What an amazing week we have had! Every day was full of wonder and adventure and we soaked up every bit of leisurely fun that we could get. So hold on to your pants while we describe in exhaustive detail our Incredible Thanksgiving Adventure.

It all started on Sunday night when we packed the car for our trip. We would be gone for three whole days and we figured it would be a good dress-rehearsal for Christmas. We learned that we are really good packers as long as our only space limitation is a mini-van with one of the seats removed. Otherwise, we are in trouble.

Monday saw us on the road to Columbus. We decided on this particular destination for no other reason than the simple fact that it was not Cleveland. Don't get me wrong- we LOVE our home here- but it feels more and more like a vacation the farther you get from everyday life. Our first destination was originally meant to be COSI, but on arrival we learned that it was closed for the day. This was a bummer, but don't worry because it all works out in the end.

Instead we decided to check out the Columbus Zoo which received the very prestigious "Psychologically Healthy Workplace Award" this year. It was actually really cool because they also had an aquarium with sharks and sting rays and stuff, as well as a manatee pool. Have you ever seen a manatee? Well, I have. They're endangered, you know. And I think that when God made manatees, he was probably trying to win a who-can-create-the-fattest-ugliest-animal award. Evelyn loved the monkeys and gorillas. After reading the book Caps for Sale (see last week's blog), monkeys have become all the rage in our home. And it turns out Adalie actually has a penguin named after her (but they spelled it wrong- Adelie).

Eventually our sweet children spontaneously decided that they had seen enough, and all three of them broke into a chorus of screams and tears. Evelyn was especially effective, since she has mastered the secret turn-to-jello move that kids use when they want to draw extra attention. Rachel and I gathered them all up and tried to make a quick getaway, but got lost in the labyrinth that is built in the monkey habitat. Finally, we were able to get to the car and drive to our hotel before anyone could call CPS on us.

Just a word about our hotel. Instead of Columbus, we were originally going to go to a large indoor water park for our vacation. Plans changed, but we thought that we could retain some of our original plan by getting a hotel with a pool/jacuzzi. So we did, and the hotel was amazing. Our room had 16 foot high ceilings! Unfortunately the jacuzzi was being cleaned, so we couldn't use it, and the swimming pool was too cold for Evelyn to enjoy. Oh well. We tried.

On Tuesday we got back in the car and drove about an hour to Dayton, which holds the title as the #1 medium sized metropolitan area in the nation for growth and expansion, as well as the home of the Wright brothers (the ones with the funny names). But we didn't care about any of that. We were here for the Boonshoft museum. (It was named after Oscar Boonshoft. It turns out that Dayton has a long history of funny names.) The Boonshoft museum is an amazing museum for kids, and Evelyn loved it. They also had a planetarium there and I took Eva to a show while Rachel fed Jack and Addy. Evelyn is turning out to be quite the astronomer. Something about stars catches her attention, and she was thoroughly entertained for the duration of the show. Not even 101 Dalmatians can beat that!

On Wednesday we went back to COSI. It actually stands for the Center Of Science and Industry and is the #1 science museum in the country according to Parenting magazine. It was really cool. I don't know that Evelyn appreciated this place quite as much as the others, but it was mine and Rachel's favorite place on the entire trip. There were over a thousand hands-on exhibits and all were fun and unique. In Rachel's words, "It's what I'd imagine I'd make if someone gave me an unlimited budget and an unlimited amount of time to make a science museum." That evening we packed up the car and said goodbye to Columbus and headed home.

Thursday, of course, was Thanksgiving. We had a very relaxing morning, and then had Thanksgiving dinner with the Tippits and the Bonds, some of our good friends here in Cleveland. Between all of us we were able to create quite the feast. We also found that we enjoyed the intimacy of a small gathering instead of the big group party that we have done in years past. After dinner we played some games and divided up all the leftovers. I am thankful that we only have to eat Turkey once a year.

On Friday I paid homage to the Retail gods my making my pilgrimage to Target at 4:30 in the morning and standing in line in a frigid wind with a bunch of crazies (yes, I realize that I was one of them). I actually failed to mention that on Wednesday, our last day in Columbus, my coat was stolen with our camera in the pocket (unfortunately you all missed out of the picture of Rachel wrestling the Gorilla at the zoo- it was great!). The silver lining for us was that we were only a few days away from the biggest camera sale of the year. Later that day, we just relaxed and watched Pixar's "Up", which gave us inspiration for this year's gingerbread house (look for more on this in upcoming posts).

