Member of the Year.

The Leahy household is quite privileged to have a two-time winner of recent "Member of the Year" honors. That's right ... it's Scott! He was recently named Member of the Year at the Motorola Gym where he works out. Apparently, there's an obnoxiously big picture of him by the door where you enter the gym, so his work friends have been kidding him about that! His second distinguished honors were earned last night at the end-of-the-year party for his Toastmasters Club, where he was recognized for Member of the Year, Best Evaluator, Best Table Topics, and Best Attendance. Maybe we should name him "Family Member of the Year" so he could sweep all the categories! He definitely deserves it! Way to go, Scott!

4th and Final Holiday Fest

Tonight we had the last of our weekend holiday happenings. We hosted a baby shower/dinner for our neighbors Jason and Laura. About 12 people and 3 kiddos were in attendance, and we munched on bacon wrapped chipotle shrimp, pork tenderloin crostinis, cranberry pecan stuffed mushrooms, and even peppermint chocolate cake for dessert. The proud parents-to-be were so excited and received some wonderful gifts for Baby Danielle. Can't wait for the little girl next door to arrive!

Yuletide Gatherings #2 & 3

Last night, we hit two more seasonal soirees. The first party was with Eric and Charity, who had gone all out for a cookie-decorating, eggnog-sipping good time. The guys also enjoyed playing Eric's new Nintendo Wii ... even Luke got in on the action!
Luke and Scott create their cookie works of art.

Charity takes a turn at holding Reid. What a treat!

Our second event was with some of Jami's girls' night friends. We enjoyed catching up with these friends, most of whom we've known for the majority of our time here.
A holly jolly grin from the girls' night group and their guys!

The other big highlight of the night was that we left both boys with a babysitter (other than Mimi and Papa) for the first time -- an ASU Theta named Jessica. They had an A+ report.

Holiday Party #1

This is a big weekend of holiday parties for the Leahy family. Our first holiday party was tonight with our poker friends and their families at the home of our friends Rob, Lori, and Lilly Zienkewicz. Here are a few pics from the festive occasion.

The next generation of the poker group: Zach Kitchen, Lilly Zienkewicz, Luke and Reid, Robby and Ethan Glanville, Kaitlynn Deakins, and LeAira Kitchen.

Reid and his gal Lilly ... and yes, they're holding hands! Too cute!

I get by with a little help from my bro.

This morning Reid was a little fussy, so big brother Luke jumped to the rescue. I walked into the nursery to find Luke had scaled the crib and performed this stunt maneuver for feeding Reid.

Ho, ho, ho & choo, choo!

Last night we enjoyed a festive night out with the playgroup families. We hit Patsy Grimaldi's in Old Town Scottsdale for some delish pizza and then zipped over to the train park to enjoy its holiday light display. Luke LOVES Christmas lights, so he was amazed by the combo of a train and lights together!! He and Mom even stopped for a quick pose aboard this caboose.

Cruising the mall.

We did a little Christmas shopping this week at the mall and met Dad for lunch. We decided not to get a double stroller when Reid was born because we knew Luke would never sit still in it. Usually, he runs alongside or way in front of us, but sometimes he loves to hitch a ride on front of the baby jogger. Hold on tight, boys ... here we go!

Ho-ho-holiday boat parade.

This weekend our neighborhood held its annual holiday boat parade. Most of the people who live on the lakes have a boat (nothing fast, more leisurely). At Christmas, they deck them out with lights and decorations. Here's one of the boats complete with Dasher, Dancer, and Prancer (not sure where the other reindeer are!) On top of the boat is one of those big inflatable snow globes.

Sweet dreams.

We have been super spoiled this week, as Reid has decided to sleep through the night for the last 4 nights! The first night we thought it was a fluke, the second night that it was luck, etc. but we would be far too lucky if this continues. Now on the flip side, he does get a little cranky in the evenings and eats A LOT so he's pretty much tanking up for a long night's sleep. He wakes up fairly happy and hungry in the morning bright and early at 5 a.m., but that's been a good way for mom to rise and shine and get things done! Cross your fingers that this continues ... and that we didn't just jinx it by blogging about it! Ha!

