A short break from updates...

...for some "just-because-I-love-'em" pictures:
Pictures from December






Pictures from November






Pictures from October

....and on...

Very beginning of December...
Arlington Stake Nativity Display
Every year for many, many years, our stake has hosted a nativity display. They transform the stake center into an incredibly beautiful "museum" of nativities...usually displaying hundreds of different sets. It really was a phenoenal feat....I wish I had taken more pictures, but here are a few.

In addition to the nativities, they also had live music almost the whole time, free dress-up/photo op for families, a room with videos showing, missionaries available to answer questions, and a craft and storytime room for the kids.

Tylie got a coloring book, and a craft kit to make her own Baby Jesus ornament.The ornament never made it to our Christmas tree. Tylie played with it, took it apart, rocked Baby Jesus to sleep, etc.

Posing in front of the tree with her new ornament.

Being sweet sisters and holding still just long enough for the shutter to click.

Haha...funny looks on both faces.

The kids room had a variety of nativities that the little ones were allowed to play with. I think Tylie would have been happy sitting here all night.

We opted out of the family picture opportunity. The line was too long, and Brent and I were less than enthusiastic about playing dress-up. :)

We had a really nice time, and will probably come back every year. It was really beautiful, and the spirit in the building was incredible. It was a great kick-off for the month, and helped us start to feel the spirit of the holiday season.

....and on....and on....

The day after Thanksgiving...
Most people were out at the crack of dawn hitting all the stores for their biggest sales of the season. I hear it's totally worth the savings if you get the items you set out for, but I haven't been convinced enough to give up a couple hours of precious sleep for it....I cherish all the sleep I can get these days! So, instead of going shopping, we slept in and then took the girls on a special little outing to the Fort Worth Stockyards. This is basically a western/cowboy/Jackson-Hole-like town with little shops, a periodic gunfight show, and a few entertaining activities. Now, this place was definitely worth it! We had such a great day, and without spending hardly any money...I love this place!
Tylie and I comparing our arm span to the horn span of a Texas longhorn. Riding a little wooden horse in the shopping area. Hanging out with some cowboys. Ever since this trip, everytime we go out in public and Tylie sees a guy wearing a cowboy hat she shouts out enthusiastically, "I see a cowboy!" Lol...

There were a bunch of guys and gals riding around on horses. All of them were really friendly, and the girls enjoyed petting the horses.

Then we sat down on the curb to await one of the highlights of the little western town---the cattle drive! Every day at the same time they drive a herd of longhorn cattle down the road...very short, but the girls got a kick out of it.

There was also a neat little petting farm. Both of our girls were anything but shy around all the animals....they wanted to pet everything. I think they would have stayed all day if Brent and I had been up to it. But, we had lot of other things to see as well.Sometimes I wish we had one of these little "prisons" in our home! Haha! Oh....I hope this is not in our future...

We also spent a little time in a museum there, but didn't take any pictures. It was a nice little place with some really cool old items. We enjoyed it a lot more than the girls did, I'm sure.

We put the girls down in front of this car that had huge longhorns attached to it. You can't see the horns in this pic, but this was such a cute one of Tylie and Kaelisse.

We got an early jump on the Christmas season when we bumped into Santa Clause! The girls were happy (and Tylie was EXCITED) to sit on his lap and get a candy cane...but they got camera shy and wouldn't smile. Oh well...still priceless.

We really had such a great time. Maybe while we're in Texas we'll make this little day trip a tradition. Anyone want to come along?!?

Updates go on....

Thanksgiving was fabulous! Lots of food, family, and fun. As always, we had more than enough food, and felt ever-so blessed!
Tylie wants to be just like her daddy!
Just before the feast.Tylie made this cute turkey in her nursery class on Sunday. We used it as our only Thanksgiving centerpiece. She was happy it was on the table with us. Hope Thanksgiving was as good to all of you as it was to us. The list of things we are thankful for is eternally long, and grows everyday!

Updates Continue

This was the middle of November...right before Thanksgiving.
One of Brent's friends from work invited us to Waco, TX to watch a basketball game. We had nothing else going on that evening, and were up for a bit of an adventure, so we made the drive (close to two hours with traffic and all) and watched UTA play against Baylor University (UTA got beat). It was Kaelisse's first basketball game, and I think she had a pretty good time.
Tylie, of course, enjoyed the basketball for a while, loved people watching, instantly wanted to sit with and talk to Brent's friends instead of us, and... ...quickly made friends with the little girl sitting in front of us. She is such a socialite!

More updates...

Also in November...

We have this incredibly cool park near our house that has many wonderful features including: a HUGE grassy play area, multiple park benches, numerous pavilions, an exercise area, a children's playground, miles and miles of trails (paved and unpaved for biking or walking), a river, a zillion turtles, and the occasional armadillos. We enjoy taking the stroller out and hiting the trails whenever we need some fresh air. This trip to the park was particularly fun because Tylie had so much energy and she was very excited to be there.

Tylie was so cute, running her little heart out along the trails! Gosh, isn't it great to be a kid!

Brent and Tylie exploring the woods a little. I love the age Tylie is at right now...she is fascinating and intrigued by everything. Even small things catch her attention and interest her.

Tylie and Kaelisse playing together and exploring this large rock. Tylie was learning about bugs and leaves--Kaelisse was learning about the flavor of bugs and leaves.Man, it can be exhausting playing for such a long time in a place this big!