Desert Museum

The kids and I love to visit the Desert Museum at least once a year.  Here Aria is looking at a tiny hummingbird in a tree.  The Desert Museum has an aviary filled with hummingbirds.

 



The museum has a cave with animals and gemstones from the desert.  Aria is trying on some bat ears here.  This is how big the ears would be relative to her body size.

 

Aria's Dance Class

Aria took another ballet class this fall and Zade did a Movers and Shakers class.  Last year Aria was nervous to participate in the class, but this year Aria was the most mature and followed directions better than any other class member.  It's amazing how much growth takes place in one year.

Tofu
 Here Aria is showing the disgust she felt about the idea of eating fried tofu.  She is a master at facial expressions.

Tucson Family Festival
Dane and I took the kids to a family festival at the park put on by the parks and recreation department.

 



Siblings and Friends
Aria and Zade know how to fight, but thankfully they also know how to play.

Tucson Zoo Lights
The Tucson Zoo puts up lights every Christmas.  The kids particularly liked this display that had lights flashing in sync with the music.

Lets See Santa Again
Fry's super market brought in Santa for a day and even had him sit on a chair made from coke can boxes.  This is Aria and Zade's third time seeing Santa for the year, but the first time that we've gotten good pictures.

Aspiring Auto Mechanics

Zade invented the idea of "fixing" his play cars.  Aria joined in on the fun.  They pumped up the tires, fixes screws, hammered things, and Aria made sure to wash the car down and apply generous amounts of lotion so that it would "smell good."  Zade has enjoyed fixing his cars on almost a daily basis.

 

Sugar Cookies

We can't have Christmas without baking and frosting sugar cookies.

 



 

 Olive Garden
Dane and I took the kids to the Olive Garden.  Aria and Zade were soooo hungry because they hadn't eaten a decent breakfast or lunch.  "Breadsticks!" they kept calling out.  Aria ended up eating three breadsticks, afterwards she clutched her stomach and rolled around on the bench.  "Oh, I shouldn't have eaten that last breadstick!" she cried out, over and over again.  

It's so nice to have Dane less busy and more able to spend time with the family.  We have missed him!

 

Winterhaven Christmas Lights

One of our favorite Christmas traditions is seeing the amazing light displays put on in the local Winterhaven neighborhood.

  

U Cut Christmas Tree
After 9 years of marriage, Dane and I decided to visit his family for Christmas in Oregon, instead of mine in Utah.  Here we are at a local tree farm, picking out and cutting down our Christmas tree.  It's so much more fun to have a real tree, instead of a fake one.

 

 Papas Pizza
We went with Kari, Dane's sister, and her three children, to Papa's Pizza for dinner.  The kids loved playing on the indoor playground, even though it was so cold in the room, it felt like it was an outdoor playground.