Boating on Patagonia Lake

The weather warmed up the week after Christmas (as if it wasn't already warm for us!), so on Thursday we decided to go boating on Lake Patagonia. The boys were SO excited. We ate lunch when we got there, and then put the boat in the water.

We haven't really ever taken the boys out in a boat before, so we didn't know if they would like it or not. I can now definitively say that they didn't just like it, they LOVED it.

They did not mind the wind at all, and loved it when we were "going fast". It was nice enough outside that the boys just wore long sleeves and we didn't even take our jackets on the boat.

Amelia did surprisingly well on the boat too. I think the part that bothered her most was the life jacket!

With that big puffy life jacket on she couldn't cuddle up to Mommy or Daddy!

The wind did not seem to bother her too much and she didn't cry at all, but after a while we could tell she was getting tired.

So Grandpa let Amelia and I off the boat, and the boys got to keep going. I don't think they minded that at all!

Joe took some more fun pictures of the boys on the boat while I took Amelia back to the camper. Do you think they had fun?

Jacob told me that this was "the best day ever!". He absolutely loved riding in the boat, and we will definitely have to go again the next time we are in Arizona. Or maybe we can even talk Grandpa Devereaux into coming north sometime and we can meet in the middle.

I told Grandpa Devereaux that I had never seen the border with Mexico, so we went back to Tucson via Nogales, AZ and then on up I-19. Nogales is on the border with Mexico, and we got to see the wall that separates our two countries. It is a very hilly area, and it was interesting to see the wall just cut across the hills and the cities of Nogales, AZ and Nogales, Sonora, Mexico. It was also the furthest south I have ever been in my life!

Saguaro National Park

Since Emily had to go to work on Wednesday, we decided to take a drive to visit her at Saguaro National Park. She was actually working in the fee booth that afternoon, so we got in for free!

We did not get out and hike, but took in most of the sights from the van. There is a one way loop that you can drive around with pullouts to see various viewpoints. Here are some of the fun sights that we saw while we were there:

Teddy-bear cholla. NOT soft and cuddly, no matter how soft and fuzzy they look.

This is a prickly pear cactus with orange spikes. Now you know why it is called prickly, right?

Of course our favorite part was looking at all the saguaros. The boys had a great time counting to see how many arms they had. We saw one saguaro that had 15 arms! That is pretty incredible when you consider that it can take them up to 75 years to develop an arm!

We also got to show the boys what happens when a saguaro dies:

I love saguaros. They are so iconic and are definitely one of my favorite features of the desert landscape.

Joe was kind enough to stop the van for me a few times so I could take pictures of the interesting landscapes and plants.

This is my favorite saguaro picture. There is a little cactus wren perched on top of the saguaro and you can see all of the holes that have been dug out of the saguaro.

The boys thought it was really fun to see Aunt Emily at work, even if it was only for a minute. Doesn't she look great in her uniform?

Later that evening we played a little Wii on Grandpa's TV. We had to take turns since we only have two controllers, but it was a lot of fun. Grandpa was holding Amelia, and she fell asleep on him! Poor, tired girl!

I had to snap a picture because it was so sweet. Amelia loves her Grandpas.

Speaking of which, here is a picture of Amelia with another Grandpa... her Great-Grandpa Sabey. This was taken one of the evenings that he came over to visit.

Even though we stayed at Grandpa Sabey's house, we spent most of our time at the Devereaux's so he had to come over to visit with us!

Sidewalk Chalk and Hopscotch

The boys had a great time playing with Auntie Em while we were in Tucson. They wanted her to play with them constantly and she was pretty good about letting them bug her. Besides PlayDoh, one of the things that she did with them was play with sidewalk chalk.

Don't you love this camper that Jacob drew next to a palm tree? Pretty cool.

The boys definitely think Auntie Em is pretty cool. She helped Jacob make an enormous hopscotch board... all the way from A to Z.

Yes, it was warm enough that the boys were outside in the shade without jackets on! So nice!

Jacob had a great time playing hopscotch, and I love these pictures of him jumping from square to square. He is pretty good at hopscotch and it was fun to watch him play.

Ephraim did help make sidewalk chalk pictures outside, but I was working on his quilt and didn't get a picture of him in action. When I was taking these pictures he was being obstinate and did not want to play hopscotch. That's a three-year-old for you!

Christmas Day

What a great Christmas! This year we made it to the house before the boys even woke up in the morning, which was great! We got to see them get up and find their Santa presents first thing that morning.

If you can believe it, Jacob was actually the first one to get out of bed! He immediately found the Finn McMissile that he had asked for. Do you think he was excited?!

Amelia got a cute little baby stroller from Grandma and Grandpa. She thought it was pretty fun and it will be nice for when she starts to try to walk. It is designed to be sturdy and low to the ground so it won't tip as she is learning to walk with it.

Jacob wasn't the only one that thought his toy was cool. Amelia had to check it out too!

And so did Grandpa Devereaux! It is a pretty cool car. It has guns that pop up in the front that shoot missiles, as well as one in the rear.

We ended up getting Ephraim out of bed so we could get the party started. When he saw his Siddley the Spy Jet, he was really excited (and I was really relieved!).

While they were checking it out, I got this cute picture of Amelia and her Daddy. Aren't they cute?

Then we let the boys open their presents from each other, since they were both cars from Cars 2.

Ephraim was very excited to have a Holley Shiftwell to go with his spy jet.

The boys had a great time playing with their new toys!

We let them play with them for a bit before we paused for breakfast.

I forgot to mention one other thing! Grandpa Devereaux got both of the boys some really fun Mater clocks. They not only tell the time, they also tell stories! Here is Amelia checking them out.

After breakfast we got busy opening presents! Amelia opened her presents with a little help from Mommy.

I am sure she will enjoy her presents, even though at the time she seemed a little more interested in the wrapping paper....

and what her brothers got!

The boys loved opening presents this year! They got some really fun presents, including some new lego sets, games (pop 'n hop), a Play Doh fun factory and castle blocks.

After we finished opening presents, Grandpa and Daddy got to help Ephraim and Jacob put their Legos together. What fun!

By this point Amelia decided she needed to take a little snooze. So she cuddled up on me and fell asleep. Isn't she a sweetheart?

It was only a brief snooze and before long she was back to playing and checking out her presents.

I was really proud of how well the boys played together with their new toys. I can already tell that they are going to be big hits at our house! Jacob let Ephraim play with his Finn...

and Ephraim let Jacob play with his Siddley. They both had a great time with their new toys!

Jacob told us as he was hugging his Finn McMissile that he got just what he wanted and that this was the best Christmas ever!

It was a really wonderful day, being able to spend it with my husband, three beautiful children and extended family. Later in the day we went to church, which was also nice and then had a good dinner. What can you say, except that life is good.