Christmas 2013

Our first Christmas in Lubbock in our new house.  It was wonderful.  The weather was chilly and we actually had some snow around.  There was a lot of lego building and good food to eat thanks to Dad.  The night before Christmas Eve I got really sick...like REALLY sic.  Influenza and Phenomiena sick. We thought Christmas was going to be a bust.  We couldn't go out on Christmas Eve like we originally planned.  But Dad went to Costco and stocked up on all things good and tasty.  We spent the evening watching movies and relaxing.  Christmas morning was perfect.  Our first Christmas with William.  The kids spent the day playing with their new presents and we enjoyed reflecting on all the many blessings we have.

GT Projects

Natali & Isaac have been working on projects for their GT class.  Each had to pretend to be an immigrant coming to Elise Island.  They had to learn a new trait, something their "made up" immigrant would have used.

Natali wanted to learning how to paint pottery.

Isaac wanted to learn how to cook a meal.  Since he was from England he made Yorkshire pudding!! It was a family hit!! They were both so proud of themselves!!

Snow Day

Lubbock gets a little colder than central Texas...and we love it!  (not the wind and dirt so much...but the cold yes)  Last night texts and emails came saying that church was cancelled.  Apparently freezing rain plus snow on top does not make for a great driving situation.  A lesson we learned well back in Iowa.  This morning the kids were OVER the MOON when they woke up to white stuff outside!  As soon as they could they changed into some snow gear and made their way out.  Love seeing their excitement and red cold faces.  Spencer asked where Santa was...crazy kid. He aslo wrote a note to Jack Frost thanking him for the snow....someone may have watched Rise of the Guardians one to many times!

William the smart kid he is opted to stay inside, snuggle, and eat some breakfast!  He's a genuis I tell ya!

Thanksgiving 2013

This year for Thanksgiving we decided to do something a little different.  Instead of spending days & hours in the kitchen baking and cleaning we thought we'd let someone else do the work.  We went to a hotel here in town, The Overton, and partook of their Thanksgiving Buffet.  The food was much better in theory...but coming home to a clean kitchen was pretty amazing.  The kids thought it was fun and LOVED eating from the dessert buffet.  Not sure that this will be a new tradition.  But for our first Thanksgiving in Lubbock...it will be memorable!!

Our most very favorite Turkey bum ever!

Baby Willer's 8 months

8 months with sweet baby William in our life.  What did we do without him (oh ya...sleep)?! We ALL love this bundle of chunky goodness.  Whenever we go out I usually get some comment about his hair..."oh you have a red head!".  Ha...the jokes on them...I got TWO.  My bookends.  William lights up when anyone talks to him.  He's usually easy to make giggle.  He isn't super stable yet will sitting up but he's slowly getting there.  Just today I laid him on the floor, left the room to grab something, and when I came back he had pushed himself up in to a sitting position (kinda).  He rolls, gets up on his hands and knees, wiggles himself backwards, has 2 bottom teeth, loves to feed himself baby puffs, and not surprisingly LOVES to eat.  He is a momma's boy...if he sees me he wants me to hold him.  Most days I love it, but sometimes I just need him to be content in his saucer.  He isn't my best napper or sleeper but I am grateful for what he does do.  Recently I took him in for an appointment and he weighed 18. something pounds.  Doctor just said, "big boy!" I love this baby.  He is sweet and squishy and mine.  Happy 8 months Will...

Halloween 2013

Baby Pumpkin, Ninja Turtle, Vampire, Ninja, Pirate, and Princess...we LOVE Halloween time!  We enjoyed school costume parades, ward trunk-or-treating, and trick-or-treating around our neighborhood.  Happy Halloween!!!

 Each baby has worn this outfit....a little small but still cute!

Ward Trunk-or-Treating

(complete with matching trick-or-treat bags made by mom & grandma)

School parade...Ninja Bubba 

 Princess Natali

Pumpkin Baby

Grandma's Visit

In October I was so very lucky to have my mom come out and visit for 2 weeks!  It was wonderful.  It was her first trip to see us in Lubbock and I was so excited to show her around and see where we were calling HOME.  We got SO much done in those two weeks...crafting, decorating, organizing, shopping, cleaning and more!  I can't believe how much more we got done with having 2 of us.  It was so nice to have another set of hands to hold the baby, fold laundry, load and unload dishes, and help the kids after school.  I tried to convince her not to EVER leave.  Her visit was exactly what I needed right then.

 Mom was here for her birthday so we were able to spoil and celebrate her.  We blew up balloons, ate a special Chick-fil-a breakfast and spent the day together.  That night (Friday) we kept with Fluhman tradition and had pizza and a movie.  Instead of the traditional birthday cake Mom opted for an ice cream sundae bar...the kids thought it was SO COOL.  Later the next week was the school book fair & family fun night.  Mom and I took the kids.  There were games, balloon animals, and face painting.  The kids thought it was pretty special to show Grandma their new school.

Grandma got to spend lots of time with this little man.  She changed MANY MANY diapers (thank you) and got him ready for bed most nights.  They spent lots of snuggle time in his room and Grandma got to use those messy baby meal time feeding skills!  It was SO VERY appreciated.  As anticipated those 2 weeks flew by too fast.  Thankfully though while she was here we scheduled and booked her tickets for her next visit.  We are ALL already counting down till Grandma comes again!