Rockin' in the New Year in Flushing

Hi all,

We are still here just busy visiting our family and friends in Flushing, MI. We drove (yes, we are crazy) last week on Christmas afternoon. It took us two days of pure family fun to arrive but we did make it safe and sound and not completely insane. Believe it or not, we only watched 3 videos and ate at McDonald's once. Woohoo!! We are hoping to get on the road towards home on Friday morning. Stay tuned for more Wescott family fun.

Alice and Paige are having a blast playing with the dress up clothes in Grandma and Papa's basement and hanging out with thier MI cousins. I will update with more photos after we get home.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Scott, Jen, Sam, Alice, Paige and Mason too!

Twas' the Day Before Christmas....

When all through the house, Mom was running around in a panic trying to remember everything to pack!

Okay, so it really hasn't been that bad :) Boy does it take a lot of stuff for this family of five (soon to be six) to get on the road. 21 sets of kids clothes, 21 pairs of socks, 6 jammies, 21 pairs of undies, pull-ups, 4 pairs of tights, 2 Christmas dresses, 5 toothbrushes, a comb, too many hair ribbons to count, 3 pair of winter boots, 3 warm coats and snow pants, hats, mittens, extra mittens, camera, camcorder, 2 computers, snacks for the car, DVD player, DVDs, toys, games, books, crayons, presents, presents, presents....wow! And to think that we don't even have to pack the baby stuff this year! No pack-n-play, bibs, bottles, diapers for a week, slings, booster seat...okay, well, you get the picture. So it definitely could be worse :)

Yes, we are driving all the way to Michigan this year. We are hoping to leave on Friday morning and get an early start. Depending on the weather, maybe Thursday night. I am hoping that we don't have to leave on Christmas mainly because it would be nice for the kids to enjoy Christmas before the long drive. We are really trying to look at this as a really fun adventure. Think of all the cool stuff we will see on the way. Cows....errr...a couple trees...a farm in Iowa....more cows. We will definitely get tons of family time. That will be fun, right?!?!? Anyway, there is goodness at the end of the road, Grandma and Papa, aunts and uncles, many cousins will be waiting with big hugs and kisses. What could be better than that? We can't wait!!

Today we will be celebrating Christmas Eve at my parents house with my brother and his family. We will also be joined this year by Kent and Victoria, Brendan and Ellie and Vic's parents. It is sure to be a great day! Afterwards, we will head to the candlelight service at church, something I look forward to all year long.

We are thinking of Mason on this day, just as we do everyday and hoping that he is well and happy. We cannot wait to hold and kiss you and celebrate the day that you become part of our forever family. That will be the best present of all!!!!

Merry Christmas to all! May you find peace in this season....

From our family to yours!

Love, Scott, Jennifer, Sam, Alice and Paige (Mason too!)

Ballerinas

Alice had her winter ballet performance last night and Paige had hers this morning. They both LOVE their classes and teachers. Alice's class did a very pretty dance. She danced beautifully and we were amazed how well she picked it up (she only started about a month ago).

Paige's class was also adorable (ages 2 1/2 to 4 1/2) dressed in candy cane t-shirts and black tutus. As you can see from the pictures, Paige refused to wear the costume because she thought her leotard was too pretty to cover up. She also chose her own moves in lieu of the choreographed dance that her teacher planned. Nevertheless, she is adorable and kept us giggling.

Above, Alice in her pretty costume and dancing with her best friend Abby. Paige with her dance teacher and showing off some of her own moves.

Have a great day~ nine days until Christmas!

Jennifer

Real Men Girls Wear Red Velvet

The Wescott girls anyway! There really doesn't seem to be a time when red velvet isn't appropriate. In the month of December my girls have chosen to wear their hand-me down red velvet Christmas dresses as much as possible. Check out Paige and Alice wearing their velvet to decorate the gingerbread house.

Wrestling with Daddy....yes, that is Scott on the bottom of the dog pile.

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This weekend was pretty much dedicated to the Christmas Program at church. We had our practice on Saturday morning and then the program on Sunday. All the kids did awesome and looked adorable in their costumes. Alice was an angel and Sam was a shepherd. Paige was in the choir with the other kiddos her age. She had a bit of stage fright and ended up on a volunteer's lap. Oh well, maybe next year. All together we had 38 children participate in the program. I think that might be the most children that we have ever had!! Wow! Next year, I am going to take a break and sit back and watch :) My husband says "yeah, right!".

