The results are in...

The votes have been counted (all 18 of them!) and it's official, this years traditional "going without" is Soda pop. For the uninformed this is the third year that I have given something up for an entire year. 2007 was fries, 2008 was ice-cream and now 2009 will be carbonated drinks. For the previous years there has been a "get out of jail free card". In 2007, if I was in England chips were permitted (we never made it). 2008, the rule was relaxed when out of town on vacation. This year I am going cold turkey, the whole year, no exceptions.

I have spent the last week "detoxing" by paying extra special attention to avoid caffeinated drinks and having little if any pop. Having read up a little and talked to some people who know a thing or two, this is what I expect to come from this new diet:

1. Save money - soft drinks now cost around $1.75, assuming purchasing 3 per week would be a saving of ~$270 for the year.


2. Weight loss - even though I typically only drink diet I can expect to lose weight as soda pops make you crave for carbs (or something like that)


3. Better digestion - it was suggested that drinking carbonated drinks while eating prevents the body from breaking down foods properly


4. No Caffeine - there's got to be some benefit to significantly reducing your caffeine level


5. An annoying tendency to talk about the benefits of my new beverage choice - I'd like to think not...but it's already started, hasn't it?

To be honest, the past two years were not that difficult. I know this is going to be the toughest one yet, but I have every confidence. Anyone care to join me?

Heres a tip on what to do with left over soda in the fridge.

Merry Christmas

We were a little worried that Izzy is still a little to young to appreciate Christmas, and she is, but she did know that she was getting some cool new toys to play with. Her favorites include her rocking horse, her new wagon (excellent gift for Izzy, not so much for me now that she wants rides everywhere) and her little people farm set.

We enjoyed a quiet Christmas this year. Over the next couple of years we will be able to strengthen our own family Christmas traditions with Isabelle and "Bubs Two". I have been interested in Christmas traditions this year and how people celebrate this time of year. For us, Christmas Eve is the night to remember the birth of Saviour, away from the distractions of gifts and the excitement of Christmas Day. Isabelle is still to young to appreciate the Christmas Story but she looked like a real angel as we reenacted the Nativity Story with some of her cousins and friends. 



Christmas morning Isabelle awoke to find that Santa had left a stocking at the end of her crib (a favorite tradition I did in my family - in fact I and at least two others of my siblings have insisted that Santa "visit" them even as grown adults). Christmas morning is pictures on the stairs in pajama's (tradition from Tiffany's side).



Following which we were able to talk to and thank grandparents for gifts. My dad wasn't feeling feeling well so we couldn't video chat with them but we did catch up with Nana, Papa and Uncle Tyler.



Later on we enjoyed brunch with extended family. We'd certainly love to read about your family traditions.

Here's Izzy enjoying her Christmas!

And then there were four!

Coming in May 2009...

Merry Christmas - Blogosphere

Here's our Christmas card to the blogosphere. I think it sums up Isabelle quite nicely.




Here were our out-takes!

Finally - Phoenix

We took a trip out to see Tiffany's parents the week before Thanksgiving. These were our highlights:

What Izzy wants, Izzy gets...at Nana and Papa's



Izzy on the lookout for "Monies" - Izzy keep standing in the yard saying "Monies, Monies". We are pretty sure we've never come close to explaining finances to our 18 month old. We finally figured out she was looking for Bunnies.



We took a day trip to "Red Rock country" Sedona. We enjoyed the fantastic scenery and weather. Here is a popular lookout spot on the drive up.



Like mother, like daughter.



Our other big outing was to the Wildlife zoo. Izzy got a kick out of the Kids petting zoo.



These animals are conditioned to know where the food is. Nana got a handful to give to Izzy but was surrounded in the process. Izzy was a little concerned for Nana's safety.



Izzy generally stuck by the smallest animals.



Except, this one, which was considerably larger! For the record, they have really, really bad breath!



Izzy needed a good clean after the "hands on" experience. I was happy to oblige.



Otherwise, we had a great time in Phoenix, it was nice to see Paul and Debbie in action on their mission. One of the days we were there was interviews, I helped console a couple missionaries by letting them know that these interviews are nothing compared to the "ask your daughter to marry you" interview. It was hard to leave knowing that we wouldn't be back until at least next summer.

White Christmas

We keep meaning to blog about our trip to Phoenix last month. I promise we'll get to it. In the meantime we've been enjoying getting into the Christmas spirit and the Wintery weather.

I'm at church for meetings before the service actually begins and one of my Sunday highlights is waiting for Tiffany and Izzy to come in. They always take my breath away when they come in, both always looking so beautiful. Today was especially so.

Waiting Patiently

Is this where Santa comes down?

Have I been naughty or nice?

Izzy's entering the home stretch to Christmas. This is where the panic sets in. Sometimes the anxiety is visible...



... last year was a nervous one too ...



... starting to sense a pattern here!