A Short Catch Up Post

Christmas was very nice. The kids were into the whole leaving cookies and reindeer food (oatmeal mixed with red sprinkles) out for Santa. They were not as excited on Christmas morning as I thought they would be. They took awhile to even begin to open gifts. Santa did not wrap his gifts and they did gravitate towards those first. I guess that's all they needed. I just expected some tearing into the gifts but didn't get that. That's okay though. I'm sure next year will be totally different. I have a skeptic on my hands. Ryan actually questioned whether Santa had really come. I reassured him that he did come and he seemed to accept that. We spent the day visiting family and they were whooped.

The day after Christmas we had a major snowstorm here that dropped two plus feet of snow and the drifts were so bad that we couldn't see out the front door at all. It was all mounded up in front like we have never seen. We seem to be getting hit every week with some sort of snowstorm. Today it was ice and school was cancelled. It's actually getting a bit old already. I can't wait for spring to hurry up and get here.

That's all that's been going on here. Snow, snow, and more snow.

Merry Christmas!

Wishing everyone a very Merry Christmas!

May your new year be filled with good health and happiness!

Christmas Preparations

Christmas preparations were going on all month. Here's a rundown.

***Cookies with Santa at Grandma's work. They have Santa there and many crafts and games for the kids to do. They had a good time. No pics of Santa though. They had one taken with him but I haven't gotten it yet.

***Decorated the house and tree...check!

























***Decorated our gingerbread village...check!



Next year I'm sticking with ONE house. This was a royal pain to build because they were miniature and not to mention the icing was terrible. They had fun anyway and that's the point.

***Put up exterior illumination...check! (Bob's job.)

***Went for a drive to look at lights...check!


Here'e the crazy house I talked about last year too. Still going strong. I found another house with about 40 blow ups all over their yard. No good pics though. I love riding around looking at lights.






























***Baked cookies...check! No pics but a lot baking was done here.



***A thrilling visit with Santa...check!



















Ryan asked for cars and trucks and Kaylie said princesses. No smiles for the camera however.
Again, I paid for this picture!! I think they were a bit confused and wondering who this guy was. We had gone to one mall to see Santa but the camera wasn't working. We waited an hour and then left. They were so excited to go too. The poor kids were let down. The lady there was rude and I wasn't thrilled with that Santa anyway. He had a shorter beard and was wearing a bluetooth!!! Ok I know it was before they were technically open but still. So then we went to another mall for pictures for our card and I took them to see this Santa. They were wondering why there was more than one Santa. I just told them they were helper Santas that go and tell the real Santa what they want. The web we weave.


Now just awaiting the excitement Christmas morning brings. I can't wait. They are super exciteed. They are even "playing Christmas." This means pretending to be sleeping and then they get up and find presents. The presents are just boxes they took from my wrapping stuff and put random stuff in. Of course we aren't focused on gifts, they are well aware that Christmas is about celebrating the birth of Jesus. They had a little celebration at school and I was providing the tablecloth, cups, napkins, and plates so we had to go buy them for the party. Kaylie asked if Baby Jesus was going to be at the party. :)


***Sorry for the spacing on this post. Blogger is a pain sometimes. ***

The Holidays

My apologies to anyone who has me in their blogroll and had to look at Merry Christmas for over a month! I'm really slipping with this blog thing. First, I was waiting for my husband to get the pictures off his camera and fix them up. Then I started doing Wii Fit during naptime so there went some of my free time. Then there is the just plain old tired excuse.

Anyway, for posterity's sake, our holidays were nice. The kids 'got it' this year. They left milk and cookies for Santa and woke up to a slew of presents. They enjoyed visiting family and of course opening more presents. Some of their favorite gifts were dress up clothes, remote control cars, toy laptops, a piano/guitar and a train set. I'm sure some of the details have faded already and I am kicking myself for waiting so long to write this. It was a very nice Christmas and they still mention the things that Santa gave them. I'm sure next year will be different, but this year we had to coax them into opening the other gifts. They were happy playing with their first gift.

Pictures may be added at a different time. Sorry.

Next post: January Recap

Getting into the Spirit

Hey there! Miss us????

A month almost gone already.....We've had a few illnesses this month, but I think we are on the mend now. We'll know for sure tomorrow. One of the viruses Kaylie had pushed her white blood count really low, so we are having a recheck tomorrow to see if they have gone up. Googling low white blood count is not comforting but I am sure it has gone back up because she is acting herself again. Aside from that we've been getting into the holiday spirit around here.

They had a visit with Santa...they didn't cry but they didn't smile either...no surprise there. I can't believe I paid money for this picture with a crooked belted Santa and non smiling/looking kids.

Helped daddy hang the lights...

Made a gingerbread house,

Helped Mommy bake. Ryan was more interested in eating the cookies than decorating.

Decorated the tree, which they were really into helping with. After one day of constantly touching it, they have left it alone for the most part.

and had their holiday picture taken.

