Becky's 28th Golden Birthday

Today we celebrated my 28th birthday. The family came over and we ate... once again! KFC and birthday cake was on the menu today. The boys watched the Bears lose while the girls sat and visited with each other. The kids ran around and played nicely together.

Kelsey helping me open my birthday presents.

I got two new pieces for my St. Nicholas Village.

The girls and Jacob lounging around.

Haley showing that she is ready to babysit soon!!

Mommy is wanting a kiss from Kelsey who is not

wanting to give her one right now!

Addie got spoiled and took a wonderful nap on grandma.

Papa and Logan watching the Bears game.

Addie playing on Jacob's lion.

Christmas in Indy

Steve, Jacob, and I drove to Indy on Christmas Eve to spend the holidays with Steve's side of the family. Jacob got to see his grandma Eileen and grandpa Bud, his Uncle Brian and Aunt Penny who made the trip from PA, his great grandma Suzy and his Aunt Cheryl and her boyfriend Bob. Jacob also got to spend time with his two cousins Melissa and Sam. We spent our time opening lots of wonderful presents and eating a delicious ham and potatoes meal that Eileen made. We also ate lots of cookies, cakes, and brownies! The rest of the time we spent visiting and telling stories. We packed up and left Friday morning because Steve had to work that day at noon. We were on 465 when we decided to turn around due to an ice storm that hit northern Indiana. We went back to Bud and Eileen's house for a few hours while the ice melted. We left again around 4 and finally made it back home. Steve didn't make it to work but we really had no choice. We had lots of rain and fog on the drive home but we made it. Jacob slept the whole way there and back so that was great! Enjoy the pictures below...

Bud, Eileen and Steve standing by the Christmas tree.

Jacob loves his stocking gifts!

Melissa, Jacob, and Sam on Christmas day.

Jacob with his Aunt Cheryl.

Penny showing off her new sweatshirt!

Grandma Suzy spending time with two of her great grand kids.

Jacob and Uncle Brian.

Early Christmas

(Minus Steve, Clay, and Ariel from the picture)

We celebrated Christmas Eve a few days early with my side of the family because many of us have other family members that we will be spending Christmas with. Steve, Jacob and I will be in Indy for Christmas with Steve's side of the family. (Stay tuned for our future blog of Christmas in Indy)
Every year for Christmas Eve we gather together at my mom and dad's house. Their house is always neatly decorated with Christmas cheer and with a warm, cozy fire in the fire place. We have lots of food and presents to open. The only difference this year was that we had two new members of the family which made it extra special! Addie and Jacob got to spend their first Christmas together. It is hard to believe that last year at this time we had two pregnant sisters and this year we have Addie who is crawling all over the place with her first tooth and Jacob who is almost 6 months old! Time sure flies. As usual, grandma and grandpa joined us from Bass Lake. Luckily they were both feeling good and the weather wasn't too bad (except for the frigid air) for them to come. Grandma Joyce made her usual phone call so everyone was able to talk to her and wish her a merry Christmas. She was kind enough not to rub in the wonderfully warm weather they are having in Florida. Enjoy the pictures below...


Haley and Logan...what a great picture! They must
know Santa is always watching.


Kelsey and Addie...another great picture! Kelsey loves
having a little sister to run around with...well most of time!


Jacob and papa Bernie. Jacob is well on his way to
having more hair than his great grandpa.


Mom and grandma enjoying the tasty treats.


Mom and dad with their FIVE grand kids!!! I think
there might be room for one more down the road.


Grandma and grandpa opening up their clock from us
and the Chapeks in California.


Logan got Star Wars, Transformers, and car things for Christmas.


Kelsey got books, toys, and a suitcase with wheels for Christmas.


Haley got clothes, jewelry, and hair accessories just to name a few for Christmas.


Jacob's and Addie's first Christmas. They got lots of
toys and cute outfits.


Haley read The Night Before Christmas this year and
did an excellent job!

Slippery Santa

Today the entire family packed up, bundled up, and drove downtown to see Santa. Last year we were very disappointed when Santa didn't show up, so this year we were all hoping with anticipation that he would! After some time, we saw a jolly looking man park his truck in the street and we all cheered as he got out of his car. To our major disappointed, the man turned and starting walking towards the bank. This was not Santa. When we were starting to think Santa wasn't coming, out of no where Haley spots a red suit, white beard, big belly, and black boots. Sure enough Santa was here!! While we waited anxiously for Santa to unlocked his red house, he almost bites the dust! The ramp to his house was like a ice skating rink! After many attempts of slipping and sliding, Santa finally made it in. We followed not far behind. Santa came out with salt but it was still very slippery but finally we made it in. Kelsey was still a little unsure of the man in the red suit so she and grandma and grandpa watched from the window outside. We did let Santa know that she wants a purple dinosaur for Christmas. The rest of the kids took turns sitting on Santa's lap and told him what they want for Christmas while the adults (well, at least me) dreading making it down the icy ramp again. All in all our trip was fun... and of course with many laughs!!!


