Iowa

 Happy Holidays from Iowa! 

Surprise, surprise I had another hip surgery. This is the fourth (and final). The silver lining of this surgery is the fact that we get to spend the holidays in Iowa with our family. I'm recovering at my parents house while Evie is having lots of fun with her nanas, grandpas, uncles, aunts, and cousins. She's going to be disappointed to go home in the new year!

The perk of having surgery in Arizona

My sisters took the kids to meet Santa!

Lights at Reiman Gardens

with cookies, hot cocoa and a princess dress of course

Snuggling baby Carter

Snow day!!

She absolutely loved playing the snow

She was outside all day with her nana and uncle

This baby (and Runner) goes everywhere with her 

She looks so grown up with this pose

Decorating the tree with dad

There are 59 candles on that cake! We had to open the door to let the smoke out lol

More baby cuddles

Holiday Update

This was our first Christmas at home since 2014! We prefer to travel over the holidays. However, my work schedule made it impossible with Christmas landing midweek. 

On Christmas Eve we went to Ruston for a walk and let Evie ride her scooter. We went home to make our feast and it was delicious. We made a charcuterie board, caprese skewers, crab cakes, and baked pear/brie canapés. Brady spent $40 in crab meat, but it was worth it! This is all our favorite food. Then, we FaceTimed with my family (who opens gifts on Christmas Eve). 

Evie woke up on Christmas day none the wiser. She didn't even notice the gifts under the tree. She actually ate breakfast at the table which stares directly at the tree😂 We told her Santa brought her some gifts and she ran over to start tearing them open. We spent the afternoon playing with her new toys then went to zoo lights!

 Scooter rides along the sound

 Always need to stop by the park

 Family selfie

 High fives

 Lets go home and eat

 Cooking with my girl (she really just ate all the apples and honey on the charcuterie board)

 Evie got a science kit from Aunty Cait

 Caught this cute pose on Christmas day

 Shoots and ladders

 Slide time while we wait for zoo lights

 Evie's #1 request is shoulders lol

 Pink octopus in the distance

 She was eating a candy cane

 Trippy

Replica of the Narrows Bridge

Iowa

Evie and I celebrated Thanksgiving and Christmas with my family when we were home and it was super festive. 

She's at the age where Christmas is everything. She got to visit the  Christmas tree farm. She went ice skating. She painted an ornament (which is now my favorite) and made a gingerbread house. Last year she cried when she met Santa, but not this year! She was full of smiles and questions. She asked for a baby and a doll house😊 

We loved all the family time. Evie woke up every morning asking for Mira, Elena, and/or Olivia. See her run and play with her cousins was heart-warming. She was definitely in her element. 

We were home for my dad's birthday so we got the celebrate with him and we really lucked out with the weather! We went for a walk, had a nice lunch, then spent the afternoon at Snus Hill Winery. We drank several bottles of their Ditchweed Red and everyone bought bottles to take home. It was delicious! We ended the night at Provisions for dinner. 

 Look at that smile

 Evie likes horses from afar, but she's always timid up close

 Picking out the Christmas tree

 A drive with nana and grandpa

 She got to play with snow!

 Going to meet Santa!!

 These girls were excited

 💛

 Driving the sleigh

 Santa was so good with the girls!

 Evie asked why he wasn't wearing a hat lol

 Elena's face😂

 Evie was a happy girl

 Fam jam

 Trying to get a picture of all six girls was difficult

 Holding baby Livi

 She finally got to dig into the presents

 "Helping" bompa

 The weather was unseasonably warm

 Lunch date with Amanda and Mo!

 Bompa's b-day

 Drinking wine on the patio while nana stays with the napping babies in the car

 58 never looked so good

Got my baby cuddles