Hair Today...Gone Tomorrow

I know, I know, it's cheezy! But it is just amazing the transformation that occurs when I cut Connor's hair. He goes from looking like a crazy or homeless hippy with an afro to a clean cut little two year old. See for yourself.

In order for me to cut Connor's hair without a fight I have to sneek into his room at 9:30 at night, after he has been asleep for about an hour, get him out of bed, and carefully lay him on the floor on a towel. I then use a water bottle, a comb, and scissors and chop off a few inches. He usually stirs a few times, especially when I have to switch sides, but over all it goes quite smoothly. If any parents have any better suggestions, I'm all ears!

Sunny California

During the month of January, Southeast Idaho got a lot of bad weather and no new snow. This made snowmobiling trips pointless, and with no work to do and a sick wife, Travis was going crazy. So, I saw my opening to plan a trip to Oakland, California to visit Travis' older sister Shannon, her husband Jared, and adorable little Henry. We decided to drive the 14 hours there and back to save the money on plane tickets. I'm not sure that was the best idea, but there was no talking Trav into spending all of that money for what he called "no reason."

Connor was amazingly good, thanks to our portable DVD player, and we had a blast on the trip. Travis and Connor were in shorts and t-shirts almost the entire time. And our first day there Connor and Henry played in the water out on the patio for more than an hour.

The view from their top patio is amazing. On a clear day you can see all of the Bay, San Fransisco, the ports, and even Golden Gate Bridge. The sunsets are quite amazing as well.

Travis and I didn't really want to pack our week with a ton of things to do, so we kept it fairly low key. We spent one afternoon at the Oakland Zoo, which was really neat. So many of the animals were right out in the open, and it was a nice warm day. Another afternoon we went to a park down in the village and let the boys play on the swings, toys, see the ducks, and sit on and in the life size "Well's Fargo" coach.

Connor mostly loved to play in Henry's "beeg" blow-up castle full of balls. These two boys had so much fun together and got along amazingly. There were even blow-up swords to fight with.

We came home after almost a full week in sunny California. It was so much fun, and we miss Shannon and the boys, but it was nice to be back home.

Our little Lobster

I'm in the process of writting a post about our California trip, but this was something that happened today and I just thought the picture was too "interesting" for words. Connor has started getting sporatic hives for no apparent reason, and this is the first time I have gotten a picture. Note that this is the worst event yet, but hopefully we can figure it out and he will stop turning into a lobster!

Christmas with the Crazys

Now I'm not insulting anyone, but I think we must all agree that when it comes to family, we all either have many crazy people or become crazy ourselves! Which is one of the primary reasons I believe that family get-togethers are so much fun. After all, who can relate to your craziness better than your crazy family! And interestingly enough, this wasn't even a Christensen Christmas!

We spent 5 days at the cabin in Island Park with Trav's family this holiday. It snowed at least 3 feet of new snow while we were there, and we even left before the "big" storm was supposed to roll in. This was not only the first Christmas all the Goodwin's had ever spent together, but it was also the first time all of the Grandkids have been together. Connor had so much fun playing with his cousins Kaitlyn (8), Henry (1) and Dashel (11 months). Although it did take him a few days to get used to not being the only little guy around. Not to mention how difficult it was to not take every one's presents, or let them touch his. Connor and Henry took a few baths together in the big jetted tub, and Kaitlyn was a great help keeping an eye on the three busy boys. Connor taught Henry and Dashel how to climb the stairs so they were up and down the whole week. Connors big present this year was a train set he got from Santa, but he loves all of his other toys just as much. It was fun to see him enjoying opening and playing with all of his presents. Since last year he basically napped through the whole thing.

On Christmas Eve a few of us went out on snowmobiles and found a great Christmas tree for the Cabin. My sister-in-law even brought up a few other decorations so it really looked like Christmas. We had a great time playing games, eating great food, and playing in the snow. The eight of us adults, Trav's parents went to bed, stayed up late almost every night playing and laughing.

It was a great trip and definitely a Christmas to remember. On the 27th we all came back from the cabin, and Darcy and Penny started their drive to Las Vegas and on the 28th Shannon and Jared flew back to Oakland. We will miss all of them.

Hope all of you had a Merry Christmas and have a Happy New Year. Love, the Goodwins

Our Holiday

Just a quick note about our Thanksgiving holiday. Connor and I spent a few days in Eugene with Char and her family, and Marie and little Lilly. The drive was long, but the roads weren't bad and thanks to a portable DVD player, Connor was pretty content most of the time. Travis had to stay at home for work, but met us in Fruitland on Wednesday. Thanksgiving Day, we had a great dinner at my Aunt Heather's house in Wieser. It was only about half of the family, but there were about 35 poeple there. We spent a few days in Fruitland and came back home on Saturday. I got to spend some time on Saturday with a group of friends from High School I haven't seen in years. It was great to get to catch up. The trip was great, and it was so nice to see several of my siblings. Those that weren't there, we missed you! Happy Holidays everyone!

Meet our Little Blabbermouth

Three days ago, when I was putting Connor to bed, I asked him to tell his Dad 'love you'; and he did! It was amazing! Ever since, he basically repeats every word we say. And when he isn't repeating us, he is talking non-stop. It is like someone flipped a switch all of the sudden and there isn't an "off switch" in sight. Not that we want one. He has been talking for quite a while now, but his vocabulary consisted of car, truck, blue, Mom, Dad, and a few others. Now he knows most of his colors, he is learning to count, he tells us everything he sees, and even repeats Dora's Spanish. I'm just blown away by how smart little kids are, and how quickly it happens.

Silly Little Boys

I knew that being a Mom was going to be fun. But I guess you really can't understand a situation until you are smack dab in the middle of it. I'm sure like most of the wonderful mothers I know, I spend most of my days laughing. There is definitely nothing even remotely boring about being a stay-at-home-Mom.

Last night the three of us were eating at Sizzler, when I got a small plate of various fruit to feed to Connor. Now he is one of those kids who loves sour things. He sucked his first lemon dry at 8 months old. So naturally, I got him a lemon. There was also watermelon, kiwi, pineapple, and a mandarin orange. His reactions were so funny, the couple at the next table thought we were crazy. After watching us bust up at his faces, Connor started faking a sour face as soon as the next bite was in his mouth. As if this wasn't funny enough, then his real reaction would come. I'm laughing even thinking about it. Now don't think we were just torturing him for our own enjoyment, he was having fun too.

I love being a Mom. There isn't anything I would change about my silly little boy. No matter how stubborn he is.