The Life of Chris, Amy, Xan & Tyce

It's been awhile!!!I

2009-12-03T21:57:00.000-08:00

So, it has been such a long time since I posted!! I would love to post more regularly. With 2 young kids, it's easy to forget! So, now we are in Valparaiso..we moved in August. We love our home... It is BIG! Xan is now 5 1/2 and Tyce is almost 19 mos. We all have such fun together :) We love to go to Chicago. We go to Navy Pier alot and now have year passes to Shedd Aquarium along with the museum in Chicago. We also have year passes to the zoo in Michigan City. We stay on the go alot..whether it be to Burger King to eat/play, to the mall on Friday nights, to Red Robin, Walmart..WHEREVER!! I love when we leave Walmart and Tyce is riding in the kart and Xan is underneath me holding onto the handles with me. We take off running to the car and screaming with a big smile on our faces..I bet little things like that are so much fun for my two little guys :) Christopher just got featured on the front of American Gas magazine and I am SO proud of him!! He is such a wonderful husband, father and person and I am lucky to have him.

So, Thanksgiving has come and gone. We drove to Evansville/Henderson for the holiday and plan to return for Christmas. Of course Santa will visit our home early since we will be gone for Christmas :) For Thanksgiving, I made several of my cheeseballs. I also made my Sweet Potato Casserole, chocolate chip cookies, brownies, banana bread and fruit/fruit dip. I dropped some stuff over at the in-law's and took the rest to Mammaw's. Oh, and I made a GF chocolate pie for the first time and it turned out pretty darn yummy!!

We are now back home and settled back in to our day to day routine. Tonight me and the boys went to Target and had such a fun time :) We take our time when we go places instead of just going in and out. We go around and look at videos, books, etc., pick up groceries, etc. that I need and then both boys get down and scour the toy section, stopping to play with whatever interests them. Right now Xan is really into the Littlest Pet Shop toys, while Tyce is into everything!! He LOVES Wiggles, but unfortunately it is really hard to find Wiggles toys. Tonight Xan got the new Chipmunks the Squeakuel CD for the car and he was SOOOO excited. The highlight of my shopping trip was finding some natural based fabric softener sheets that smell sooooo good :)Tomorrow is our meetup at Burger King. Thank God tomorrow is Friday!!!

BBQ at Miss Marjory's

2009-07-24T13:08:00.001-07:00

Miss Marjory had a BBQ at her house this summer for Memorial Day weekend. It was alot of fun. Their backyard is like heaven for kids and adults too! A swimming pool, inflatable pool/slide, a huge BBQ area, etc. I brought snacks for the boys and they grilled some hot dogs for us too. Xan didn't want to leave!

4th of July

2009-07-11T22:10:00.000-07:00

We went to Colonial Williamsburg for the Fourth of July again and had a great time! Bruce, Lacy & the boys went with us again too. Other than the hideous hippy, yet Christian music, it was alot of fun! It sounded like the type of music that might have entertained the likes of Charles Manson (and alot of LSD involved) but yet I think it was Christian. Very weird...Anyways, we ate Smokey Bones before we went to see the fireworks. We had ordered it and brought it home. We had pulled pork, BBQ chicken, beef brisket, baked beans, corn and I also made my hashbrown casserole and a flag cake, as well as some gluten free goodies (brownies and chocolate chip cookies..thanks Betty Crocker!) We got to Williamsburg in plenty of time and the fireworks were nice. I got a little sad thinking that this might be the last time we spend the 4th in good ole Virginia :(

Xan's School Program

2009-06-16T13:16:00.000-07:00

Xan's school had a little PTA program. Each class performed an interactive song. Xan was SO good! It was SO packed in that gym and was SO hot. Tyce was not a happy camper. He was ready to go home! Here are some videos...

