAT?!? :-)

At this point we are all laughing so hard!! Well, the next clues we got from the boys were "rash" "it causes a rash" "it's GREEN" "Bears do it"....WHAT?!? Oh yeah, the word we were supposed to guess was "poison ivy". HAHAHAHAHA!!! Of course then Chad says, "oh yes, the bear that does poison ivy while eating fudge in Sears"!! The boys are laughing so hard and rolling around on the floor it was pointless to even finish the game. Chad and I thought it was pretty hysterical ourselves!

Now the boys have moved on to Backgammon. I'm hoping one of them wants me to play. I love Backgammon!

Ella says....

On the way home from the store tonight, Ella tells me that when we get home she is going to go out in the yard, stand in the rain and blow kisses up to Mia in heaven. She said, "even though I've never met her, I still love her very much. I bet she was a beautiful baby, Mommy". Boy did she get that right! I told Ella she looked just like her when she was a baby. Beautiful in every way!

Ella's compassion never ceases to amaze me! She is my precious little girl with a heart of gold!!

Thanksgiving

I am so looking forward to Thanksgiving next week! It is my favorite time of the year! I love the weather, spending the day with my family and reflecting on all the things I am thankful for - a list too long to mention. I need to start planning the menu. We are expecting a houseful again this year. I can't wait! I love having a houseful of family, cooking up yummy food and spending the day together. It's what it's all about.

I'm thinking we will do all the fixins again this year - Chad will do his turkey, sweet potato casserole, oyster dressing, mashed potatoes, stuffing, rolls, jello salad, and we will finish it off with pies and flavored coffee (maybe a little Bailey's or Kahlua - yummy). This year I am going to have a great helper in the kitchen. Tyler, who is my 11 year old nephew and a fantastic cook, will be helping Chad and I prepare the meal. I can't wait to see what he creates!!!

Ella's Letters

While Ella and I were coloring tonight, I decided to write her a letter telling her how much I love her. In return, she decided to write a letter to each of her family members. She did them all by herself, with only minor spelling help from me. She has such a kind heart!

The letter to Avinn...


"Dear A, I love you. You are a cute baby. Love - Ella"



"Dear Daddy, Love Ella. You are my great (greatest) daddy in the whole entire world. Love, Ellen"



"Dear Mommy, I love you. You make me laugh. You are my favorite mommy. I love you. Love, Ellen"

Our family- part two - Avinn

And now on to the little one - Anderson, Avinn, Avinn-ator, the midget, monster...

Anderson Vinncent came to us at a time our family needed a miracle most! I like to think he saved us. :-) Boy, I just don't know where we would be without him. It's hard enough to want a child as much as we wanted him (and his sister), but to be unsuccessful at it over and over and over again, well, it takes its toll. But, here he is!! Bringing more joy and love into our lives than we ever thought imaginable. We always tease that his sister has a "peanut gallery" face when she cries. Avinn is just the opposite, he has the biggest, happiest smile we have ever seen. This child can light up any mood with one of his smiles. Everyone comments on what a good baby he is and they are right! He is such a great baby!! He is happy all the time! And his baby blues will melt you to the core!

Avinn has had some minor health problems in his young life. Mostly respiratory related. We have been on nebulizer treatments, steroids and various other meds trying to get the little guy healthy. I'm thankful to say, we have finally achieved that! We went to the doc this week and he got a clean bill of health! Praise the Lord!

One of Avinn's favorite things to do is his new found talent of CRAWLING! He just learned to crawl this week and he shows off this new skill whenever he can. Oh the joys of child-proofing are among us again! This boy can boogie! He is also getting pretty good at pulling himself up on things. I'm sure he is going to be standing and walking before we know it.

