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Living Nativity

So on Saturday night we went to the living nativity. Inside the church was a ton of nativity scenes. Here are quite a few of the nativity scenes. They were really cool and I just had to take pictures. Since there are alot, please feel free to skip this post and go to the next one which has pictures of our Christmas Breakfast.

There are mice, wild life, wooden ones, crocheted ones, marionettes, sea shells, duckies, eskimos, gourds, and so many others that this is just a small amount of nativity scenes that we saw.

      

                                                                                                          

Christmas Breakfast

On Saturday Morning we went to our ward Christmas Breakfast. We had a breakfast casserole thing, Fruit, and most important of all...Donuts!!! According to Ben that is the whole reason he went, Donuts...mmmm....Zoe didn't know what she was missing out on. But she sure did enjoy chewing on a spoon.

And she enjoyed chewing on her letter G.
And she enjoyed looking at Ben and laughing her head off. He must have been pretty funny.

And after everyone had eaten, Guess who showed up....Santa! Yay for Santa. Zoe thought that he was pretty interesting. And she came away from him with a big handful of beard hair. 

Thanksgiving Break

We really didn't get to many pictures over Thanksgiving Break. Ben took the week off and we have spent the majority of our time at Ben's parents house. We really didn't do a whole lot. Just hung out with his family and his Aunt and cousins that were visiting. 

The bottom Picture is actually on Thanksgiving day but my computer won't let me move it to the top and so it's stuck on the bottom. I think that is the only picture that didn't turn out blurry from thanksgiving. But it's a pretty cute picture. 

The other pictures are from today. We took Zoe to the tide pools. It was really fun. She was having a good ol' time. She especially thought it was funny when Daddy took her out on some of the rocks and got stuck there when the wave came in.  Then they ran really fast to try and beat the next wave so Zoe wouldn't get wet, and they ran into a big rock. It was funny. Sadly I didn't get a picture of that. We did see a star fish, and the sun looked really cool with the clouds around it. And my feet got soaked and Ben dropped the camera in the ocean. (oops) We hope it will still work. As of right now it won't turn on.

That was our thanksgiving. I'm so glad that Ben took the whole week off. It was really fun to have him around so much. And I'm sure he appreciated all the diapers he got to change!

Bored

As I was sitting here bored, knowing that I should go and make baby food but not really wanting to, I decided to post some pictures.  We really haven't done anything fun or interesting lately. And we really haven't taken to many pictures. So this is what we have.

Here's Zoe practicing sitting. She is doing much better. She can sit straighter for a longer period of time before she falls over. She isn't very interested in sitting right now. I sit her up and she immediately leans till she's on the ground and can roll. The problem is that she doesn't want to just sit there, she wants to practice crawling and moving around.

This is the only picture of me we have taken recently. Kinda Scary.

Here is a picture of Zoe exploring her carseat. What's under here Mom? 

And this is how Zoe thinks you are supposed to crawl. She gets on her tippy toes and wobbles for a minute, then she falls over. Sometimes she even uses her head to balance. But that doesn't help her crawl forward.

She has actually discovered that if there is something just barely out of reach then she can do a belly flop forward. She looks like a little worm moving forward. It looks kinda painful, but it gets her where she wants to go. And I guess that is what matters. Hopefully after thanksgiving we will have some more and better pictures to post. Everyone eat lots and have a great Thanksgiving!

Another Box!!!

One day a couple weeks ago Zoe was crying and crying and I couldn't get her to stop. So in desperation I put the canvas box that we keep her toys in over her head.  Stopped crying immediately. Started laughing. And now the canvas box is her favorite toy. She loves it when someone puts the box on her head. 

She also likes to cover her own head with the box.
And sometimes she'll just sit there with her head in the box. 
Isn't it amazing the things that fascinate kids?

A Box!!

This is what happens when Ben is in charge of intertaining Zoe. She ends up in a box, zooming around our living room. But she did think it was fun. She was laughing the whole time, thought it was the funniest thing. 

Halloween

Nana has been waiting patiently until after the elections to see any more pictures of Zoe on the blog. Here are some pictures from Halloween week. A couple were taken at the pumkin patch and a couple were taken just before Zoe's first trip trick-or-treating. 

I do have to mention that I am grateful that Californians chose to define marriage as between a man and a woman so that I can teach Zoe the values I hold with out some teacher contradicting what I say. 

