Goodbye 2013

2013 was a good year for us.
The arrival of baby bejos was definitely the highlight.
When I wrote Christmas cards this year I even had the audacity to call it uneventful! It was only after the fact that Mr. Bejos and I started to recall the ways in which it was eventful. There was the loss of Cooper, four trips to the ER (including our first broken bone!), a few medical scares but eventual triumphs within our extended families, finally getting to our house painting project (have I still not gotten pictures up about that VERY long and still incomplete project??), a few opportunities to travel, mr bejos' epic battle with a human bite wound, bejos boy's hair issues, mr bejos & bejos boy's solo adventure to NY....and more that I know I must be leaving out.

All in all 2013 was good to us, and we are thankful for so much, including our friends and family who make our days brighter. 

Here is a glimpse of the last few weeks in Casa Bejos. Even with our winter ick we managed a few smiles and memory making moments.

Happy New Year! 

See you in 2014

xoxo

off my needles

This little guy, I thought of him as Henry as he came into being, is headed off to meet his new keeper. 

Pattern inspiration from here and here.

Christmas Day was a great day in, and out, of Casa Bejos. After a lazy morning of opening gifts we hit the road with the desert in our sights, hoping the fresh desert air would help us kick this nasty ick once and for all. 

This guy, who we were most concerned about, was a serious trooper. Three miles and he walked the whole way! It wasn't, however, always the most peaceful walk as we allowed this newly dubbed Dr. Bejos to wear his "emergency pager" that seemed to have a mind of its own, going off even while not being played with. I guess there could be worse things than having a doctor in the family. 

Merry Christmas 2013

Sending you love, wherever you may be this Christmas Day. 

xoxo

the bejos clan

outtakes

Christmas Tree Hunting 2013

A few years ago, with some friends, we started our own tradition of Christmas tree hunting. Our families have grown over the years and it just gets better and better.

 Over the years we tend to get large bushes trees that take up a lot of valuable square footage of our cozy little living room, so we were determined this year to not go too big. However I think we overcompensated and ended up with a rather sparse tree. It is tall and skinny, no doubt, and does fit perfectly into our living room, but it does resemble a certain Charlie Brown tree :)

We look forward to the day that we can send the kids off to hunt down the perfect tree while we adults sit back, relax and actually talk to one another for a change. Tailgating in the woods? Yes please! In the meantime we enjoy the process of schleping young ones.

the ocean

On the eve of Christmas eve, let's rewind time a bit and revisit the last major holiday, Thanksgiving.

Thanksgiving in San Diego was a welcome reprieve from the cold temps that we were living in.

Even the morning that we packed up the car we were dressed in down layers just waiting until we got far enough away to slip into our sandals. Well I was waiting to slip into my sandals but Mr bejos forgot his sandals, a fact he wouldn't let go all. week. long.

It wasn't a quick trip, but the boys were both good travelers, stuck in the car for the long 8 hours it took. Upon arriving we went straight for the beach to appease bejos boy who started asking if he could see the ocean about 5 miles from home. The open space for running was a welcomed relief for all of us.

We embarked on the trip with loose plans that included Balboa Park, maybe an aquarium, obviously the beach, and little else. Disney and Sea World were not even on our radar. There was no way I was going to tackle those big adventures with these little kids. Turned out we needed nothing more than the beach and the ocean. Each day we ventured to a new ocean location, kicked off our shoes and played for hours. Sea lions (or beavers as bejos boy insisted), sea birds, seashells, coves...they were all the play things we needed.

Then of course there was the event for which we had made the journey, Thanksgiving. 15 of us got together for dinner and it was so nice to be together. We met a few new faces who are joining the family (congrats!) and visited with those we hadn't seen since maybe even our wedding waaaaaay back in 2008.

The trip home was a little less successful. Apparently we packed some ants in our pants because no one was happy and content in his carseat. Many more stops, a little more nitpicking, and an unplanned overnight in Phoenix to just get out of the car. We'll happily do it all again though, as the accommodations were fantastic, our welcome was warm, and the weather was fantastic. Lucky for us there is an August wedding in the plans that will get us on the road, back to the ocean.