As my friend Jill would say, Avinn is a "super-taster". haha! He is so particular about his food. Every meal is a struggle with him. He will make the funniest faces when you try to feed him anything he thinks he won't like. He will clam up and refuse to open that little mouth! What a stinker! I think we are going to have to move on to bigger and better things than that crappy jar stuff - table food is the next big step!! :-)

Aside from his normal favorite activity of stringing all of his toys out all over the living room, this guy loves to sing and read. He gets so excited when you get a book out. His favorites are, This is My Dance (boom pa-pa), Animal Friends (touch and feel book), and anything his sister will read him. Along with his love of reading, he adores singing and any kind of "music" he can make. I swear he is going to be a drummer. You start singing and he will grab the closest thing and start banging it on anything that will make a sound. He also LOVES to hear his daddy whistle.

One of Avinn's favorite toys is the Jumperoo. He can jump with the best of them. I was just noticing today that he was jumping so lively that he jumped right out of his socks. haha! He gets so excited and gets that thing going so fast and high. Then he'll stop and look at you with this huge grin - "aren't you proud of me?"!! :-) I wonder if one of these times he's going to jump so hard and so high he's gonna fly out of that thing!

Avinn is a wonderful baby with a lively, happy spirit! He brings joy to his entire family. Watching him grow is going to be one of the best times of our lives! I can't wait to see where this little guy's zest for life is going to take him! It'll be an adventure I can't wait to be a part of!

Getting to know our family - Ella

I will start with the oldest child of the Ray family. Ella, Ella-Belle, Elle, Ellie Pat, Lil' Bit...

Ella is an intelligent, vibrant, funny, sensitive, energetic, helpful five-year old girl. She is the sunshine of our eyes! The things she has taught us over the past five years have been priceless. She can bring a smile to anyone's face and is a joy to be around. She is so stinkin' smart, too!

Ella is finishing up the first half of her Kindergarten year. Her teacher says she is doing exceptionally well, especially reading. Every morning she is anxious to get to school and her favorite part of the day is "recess", of course. Ella is doing a fantastic job with her reading. She can read several full books. It is awesome to see her eyes light up when she sounds out a word and then finds out she is right. Way cool to experience that joy with her!

Some of Ella's favorite things to do when not in school are play with her little brother, do puzzles, read books and any kind of crafts, especially drawing! This girl LOVES to color and draw! She can spend hours with her tablet of paper and crayons! The only problem - what in the world do I do with all those creations?? She is absolutely heartbroken if she sees one "accidentally" placed in the recycling bin. :-) But seriously, we have gone through two whole pads of paper in a week! That's a lot of drawings to have to keep.

If you asked Ella today what she wanted to be when she grows up, she would tell you "an animal doctor". I think the one thing she loves more than drawing is her stuffed animals. We have what feels like hundreds of them! We have tried weeding through them, but she just can't seem to part with any. I once told her that we don't need to keep them all because she couldn't possibly play with every single one. Boy did she prove me wrong. For the next week, she had every single animal strung out around the upstairs. She had them grouped into "families" and by sizes and colors, etc... It was actually pretty neat to see how she categorized them in so many different ways. She sure does love her animals!

I am so excited to see this little girl grow in the next several years! She blows my mind everyday with something new she can do. She is constantly learning (and teaching)! She is a joy to be around and I love her with all my heart!

Welcome to the Ray Family Blog

I recently took note of a friend's blog, which they were using to keep friends and family updated on their beautiful little girl's heart surgery. I thought what a great way to keep friends and family in the loop on the happenings in our lives. I used to blog when our daughter, who is now five, was younger but slowly got away from doing so. Now that we have another little one, I thought it was a great time to start up again. I look back on the posts I did of Ella and I'm so glad I tracked things they way I did with her. Her progresses, her unfortunate incidents, the funny things she said, etc... I think it's only fair I keep track of her little brother's life the way I did hers. Not to mention, there is so much that is gong to happen over the next few years with BOTH of them as they grow and learn each day.

While I think facebook has done wonders with keeping out of town family and friends updated on what the Iowa Ray family is doing, I think that having a blogspot will give them the opportunity to see even more into our family and what is going on in a little more detail.

So, without further ado, welcome to the Ray Family's blogspot!! :-)