Zoey's Second Birthday Party

After we came home from church on Sunday the 25th, it was time for Zoey's Second Birthday party. Here I am, still in my church dress, changing Zoey into her cute Birthday
outfit. "aaaaww, so cute!"

I made Zoey her birthday cake, a family tradition and had fun with the ultra sensitive squirt spout on the frosting can. Can you even read it? Yeah, and I just had an interveiw to become a cake decorator at Sams club? Nah, its pretty cute though, huh?

Zoey blowing out her candles. "Happy Birthday to you.."

Zoey opening her Presents.

Four generations of Hotchners helping Zoey with her presents.

This is "Great-Grandma" Frieda with a face of pure joy at getting to see her only grandchild's second Birthday. She loves that little Zoey like nothing else in the world.

Zoey loved her new baby doll stroller and tried climbing into it several times. She pushes all her dolls around the house in it and collects things in the back basket.

Here is Zoey trying to put the baby's diaper back on. She got a cute little 'laughs, wiggles and pees' doll from the Bowmans. Zoey loved it! Although, I probably wont be showing her the whole pee-pee and water in the diaper thing for a while.

Here is Zoey, after taking off her pants and own diaper in the middle of the living room, trying to put on the baby doll diaper. The whole thing was absolutely ridiculous and the most hilarious specticle you ever saw. She is obsessed with diapers!

Taking baby for a ride on the new trike that Freida bought for her.

Grandma Hotchner teaching Zoey to ride her new trike.

Brian and Zoey in the loft, watching Zoey's Birthday movie, Curious George. They are both two minutes from passing out; daddy went first and I had to had to walk them both to bed and tuck them in for the night. All in a days work for a 'Mommy'.

All tuckered out after a long day. "Ni-Ni" (night-night)

-My sweet angel-

Our Thanksgiving

Here is our Thanksgiving Day. Hope you all had fun too and I loved getting to see all of your blog photos and turkeys and such. It almost feels like we are all back together again when we share in our lives this way. Love you all, Jenn Sue Sid

Brian and his mother, Nancy. I was veeery happy to have her help with the turkey again this year, as I have still never had to make one before and don't know how. The turkey was very pretty but, we all joked that it had somekind of steroid or leg problem. It just seemed to be "a strange one" while trying to carve and eat certain parts of it. I thought it might get up and do a little song and dance like the dinner in the movie Beetle juice. Just kidding.

Here is Brian and his father, Mitch. "Like Father, like son" They are similar in so many ways, although, Brian would never admit it. Jeepers, just look at the shirts!

Here is "Great-Grandma" Frieda and I eating at the 'appetizer bar'. She hates when we try to sneak pictures of her, but I just love her to death and think she is the cutest and fiestiest little woman.

My lovely burnt yam and marshmellow dish. It actually came out of the oven in a ball of fire and then, after we scraped off the burnt stuff and tried again, I forgot about it again and burnt it a second time! This is the second year in a row that this has happened. Woops! Brian always used to tell me that my oven timer was the fire alarm. Ha, Ha, not to far from the truth!

Zoey eating her baby feast, fit for a princess.

Mitch, Frieda, Brian and Nancy. The original 'Hotchner Family'.

Nancy, me and Zoey.

Brian coming to sit and watch me set up for Zoeys 'After Party'.

Zoey's 'After Party'

Zoey decided she was having an 'after party' Thanksgiving tea party with all of her dolls on the kitchen floor after dinner. It just amazes me that I only have to show her an idea once and then, she can do it all on her own.

"Mommy gets a spoonful of sugar."

Somehow we all ended up on the floor as 'dolls' for Zoey's thanksgiving tea party!

An angel with her halo.

Our Special Dinner

Sometimes, you just have to find the time to have some real quality time together as a married couple. Brian and I have found that we love having candle lit dinners together every night and once in a while, he will even go to the store and pick us out something 'special' and will make it for us. Then, we get Zoey fed early and either, to bed or happily watching cartoons before we sit down together. That way, we get to pretend that we are on a first date and think of fun, philosophical topics or ideas about our future to talk about.

Here, Brian took the liberty of making us, steak, steamed asparagus and baby crab cakes. This is my little "fall season" table decor. Bamboo placemats, an iron tri-candle holder and some orange fall leaves to set the theme.

Brian, the crazy person, pouring the "morman wine" (sparkling apple cider) for our special dinner together.

"Mommy-Daughter Day"

It is important for me to still find time to spend with Zoey, even though I never seem to have any time left. So, I try to leave the house 15 minutes early some days to take her up to our park to play.

"I'm Free, I'm Free! I can run and play"

Zoey is enthralled with the grass, she acts like she has never seen any before and I guess, she really hasn't. Here she is acting like she is swimming in it and tasting a few blades.

"Oh, what a beautiful flower. I need to get a better look.."

"Hmm, I wonder what this tastes like.."

"Yuck, that doesn't taste as good as I thought it would."

A cool toy to play with up on the slide.

Here is Zoey on the swingset. She loves it when I push her really high and here, she is laughing so hard that she started drooling!

Zoey at the bottom of the slide. "Hi Mama!"

Mommy and Baby after a fun day at the park.

Our Housing Complex & Park

Mom and Dad asked what our housing complex, park and area looked like so here are some photos and descriptive details. Since, as you will soon read, we have some not-so-great neighbors, I thought that I would add in that we do have a super fun set of neighbors right across from us and have already had them over for dinner. You win some, You lose some, right?

A side View.

This is the three story on the right side of us. First, we don't know what ethnicity they are but, when they argue, they switch from English to a foriegn tongue and can get quite loud. Brian and I are only upset because we figure if weve got to listen to it, they could, at least, make it interesting for us by making it in a language that we can understand and eavesdrop on! Second, They have ridiculously loud parties until 3 or 4 in the morning, playing some crazy Greek or Indian drum circle music, which, normally, I would think was cool but, not while we are all trying to sleep. Otherwise, the rest of our neighbors seem freindly enough or else they are just never home, like us, working all the time.

This is our street facing South West. The big mountain is part of the Western mountain range. We are nestled back iside of them. It makes it feel like we are living in Utah or some other place to wake up in the "mountains".

This is a photo of the model homes from our park. The swimming pool and other mountains are just off to the right, Lone mountain is to the left, the 215 and city strip is straight ahead to the east and behind me is the western mountain range.

This is our complex pool area. Behind it our the model homes. Recognize the third one over? Thats our model.

Zoey standing and posing in front of our pool area on the park side.

This is Zoey running down the side of the ampitheatere-like grassy feild at our park. It will be fun to have outdoor BBQs and family and friends over to play here next summer.

This is our park within the housing complex. It is only about a 3 minute walk from our house.

This is Zoey's favorite place. The park has a slide, swing set and sand pit where she likes to get mouth fulls of dirt when I am not paying attention. They even have a little baby climbing wall, which, I recently discovered, she can actually successfully climb up; little monkey.

Here are some photos of the veiws from our park. This is Lone mountain to the North of us. The empty dirt lots are where the next phase of houses are waiting to be built.

Here is the daytime veiw of the city and the strip taken from the picnic area of our mini park. The white strip between the two 50 ft. walls at the bottom of the photo is the 215 freeway; only 5 minutes from home.

This is the nighttime veiw of the entire city strip that we see when coming home into our complex.

Okay, here is me with my new glasses. (and wrinkles!)