"Oh, Christmas Tree..."

Kara and Joshua really had fun decorating the tree. Nada had fun pulling at the tinsel garland.

Skipping Thanksgiving, i.e., The Master Cleanse

Brian and I did this detox diet (that you can read more about here, here, and here) to cleanse our insides and to feel better. At first it was difficult not eating any solid food, especially not being able to eat the kids' food that I prepared for them, but after a couple days it wasn't so bad. I loved the energy this diet gave me and the simplicity of the drink. It was great not having to come up with meals: just drink a lemonade! Not intending to, I lost about 13 pounds (5 of which I gained right back after eating again). It so happened that Thanksgiving came and went this year while we were on the diet, so we just skipped it. The kids didn't know any better, and I sure didn't miss cooking all day. (Brian missed eating, though.) I'll probably do the cleanse again in six months or so, and Brian even said that he might do it again, too. I highly recommend trying this to resolve any health problem as an alternative to medications or surgery. I love it!

Last Sea World Trip

We had to take one more trip to Sea World before our season passes expire at the end of the year. It was Thanksgiving afternoon, and hardly anyone was there! We liked seeing all their Christmas decorations, watching the shows and animals, and enjoying the mild weather.

Standing

Nada pulls herself up to stand all the time now. She thinks she's good.

USAA 5K

We continued our tradition this year of walking the 5K at Brian's work. The first time we did this (in 2006), we only had Kara, and I was preggo with Joshua. We've grown a bit since then!

waiting for the race to begin




And we're off!


Nada conked out after about 20 minutes.



family shot with our matching T-shirts

My Little Helpers

Big brother and sister like to help. So sometimes I'll let them do this while I make dinner. It keeps all of them occupied. :)

Laughter