On Saturday I decided that I hadn't been to enough museums this week, so I took Evelyn to the children's museum which is just down the street from our house. Later that day, Adalie had a major breakthrough as she rolled over for the first time. I always knew we had an athlete hiding under all that baby fat. Jackson still just moans into the floor if you put him on his belly. Add that to the fact that he looks like a leper (eczema) and it actually makes for a pretty sad sight. Also, that evening we gathered with a bunch of our friends and enjoyed eating brats, ribs, and wings while watching BYU beat Utah. Go Cougars!

And now it is Sunday. We have had a relaxing day, and a great week. I go back to school tomorrow, but Christmas vacation ("Winter Break" if you want to be politically correct) is coming up in just three weeks. This vacation has been wonderful and I will miss all the time that I have been able to spend with my family this week.

Here are some pictures we took with our new camera:

This is my sweet little girl. Very nice.

Tummy Time

These were taken during the football game

My, how our lifestyle has changed. I was looking through some pictures the other day and came across one of me and Rachel at Rock Canyon in Provo. I remember days when I would have a couple of hours between classes and I'd call Rachel up on the phone, and 15 minutes later we were walking up the trail to The Green Monster to go rock climbing. I remember when Rachel surprised me with a spontaneous 3 day trip to Vegas for our anniversary. Once, we drove up a canyon in the middle of winter and found some snow caves that were already made (probably scouts or something) and slept in them overnight. We used to keep camping and climbing stuff permanently in the trunk of our car for spontaneous outings like this.

Contrast that with now. As I was brainstorming what to write about in the blog I asked Rach what some of the highlights of the week were. After some thought she replied, "We spilled Cheerios." It's true. We have moved on to a new phase in our lives dominated by diapers and feeding schedules-short walks and trips to the zoo. Our energy is spent in short two-hour bursts because that is when the babies have to eat again. A trip to Walmart is a major accomplishment. We still do what we can to stay active- those who know us can certainly attest to that. But it is definitely different.

As I go back and read this post, I realize that it may appear to some that our previous lifestyle was more desirable. Those people probably don't have children. You see, I couldn't imagine a life without my Evelyn, my Jackson, and my Adalie. I actually look forward to coming home from school and reading books with Evelyn. Pointing things out to her (and the babies) about the world has increased my own awareness of what an amazing place we really live in. And deep down, I really like dancing wildly around my house singing silly songs (it makes me feel like a kid), so it's nice that my children give me an excuse to do this and still maintain my manhood. If going back meant losing this, then I wouldn't even have to think about it for a second.

So overall I'd have to say that things are definitely different, and also that they are better than ever. I won't lie and say that I don't miss the spontaneity and the activity level of our pre-children days. But we'll have all of that back in a few years when they grow up a little. For now, I am just trying to treasure every second I have with these little ones.

Woah- I just got all philosophical and stuff. Don't worry, there won't be many more blog posts like this one, but you've got to understand that we keep these posts as a family history and I wanted to have these feelings recorded somewhere. That said, here are a couple of pictures of our week:

Here are the spilled Cheerios that I mentioned. We gave Evelyn a broom to help clean up. This ended up being a little counter productive. She's learning.

We went to the Children's Museum. I think we have a future doctor in the family- Evelyn wouldn't put down that darn stethoscope!

Also, Rachel went and saw the midnight premiere of New Moon (some vampire movie) with a bunch of friends. That night she only got two hours of sleep. I don't know how she does it.

Look- we're going crazy with the video. Three clips in three weeks. That's good for us. This is sort of a conglomeration of things that we did this week. Nothing too exciting.

Right now it is 11:00 on Saturday night. I just got back from a wonderful date with my girlfriend, Rachel. We saw a movie and ate pie and held hands and talked about random subjects without even mentioning babies. It was great! It has been a long time since we have been able to do this, and it was a lot of fun to be able to forget about our three lovely children for a while. Don't get me wrong, I love them all dearly, but it was nice to have some time to focus on each other. All we have to say is thank you, thank you, thank you to our neighbors who bravely offered (with a little bit of coercion and bribery) to watch the kids while we were out. "Always have a date night" was one of those things I'd heard a lot but I don't think I ever fully realized the significance of that advice until now.

