Thanksgiving & Zoo Lights

I have a lot to report, but I'll try to keep it short!
1. Thanksgiving
2. Black Friday/Cyber Monday
3. Yuma Visit
4. Zoo Lights

1. Thanksgiving
We had a great Thanksgiving! My mom wanted to stop and get some family pictures before we headed over to my Grammie's house in the afternoon. My brother was being a super grump and Aubrey hadn't napped yet, so the results weren't great. We'll be trying again on Saturday!

We enjoyed some football, lots of food, and family time. Oh, and more family pictures!

Then we headed to my great-aunt Vicki's house for dinner (like we weren't already stuffed)! Alas, more football, food, and family time. But, there's a lack of pictures. Oops!


2. Black Friday/Cyber Monday
 Well, I can't say that we braved the lines on Thursday evening or even Friday morning. Heck, we didn't even leave the house unless we had to! However, there were some good deals I wish we had gotten, but I guess we (or I) will go out next year.
We got really excited about Cyber Monday! Although the deals aren't quite as good, they're still good! The odd thing about us, we didn't shop online until later that night. We went out and got a Nikon Coolpix L810 from Target that was still on sale from Black Friday. You see? You waited in those crazy long lines at the crack of dawn while I slept all cozy in my bed and I was still able to get the same deal you did days later. Here's where I stick my tongue out at you and say 'Ha-ha!'

3. Yuma Visit
We went to see our good friends in Yuma one last time before we move...again. Oh yeah, did I mention we're moving to the East Coast? Well we are, on Monday. Yay! Anyway, Aubrey loves her Godfamily and so do we! We had our own little Christmas celebration with them.

Our friend Cortney and her kiddos came over for a little barbeque and marshmallow roasting. Aubrey and Sydney got to "play" for a little bit. It was more like oogling and grabbing at each other, but it was adorable!

I swear they're only a month apart!

Then came the gift opening with a sleepy baby who was not too happy to be woken up, despite how she may seem in the pictures.

And after a long, fun filled night we had to leave in the morning. We're gonna miss you guys so much! Skype dates here we come!

On our way back to Phoenix we stopped by Zack's old barber shop, A Man Cave, to visit. They gave us four tickets to the Cardinals vs. Rams game that day! So sweet! Zack and my brother went while I spent time with some extended family. The Cardinals lost for the seventh time in a row, man are they bad!

4. Zoo Lights
Every year the Phoenix zoo puts up lights and stays open into the evening for an event they call Zoo Lights. There's limited access to the animals and to be honest most of them were sleeping, but it was a great sight anyway!

Aubrey really enjoyed it, as you can see by her big cheesy grin!

There was a talking giraffe who asked if he could ride in her stroller. I made a joke about his weight, but I don't think he thought it was funny. Aubrey even went on a carousel ride for the first time! She loved it!

We watched a beautiful light show on the water.

Twins, right?

And of course her daddy bought her some souvenirs! How cute are these jammies!? I just love the little tail on the booty!

We hope you guys had a great Thanksgiving! December is right around the corner!

The Chronicles of Moving: Part 2

Our Last Weekend in Yuma

Today we left Yuma, the Marine Corps, and our friends. The last couple days have been insanely hectic!

Sunday we had planned on packing up the rest of our house and cleaning. However, I had also planned on going to church in the morning, then visiting Zack's barber shop, then lunch with my friend's Cortney and Lyndsay, then going to the Yuma Family Pumpkin Patch. Yeah, we got no packing done that day!
Cortney and Lyndsay had planned a surprise going away party for us. It was the sweetest thing anyone has ever done for us!

Aubrey's Godmother, Lyndsay

The gang!

Miss Sydney Sue!

 Afterward, we went to the Yuma Family Pumpkin Patch. Aubrey was an apple, I was Snow White, and my Prince Charming didn't dress up.

Godsisters...awwww

"Hi guysssss!!!"

Aubrey hanging with one of the pirates from the show ;)

BTW: Aubrey's Costume was made by Carly's Custom Creations!

Monday we had to get up early! We needed to pick up the moving truck and move everything off of the carpet for the carpet cleaning. Uggghh!
Lyndsay came over to save the day by watching Aubrey. Without her I'm not sure this would've ever gotten done! We had to reschedule our carpet cleaning because we were running way behind schedule! I've heard the carpet cleaners kick you out of your house while they work, which was time we couldn't afford. The guy was actually very nice, he gave us $20 for lunch when it should have been us giving him money for being so awesome. Such a sweet gift from a stranger!
You're also not supposed to walk on your carpets after they've been cleaned, but we did (Shhhhh,, don't tell!) because it was quicker than walking around the whole house.
I wanted to finish my half sleeve, so we headed to our tattoo shop, X-treme Ink, where Mikey finished it off for me. It took about 4 hours, but it's beautiful! I would post a picture, but my arm looks like it should be on someone 50lbs heavier than I am so that's not happening until it's healed haha

Goodbye Apt. A!

This morning, we still had so much to do! We had to finish packing, clean, and get the house inspected. Not to mention Zack had to check-out on his terminal leave. Once again, Lyndsay was a huge help and watched Aubrey!
I was so worried we would have to pay to get our carpet replaced because when we had pets, the cat peed on the floor a few times (I know, disgusting) and the dog had a little accident when we accidentally left the dog door closed all night. I scrubbed the carpet, but the stains were just stuck! The guy who did our inspection was also very generous to us and said he would have the carpet replaced at no charge to us because the carpet in the bedrooms didn't match the rest of the house. Seriously, such a blessing!

Junk food and caffeine to keep me going this morning! Why is everything King Size now?

And when we left, we left everything we've know for the past few years behind. Our first home, our military family, the Marine Corps, our church. But we're onto better things! We're not quite sure what yet, but God has a plan and this was all part of it.

Family Pictures

I just want to take a moment and share some beautiful photos of our family by an amazing photographer, Stephanie, here in Yuma. She's a Marine wife from Michigan who runs her own business, Stephanie Marie Photography. I had seen so many of my friends getting adorable family pictures done by her.
She took Aubrey's newborn pictures and was so incredibly patient through the diaper changes, feedings, and fussiness. Aubrey was not very cooperative to say the least! But Stephanie never made us feel like we were being an inconvenience or taking up too much of her time. When we got the pictures back they were better than I had imagined! She even included a few free gifts for us which was so sweet! Here's some of Aubrey's newborn pictures:

There are so many more that are too cute not to share, but they don't have her logo on them and I would hate to see someone passing off her fantastic work as their own. One little freebie she gave us was a custom Facebook Timeline cover.

On her Facebook page she did a raffle for a mini family session. I rule at raffles so of course I won! ;) Just kidding, it was totally random & I was just a lucky winner.

So, I cashed in our mini session last weekend and let me just say, I am astonished once again at the quality and beauty of her photos (and our family of course)! I'm so sad that we found an amazing photographer in Yuma and we're moving out of the city. I guess we'll just have to make some trips back to visit and get more pictures done! You can never have too many pictures to show off and hang in your home! :) That being said, here are some of the wonderful family pictures she took of us:

Thank you so so much, Stephanie! We love our pictures and can't wait to frame them in our new house!