Funny Faces or Normal Faces.........

This picture is for Uncle Todd and Aunt Jill!

Last Christmas my favorite pic was the funny faces my brother and I made! This one might be my favorite now!

Kinect Fun

Since my brother never checks the blog I can get away with posting this video and Rob rarely looks at it so I should be safe. They (being my brother) brought back the Kinect gaming system and I have to say, we may have to break down and buy ourselves some sort of gaming toy. Wii or Kinect, oh the decisions we will have to make. We did play a lot of games on the Kinect and I think everyone got an ab work out just watching others play. We really found some joy in track and field. I am an excellent Javelin thrower-Not, yet Grandma Debbie is a spectacular Javelin thrower. We each had our own niches, especially Rob in the long jump. Table tennis was fun to watch as well, it is a bit unsettling watching the person next to you swat the air and you can fill the whiff from it. One word sums this up F-U-N!

Siblings

My Current Favorite Photo

Siblings are __________. This is my favorite photo out of all the photos we took this holiday break. I have a posed one of us that we took shortly after this one, but it doesn't compare to this. We of course were teasing and picking on each other. My brother hates taking pictures so he says. Here is what happens when we take pictures, he acts all disgusted as if it just ruined his day to be asked to take a photo or be in the photo, yet if you are taking it on your camera, he quickly pulls out his camera so he can get the shot on his camera as well. I think it is a macho front and he secretly likes pictures like I do, he just doesn't want to admit it to me and give me that glory and satisfaction. So when I pulled out my camera to take a picture of us together he gave me the geesh act, and then for some reason we both without being prompted decided to ruin the picture for the other. He went with the squeeze your eyes and face tight approach while I went with the classic Ellery smile (smile til your face hurts). I think this might get framed, I know Papaw has currently replaced my kids as his desktop photo with his own kids. I seriously can't look at it without laughing. I personally think it looks like Todd is trying to pass some uncomfortable gas and I just got a nasty whiff of it!

Christmas with Nana

We had Christmas with Nana again in Omaha this year. We had Grandma Gray over, but I never broke out the camera. She witnessed the shredding of paper and the kids playing with toys. Nana gave the kids winged PJ's again this year and they are a huge hit and yet again I never broke out the camera.

Another huge hit was the baby doll Nana gave Ellery. It jumps up and down and giggles. Ellery and Bryson really enjoyed playing with the new doll.

Uncle Todd and Aunt Jill gave Mason Buzz wings. I don't think I need to elaborate anymore on how thrilled he was with this new toy.

Lastly we had some fun on the Wii. Nana brought up Wii Dance and oh boy was it fun. Isabella gets the gold star on dance moves and improvising. I was impressed with my kids dance skills as well. Rob refused to even try, bah hum bug!

A Trip To the Zoo

We hit the Omaha zoo today with the family. Our zoo really is amazing and a lot of fun. The highlight of this trip was seeing a Bernese Python eating a white bunny rabbit. We missed the initial feeding. We didn't get to see if bunny was alive when put in the cage or the capture. We did however get to witness the squeezing of the bunny and the jaw unhinge to eat the bunny. It was a mixed emotion moment. Initially I wasn't going to let the kids see or explain what was going on, but they were really into watching the snake eat. We went with the survival of the fitness explanation with emphasis on everyone has to eat and that snake eats bunnies. I don't know why I keep saying bunny it was a full grown rabbit. We watched until all we could see was two bunny feet sticking out the mouth of the snake. I think everyone really enjoyed the zoo experience. We also had a duck that was interested in trying to eat everyone through the glass.