This didn't go over so well. Kaylie cried as usual (in her defense she was at the start of her virus fighting) and refused to get up on the platform. Whenever we have tried to go to a photo studio this is what happens so we have invested in our own camera/studio equipment. Bob just didn't have the time to do it this year so it is what it is. Just an okay picture. Note: Don't try to print this picture. It is a picture of a picture--not good quality.

Our Christmas 2008

We had a great holiday with family. On Christmas Eve we went to Bob's grandparent's house. They were spoiled rotten with toys, books, and clothes galore.

On Christmas day, we got up and enjoyed some gift opening. After, we went to my sister's house. Again, they were spoiled by all. We stopped at Bob's sister's house on our way home. The kids did well with all the driving. We put them in the pj's before we left each night and TRANSFERRED them to the house when we got home. No problems--they were exhausted from all the excitement. Their favorite gifts so far have been a shopping cart with fake food, double stroller with twin dolls, Dora backpack, wind up cars, and a push toy. We still have a bunch in their boxes yet.

Sort of uncharacteristic for us but we took more video than pictures this year and the pictures I did take were blurry for some reason. I'm kind of bummed about that.

I have to say I had one of those "holy cow, they are growing up" moments this weekend. I saw my daughter grow up before my eyes the day after Christmas. She was wearing a purse (another new favorite gift) on one arm, and holding a cell phone up to her ear while trying to push the doll stroller. She's turning into a real girly girl. She loves to wear dresses and hear how pretty she looks. Oh boy!

Bob's been home with me these last few days and it has been nice having him around, but he went back to work today. At least I have New Years to look forward to.

A Merry Christmas to All

Way Back Wednesday

Here are Ryan & Kaylie Christmas 2007

Makes me miss those days where you could just hold them all day!

Griswold's Competition

Here are some pictures of that "Griswold House" I was talking about. Yep, I had to take Bob (& kids) to see it. Still not great pictures, but you get the idea. Look at the roof people! I'm sure they appreciate me taking pictures and posting for the whole world to see.

Outdoor Lighting

As promised a picture of our outdoor lighting. Of course this does not compare to the house I found in a neighboring town. I actually came upon a house that is decked out like the Griswold's in the movie Christmas Vacation--maybe even more so. We're talking lights stapled across the roof just like Clark did!! The entire yard is filled with every lighted holiday decoration imaginable. I took a picture with my cell phone but it didn't come out. I NEED to go back to that house and gawk some more. If I do, I'll be sure to post!

Christmas Photos

These are some pictures from our Christmas photo shoots. It was impossible to keep them still. I really just wanted a picture of the two of them together but we ended up using two for our card (first and third pic). Note that the rocking chair was Bob's. He got it when he was one from his grandmother and the sled was mine as a kid. Enjoy!!

Holiday Preparations

Well, carols are playing, the tree is up, the cards are mailed, and the house is decorated inside and out. We didn't put too much out in the house because little fingers don't stay off. So basically, I have the mantle and banister decorated (out of reach), some plush snowmen around the house and Christmas dishes that we use for the holiday season. I have a million knick knacks that didn't even make it out of the box. Some year I suppose.

Last weekend I took them to my mom's work for Breakfast with Santa. Kaylie HATED Santa this time and the only picture I have is of her crying and squirming herself off of Santa's lap. Ryan could care less where he was sitting. Here they are enjoying some cookies with their hats that didn't fit. I guess they have big heads.

Bob did the lights outside. I would go take a picture but it's sleeting here at the moment. You'll have to wait. Our neighbor even called us to say how nice it looks.

Speaking of lights....a day last week we lost power for over an hour and I was by myself. The kids were eating and then all of the sudden it went out. I lit a million candles to try make it as light as possible. After a while Kaylie kept pointing to the lights as if to say, "Turn them on," but I just kept telling her they were broken. Here they are dining in the dark.

Shopping is almost complete but the wrapping remains. I also have to do some annual baking of cookies, but I'm not going crazy this year.

The kids have Christmas jammies....

The tree: This year we got an artificial tree. This is the first year of my life without a real tree. While I don't miss watering the tree, I do miss the smell of a fresh cut tree. The tree came with a spray but it's not the same. We decided to do artificial because we knew the kids wouldn't leave it alone and the amount of fallen needles would be impossible to keep up with. The kids of course touch it and we constantly are saying, "Don't touch the tree!" I want to record myself and just have it play if any branches are touched, sort of like a tree alarm. We are only on day 3 of having it up but so far no broken ornaments, although the breakable ones are high up.

A Very Special Visit

I took Ryan & Kaylie to see Santa at the mall by myself! It went well despite my fear of them running off in two directions and tantrums to get back into the stroller. None of that happened. I went super early to avoid the lines and crowds. We were the only ones there so I think that made the difference. Ryan walked right up to Santa and smiled. Santa put him on his lap, so I got Kaylie out of the stroller and plopped her right down. They were both just happy sitting on his lap. No smiles for the pictures however, but what else is new? I have serious kids. Ho! Ho! Ho!