Chuck E Cheese

2009-06-16T13:04:00.000-07:00

Shawna and I try to go to Chuck E Cheese every Friday morning at 10am when they open. She has to beg me to eat pizza, but since I am such a good friend, I eat a piece every once and awhile...Actually she is the pregnant one but I crave the mess out of this pizza and I don't know why!! Anyways, Tyce loves to play skeeball and throws the balls just like he should! He cruises and crawls around like he owns the place :) Alex is really good with Skeeball too and loves the slide and the duck game I believe. Fun times!

Water Country!!

2009-05-30T20:24:00.000-07:00

Today we went to Water Country again. We went with Lacy and Lance. This time Xan got to come and he was thrilled :) It started out bad because we parked in the parking space and THEN people had pulled on both sides of us. One man was shaking his head and getting mad at Lacy just for opening her door! Then the old woman next to me yells "Is she getting out any time soon cause I gotta get in my car!!!" Mind you, she had already gotten out and was in the trunk getting stuff out. I had my car door half way open and was putting on some chapstick). She said it in a VERY rude way like she was so put out! I guess all you can do is just try to be the bigger person! Ugh. Anyways, we did the Wave Pool again, along with the kiddy area with all the slides and stuff. I cannot believe it. Xan did all the slides by himself! Even the big yellow tube slide!! At first, I was holding his hand for some, but he didn't want me to even do that anymore by the time it was said and done. Tyce loved the water in the wave pool! He chilled out in his stroller during part of the time we were at the kid's area and ate lots of pretzels and drank from his "bup." After we got done here, we went and grabbed some food and ate. I got a fried chicken salad. For the boys, I got a burger patty, some homestyle chips and some strawberries and bottled water. Lacy and I enjoyed looking at all the people...LOL We had a GREAT time. The weather was absolutely perfect and so was the water. Xan was really wanting to do the yellow raft slide so we will make sure and do that next time :) I am posting a very short clip and some pics. Enjoy!

The Lazy Days of Summer......

2009-05-29T11:35:00.001-07:00

On Wednesday, me, Shawna and Samantha went to Water Country with the kiddos. Xan was in school of course, so Tyce did the honors of enjoying the beautiful hot weather and cool water all by himself. He, Alex and Lucas were so cute together!! We enjoyed the wave pool and the kiddie area too. Tyce loved floating in the raft and loved getting into everything else too! He is so curious these days. We walked around and showed Shawna the Hubba Hubba Highway (lazy river) as well as some other parts of the park. Then me and Tyce had to literally "run!" I didn't want to miss Xan's bus. We made it back home in 15 min or so with plenty of time. We had such a great time today. We love Water Country and always get the season passes. It is so nice to go during the week before school is out because it is almost vacant! You can't beat that! We want to start going every week, multiple times if possible. It's great exercise and so much fun. Ahhhhh, the lazy days of summer...flip flops, suntan lotion and cold water to cool down your sunburnt skin :)

An Evening at Yorktown Beach

2009-05-27T22:02:00.000-07:00

The Smith Family went to Yorktown Beach the night before Chris left for his move out to Indiana. We had a really good time! The water was chilly, but that didn't stop Xan :) Tyce loves to be out on the beach as well. We will miss Chris a ton, so this was a perfect way to spend our time before he left!

Tyce's First Hair Cut!!!!

2009-05-27T21:56:00.000-07:00

Tyce finally got his first hair cut! Some people were sad to see his curls go, but I couldn't wait!! And he looked SO cute and like such a big boy!!

