all i've got to show for the last 2 days...

i was very excited when i went to Michael's craft store (in calgary- which i really miss, as there is nothing at all on island with crafty stuff that i have found) and got a few crafts to do with the boys. one of these crafts made it in our suitcases because the boys had started painting them and wanted to finish them. well, i sat down with the boys yesterday to finish them and i had no idea what i was getting into! what i thought was a good idea is something i will think twice about next time...(i vaguely remember sending this craft to my nephews in idaho- Aub, if i did- i'm sorry- and i would love to hear how it went for you!) picture broken pieces and messy wood glue- after 2 and a half hours i was closing in on koen's castle- that was yesterday. after 3 and a half hours this morning, i was finishing kace's race car. i dont know what would be an appropriate age for these...retired with lots of spare time- can anyone say marathon???... but it definitely turned into "Mommy's project"! although the boys had so much fun with them, i might be tempted to say it was worth it!

hilarious...

so you will need a little background...kace decided to "decorate himself" with his lightning mcqueen stamp- all over his legs and stomach (and then proceeded to stamp his eyeballs)! then he and koen decided they wanted to help me by peeling a cucumber... they have become quite the little helpers in the kitchen- cooking up a storm. koen peeled the first half of the cucumber and then gave it to kace. kace was very meticulous with his peeling- intently focused on getting every last little bit of dark green "off" the cucumber. when he finished, he raised the cucumber above his head with a victorious shout, held it out to koen, who broke off half of it- then they both broke out into the loudest belly laughs and they couldnt stop. kelly and i joined in the laughter at the hilarious sight... when i regained my composure i ran to get the camera and these were the pictures...

Kace's first blog entry

I got a nerf gun for christmas and it is my favorite toy to play with right now. mark, i really miss you and i really like you. this is a picture of me climbing up a rock wall. my school is fun and my favorite friend is Peyton. i like to play at center's and i really like the drawing center. i like having pizza lunch on friday at school. that's all. kace

THE CASTILLA FAMILIA!!!!!!!!!!!
we are so excited to welcome Carlos into the family! It feels like we have known him forever- a man who is passionately in love with Jesus, and who adores Tandy, and Mark! He is such a special guy- we love you Carlos!

Christmas sing-along with Bumpy and a whole host of other musicians
cuddle time and movie night with Uncle and Amy
Christmas would not be complete without the crackers (poppers) that come complete with toy and crown and all those HILARIOUs jokes.....
such a special time to share with Tand before the wedding (which was amazing, joyous, emotional, and beautiful)- i will be sure to post some pics when i get some.

CHristmas morning...

Merry CHristmas! we had a wonderful, laid back morning... so much to be thankful for! "Happy Birthday dear Jesus, Happy BIrthday to YOU!!!!!!!"

onto the rink again...

we borrowed everyone else's snow gear and headed out to the rink across the street for some skating. koen picked it up quite quickly and enjoyed practicing his new moves. kace, on the other hand, wanted to play hockey and keep up with the big boys so learning to skate quickly became an annoyance- he much preferred to run around with a stick and his boots. mark has become quite the hockey player now- way to go Mark, it was so much fun watching you!

flying home

with 18 hours of travel time, one sick boy, and 4 santa hats- you can imagine the relief i felt when we arrived in snowy calgary all in one piece. it worked out well that our friends the Duchene's had the same flights as us so the boys were able to entertain each other most of the time!

i blinked and it is 2010!

so i just have a little of catch-up to do after our whirlwind of a christmas!

this is christmas in the cayman's where we walked through lit palm trees, fake blowing snow aka "flying soap suds", and a boat parade (where all the boats -kelly says "yachts"- were covered with different themed lights). this is what i get when i try to take too many pictures and ask the boys for one more smile!!!!