Sam and his best friend Ellie as shepherds.

Our little angel.

Sunday afternoon we attended the Colorado Werschky Christmas Party. We had good food to snack on and great company! We always have fun with the white elephant gift exchange. Here are some more pics of the kids. Note-girls in red dresses. It is a Christmas party after all!!!

By the end of the weekend, we were all exhausted...

Here is Paige, asleep on the bathroom floor. She was too tired to get on the potty....

Have a great week! 10 more days until Christmas! AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!

Jennifer

Happy Birthday, ReMOMsil

That was the title on the front of Alice's birthday card to me. On the inside was a cute picture of me with long flowing blue hair. Rapunzel, I am not :)

Thanks to everyone who sent me birthday wishes! I loved all of them!

Thank you to Scott for the strawberry on strawberry cake with less than 34 candles. I absolutely did not finish off that cake this morning for breakfast.... That would be gross.

Life here is good. Scott and I are finally getting over our colds and our busy weekend.
Friday night we stopped off at Kent and Vic's for Kent's birthday happy hour/ dance party/ etc.. We then headed to my brother's house for dinner to celebrate mom's birthday. Stacie made a yummy dinner and dessert.
Saturday, we dropped the kids at the church for a parent shopping day. I am sure that they had so much more fun than the parents. They crafted, ate lunch, sang...! Saturday night we got a sitter and went to Scott's work party. It was very nice but because we were still feeling under the weather we bugged out early.
Sunday, Scott worked and I spent most of the morning at church. In the afternoon, Scott, Sam and Alice went out to find me a Christmas tree. Let me start out by saying, I love going out into nature to find our tree every year. It is always an experience that causes tons of laughter and fun, but takes LOTS of time and energy. Anyway, with everything going on this year, I really didn't want to add to the stress by hiking through the mountains (with three kids) looking for the perfect tree. This perfect tree usually looks beautiful out on the side of a mountain but really big, I mean really really big and sparse in our living room. As fun as that can be (with three kids), I needed to forgo the experience this year. They brought home a lovely tree from the lot, full and just the right size for our home, without the much needed trimmings of years past. I am sure that next year, we will be craving our usual Charlie Brown Christmas tree. We will pack up our FOUR kids in to the Cruiser and head into the forest in search of our tree and have tons of fun along the way. Isn't that what it is really about anyway? (I do sort of feel like we cheated on our tree this year with a fuller greener trimmed version).

Sam, Alice and Paige taking turns helping Scott cut off the bottom of the tree.

Sunday night, we had dinner here with the Young's. I didn't feel up to going out so we ordered Chinese food and let the kids play. Fun was had by all.
Thanks to Kim today, for the yummy lunch and good conversation! I always enjoy our mom lunches (even if Paige is there).

A picture of our beautiful tree taken by Alice

My sweet girls

Love to you all!

Since my last post, we have been way too busy and I think that it has gotten the best of us. Scott and I have come down with nasty colds. Today is the first day, all week, that I have felt like my head wasn't in a cloud. Scott traveled to Dallas on Wed. and Thursday for a meeting and I have been trying to get organized for Christmas. It seems like I have so many open ended commitments right now that need to be finished before Christmas. Every time I leave the house for a meeting, Scott reminds me to sit on my hands when volunteers are being summoned. I am starting to believe that that is great advice. Christmas programs and winter school parties, shopping and baking, Oh my! Okay, I have to admit, I don't bake, but it did sound good.

Yesterday, Scott and I headed to Greeley to speak to a foot and ankle specialist regarding Mason's feet. When I woke to falling snow, I began to doubt whether or not we would be going but Scott thought we should try so we headed up north, hoping that the snow showers would stop. (He is much braver than I) The trip wasn't horrible; we just had to go slow and really watch the road conditions. The temp was only in the teens so the snow wasn't melting, just turning into ice. It took us 2 hours to get there and 4 to get back. 2 words...Denver traffic. We had to go straight through Denver at rush hour and with poor driving conditions, the trip home seemed endless. Anyway, we made it home, full of valuable info and happy to have met the doctor that will be treating Mason. My only hope is that we have a warm, dry spring as I will be taking him back and forth between Greeley every 7-10 days during casting.

I am trying to lay low today because we have a busy weekend ahead of us. Scott wasn't so lucky. He is at work crunching numbers with no clear end in sight. Unfortunately, he is a day behind me with his cold and wasn't feeling any better this morning.

