Black Eyed Pea Dip

For as long as I can remember I have eaten black eyed peas on New Years Day (for good luck in the new year). After we moved to Nevada we learned that this must be a southern tradition, because nobody up here has ever heard of that tradition. My favorite black eyed pea recipe (my mom makes it often) has also become a favorite of my friends, and I have been asked to share this recipe on our blog. So here you go:

Black Eyed Pea Dip

2 cans black eyed peas
1 red bell pepper, chopped
1 green bell pepper, chopped
1 yellow bell pepper, chopped
1 bunch green onions, chopped
1 avocado, chopped
1 small can diced black olives
1 can diced tomatoes with green chilies
8 oz. Italian dressing

Mix all together and serve with Frito's. Tastes best if sits overnight in the fridge.
ENJOY!

Merry Christmas!

We had such a wonderful Christmas this year! Owen really got into the holidays and actually understood everything. We were lucky to have Micah's parents and his brother Matt here for Christmas. They were here all last week and just went home yesterday (We missed you Mark and Nicole)!

Here is Owen making Christmas cookies. He really liked the sprinkles.

Uncle Matt is such a good influence!

Here's our living room on Christmas morning. As you can see, Owen is very spoiled......construction bench, punching bag, hot wheels track, just to name a few gifts!

Sandy likes to try to catch the remote controlled helicopter.

Santa brought Adler her first doll. We had to run out and buy this after Owen asked me what Adler would get for Christmas. I hadn't planned on getting her anything, because she has everything. But after Owen made that comment I realized Santa had to bring her something. What a considerate brother!

Even Adler enjoyed all the gifts!

Where is Kirby???

This is what our living room looked like after all the gifts were opened. What a fun disaster!

The Langdon family.

Uncle Matt reading to Owen and Sandy.

My mom made us this beautiful Christmas table runner, napkins and place mats. It made a gorgeous table for Christmas dinner! Thanks Mom!

Kissy, kissy.

Owen & Mimi

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas!

For the past 2 years, Owen has been scared to death of Santa. We have some pretty funny pictures of Owen screaming in Santa's lap. So I was hoping this year would be different since he understands now that Santa is nice and will bring him gifts. When we arrived to see Santa this year, he couldn't wait to go hop on Santa's lap......literally. We couldn't even get Adler out of her car seat before he ran over and jumped up into Santa's lap. They had a whole conversation before we even took the photo. When Santa asked him what he wanted for Christmas, Owen said, "Me want more balls. Me want yellow ball." Then they continued to talk about legos and Owen told Santa, "Me have legos at home. Me want MORE legos!" It was really cute. Adler didn't even wake up to see Santa, but it just melted my heart when Owen held her hand for the photo. He is the sweetest big brother! And no more tears (until next year when Adler is afraid)!

I think we bought the last live Christmas tree in town. We drove all over town on Saturday searching for a tree.....because we waited so long to get a tree, they were all sold out. We ended up finding this one at a grocery store and we lucked out. It is a beautiful tree. A little big for our small living room, but really pretty.

When Owen does something he's not supposed to, he often hides under a table or chair. Well, we found him getting ready to open a gift under the chair this weekend. He just can't wait until Christmas!! Sneaky, sneaky. I don't blame him one bit.

Babies at Work

So, I went back to work last week. Those three months just flew by and it was hard making the transition back to work. The hardest part is just getting up on time, getting the kids ready, getting myself dressed (especially when no clothes fit), taking Owen to school and getting myself there on time. The mornings are just exhausting! Luckily, I am working only 3 days a week in the office and 2 days from home, which helps. But the good news is, I get to bring Adler to work with me until she is six months old!

While I was pregnant I helped the Nevada State Health Division write a policy that allows new parents to bring their babies to work until they are six months old. Other states are doing this and our Administrator was excited about offering this benefit to his employees. There were 5 women pregnant this year, so we are all piloting this new policy. If it all works out, it will become a permanent policy (no pressure).

Last week there were three babies in the building (the other two will arrive in early 2010). Adler did really good. As long as I carry her often and feed her when she's hungry, she's a happy baby (and it's so nice to not have to pump and to just be able to nurse her. What a relief)! It was kind of chaotic because I'm also in the process of moving offices, so it should be easier once I'm settled in my new desk and get a routine down. I was also worried about how my fellow employees would would react to the babies, but so far everyone seems really supportive and excited to have the babies there. Adler makes people smile.

Here's my friend Tasha multi-tasking with Adler.

This is my friend Karen and her baby Richard at her desk.

Here we are in my new office space, exhausted from the move!

I'm planning to take lots of pictures at work, so we can eventually promote this policy in other state divisions. More pictures to come......

Adler is 3 Months Old

Adler is already 3 months old and is the sweetest little thing! She weighs 14 pounds 10 ounces (very healthy girl). She is extremely alert, can hold up her head well, loves to have lots of attention, and is quite chatty. She'll talk to anyone who makes eye contact and gives her attention.

This The Kid shirt was mine when I was a baby.

Dancing Video

This is a video from Owen's birthday party where all the kids were dancing away!

Santa Train

On Sunday we took the kids on the annual Santa Train at the Nevada State Railroad Museum. We took a short ride on the train and while riding Santa came on board and gave all the kids a candy cane. Owen really enjoyed this combination of trains and Santa!! This is the first year Owen actually understands what Santa Clause is all about, so we're having fun with it.

Waiting to ride the train.

Adler was having a nice conversation with her daddy while on board.

Here comes SANTA!!

After the train ride Owen and Ryder took advantage of the snow and the small hill at the train museum.

Even Adler went sledding!

Me Three Now!

Yesterday was Owen's THIRD birthday! WOW! I still can't believe he is three already! He certainly rocked our world three years ago and continues to provide us with much entertainment and laughter. We celebrated his birthday in a big way yesterday with a party with about 14 other 3-4 year olds! It was pretty crazy, but the kids had a blast. It seemed like Owen was opening gifts all day long.....he received loads of gifts in the mail from friends and grandparents, plus all the gifts from the party, then more gifts from us. Seriously.....where in the world am I supposed to store all these toys???? But thank you to everyone who thought of Owen this weekend. He is surrounded by so much love.

Here Comes Grandma!

My mom came into town for a long weekend to help Owen celebrate his third birthday. Both Owen and Adler loved the extra Grandma attention (and so did mom and dad)!

Here they are baking Owen's birthday cake.

Adler playing in Grandma's suitcase.

My mom kept Owen one night so Micah and I could attend his office Christmas party. We took Adler with us so I could feed her (she doesn't seem to care for a bottle), but it still felt like an adult night out. Having only one kid is a breeze!

There was even another baby friend at the party for Adler to play with. This is Micah's co-worker Ben and his son Max, who is only 4 days older than Adler.