This is my final Prop 8 post since the ticker to the right says there is very little time left. I think that it is amazing with all the differences the two presidential candidates have, they can agree on this incredibly important topic.

Tolerance doesn't mean that I have to accept as right what I beleive is not.

Marriage Taught in Public Schools

I have never really been a fan of politics, especially after following so closely the debate over Prop 8. I do not understand why people are not willing to say what they really mean. Over the last few weeks the opposition has accused the Yes on 8 campaign of lying about whether or not same sex marriage will be taught in school. I looked at the education code and it's pretty clear to me. 

Section 51933(7) clearly states: Instruction and Materials shall teach respect for marriage and committed relationships.

http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/cgi-bin/waisgate?WAISdocID=7288714515+0+0+0&WAISaction=retrieve

Section 51890 (1D) describes the curriculum for health education grades K-12 stating that the following will be taught: Family health and Child Development, including the legal and financial aspects and responsibilities of marriage and parenthood.

http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/cgi-bin/displaycode?section=edc&group=51001-52000&file=51890-51891

Although I reserve the right to fight for my beliefs, I do not fault others for having different beliefs than me. If they really believe that same sex marriage is OK, then why aren't they supporting it being taught in schools. Why are they hiding it? They know that people don't want their children reading "King and King" in 2nd grade without the right to be notified and opt out of the lesson. They know that Prop 8 will pass if people really understand the ramifications of changing the definition of a fundamental institution of society. It's not about tolerance with them, it's about them trying to force their beliefs and values upon me and the rest of California. The whole point of a set of values is to govern behavior. If values constantly change, then anything goes. 

I still have not heard an argument that carries any weight from the opposition. Same sex couples enjoy all the same rights under the registered domestic partnership as married couples do. 

What Prop 8 Is

So I was pondering today the many reasons to pass Proposition 8 in california. I have mentioned many of them on my blog and my facebook site. What I haven't posted yet is a discription of exactly what Prop 8 is. 

The Official Voter Information Guide for the California General Election states:

This initiative measure is submitted to the peopl ein accordance with the providios of Article II, Section 8, of the California Constitution. 

This initiative measure expressly amends the California Constitution by adding a section thereto: therefore, new provisions proposed to be added are printed in italic type to indicate that they are new.

Section 1.  Title

This measure shall be known as the "California Marriage Protection Act."

Section 2.  Section 7.5 is added to Article 1 of the California Constitution, to read

7.5 Only marraige between a man and a woman is valid or recognized in California.

(pg 128)

That's it. It preserves the institution of marriage. Here is a great article written in 2005 discussing the effects of changing fundamental institutions of society. 

http://www.janegalt.net/blog/archives/005244.htm

Tagged

I've been tagged.

8 shows I like to watch 

   We actually don't have TV right now but if we did...

* Simpsons

* Futurama

* The Price is Right

* Animal Planet's Most Extreme

* Spongebob Squarepants

* House Hunters

* Get Smart

* Two and a Half Men

8 favorite Restaurant's

* Chili's

* Mongolian Barbeque

* Denny's

* In N Out

* Asian Buffet

* Carl's JR

* Fish Market

* Winger's

8 things that happened yesterday

* Ben came home early, well earlier

* I went shopping

* Folded Laundry

* Zoe took 3 pathetic naps (pathetic because they were about 30 minutes each)

* Zoe was incredibly happy for only taking 3 short naps

* bought clothes for Zoe

* went for a walk

*Got a back rub

8 things I look forward to

* Zoe taking longer naps

* Zoe being able to sit up on her own so I don't have to hold her up

* Buying a house

* A bigger kitchen

* moving

* A big yard

* Ben graduating

* Ben finishing his thesis

8 things I love about fall

* leaves changing colors

* getting ready for christmas

* halloween

* pumpkin pie

* It doesn't snow in California

* Thanksgiving

*

8 things on my wish list

* a house

* a yard

* Zoe taking long naps

* A van that's not held together with duct tape

* New windows

* New kitchen

* Some distance between my room and the baby's room

* Disney land passes

I don't think I know enough people to tag 8. 

I found a really good letter written by the legal counsel of ProtectMarraige.com. It defends the new ad that Yes on 8 put out regarding teaching kids about same sex marriage in schools. It's pretty crazy that religious rights are trumped by same sex marriage. 

http://www.protectmarriage.com/files/AlreadyHappened-AdFacts.pdf

Read this letter and pass it on to anyone else you know... especially in California. Some of you Utah and Idaho people have to know other Californians.