Off to address Christmas cards. Maybe this sounds better....shopping and Christmas cards! Oh my!

Have a great weekend. Stay warm.
Jennifer

Happy Thanksgiving!!!

I really meant to post last night, but the couch got the best of me! Yesterday, Scott and I hosted our very first Thanksgiving with my family. 10 years...that is how long it has been that I have gotten away with not cooking turkey dinner for a crowd. Saying that I needed to take a turn would be putting it lightly. In past years, we have either gone to Breckenridge and bought turkey dinner or my wonderful sister-in-law cooks at her house. She makes a terrific Thanksgiving feast and we have all been taking advantage of her goodness. This year it was my turn. I was really excited and totally nervous. What if the turkey made everyone sick (if it did, they haven't fessed up yet), what if the dressing tasted gross? how would I get all the food to the table and keep it warm? BTW, I haven't mention yet that I don't like to touch meat. When I am cooking for my family, I either slide the meat off the styrofoam tray right into the pan or make something veggie. Well....thank God for husbands, especially mine. He touched the turkey. That doesn't sound good, let me restate. He cleaned, stuffed, and prepared the turkey for cooking. He rocks. He also mashes potatoes. Anyway, it all went as planned. The turkey was cooked and the stuffing tasted okay. Everyone pitched in and my first Thanksgiving was a hit. Thanks to everyone for saying it tasted good! BTW, my food processor may never be the same. One word, giblets. I digress.

Paige and my niece crafting. Thanks to Stacie for bringing crafts to keep the kids busy. They had a blast!

Grandma helping out in the kitchen! She is the original Thanksgiving hostess.

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Today, Scott had the day off so we all piled into his truck and headed up to Rampart Range Rd. Last night we had a little snowfall, so the tree and ground were covered with a dusting. It was a beautiful morning to head into the mountains! We drove all the (very bumpy) way to Woodland Park with a couple stops to stretch our legs. Here are some pics of the kids playing on the rocks.

This is a picture of the steam coming off the road as we headed out of town. You can't tell but the sun was peeking out and warming everything up. Paige's hand print in the snow. That was the only picture that she wanted taken (as you can see from the above shot).

Sorry my kids look a bit disheveled. Bless their hearts..when they woke to snow they all threw on clothes and brushed teeth and headed downstairs ready to make a snowman. Not quite that much snow :) I absolutely did not forget to brush their hair. Hey- it was our day off!

Tonight, I have been working on Mason's care package. We had a lot of fun finding things to include. It all had to fit in a shoebox, so that we a fun challenge. We added a warm sweatsuit, camouflage socks (picked my Sam), a camera, hat, blocks, fruit snacks, a ball, two cars and a photo book that included our family pictures.

We have so much to be thankful for this season. Only God knows what life will bring and we are thrilled and excited to see all that He has planned for us! Please continue to keep Mason in your prayers as we wait to travel to bring him home.

Enjoy the weekend,

Jennifer

He's Baaaaack!

Every year , right around Thanksgiving, he arrives....

My mountain man.

Sometime after racing season is done, Scott quits shaving his face or cutting his hair. He keeps his face and head close to shaved most of the year so it is always a surprise when I wake up one morning and he looks like this. Still handsome! Don't worry. If you prefer clean cut Scott, he'll be back sometime after New Year's. That is when he will start training for the big race- Leadville 100. Yes, he will be running 100 miles on mountain trails.

A Family of Six

Sam, Alice and Paige are so excited to let everyone know that they are going to have a new brother!

Mason Joseph Sheng Wescott

Born: June 30, 2007

Currently residing in Henan Province, Xinxiang City Social Welfare Institute

Isn't he cute!!!!

We are hoping to travel in March (at the earliest). Please keep Mason in your prayers until we bring him home.

Much love,
Scott, Jennifer, Samuel, Alice and Paige

kicking butt, blue belts and silliness

This morning I decided that instead of donating money to the YMCA I should actually use the facilities that I am paying for. After prying Paige off my leg (we have some separation issues) and leaving her in the nursery, I geared myself up and got on the treadmill. I ran 2 miles and thought that I might die. Why is it that I could run a half-marathon in October and can't run more than two miles one month later? Shouldn't running be like riding a bike, once you've mastered it, you can do it forever. Well, I guess it sort of is. I am sure my heiny would be screaming at me if I got on my bike too! No chance of that, I am too sore! Hopefully by next week Paige will be comfortable with the childwatch again and my rearend will be comfortable with running more than a couple miles.