Yesterday..just like summer

2009-04-26T11:03:00.000-07:00

Yesterday it was HOT!!! It was just like summer! I love summer here in Virginia. I know it gets much more humid than Vegas, but there is just so much stuff to do. So, yesterday, I blew the new kiddie pool up...the crocodile one with the 2 little slides. It took lots of air! Chris couldn't believe I did it :) Anything for my precious Xan :) Mr. Tyce was inside snoozing away. So, Xan played in the water a bit. We had also jumped on the trampoline before, so I decided it might be fun to bring the water hose inside the trampoline. Great idea!! Xan had a ball and so did I :) Tyce came outside a little later and so did Chris. But, Chris had to leave and pick up some groceries for me so I could make some brownies for our guests and some spaghetti for Xan. We had decided to have some people over. So, we all got baths and everyone got ready. Chris picked up food from Little Italy and I made some brownies. We decided to do it simple this time. Bruce and Lacy came over with the kids and Chris's faternity brother, Olu, and his family came too. We had a great time. The kids tore up the house and played toys for hours :) Lacy, Nancy and I took Tyce and her little boy to the pet store. Lacy had to get some things for her new dog, Muffin. I also showed Nancy where the outlet mall in Williamsburg is. Afterwards, Lacy helped clean up and everyone left. I got the boys ready for bed. Man, both of them crashed hard! Tyce was up WAY past his bed time and so was Xan. I love that time of night..when they are both in their pajamas, cleaned up, teeth brushed and happily sleeping away. I love my family.

Xan's Birthday Last Month

2009-04-21T11:51:00.000-07:00

Just wanted to take a second to talk about Xan's birthday party we had last month :) It went absolutely perfect!! On his actual birthday, we surprised him after school with a huge trampoline! Chris and I had stayed up very late putting it together. He tried it out and loved it! Afterwards, we went over to Burger King in Williamsburg. I brought some gifts for him to open. He got a book, a Wii game, Alvin & the Chipmunks movie, Wow Wow Wubzy characters and a yummy birthday cake. He blew out the candles and dug into the cake, scarfing it down within seconds :) I made a vanilla cake with a glaze over top with blue sprinkles. He also ate his regular BK meal (hamburger patties, fries and apples). There weren't many kids in the playland, so we didn't stay too terribly long. Afterwards, we went to the Dollar Tree next to Target to get a "birthday balloon." They were out of helium!! So, he got some little monster toys instead!

For Xan's birthday party that following Saturday, we went to the Blow Up Zone, which is an inflatable jumpy place. It was from 6-8pm. Here are the people who came:

Javan (classmate)
Qui Ara (classmate)
Amanda (classmate)
Christian (classmate)
Jayden (friend)
Lance (friend)
Alex (friend)
SJ (friend)
Winrey (friend)
Lillie (friend)
Jillian ("girlfriend" from bus stop)
Jeffrey (friend from bus stop)

Adults were Lacy, Bruce, Nickie, Chasity, Angel, Jillian and Jeffrey's dad, Shawna, (her friend Samantha and baby), Qui Ara's mom and Christian's parents. (Javan's parents went to dinner...LOL).

Everyone jumped for about an hour. Then we went to a private party room where we had cake, drinks and ice cream! Xan blew his candles out after we sang happy birthday. He then took his fork and starts eating the cake before we could even cut it! It was hilarious :) Xan got TONS of gifts including a "pirate's chest", toys to paint, baseball bats/balls, games, bubble blower machine, arts/crafts stuff and more! His cake was the shape of a frog and I made it homemade. It turned out perfect and Xan was thrilled with it.

Overall it was a perfect time! Tyce had a great time too, jumping on the jumpers and eating some cake and hanging out with dad :)

Happy 5th Birthday, Xan!! We love you!!!

Here I am!!

2009-04-02T06:41:00.000-07:00

I haven't posted in awhile. It's 9:42 on April 2nd, 2009. Tyce is asleep and Xan is at school. Things have been going very well. Tyce has 2 teeth now. Their names are Bob and Lynette and they love RV's..LOL Xan is doing extremely well in school. We had a great parent/teacher conference recently and Ms. Clark was going on and on about Xan's improvements and so were the reading instructor, assistant, etc. The words of the reading instructor were "He's going to do great things." I felt myself tearing up. I was so so proud of Xan that day, as I always am. He continues to amaze me every day. He is such a strong and courageous little boy with a smile that will melt your heart.

Tyce is cruising now, but still not walking. He loves to play with my keys, my cell and other phones. He will put it up to his ear and say "Hiiii....". It is TOO cute :) Chris always says he looks like me, especially in his eyes. He is such a sweet baby and loves his older brother. Tyce has been such a wonderful addition to our family. I just love our family so much.