Oh, the other thing.... I guess the opposition is scared cuz they stole all the "Yes on 8" signs that we put out in San Juan. 

PROTECT MARRIAGE

Annie and I went and heard Elder Ballard and Elder Cook speak about proposition 8 today. I know that alot of people that read our blog live outside California, but it's good information to have. Earlier this year 4 California judges overturned the wishes of 61% of voters by legalizing same-sex marriage. At first I wasn't really sure how that would affect us, but since then I've learned a lot. I put a few links to Yes on Prop 8 Sites on the blog for more information. Basically it would infringe on our rights to believe what we want. It would be seen at hate speech to teach that marriage should be between a man and a woman. It would be taught to elementary school kids that same sex marriage is just like regular marriage. Churches could lose their tax exempt status if they are seen as being intolerant. Catholic Charities in Boston has already had to shut down their adoptions agency to avoid having the state force them to let homosexual couples adopt. The more I think about this the more I'm fired up to VOTE YES ON 8. I don't want any teacher telling Zoe it's ok to marry another girl. I should also mention that under California Law, registered domestic partners have all of the same rights as a married couple. I really liked how Elder Ballard explained tolerance. Tolerance is loving the person, not accepting their actions. I love everyone as a son or daughter of God, but I don't want to be seen as intolerant just becuase I am not willing to bend on my morals or values. Here is the LDS site on the issue http://www.preservingmarriage.org/.

So I was tagged and this is what you do...take the 4th picture from your 4th file and post it and then tag 4 people.

We were having trouble with our fireplace a couple of years ago and this is a picture of Ben after he had messed with it. I had to take the picture because he was just filthy. Ah good times.

I tag no one because I don't have enough friends to keep tagging and still have everyone like me. But if I were to tag anyone I would tag...Josh...because I'm sure you got an amazing 4th picture on your 4th file, Jacob...because we want to see some pictures, Erin...because you seem to have disappeared, and Chelsea...because I don't think I've tagged you yet.  :)

Yum...Food

Ben was noticing that it had been a while since we posted anything with pictures and so here I am posting a couple of pictures.  

A few weeks ago Zoe started on solids (rice cereal). She absolutely loves her food. I thought she wouldn't like it the first few times and spit it out and not want to eat it. But I was wrong. She had a little trouble figuring out how to swallow. But other than that she couldn't eat it fast enough. 

These are pictures of her eating. Yes...she is holding on to my arm with her feet, like a little monkey. It made it really hard to feed her. I think I was messier feeding her than she was eating. 

And yesterday she got her first taste of squash. Again I thought she wouldn't like the flavor but she loved it. Just ate it right up. I guess she is ready for some variety in her diet. 

Rules: 

1. Post the rules on your blog 

2. Write 6 random things about yourself 

3. Tag 6 people at the end of your post 

4. If you're tagged, DO IT and pass on the tag.

 Here we go!

1. I graduated in a class of 39 students.

2. I was the only lunch lady at Dana Hills HS that thought the Adam Sandler/Chris Farley "Lunch Lady" song was funny

3. I'm not a monkey.... I'm an ape.  (see "Monkey Song")

4. I"ve always wanted to be tall. All my cousins are 5' 10" or taller and I end up with the short gene. 

5. I didn't see my real hair color from the time I was 13 until I got married.

6. I did not name Zoe after the orange monster on Sesame Street.

I tag Jacob, Charlynn, Brittany, Emily, Josh, and Erin.

So I finally got smart and figured out how to make it so Annie and I can post under our own names. I figured I should mention that so it didn't look like I was taking credit for all of Annie's old posts. I just don't really know how to go back and change the author. Oh, well.... at least from now on you'll all know who wrote what. 

Word Poll

 I figured I should explain my poll. So I know that Zoe won't be saying any words for a while, but it's exciting to think about. Truthfully, I'm not really sure when kids start talking. Annie says it's a ways off. Everybody wants their kid to say "mama" or "dada". I figured Nana would appreciate, having her name be the first word. And "bob" is a easier to say than "grandpa". I'm pretty sure I called my dad "bob" before I called him "dada" or anything. The last one is just my personal play on socially appropriate language. I don't really think that there are very many nice words to describe your basic bodily functions. I'd rather Zoe not say "fart", but who can get mad at a little kid that can say "flatulate". So that's my reasoning... I want to increase Zoe's vocabulary while being mostly socially appropriate. 