Our babies are doing great! They are starting to follow a more predictable routine now, which makes it easier for us to get out and do things. Also, they are becoming more smiley. Today I was holding Adalie at church and she looked right at me with her big blue eyes and gave me the biggest "I love you" smile that I have ever seen on her. I about lost it. I sat there and looked at my family- all five of us- and thought to myself "Gee whiz, I think that I am just about the luckiest guy in the world".

The other day, Adalie was screaming uncontrollably (she does this on a regular basis). We were trying everything we could to console her, but it was all to no avail. Finally, Rachel came over with Jackson, who reached out his hand and held on to her, sort of like he was saying "It's okay, I'm here now." When he did this, Adalie immediately stopped crying and just stared at her brother. Rachel and I were both amazed. It might have been coincidence, but I prefer to think that these two babies have a special bond that comes with being twins.

And Evelyn is as cute as ever…Maybe even cuter if that is possible. Her new favorite things are stars and airplanes. Several nights I have taken her on night-walks. We go to a big open area that is near our house and lie on the grass (she puts her head on my shoulder) and point to all of the stars. She is also very good at pointing out airplanes, the moon, and clouds if they are present. She likes this so much that we went and got those glow-in-the-dark stars for her bedroom. Bed time has never been easier.

We've been trying to get some shots of the babies smiling. This is easier said than done. Here are some of Jackson that we captured right after the moment, but you can sort of tell what his smile looks like. Stay tuned and I'm sure we'll get some better ones up. Rachel is very diligent.

Evelyn thought this was pretty silly. Jackson tolerated it.

We have been loving the Autumn weather. These leaf pictures were taken on a walk we went on yesterday. While Evelyn was playing in these leaves she fell down from the top and literally somersaulted down the pile and landed in a heap at the bottom. She thought that this was so fun that she insisted I lift her back up so she could do it again! Cute girl!

This picture is not an illusion- we found this MASSIVE pile of leaves on our Sunday evening walk. I threw Evelyn in and she totally dissapeared! How fun. Even Rachel and I joined in on the action on this one.

Here are some pictures of Adalie. She really is a very cute girl, but she insisted on crossing her eyes while we were taking these.

We got such a large positive response to our short little video last week that we thought we'd post one more. Rachel took this right after we got home from a Sunday evening walk. We have come to accept that virtually every outing ends in tears- but that is better than not having outings at all which is the only other alternative. Evelyn is just good through it all.

First for some exciting news- Jackson and Adalie slept through the night last night! I know that this news is mostly just exciting to us, but anyone with kids can appreciate how nice a full-night's sleep can be after going months without one. Not that we have much to complain about- they are only two months old tomorrow. And we don't have any illusions that they will do this every night. But hey, we'll take whatever we can get.

Actually, they have been better in a lot of ways. They aren't really sick any more, and we are even able to have a few hours each day when we don't have someone in the house crying. They are also starting to give us smiles, which is fun and very rewarding. They both have thrush still, but even that is getting more manageable.

Evelyn continues to crack us up at every turn. The other day she put a blanket over her head and ran wildly about the room until she hit a wall or a piece of furniture which knocked her over. I thought she would start crying, but instead she threw the blanket off and had this big Sesame Street grin on her face. Then she stood up and did it again. Oh, the simple joys of being a toddler.

On Saturday we went to the dinosaur museum. We'd been there once before, but wanted to go back. This is a cool place. Rachel took Evelyn for most of the time while I held both babies in my arms and walked around. It's fun to do this, in a sort of self-aggrandizing sort of way, because I always get a lot of smiles and compliments on what a great guy I am for taking the babies and being a good dad and all. On the other hand, it sort of makes me wonder if expectations for guys aren't just set entirely too low in the public mind, thus turning what should be normal into something exceptional.

Anyway, that is about it for this week. I am about to go and get Evelyn out of bed and dress her for church. Rachel is feeding the babies and says hello to everyone. We will post pictures this afternoon.

Here are Evelyn and Rachel making sugar cookies- yum!

The Dino Museum

Some of the medicine we give them for thrush turns their mouths purple. I think it sort of gives them that gothic appearance. Hopefully this trend doesn't come back to haunt us when they are teenagers.

And here are a whole bunch of pictures of Jackson and Adalie. Enjoy.

And finally, here is a video. It's not super exciting- just a view into our Sunday morning.