Chris is interviewing with another company and talking to a few others. I love this area so much. It has truly become our "home." But, I do want to be able to get somewhere and "settle." So, if another company can promise us that and if Chris can be satisfied somewhere else, then we will have to explore it.

Oh, I don't believe I posted about Busch Gardens. We went to Busch Gardens a few Sundays ago for their grand opening for season pass holders. We had SUCH a good time and stayed almost until they closed. We got our pictures made and both boys have a framed copy for their rooms. Tyce loves to point at it and say "Daa!" Xan wasn't too keen on the rides this year. I remember being scared too!! He rode the roller coaster with me (kids one of course) and the tea cups with Chris and was crying. Although after the roller coaster was finished, he didn't want to get off!!

We also went to the arcade and played, we played in Dragon Land forever. They have clubhouses, slides, nets to walk across, etc. We also rode the train and the sky lift. We ate lunch too. Xan had a burger patty and strawberries. Chris and I split a philly type sandwich, some cheesesticks, fries, and I got a salad and some pasta. It sounds WAY more than we actually ate :) Tyce ate some fries, but didn't want his apple sauce. We got two of the souvenier cups that you only have to pay $1 to refill each time for the whole season.

I am super excited about Water Country opening up next month!!! I can't wait!!! Summer is the best time of year around here. I can't wait to be in some water somewhere with the wind blowing and the sun shining. I love that feeling :)

First week of February...

2009-02-05T07:26:00.000-08:00

This week has been pretty non-eventful. I have had to babysit a neighbor's little boy (Jonathan) for part of this week, so we have been in the house more than usual :) Last night (Wed) we went to Walmart and then through the BK drive-thru for a quick dinner. Tyce has been crying more than usual and has a runny nose. I think his ear may be bothering him because he is not sleeping as much! Poor guy. Today I am cooking spaghetti...one of Xan's favorites :)

Feb. 1st

2009-02-02T07:40:00.000-08:00

*Note: I will start writing "today" whether or not I type the entry the night of, or the day after. Either way I will be talking about the date listed in the title.

The weather was unusually great today. If I had known, we would have gone to the park or something!! We relaxed for the early part of the day. Dad and Xan played Wii some. Later I gave both boys a bath and we went to H&R Block to get our taxes done. We met dad up there to sign papers and then I took the boys to jump and Chris met us afterwards at Jumping Joeys. Xan had such a good time and so did Tyce. Tyce played in the baby area and I also bought some socks and got inside the inflatables with him.

Afterwards I took the boys home and Chris went to Chile's to get some food. This was "Superbowl Sunday." Tyce and Chris stayed and watched the game while Xan and I went to eat at Red Robin and then went to Walmart to get Tyce some diapers and some other stuff.

Jan. 31st

2009-02-01T10:05:00.000-08:00

Last night (31st) Chris had a dinner in Richmond for Pepsi. So, I took Xan and Tyce to the McArthur Center Mall in Norfolk. We had a wonderful time. We ate dinner at the Burger King in the mall and then afterwards, the boys both played in the little play area and had such a ball! Then we walked over to the toy store and Xan got a few toys. At this mall, you park in the parking garage...it reminds me of an "out of town" mall. It's really neat. We got a great parking spot right outside the 2nd floor Dillards entrance, so it was great on this chilly night :) We literally walked out of the elevator and straight to our car. I love to take the boys and do fun stuff and live like we are on vacation and the kids love it too. We got home around 8pm. Xan ate some blackberries and Tyce had some fruit/cereal warmed with cinnamon.

The Beginning of Our Blog

2009-02-01T09:58:00.000-08:00

I am starting this blog to journal the life of the wonderful Smith Family....Chris, Amy, Xan & Tyce :) We are an adventurous family that has moved across country twice and we are always on the go! I thought it would be neat to keep a journal of some of our daily activities, vacations we have taken and important events that happen in our lives. So, here goes!