KU vs Nebraska Football Game

We headed to our yearly game at Memorial Stadium. I am so sad that they are leaving the Big 12 because we won't be able to watch our team as easily. We know our team doesn't excel in football, but we are faithful fans. We did have good company at the game and fun was had by all. I was impressed that Jill handled the cold so gracefully being from Alabama. It wasn't as cold as we thought it was going to be. It felt like someone turned up the ac a little too high, cold but bearable. My team lost, but we wore our blue with pride and we were easily to find when separated from the group. On our walk in an old man asked me if I was going to college at KU. I immediately gave him a "Bless You" for thinking I looked like a college student and told him I was old enough to have 3 small children at home and was done with college. Old men have always loved me and I think he was hitting on me or he was just a foolish Nebraska fan.
On a crazy note: When we came to the game last year we saw people wearing the white hat modeled above by my brother Todd. We looked and looked for them, but were unable to find the vendor and settled for a different white fleecy hat. I have peeked for them over the past year, but not very hard. We spotted a man wearing one off in the distance. I joked with my brother and told him we could scout him out and offer to buy it off his head. He laughed and joked with me about it, but when I went to the bathroom I went and scouted the man out and bought it literally off his head for $20. He wanted $25, but I got it for $20. I had to remind him that it was "used".

Bald and Bald

My brother and his wife are in town visiting. I asked my brother to put the baby down, one might mistake Bryson as his. I was surprised how much oogling and googling my brother did over him. Very sweet.












I couldn't keep the baby out of Jill's arms. I will have to jillerizer Bryson after she leaves. He would barely make a peek on his playmate and Jill would scoop him up in nothing flat. I don't think Bryson cried much. It will be a hard does of reality when she leaves and I have no choice but to put him down to cry to tend to the other children. He sure is our cuddlier.

Visitors from Alabama

They plowed our street early this morning and just in time for my brother to get here with his family from Alabama. Nana was supposed to arrive this evening as well, but she hit some ice on the way up and ended up in a ditch. Luckily she wasn't hurt and pulled out quickly, but she decided to stay at a hotel for the evening and is coming up in the morning. A little too much action for my taste, but we are happy she is ok. My brother and his family were excited to see so much snow and really enjoyed playing in it. The things we take for granted and are soooo tired of they are excited for.

Nebraska Football Game

A big draw on the reason Todd came to visit was because we got him tickets to the Nebraska football game. We picked the K-State game before it became such a big game. We had a lot of fun going to the game. Rob and I wore KU shirts under out coats and Todd kept telling me I was an embarrassment to him. We thought it was going to be colder so layers were shed and since Todd got a new Nebraska jacket he asked me to wear it so it wouldn't get dirty, I think it was just to cover up my KU shirt. We posed in Nebraska wear for a photo opportunity and to make my brother happy. We enjoyed ourselves, but I think my brother enjoyed himself more.

He Comes with Gifts

My brother is here visiting and his family wasn't able to come back with him. We get to see them next month or I would have stomped my feat harder on having them come, but next time I won't take no for an answer. Anyways, he came bearing gifts for my children, and I know he didn't have the idea or do the shopping so a big THANK YOU to Aunt Jill. I believe this is Ellery's first specific "girl" toy other than the baby dolls. She is in heaven talking on her princess cell phone. She also got a grooming kit with a blow dryer that actually blows, plastic lipstick, perfume, brush, curlers, etc. We have witnessed her blowing her hair with one hand while tousling her hair with the other then applying lipstick. She loves it, but I think Mason loves his Buzz Lightyear action figure more. He was thrilled like we have never seen when Uncle Todd had him close his eyes and then open them to see Buzz. We let him watch most of Toy Story the other day and he has been imitating Buzz and flying every where we go. It has been a profound impact on him. He slept with Buzz last night and asks to take him to the store. Rob even caught him saying that his prized stuffed animal Double and Buzz are now really good friends.

We didn't get our heigh from our Great Grandma

We defiantly didn't get our height from Great Grandma Gray, but we could have gotten it from her Papa he was 6' 2". Todd said it perfectly when he said she was like a soldier the way she gets around. She is a strong 97.
My brother came to visit us in Omaha because we have tickets to the Nebraska K-State game tomorrow. We should have moved here sooner, if all it takes for a visit is Husker tickets. Also, for a man who doesn't like shopping, he is a kid in a candy store right now with all of the Nebraska paraphernalia.

Stop Holding Your Breath

I can't believe I am saying this but my brother has started blogging. I can't believe it. We set them up with a blog and showed them how when we were back for our visit, but I wasn't holding my breath for anything. I wasn't going to be pushy in asking when they were going to start, but I went out to check if they had posted and too my surprise they had. Yiiippppeeeeee. I hope everyone enjoys watching his family grow as well.
http://bamabrooks.blogspot.com/