Funny Boys

I love having boys! They make me laugh every hour of the day (in between time outs and tantrums) with their expressions, words, and look on life. I have to start recording some of the things Callum says so that I don't forget. I already have forgotten some things and it kills me!
Here are just a few photos of the boys lately:

Crosby loves the bath more than any baby I know! it's so fun to watch him play, and he is way more fearless than Callum was at this age. He dips his face in the water and tries to drink it. He puts his head under the spout. He is a little fish! 

Trying to wear his goggles and getting distracted

So handsome!

I gave Crosby a "fruit pouch" (what do other people call those things? And he squeezed it alll over his face. Look at that expression. It's like: "whoops"

Finally, grocery shopping is manageable!! Callum LOVES pushing the mini cart and putting his food in there. He was listing the things in his cart "we've got cheese, fruit bars, yogurt, applesauce, bananas". So cute.

Going for a walk with Lola and the boys. He loves seeing the airplanes shoot across the sky

I've said this before: this kid is OBSESSED with his backpack. He loves putting in his toys, his sippy cup, his snacks and wearing it everywhere we go. 

Ok so this photo just miiigggghhht be a little TMI. But it's my blog so I don't care. While bathing the boys, I hear Callum say "I peed in it mommy!" and proudly hands me this empty shampoo bottle. I am not sure he is serious but I look and realize he did indeed pee directly into this bottle. He was so proud and excited I just had to take a picture of how cute it all was.

Christmas in San Francisco and Canada

I can't really believe we managed to do both SF and Canada this year for Christmas but surprisingly it went off without a single hitch. In San Francisco we had a blast visiting dear friends and family, enjoying the sites and getting into the Christmas spirit. I got to see my sweet friends Christy, Brittany, Cara and Jenna which nourished my little soul. We also celebrated four years of happily wedded bliss and went to eat at a nice restaurant as per tradition. We seriously love food wayyy too much. We took the boys to see Santa at Macy's, took them swimming in my parents pool (indoor- they live at the St Regis so it's their hotel pool) and saw lots of movies! That's not a commonplace occurrence for us normally so I relished it. The boys had a blast, Callum made cookies with his Koko and got Hanukkah lent from his Tatu. Koko also took him to see the train sets which callum absolutely adored. My dad cooked us a fantastic crab meal that was on par with all of his delicious food.
We didn't take hardly ANY photos and it kills me, but I wanted to write down the memories so that someday I'll know :)

Strolling along Market Street with Daddy. He kept asking to get on Ryan's shoulders.

While in SF, we went to the East Bay (where I grew up) and met up with great family friends. Callum had so much fun with Grace!

Croz and Kenz

Callum voluntarily opted to hang out like this- a rare moment for him! This is airplane blankie. This is the only blanket that matters!

Callum fascinated by the train sets. He saw Polar Express and it was love at first sight.

We ate at a restaurant called Fleur De Lys. This is the chef Hubert Keller. So dorky but we watch him on Top Chef all the time and had to get a pic. I was star struck :) 

Our dessert was a play on the hamburger, fries, milkshake and condiments. It was sort of unreal!

From SF we headed to Toronto. We surprised Ryan's mom and grandpa for Christmas and got in early on Christmas eve. We had a nice time relaxing and spending time with Ryan's family and extended family. They are very tight knit and it's a great thing to be a part of. Since we'd already done Christmas at our house, we let grandma and papa spoil Callum on Christmas day. They are the only grandkids on Ryan's side so everything orbits these two little boys! It's so fun. Callum had a blast opening presents and was just in heaven. It's funny though, he was so tired on Christmas that he napped literally all day and went to bed early. So, we didn't open any presents until the 26th. Goes to show how busy little Zuzu was. Crosby was just happy to be there, loving every minute of it. Again we got so few photos but here are the ones we did get.
For New Year's Eve we went to the wedding of the Browns'  family friend and it was so much fun! It was a great wedding and an awesome way to ring in the new year! The wedding was in Niagara falls, (about an hour away) so we decided to stay there instead of trying to drive back at 1am. Ryan's aunt was so gracious to offer her lake house, so we stayed there with Ryan's sister and husband. It was gorgeous. You could literally walk from the back yard to the water.
It was a great trip full of fabulous memories. So glad to have been able to celebrate Christmas with both our parents.

Callum handed out everyone's presents.

Giveaway

My friend Bronwyn is giving away a nordstrom gift card on her blog. She is a fashionista with good ideas and a great sense of humor. She provides a lot of inspiration and education. 

Follow her HERE and you could win! 

Catching Up: Holiday Fun

We had so much fun this year gearing up for Christmas! We fit so much into the season that my little heart sang. A sample of the things we did:

Watched elf and love actually. 

Had hot cocoa with marshmallows and Christmas sprinkles.

Decorated Christmas sugar cookies and left them for Santa.

Picked out and decorate a tree. 

Danced and ice skated at Ryan's work Christmas party.

Decorated a gingerbread house.

Had breakfast with Santa.

One of Santa's elves made balloon animals for the kids. Callum of course wanted a pirate sword. He and his best little friend Griffin (our next door neighbors) had so much fun sword fighting.

Celebrated our own Christmas morning as a family by opening presents and having a beautiful Christmas breakfast. This year we decided to try a Danish pancake as an homage to my heritage. It was delicious! We had fresh fruit, fresh squeezed orange juice and our traditional poppers. 

Christmas morning Callum and Crosby woke up to the slew of presents from Santa (in actuality, more than half these presents are from their grandparents). I couldn't believe how much Callum understood. He was so excited for Santa to come and loved getting ready for him and his reindeer.

It was truly so nice to have these moments with just our own little family. Christmas is about spending time with loved ones and with family, but sometimes in the hustle and bustle of traveling and seeing everyone these small sweet moments get lost in the frenzy. I cherish these memories of our little family and the intimate setting before we left for Christmas (San Francisco and Canada).

Catching up: thanksgiving

We went up to Idaho for thanksgiving and had a great time eating and relaxing. Callum had a blast with his cousins! I have sucked at taking pictures lately so I don't have a lot to show for our week but it was a great time nonetheless.

Thanksgiving dinner! It was delicious. I love knowing I can come back and have all my favorite thanksgiving dishes exactly the way I remember them. My mom and dad make a fantastic feast.

My Cute Parents

I wouldn't have posted this picture except it was hilarious that my sister posed in the backround. Classic Mckinley.

Kids table and the cousins.

sweet little Lils.

After thanksgiving, the boys and girls split and we each went to a movie. We all ended up seeing twilight--I never got into that craze but the movies are ok and it was fun to go with my sisters. I don't care what anyone says, I still love Jacob.
We were also able to play Laser Tag. It was a blast and I was surprised how much the guys got into it!

While we were there we were able to take a Krafchow family photo with almost everyone in our family, and all of the grandkids. This seems increasingly difficult, since getting together at the same time becomes more and more rare as all of our own families continue to grow. I am glad we had that opportunity and I think it turned out pretty cute.

It was a great holiday and I was reminded of just how much I have to be grateful for. It's a beautiful life!