Monkey Song

We've noticed that most of the cartoons for kids these days aren't like they were when we were little, not that was really all that long ago. Now they're ether violent or disrespectful. Annie found veggie tales, and it's good ol' fashion fun,  so that is probably what Zoe will end up watching when she's old enough to care about TV. This is a new veggie tale song and it was worth posting about. It' s been stuck in my head for about 3 days now. Enjoy.

Rolling Over

So Zoe has been trying to roll over for a few weeks now. We haven't seen her try in the past few days because she was too interested in her feet. Well, I put her down after dinner and looked away for a second and when I turned back she was on her stomach. I think she was waiting until Annie and I weren't looking to roll over.

Now she thinks she should do it all the time.

Pictures from August

So I just wanted to put a few of my favorite pictures from August on here. We didn't really do a whole lot, but we have some good pictures.

This one is good one of Zoe lifting her head. There are some pictures with her head higher but I liked this one because you can see her blue blue eyes. It amazes me how much she has grown in only 4 months. She has chubby cheeks and now she can actually lift her head! It's amazing. But she gets really grumpy because she can't move yet. Sometimes the only way to stop her crying is for me to carry her around while I try and do stuff. I guess it makes her feel like she is able to move on her own.
This one I just really like the look on her face. I don't remember what she was doing but it's a cute face she's making. And she's wearing a onsie that her Auntie Erin made for her. It has Zoe from Seseme street on it. Thanks Erin!

This is Zoe's first trip to the beach. And my only trip to the beach this summer. She slept the whole time. I think the sound of the waves put her to sleep.
This is Zoe helping daddy with work. Mainly because mommy was tired of having to hold her and she was cranky and had to be held.
This one is a little blurry but it is the best smile we have. She smiles all the time but the minute we get out the camera, she stops smiling and just stares at the new toy, and you can tell that she really wants to grab the camera. This was a rare picture of her smiling at the camera.
And I had to put this one in. It is Zoe trying to roll over. She can't roll over yet but she tries really hard. She gets to this point and gets stuck and can't roll either way. And then she cries and I have to push her back to her tummy or back, where ever she started from. She'll get it, someday.
One of these days Zoe will actually be able to do something and then I will have something fun to post. But for now all I have are pictures of her just laying there. Sorry.

Spider Web

So in our back yard we have two huge Sycamore Trees. At least I think they are Sycamore. Anyways, we have these two big trees in our yard and lots of things live in them. A couple of doves, bugs, and a ton of spiders. There is this one big spider that makes its web between one of the trees and our garage (near the door). The weird thing is that every morning the web is gone. But every night the web is back in place. Which actually is good because I would rather not have a huge spider web in our back yard all day, every day. These are just a few pictures of the web.

This one you can see the spider. It's a good size spider. It's kinda in the middle by the leaves. Not the middle of the leaves, middle of the picture, edgish of the leaves. Ok you probably can't see it because you don't know what you are looking for, but it's there.
Here's a close up of the spider. It's a big ugly thing.
The worst part is if I go out to put the dog in the garage for the night and I forget the spider web is there. It's horrible to walk into. I did that a couple of nights ago. Ben was laughing at my spider web dance. It wasn't fun. I felt like I had spiders on me the rest of the night.

Memory

1. Leave a comment on my blog, one memory that you and I had together. It doesn't matter if you knew me a little or a lot, anything you remember!

2. Next, re-post these instructions on your blog and see how many people leave a memory about you. It's actually pretty funny to see the responses. If you leave a memory about me, I'll assume you're playing the game and I'll come to your blog and leave one about you.


P.S. Mom you can leave a comment, you don't have to have a blog to leave one. Just click on the comment button and scroll down and click on the little circle next to the name spot and put your name in. Then publish your comment. See super easy :) Just leave nice comments. Ha ha.

Zoe vs. Uncle Josh

So a lot of people (ok only 2) have said that Zoe looks a lot like her uncle Josh. I'm not so sure if she does. So I thought I would put both of their pictures on the blog and see what every one thinks. By the way...that's Zoe smiling.
Sorry Josh this was the only picture I could find of just you. If you don't like it you can send me a better one and I'll take this one off. P.S. now that I think about it sometimes she does look like Josh.