New developments for the Greeks.

As you may know, we both have been involved in advisory roles at our sorority and fraternity chapters at ASU for the past several years. We recently have switched gears a bit with our commitments ... still involved just in different capacities. Scott will be heading up a committee to look at housing for the Delta Upsilon chapter, which currently does not have formal housing on the ASU campus. Jami is finishing up her second year as Advisory Board Chair for Kappa Alpha Theta and is trading in her hat for a new one in Theta land. She recently was appointed as the Director of Risk Management for District 7, which includes 15 schools in Southern California, Arizona, and Nevada. We both still very much enjoy these volunteer opportunities, but there are times when we feel very old compared to when we were in school! Keeps us up on the changing times!!

Sting Ray Bay.

Today's playgroup outing was to the zoo to check out the new exhibit Sting Ray Bay. The kiddos enjoyed rolling up their sleeves and sticking their hands in the water to touch the sting rays (yes, this was what they were supposed to be doing and they weren't breaking any rules -- it was all safe as their barbs were removed).

Bathtime with the boys.

The other evening we decided to put the boys in the tub together for bathtime. Luke was in the regular tub and Reid in his baby tub inside the regular tub. Luke provided the entertainment by singing the theme song of "Blue's Clues" while splashing around. This picture shows what Reid thought of the whole event ... it was a hair-raising experience!!

The trials of taking a family photo...

We recently attempted to take some family photos in the backyard to use for our Christmas cards. It was a major feat to get everyone looking pleasant and at the camera. This photos says it all! (This was not staged but rather real life. No stunt actors were used.)

Chilly Willies.

It's been a little colder here lately so the boys had to bust out their hats one day. Luke loves to wear hats, but Reid could take it or leave it sometimes.

Guy Smiley.

Check out the live action footage of the littlest Leahy smiling!

A day out with the fam...

With Jami's family in town, we've been enjoying showing them the sights. Today we ventured out for breakfast at the Farm at South Mountain. It was delish! Afterward, we headed over to Rawhide (an old Wild West town) to see what kind of trouble we could rustle up. Here are a few photos from the morning.

The fam at the Farm.

Luke is serious business about covered wagons.

Just one of the guys.

Gobble, gobble.

Happy Thanksgiving from the Leahy Family! For Turkey Day, we hosted a whole flock of family members for the big meal -- Grandma and Grandpa Nelson, Briana and Craig, and Eric and Charity.

Reid, the littlest gobbler, enjoys his Thanksgiving meal.

Here's the family ready for a feast. (A few family members didn't make the photo ... Luke was having a little tantrum in his room, Reid was asleep in the swing, and Jami was taking the photo.) But this thankful crew is ready to dig in!

Polar Express.

On Friday, we took a road trip north to Williams, Arizona, to ride the Polar Express Train on the Grand Canyon Railway. Seven of our playgroup families made the trek, and it was a great way to kick off the holiday season! Here are a few fun pics from the adventure. Luke loved being around so many trains, and Reid was a champ on his first big trip!

Nothing puts you in the holiday spirit faster than seeing a beautiful Christmas tree ... unless you are Reid and are tired of wearing a hat!

All aboard! Time to get on the train!

The boys show off their PJs! Just like in the movie, all the kids (and even some adults) wore their pajamas on the train.

Giddyup!

When he was just a little buckaroo, Luke received this pony from Great Uncle Max. (Yes, it's more of a zebra with a saddle on it.) He recently has been riding the bucking bronco a bit more. He also uses it as a stepstool to climb up on things, which is usually preceded by the phrase, "Need help. Gotta go get the pony!" He's kind of a surfer cowboy in this video with his "beach shirt" as he calls it. You'll hear Reid crying in the background at the end. Perhaps he's jealous that he can't ride the pony yet!