8 years ago

Hi friends and family,

Even after several weeks with Oma and Opa we are still happily coexisting and working well together. Our desire to stay is only valid until one of three conditions is met: 1. we get tired of being here 2. Oma and Opa kick us out or 3. our responsibilities in AZ require attention. Looks like we'll hit condition 3 before the other two so we'll be back in town next week. The cool nights and mornings provide daily opportunities for us to get out of the house, which is still not an option in AZ yet this season.

We met the Del Rio's out for sushi dinner since we are all sushi fan. We have two categories of friends: those who like sushi and those who don't. They do so we went and ate ourselves into a sashimi and edamame coma. Dinner was fun, but I look forward to a long weekend of camping or sledding or something so we can have some bonding experiences and extended time for conversations.

This blog isn't so much about me as it is about life through my eyes so I actually prefer to capture events like this from behind the camera. No child left behind, you know...


Speaking of children, here's the twins with Isabella. 2 out 3 looking at the camera is the best we could do. :) We gave Isabella her belated birthday gift of princess slippers and something else I can't remember. I hope she's as adept at walking in heels as Layla is.


Layla is more "girly" than normal toddlers (or so I'm told). We dress her in shorts and a t-shirt, but inevitably she will request to wear her princess dress and princess slippers and tiara. This isn't an isolated incident. She wears this around the house twirling and dancing almost every single day until we force her into a wardrobe change for meals or swimming or some activity.


Easton discovered the humor of being dizzy. I hold him close to me and spin around several times as he laughs out loud. Then I put him on the ground and tell him to walk. He tries, but falls down and then lays on the ground until the room stops spinning.


Another new pastime for the twins is to hide in the kitchen and then run into the living room as one of us waits at the doorway to scare and tickle them. Worked out well to get some true smiley candid shots.


It's easy to see how similar Easton and Layla look in this natural state of happy, fun candidness. The way Easton loves the thrill of running towards Opa knowing he'll get a scare and tickle.


Kendra and I celebrated our 8th anniversary this weekend! Go team Webb. The celebration consisted of Kendra and I driving across town for 24 hours of "us" time while Oma and Opa cared for the twins. We checked into our hotel room and then went for a romantic dinner at Crush 29. Kendra looked fabulous and we even attempted a joint effort on a cross-word puzzle while waiting for our meal. We've never done that before, but turned out to be one of the most memorable moments from dinner. After a mature, elegant dining experience we put on our swim suits and went to Sun Splash for night time water slide adventures. See the long, steep slide in the background? Yeah, we did that one first...


We were cold and shivering waiting in line most of the night, but it didn't keep us from having a blast while acting like kids. We held hands as we wandered through the park filled with young kids and parents. After dinner we almost talked each other out of going by saying things like, "we're old and tired and it's late". Then I realized how ridiculous it is for us to use such excuses so we didn't let those lies get in between us and fun.

It made for a late night, but the best part of our day away was sleeping in (guilt free) until 9:00 AM! The sun peaked through the ultra-dark curtains and we just lay there slowly waking up. We took our time and eventually rolled out of bed to take advantage of the hotel breakfast. Such a late morning is unheard of and I can't remember the last time we did so.

Each year I realize more and more how lucky I am to have Kendra as my wife. What I need help with the most is being reminded not to take her for granted. It's so easy to do when we get in our daily routine of life. Here is our official 8th anniversary picture just in case the waterslide picture seems too immature or unrefined. (just kidding)


Back at Oma and Opa's house our lack of presence was barely even noticed by the twins because they are so enthralled with them. Easton and Layla attempt to double team Opa with a double rush, but they are easily overtaken and tickled appropriately.


Easton and Layla asked for (and were given) bowls of ice to chomp. I have no idea why they like crushed ice, but you would think they were given a big chocolate ice cream sundae based on the reactions they show when given ice.


We also determined Easton is noticeably taller than Layla. He's always been a few hairs taller than her, but now it is becoming obvious when they stand next to each other.

Another humorous divergence of note is their response of gratitude when given something. Layla says, “Oh, thank you SO much!” Easton says, “yep”. Seems like they are following in our footsteps even down to the way we respond. Obviously I need to work on my responses…

See you soon!