Newest Nephew

Today we welcomed one more handsome, chubby cheeked boy into the mix! Landon Bruce Syers was born at 2:20 a.m. on December 21, 2010! He weighed in at a whopping 9 pounds, 6 ounces! And he is 21 inches long! A strong, strapping little guy with a full head of thick, golden hair!

I got to be there for the birth and with my ear pressed against the door, I heard his first cry! I was there for Payton & Brady's birthdays and I wouldn't have missed Landon's for anything- even if I had to get out of bed at 12:30 a.m. and drive across town in my pajamas! We are so happy he came a few days early so we could meet him before we take off to Chicago for Christmas!

Check out the latest and greatest Jansen Family BOY!!!

The Golden Boy!

Payton & Brady meeting their new little brother!

On the way over to the hospital Nolan was so excited to meet "baby Landon" who we've prayed for in his bedtime prayers every night for the past 9 months! He kept saying, "I'm gonna hug him and kiss him". Then when we got there he was much more interested in looking out the window and watching the fire trucks and the helicopter landing pad and playing with Payton's pink monster truck (she wants to fit in with the boys and one of their many vehicle obsessions) and Brady's new yellow Hummer that we got them for their big sibling gifts. I managed to entice him into giving Landon a kiss with a bribe of Sour Patch Kids if he loved on his new cousin for awhile!

Proud Uncle & Auntie

Heater got really excited and flashed his usual huge smile and gave Landon his oh-so cute nervous laugh when he met him!

Later in our visit, in usual Nolan style he carefully patted Landon's head and quietly and sweetly gave him another kiss!

These boys will have a lot of fun someday! They already manage to get into all sorts of mischief and silliness together! Heath, Cohen, and Landon will surely learn a lot from their big cousins- Brady & Nolan!

Landon...We love you lots, think you are absolutely perfect, and can't wait to spoil you!!!

xoxo Auntie Abby, Uncle Marky, Nolan, & Heath

Jansen Family Christmas

In just 2 short days we will be packing up the fam and heading out to Chicago for Christmas! We could not be more excited for some Johnson family fun and a relaxing week or so away! But since we wouldn't be in Colorado for the actual day, we had an early Christmas celebration with our little family of 4 and with Mark's family too!

Christmas is just so magical! Especially now that we have little ones to share it with! It is so fun to see the joy in their faces as they take part in all of the traditions! Here are some- well, really A LOT, of pictures from Saturday and some video too!

We woke up early Saturday morning to see that Santa had visited our house!

Nolan was even excited about his new socks!

The boys helping Mark open his stocking!

Oh, the CHEESE pictures! It's just the stage we are in! But hey, at least he's posing for the camera in some way, shape, or form!

Heater got Smokey the Fire truck!

And some new Chuck Taylor's too!

Nolan and his new pride and joy- Chuck!

This kid LOVES cars & trucks, really any kind of vehicle!

After opening up stockings and presents at our house, we headed over to Mark's parents house for more holiday cheer!

The cousins!!! So many boys! Payton is such a good sport!

A rare photo of Oma & Opa with all their grandchildren! Minus Landon...he's on the way soon!

Loved this picture of these two smiling! They are good buds!

Cohen got a new winter hat! Pretty cute!

I was very excited to get the address stamp that I had been wanting!

Nolan saying "CHEESE" again with Auntie Cara!

Wes, as we all know, is VERY fashion forward! Ha! Here he is sportin' Bruce's Dancing with the Stars (or Grandview Administration) hat!

Cohen opening his gift from us- Megablocks!

Payton had a blast with her "Magic Fabric". She made all the cute little stuffed animals that it came with!

And Mark got his Christmas/Birthday gift! Just what he wanted and what will be needed for our COLD trip to the Windy City!

Merry Christmas!!

Ho Ho Ho!

Last weekend we headed out for an early morning breakfast with Santa! Mark's company always has a wonderful children's Christmas party with breakfast, balloon making elves, FREE photos on Santa's lap, goodie bags, and a movie at the theater!

Nolan knew exactly what kind of balloon he wanted. He told the elf that he wanted a black dinosaur!

He also told her that Heath wanted a frog!

Nolan was running around the party roaring his dinosaur at everyone! So much for the holiday spirit!

