Christmas Day

Kids absolutely make Christmas!! What a joy it is to see the excitement! (although I need to work on not being so uptight about getting good pictures and videotape and having things organized because organized and kids on Christmas morning just don't go together!) The kids were up at 630 and we had everything including stockings opened by 710. It was like a fury of unwrapping. Ofcoarse I forgot to take some still pics. again cause we videotaped it but I took some afterward. I think Ethan's favorite from Santa was his kitchen. I just hope he has the same enthusiasm for cooking when he's 16! Aria got her pink bear and snowglobe that she wanted so much along with a singing magenta, some tinkertoys (which I think Ethan likes more) and some curious george puzzles. She's getting just as good as Ethan is at putting puzzles together. She's such a sharp little thing! Santa brought Emma a big brown bear (bigger than she is) She loves rubbing her face in soft things. She is such a cutie! They also got a bunch of other fun things including a WII for the family. (it'll probably take us a month to figure it out but it should be fun!) Danny got his big wrench so he can finally fix my bathroom faucets that drip and drive me crazy at night. And I got a food dehydrater that I'm really excited to use! This year we did the angel tree for 4 kids in a family. It was fun to shop for all the clothes and a few toys for people you don't know although next time I think it would be a better idea to break it up and not shop for all 4 at once! :) It feeld good to give to others. We are truly grateful for all the help we received during our "dark days" but are so grateful things are looking SO up and that we are now on the giving end. :) Hope everyone had a wonderful and blessed Christmas and a will have a super duper New Years! Looking forward to a bright and happy New Year! Love to all!

Semi-decent Christmas pics.

Each year for the past few years we get dressed up one day in dec. and take some family pics. (it's just too expensive to get professional ones) I think we do an ok job. (maybe next year we'll have a better camera) But boy oh boy I have the best lookin' kids :)

Christmas Eve

This year we started Chrsitmas Eve off with a yummy breakfast at IHOP. (gingerbread pancakes.....holy moly just like candy....deeelicious! hope they have em next year)Took us some doing to get there but we finally made it and the kids had a good time, they were so exicted for Santa. It was such a beautiful day out that when we got home and Emma layed down we went to the park to play on the "slippery slide". (No we didn't leave her home alone Danny stayed. We've only done that once ;) wink wink)
For the rest of the afternoon we just sat around, watched a muppet Christmas carol and relaxed. It seems like no matter how hard I try not to go out on Christmas Eve I always end up doing it (not for gifts thankefully cause its a mad house but for groceries) The kids had their special pizza dinner (thanks to kid cuisine :)) and mom and dad had their yummy fondue! Brocolli and hollandaise....oh yeah!! Once the kids were in bed Santa came and left all kinds of presents and filled their stockings. Danny and I also set up an art area for the kids downstairs. Then we capped the night off with the Christmas classic A Christmas Carol. What fun to see the kids in the morning!





When I was younger we always got a new pair of Christmas pajams on Christmas Eve and I always looked forward to my new pajamas....another tradition starting this year....the kids all got a new set of pajamas




I think Santa went a little overboard this year!

Holiday fun!

I always try to do some fun activities in dec. with the kids. (there's never enough time!) There's so many cute little crafts and things to do with kids dec. needs to be longer! We did make our window clingies which we make all year round. They are so fun...I think I enjoy them more than the kids :) We also painted some Christmas pots and made a Christmas collage for the front door. This year we bought one of those gingerbread kits to try (as I picked it up I heard someone say "ya those are cute, but they never work out). Yep didn't quite work out....almost though! the roof just kept slipping cause it was to heavy (probably from all the icing and candy we heaped on :)) Anyways it was fun. We'll probably do that every year as I'm certainly not ambitious enough to make my own gingerbread house. :) Ethan's kindergarden class made little graham cracker houses (which I ALWAYS did when I was a kid....I think my mom has made about a thousand of those) Then of course we had to do the sugar cookies. Well actually this was the first year (cause I couldn't find my cookie cutters that I purposefully put in a place so I wouldn't lose them :)) It was fun and will definately be a tradition. The kids really enjoyed decorating them with their smarties and m&ms. Ethan, Aria and I enjoyed taking a few "night walks" around the neighborhood to see the lights and we did make it downtown to see the lights (with only one fit near the end....not bad for the first time) but boy was it cold the night we went!! There's always so much more you wanna do before Christmas.....there's always next year!!

Snow Angels

Well today is the first day I decided to bundle the kids up and let them play in the snow. They love the snow I just wish it wasn't so nippy so they could play outside more; but being all bundled up they don't seem to mind. Personally I love the snow and with snow there has to be some cold. I have many fond memories of being buried in feet of snow, making snow forts, and just laying in the snow looking up at the night sky. Many times I'd just bundle up and go crawling around in the many feet of snow we had. LET IT SNOW!!!!!

Christmas oranges with my babes

My little Emma just took off on the stairs this morning! She had gone up one before but always kinda whined cause she couldn't get down. But this morning she did all 7 and no hestitating or anything, just took off! We took her down a couple of times and she came right back up. So now we'll have to work on the down part. :)


Ethan was so excited to see Emma coming up the stairs. Emma had just mastered her up stairs and we were all sitting on the bed so what would make it better but Christmas Oranges!! Ethan suggested it (he loves them) and he ran downstairs and got three for us to share and we enjoyed them in the kids cozy room with their tree. Enjoying Christmas oranges with my three beautiful, precious babes. Tell me how does life get any better than that?! (too bad that feeling doesn't always last :))