Christmas

We all had a wonderful day yesterday with (too many) presents, family, and great food. Here are a few pictures of what we have been up to the last several days...

Decorating a gingerbread tree:

We had fun, but I do think that a gingerbread house is a few years away. Surprisingly Tristan was very gentle when he was putting the decorations on the tree - he didn't knock one off!

Putting the gifts under the tree:

This is before Santa came!

Christmas morning:

Someone made the comment "And they said this is a recession!" I responded that Santa could've never been this good to us if we hadn't have moved... But David and I did agree that this was a bit excessive and will not be repeated (although we did have both Grandmas here and they tend to spoil us too).

They both got boots from Santa

Playing with our new toys:

This is Tristan's train set...















We hope you all had a wonderful day too and hope you have a safe and Happy New Year.

Our Second Santa visit

We stopped by the mall after church Sunday so the kids could tell Santa what they wanted for Christmas, since the first Santa they saw didn't ask them. So, the kids got pictures with Santa (again) and put in their requests.

Then David took the kids to play while Grandma and I made a few last minute purchases...

You gotta love malls that have play areas for kids!

Christmas Party

We all went to David's Christmas party on Wednesday, and had a special visit from Santa. Santa flew in on one of the Battalion's airplanes, and had gifts for all the kids. Here's a few pics of the kids with him.

They both loved the gifts they received, despite the fact that Grace keeps saying "But he didn't give me what I asked for." So, we have used that as a teaching opportunity to be thankful for what you do receive since many do not get anything. And she must like it because she has played with it pretty consistently since she opened it.

Grace's 1st Recital

Grace had her first recital on Tuesday evening. She did great! She was pretty much the only one who paid attention to the teacher and actually did the dance instead of just doing her own thing like many of the other little girls did. I am trying desperately to upload the video, but apparently I'm not technologically competent enough to hit a button and attatch a file... So, it looks like I'm going to have to settle for pictures.

She had such a good time, and had no "stage fright" - she just got up there and did her thing. It wasn't perfect, but she did her best - and that's all that matters.

Ha! Ha! I won!!! After 3 days of trying I've finally found a way to share the video! So, here it is...



Grace is the little blondie in the back - pretty much the only one doing the dance. Made her mommy and daddy proud...

(The first 2 minutes or so is her dance, the rest is the finale in which you can't see her, but I couldn't figure out how to delete it...)

What a mess!

A few weeks ago Grace said that she wanted to do some fingerpainting. I agreed as Tristan was taking a nap. All was well until Tristan woke up and decided he was going to join in on the fun...

This is the result:

Then, while trying to get a decent family picture for our Christmas card - this is what I had to deal with:

And finally, a few cute ones just for fun. After we get the tree up and decorated, David likes to lay under it with the kids and just look at all the lights and ornaments.

As I've said before, Tristan loves to help...

My little angels...

One Proud Mama

I was talking to Grace's ballet teacher on Tuesday when she told me that she wanted to move Grace to a different class. I told her, "Sure, that's not a problem. I was going to ask you about that after the recital anyway." I thought I'd like to get her in the class with the 4 and 5 year old girls now that she's 4, but didn't want her to have to learn a new dance before the recital. But Loren, her instructor, informed me that it wouldn't be the regular 4-5 class, she wanted Grace to be in the teacher placed group! Talk about a proud moment for this mama -I was walking on air the rest of the day. We are so proud of her! And, as long as she enjoys it, we'll continue with her lessons and encourage her to do her best.

I'm Thankful

I just wanted to acknowledge some of the things that I am thankful for on this day of Thanksgiving:

- My God, who has proven to me that when I have faith and give Him complete control of my life great things are possible.

- My wonderful children who are a blessing to me everyday.

- My incredible husband who gives me more than I deserve, and loves me more than I ever thought anyone could.

- My family and friends who have been so uplifting and supportive during our time of sorrow (but why should I be surprised??).

- Having my husband home for the holidays.

- Living in the wonderful USA - God bless America!

- All of our military (past and present) serving at home and abroad - thank you for your service.

Happy Thanksgiving! We hope you all are having a wonderful day.

Turkey fingerpainted by Grace 11/26/08

(She did this all by herself, with no input from me. She said she was going to paint a turkey, and she did)

Handy Helpers

We have been doing all sorts of projects lately, from Christmas decorations for the yard to little projects for the kids. Here are some pics of our "handy helpers".

David and the kids built a wooden airplane and jeep. It required painting prior to putting them together, so I had them in old t-shirts to avoid too big of a mess. I was successful in not getting the shirts too dirty, but Tristan ended up with blue hair...

David has also been cutting out some "yard art" for our Christmas decorations. Grace was out assisting him one day:

Then it was Tristan's turn to help, but he decided that he needed to work on his tricycle instead:

Oh, Christmas Tree

Yes, it is 6 days before Thanksgiving and we have some Christmas decorations up (right along with my Thanksgiving ones). David loves to decorate for Christmas, so this year we decided to get the kids their own trees for their rooms. We have searched and searched for ones that don't look so fake, and I finally found a pair of pre-lit 4 footers that fit the bill - and for under $40! Well, I knew the sale wouldn't last forever and I bought them yesterday. My husband, being the Christmas freak that he is decided that they needed to go up TODAY. So, the kids now have Christmas trees for night lights...

Right now there's only tinsel (purple - of course) and garland (wooden, with fish and bobbers) on them, as I refused to get the ornaments out tonight... that will have to wait until Thursday or Friday.