In past years Nolan hasn't been so fond of sitting on Santa's lap. He has always loved the idea of Santa, but has become frightened when anywhere near him! So we were prepared for tears again! Only this year they didn't come from the usual suspect! Nolan was SO EXCITED to meet Santa! He was jumping up and down in the line he was so thrilled!

Then when it was our turn to go up, all of a sudden he got really shy! But Daddy helped him tell Santa what he wanted for Christmas, which on this particular day, was "a set, a truck set".

But then he warmed right up, was so brave, and smiled beautifully!

Next it was Heath's turn, last year he was only a week old and looked adorable all cuddled up in Santa's fluffy coat! This year, was a different story. He started crying and clutching onto Mark when they got close. And much to our surprise, Santa was not his jolly old self! He wouldn't even let us give him Heath for a hilarious screaming photo like we've had in past years with Nolan. Santa stated, "Op, nope, not this year, maybe next year, not this year!" Sadness! Santa seemed to be more like the Grinch! So we had to settle on a picture with Mark holding Heath next to Santa!

And then it was off to the theater for our goodie bags! Nolan scored with a Woody stuffed animal/book and lots of candy! Heath got a Christmas puppy and a truck that zooms! We didn't stay for the movie because we were off to chop down our tree, but Nolan didn't seem to mind since we are able to take him to movies all the time- another great perk of Mark's job!

So we'll call this years meeting with Santa a success! Maybe "next year" Heath will sit and smile and I can get a great picture of both of the boys happy on his lap! Maybe, just maybe!

P.S. I just had to add this link that my father-in-law sent me. Click here to see: Sketchy Santas! Hilarious!

O Christmas Tree

Ever since we've been married we've had a REAL Christmas tree! We've gone to Albertsons, Home Depot, and King Soopers for a traditional, FULL tree. And one year, when Nolan was just 11 months, we went with Mark's family to chop down a Colorado tree- fresh, with a great smell, but definitely NOT FULL! We thought that the experience of climbing around in the mountains and chopping down the tree would be so fun for Nolan now that he is older. So we joined his fam and did it again this year!

Nolan was SO excited to put on his new puffy coat and snow boots and explore!

Before we started our trek we took some fun family pictures. And managed to get a great photo for Christmas card too! I just love our smiles in this one!

Heater rode on my back for the first portion of our adventure! He was a trooper...until he got hungry and tired and we forgot his paci! Then he cried and cried and cried! So I had to bring him back to the car for some milk and a nap in the back seat!

Nolan kept telling his Daddy that he was looking for "the perfect tree"! However this was his idea of "the perfect tree"! Very cute, but not quite "perfect" for our vaulted ceilings!

I LOVE this pic because MARK actually grabbed the camera and snapped it of the two of us! I always take the photos or tell Mark to take them so I loved that HE wanted to take a picture with me!

After A LOT of hiking, and conversations/arguments about what makes "the perfect tree", we found IT! I wanted it tall and with pinecones, Mark was more concerned about it's shape! The winner was a combination of all of those traits! However, much to my dismay, when we cut it and tipped it over all of the pinecones fell off! SADNESS! Here's Nolan doing some one handed sawing to help Daddy cut it down.

And after we cut it down Nolan decided that he was done. He plopped himself down, completely exhausted from about 2 hours of hiking, throwing pinecones & sticks, and climbing rocks and stumps! So Daddy carried him on his shoulders and we hiked down carrying the tree together. Nolan's face in the next picture says it all!

What an adventure!

We came back to the cars for a yummy lunch and some snuggles with this dude!

Mark strappin' the tree to the roof of the Pilot. I had to post this one because for some reason I just think he is so cute when he's doing manual labor! Girls, are you with me on this one...don't you love your guy doing work?!

Then we headed home to start decorating!

Nolan was a fantastic helper! He loved opening all of the Christmas bins and finding what treasures were inside!

Heath was so tired from a day of napping in the car and having no real meals at home. So he hung a few ornaments with us and then it was off for an early bed time! He's starting to copy a lot of words we ask him to say. We've been having fun listening to him try to say "Santa", "Tree", and "Lights". He has the sweetest whisper voice when he "talks"! So cute!

Nolan had fun checking out all the different ornaments and finding a place for them on the tree!

And here it is...the finished product...in all it's scraggly glory...

13 feet tall and about 5 feet wide at the bottom!

And even though it's not full, it's ours! We searched for it, hacked it down, hauled it out of the mountains, wound lights up and down each and every branch, and decorated it with love!

Merry Christmas!