Haley was the first brave one to jump on

Santa's lap.

Logan was next to jump on!

This is what Kelsey thought of Santa!

Addie was not a big fan of Santa this year. I think

she was agreeing with Kelsey with finger up the nose!


"Uhhhh...what's going on?," says Jacob.

Happy Turkey Day!

We celebrated Thanksgiving at the Rivera's house this year. Amy and Ariel had their house looking festive and the table looking great with gifts for all. The boys fried a turkey in the garage and we also had a turkey in the oven. Everybody brought a dish or two so needless to say, we had more than enough food. We were very fortunate to have grandma Marie and grandpa Bernie join us even with bad colds and not feeling great. We were thinking about grandma Joyce down in Florida enjoying the sunshine on her Thanksgiving day! It was Jacob's and Addie's first Thanksgiving. Jacob slept right through dinner (which mommy and daddy were thankful for) and Addie ate away in her highchair. She was a big fan of the rice that uncle Ariel made. Haley, Logan, and Kelsey enjoyed their meals at the kiddy table. We all ate too much then managed to find room for pie. Keep your eyes open for the 2008 addition of World Records because mom and Amy broke the world record for cleaning the kitchen and dinning room in the fastest time. We were all so proud! To end the perfect meal, we all vegged on the couches and watched football. Some even got a quick cat nap in before leaving for round 2 at other relatives' houses. Here are some pictures from our day...


Haley, Logan, and Kelsey eating at the kiddy table!


Addie's first Thanksgiving! She already knows it will be one of her favorites! Daddy and uncle Ariel are giving her pumpkin pie and cool whip for the first time!! Yummy!



This is the photo we chose to publish in the 2008 World Record Book.



Grandma and grandpa both happy with full bellies!



Papa Jim and Haley eating their favorite...black olives!!



Kelsey is telling mommy about a boy at day care that she has her eyes on!



Mommy and daddy with full bellies and Jacob after his nap!



After many attempts, a cute picture of all the cousins!

OTHER PHOTOS....

Baby Food!

Jacob had his first helping of baby food on Monday. He had green beans and loved them. It has a little more flavor than the rice cereal and soy bottles. Next on the menu will be sweet peas and sweet potatoes. Before we know it, he will be chowing down on steak and bbq ribs.

Follow the yellow brick road...

Introducing for the first time the 2008 edition of the Wizard of Oz. Here is the brilliant and talented cast: Kelsey as the cowardly lion, Addie as the scarecrow, Logan as the tin man, Jake as a flying monkey and Haley as Dorthy. Aren't they cute???
Haley and Logan loved their costumes. Haley also had a basket that she carried around ToTo with. Logan carried around an ax to help complete his costume. They both came from their school Halloween parties that they had a lot of fun at. Kelsey wasn't a big fan of her costume until the day of Halloween. She loved it so much she didn't want to take it off! Addie really did love her costume. She just needed some food in her belly. Jacob hated his costume so much he decided to spit up all over it right before picture time.

Happy Halloween everyone!

Old Man

Over the weekend, we celebrated Steve's 30th birthday! Steve's family came up from Indy on Sunday to help celebrate. It was a nice visit and Jacob sure enjoyed seeing everyone again! We ate lots of food and watched the Bears get another victory and the Colts lose. Happy Birthday Steve!

Steve is receiving his "30 birthday spankings" from his mom!

Halloween Decorations

Today Steve spent his birthday (which I will blog about after this weekend) decorating the outside of our house with scary Halloween decorations. We took some pictures for those of you who can't make it here for trick or treating...enjoy!

Rice Cereal

Today we fed Jake rice cereal for the first time. Lately he seems to be getting bored with his soy bottles so we thought it was time to change it up a bit. We assembled the new high chair, slapped on his "chicks dig me" bib and gave it a whirl. Considering it was his first try, he did pretty well. He probably got more on his face and bid than in his stomach but he seemed to be enjoying himself. His four month well baby check up is November 4. We will explore more solid foods then. For now, we will stick with the soy bottles and rice cereal. We will keep you updated.

Breast Cancer Corn Hole Fundraiser

This Saturday we went to the Village for a breast cancer fundraiser. There was a corn hole tournament, raffles, live music, and much more. It was all for a great cause and a lot of fun! Sue Richmond (picture above) and her family and friends were the ones who put the event together. What a wonderful job they all did. The corn hole tournament was a blast even though Steve and I did not perform well! It was double elimination and we were out after playing 4 games. Unfortunately, the rest of the family didn't do much better except for Ariel and his partner Matt. They made it all the way to the championship game but ended up losing at the last minute. We were all proud anyway!

The Mason's win the award for matching sweatshirts. What great team spirit they have. As you can see by Clay's facial expression, he is already planing their "matching" outfit for next year!