Sweet Question

This morning around 6:30, Avery came in my room while I was still laying in bed and asked me a question. She grabbed my hand and asked:

"Mom, did you see Jesus a long time ago?"

I was still kind of half asleep, so I wasn't sure if I heard her right. "What did you say Avery?" I asked.

"Did you see Jesus a long time ago?"

My answer to her was that, yes, I had seen Jesus a long time ago before I was born and that she saw Him too before she was born. We don't remember though because that was a long time ago when we were in heaven.

Avery's response was, "Oh, okay, Mom. I'm going to go get dressed now." Then she went in her room and got dressed for school. It was a short conversation, but a question I will never forget. I love that girl :)

Ostrich Farm

On Thursday, we went to the Ostrich Farm with Hayden's preschool group. The girls had so much fun there! We went last year too with Avery's group and it was a really great experience for the kids. We didn't spend a lot of time with the ostrich this year because both Avery and Hayden got bitten by them last time. They are pretty vicious - especially when you are trying to feed them.These are the deer that the kids got to feed. Hayden actually did all the feeding and Kiley was content just sticking her fingers in each of the animals' mouths. They are definitely not scared of animals!This Hole in the Wall was a new exhibit this year. There are a bunch of holes in the wall where the goats stick their heads out for you to feed and pet them. It is really fun. All the goats have bells on their necks too so you can hear them when they poke their heads through.For some reason Kiley wouldn't stand up next to the goats. She would just sit or lay down and stick her fingers in their mouths. Thankfully they didn't bite!This is Hayden's friend Kaitlyn. She is a friend from our neighborhood and is in Hayden's preschool group.The donkeys were fun to feed also. Hayden was in love with the baby donkey.Once again, Kiley was getting up close and personal in their mouths. I'm really surprised she didn't get bitten by any of them!My baby :)The lorikeet aviary is a lot of fun too. They will land just about anywhere - especially if you have nectar to feed them. The guy who worked there put one of them on Hayden's head and she was so excited. Kiley was running around chasing the birds wherever they went. She said, "Birdie! Birdie!" about a thousand times. It was cute. As soon as I opened the lid to the nectar, there were four or five lorikeets that landed on me all trying to get some. It was really funny. One of the moms in there had birds going all the way up here arms and on her head. I think Hayden got the idea to have one on her head from her.

We had such a great time at the Ostrich Farm. In case any of you are wondering, it is located about 10 miles south of Casa Grande. Kids and adults over 5 years old cost $5 which includes the animal & bird feed and kids 5 and under are FREE. So it is very inexpensive and the kids will definitely have a great time :) You can look at their website here for directions and information about their monster truck tours as well.

Christmas 2009

Well, better late than never, right? I am finally posting our Christmas pics. The first two are of Avery and Hayden with Santa at our ward Christmas party. This was actually their FIRST time sitting on Santa's lap. I know - I am a bad parent, but we have not lived by a real mall for more than 5 years, so that has something to do with it :)

On the Monday night before Christmas, I found out that Santa would be at the Dillard's here, so the girls got to take pictures with Santa again. They are kinda blurry because I just copied and pasted from the website that they were uploaded to instead of purchasing the photos for a fortune.Avery and Hayden had a great time, but Kiley was not digging the whole Santa thing.The Sunday night before Christmas, we had dinner and a nice evening at Brandon's dad's house. They got all of us fleece sweatshirts, which have been worn almost every day since then. Christmas Eve was spent at my parents' house. We had Mexican food, had a white elephant gift exchange, and hung out with cousins and family. My parents got us a new vacuum (hooray) and a Best Buy gift card for Brandon, as well as lots of fun toys for the girls. Unfortunately, we forgot our camera at both houses :( but we had a great time.Christmas morning was so much fun this year! I think it gets better every year as our kids get older. Santa brought Avery a new Barbie scooter, Hayden a collection of Littlest Pet Shops, and a Sit-and-Spin toy for Kiley.Kiley and Ginger hanging out with all the wrapping paper.Avery also got a new toy guitar which plays five different songs just by strumming your fingers on it. It's pretty fun actually. After opening presents, we had our usual fried mush, sausage, and orange julius breakfast. We invited the missionaries to partake in the feast with us and it was fun to have them over. I wish we had taken a picture with them, but the cameras were resting for a few hours that day.After breakfast, we got dressed and went up to Grandma Dorothy's house (Brandon's mom) and had lunch, opened gifts, and played at the park. The girls got a Littlest Pet Shop Adoption Center playhouse, which they love, and tons of new Littlest Pet Shops to add to their collection. Brandon and I got the Beatles Rock Band game and a beautiful clock from his sister Erin.

Grandma Dorothy with Avery.Grandma and Hayden.Grandma and Kiley.Grandma and Eliza (cousin).Mommy & Kiley.Avery testing out the new scooter. She LOVES that thing!

Kiley running around. The park is a great place for her :)

Hayden running around at the park with Ginger. It was such a gorgeous day and everyone had such a great time at the park. After the park, we drove home in the afternoon, ate cereal for dinner and watched one of the new movies we got for Christmas. It was such a fun and relaxing day. I love Christmas!!