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Sam did it. He really did it. He earned his blue belt in karate. We are sooooo proud of him. He loves his class and has worked so hard. Way to go!


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Alice: Hey Mommy, this is what I look like when I am thinking!

I couldn't resist posting her "thinking" picture.

Tea for Two

Paige and I had a wonderful tea party this morning. She has a great imagination and we are always amazed at the smart and adorable things she thinks up. She made apple tea, oatmeal tea, peppermint candy tea, pickled tea and spicy tea (Maria, her imaginary friend, did not like that one!)

I am truly enjoying our alone time together during the day. She has always been our angel baby.

The Tooth Fairy Has Arrived

Alice 6 months old

My baby has lost her first tooth. She wiggled and jiggled it until it couldn't take it any longer. I do love those toothless grins! I miss the days when she was just getting those pearly whites. Many moons ago, I made tooth fairy pillows for my nieces and nephews but never made them for my own kids. Sam enjoys the thrill of placing his tooth under his pillow (much to the tooth fairy's dismay) and finding a monetary reward in its place. Alice decided that she would like to use my tooth fairy pillow that my mom made me oh so long ago. We hung it on her door and placed the tooth safely inside and by morning the fairy had come and gone and left a dollar in place of the tooth.

Life is really great around here. Everyone is feeling better and I am praying that the sickies are gone for a while. I am slowly taking down my Halloween decorations and getting ready for the next holiday. When your kids go to school, the holidays pretty much get lumped into one big holiday from Halloween to New Year's.

I am starting to think about my kids Christmas picture. The jammies have worked really well so far because I don't have to worry about pretty dresses getting wrinkled and shirts coming untucked. There are no socks or shoes to worry about matching. I am not sure what the likelihood is of getting three kids into their jammies for a picture again next year...but I think that I will continue until the resistance gets too strong :)

We are trying to decide if we are brave enough (or just plain stupid) to drive to MI the week after Christmas. Still to be decided....

I am hoping to give my blog a little makeover. Does anyone know of a free service that works? Did you notice I said free.

Sorry if this post is all over the place. That pretty much sums up my life :)

I hope that you all are having a great week!

Jennifer and fam

A Case of the Sickies

Back to school=sickness at home
My friend Brandie made that comment a couple weeks ago and it is so true. Two weeks ago, Paige came down with a very croupy cough that lasted a couple long days. Alice somehow picked up that germ on Tuesday. She woke up early Tuesday morning with a very similar barky cough and a fever. I kept her home for two days just to make sure that she wasn't contagious and then sent her back to school today. Very early this morning, Sam woke up vomiting and stayed home from school. We definitely have a case of the sickies. Let's all pray that Mommy or Daddy stay healthy!!! Yeah right! What are the chances of that?

Jennifer

A Great Day to Hike

Happy Halloween!!

Wednesday, Sam and Alice had their Fall parties at school and now they are off for two days. District 11 scheduled conferences for the 30 and 31st, I think mainly to avoid school on Halloween. I have to admit that it is really nice not worrying about parties and costumes and making treats for school on Halloween. This way we can relax all day and then go out with lots of energy on the candy hunt. Paige had her Fall Party yesterday morning at preschool. All the little ones looked so cute!

Alice was really sweet to Paige and held her hand around the classroom as all the kids trick or treated....

Some of the children in Alice's class pose for a pic. Note the kid in front squeezing his sister's face:)

Sam decorating a mask during his Fall Party.

Last night, we carved our pumpkins into scary Jack O' Lanterns. Sam did a great job on his and only needed a little bit of help from Dad. Don't worry, a 7 year old with a knife does sound alarming, but Scott was very close. Alice and Paige designed their pumpkins with sharpies and then Scott and I did the cutting to reveal their creations! Afterwards, we played a mean game of Go, Diego! Go! rummy and snacked on the pumpkin seeds.

Alice and Scott making silly faces. Oooo....scary!

Back to conferences...Alice (Kind) is doing great and is really doing well with her math skills and is reading up a storm. Sam (1st grade) is also doing great. He loves to write and is working on a pirate chapter book right now. He eats up anything that his teacher gives him and is always ready for more. I am more than proud of them....if you can't tell :)

Have a happy and safe Halloween.
Jennifer