New House, New Year!

We managed to pull off a nice transition from one house to the next.  We had only days in our new house before Joe had to leave for his patrol.  It actually ran through Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Years.  It was the first time since having children that he missed Christmas.  We also didn't manage to get many things accomplished around the house before Joe left.  Everything was unpacked and put away, but things like paint and changing out fixtures had to wait until he returned.  We managed to have a good holiday season regardless.

Joseph loves his new school.  He thinks it's the best school he's ever been to!  This pleases me immensely.  I recall when I was in elementary school and had to change schools, it was really hard for me.  Reflecting on the past, I know that I am fortunate that I made the move, but at the time it was so difficult making friends and getting accustomed to the new buildings.  Joseph is completely the opposite of me.  He has no fear of new situations.  He is so resilient.  He doesn't have difficulty making new friends anywhere we go. 

Here are the boys at the pumpkin patch before Halloween.  We typically go to a different patch every year.  This year we went to one up north.  There weren't a lot of people there, but perhaps that was because it was terribly cold out.  My boys didn't seem to care.  Note the absence of shoes on Jacob's feet.  I'm still trying to adapt to a culture where footwear is not optional.  It's a slow process, but since then I've only forgotten Jake's shoes a handful of times.

Joseph and I get to hang out at night after Jacob goes to bed.  Sometimes we do take weird pictures...

Not surprisingly, Jacob didn't like wearing his Halloween costume.  

In this picture Jacob is sitting at a table while we're on the ferry to Seattle.  This is a rare moment; Jacob doesn't typically sit at the table long enough for me to take a picture of him.  Perhaps it was the popcorn sitting in front of him.

At the halfway mark of Joe's patrol, Jacob, my mom, and I took Joseph and his friend to Great Wolf Lodge to celebrate.  They had a lot of fun!

Joseph liked the Santa Train so much last year that I decided to take him and Jacob again.  He asked Santa for an electronic tablet.  Joseph must have been really good this year because there was an iPad under the tree.  Santa got Jacob a play kitchen.  He makes delicious sandwiches for us all the time.

We were lucky enough to have a white Christmas.  Joe was sad when he heard he missed the snow.  We took a lot of pictures and videos, though.

Here are the boys in their Christmas pajamas.  This is probably the last year that they'll have matching PJs because Joseph will be a size 8 next year and I think they typically range from 2T to 7.  It makes me a bit sad.

Jacob loves the snow!

We invited our neighbors, Chey and Kenna, over to decorate Christmas cookies. 

2012 was a pretty good year.  I'm astounded at how quickly time is flying by.  It's scary to think that Joseph will be 8 and Jacob will be 2 in just 3 short months.  We're in the process of planning their birthday party.  Every year I tell myself that I will scale it down.  This year is no exception.  We'll see how that goes!