White Christmas?

Last Tuesday we woke up to our first snow. School was delayed so we took advantage of the extra couple hours playing in the snow. I managed to get one photo before the camera's battery died.

Now, a week later, the sun is shining and the snow is all but gone. I'm sure the rain the last few days contributed to the lack of Christmas ambiance. With a forecast of 40 degrees today, it's sure not shaping up to be a white Christmas.

A Cameraless Holiday Weekend

We had a weekend filled with Holiday cheer and I forgot the camera.

We did a trolley ride with Santa (same one as last year), which was very cold. Bro enjoyed it but Sis had to pee the whole time and was relieved when the ride was done. We may have to see Santa again since I forgot my camera, though neither kid is real excited about that!

Then I took Sis to see The Nutcracker. She LOVED it. We had read the book twice in the week preceding the performance and I was amazed at how well she remembered every little detail. She whispered throughout the show, telling what part was next and what had been done incorrectly. She even recalled all the names. It was so fun to see the show through her eyes. How I wish we could have gone to the one her cousin is performing in!

Oh, I forgot to mention that Sis got nursemaid's elbow again Saturday morning as a result to Bro trying to pick her up by the arm. He felt terrible about the incident. I took her to the Saturday clinic where they wrenched on it and thought it might be back in but she was still complaining about it after The Nutcracker so it was another trip to the ER. That's three trips in 2009 for her! We've got our fingers crossed that it's the last!

Sneak Peak

We did our annual photos for Christmas cards this weekend.

I thought it would be fun to post the photos we won't be using.

Cheeseballs!

WHOA!
Wazzup!

All Done

It's beginning...

to look a lot like Christmas!

The tree is up. The outside lights are hung. The shopping is almost done. The baking has begun.
I don't know what it is about this year but I am sure in the Christmas spirit!

Grandpa cut Sis a tree of her own this year (spoiled!) and she decorated it with very little assistance from me while dad and Bro hung the lights outside.

Turkey Day 2009

Again, I'm late posting. It's not all my fault this time though as the computer is acting up. UGH - technology, don't you just love it?

Anyway, we were able to spend Thanksgiving this year with the VanTassell side of the family. It was a really good time. I think Bro explained the trip best when he told us what his favorite part of the trip was..."eating turkey and watching movies and cutting a Christmas tree and shooting guns and playing with cousins." Need I say more?

Despite all the fun we had I only captured one photo. At least it's a super cute one!

Thanks Grandma and Grandpa for the great memories!

The Lion King

I am so behind in posting. Sorry Mom. This one is for you!
On the 14th, we joined Papa and Granny for a weekend trip to see the broadway production of The Lion King. It was phenomenal! It completely exceeded all our expectations and managed to keep the kids enthralled even though the show didn't begin until after 8 pm.

What a fabulous trip! The only downside is that I didn't take enough photos to capture all the fun we managed to jam into those couple days. But here's what I did manage to get.

Thanks mom and dad for an unforgettable weekend.

It's Cold

We woke up to our first hard frost this morning. And my son refused to wear his heavy coat to school today.

Why?

He said (and I must emphasize that this is a direct quote) "I don't like it. It makes me look fat!"

Where did he get that? Not from me as I care way more about staying warm than I do about looking fat.

Looks like it's going to be a long winter.

Can we keep it?

During our walk Sis found this little caterpillar on the path. It was so cute and fuzzy, but in the end we decided that he would be happiest in his natural home. Actually I just didn't think he would survive our hike back to the car. I'm keeping a look out now though and walking prepared. It would be amazing to watch the caterpillar - cocoon - butterfly transformation with the kids.

Toward the end of the walk Sis came across this "cute cute cute worm". Since we we close to the car, we did keep this one. He's living in the garden.

Fall Photos

Here's photos of out annual fall leaf fun. They are from a couple weeks ago as most of the leaves now have fallen.
We were actually just going for a family walk that day and came across all these leaves. The kids were having a great time and I couldn't resist pulling the camera out.

Halloween 2009

Here's photos of Cinderella and the Pirate.

We had a busy Halloween. Friday night was the Harvest Festival at Bro's school. The kids had a great time playing games with friends. Then last night we went out with some more friends we know from Bro's school and visited all their usual stops (their relatives and close friends). So while we didn't get much door-to-door trick or treating in, we did get to visit with quite a few new friends.

The kids then sold back all the candy they don't eat to the dentist office. It was about 4 pounds and that's just half of their loot! It was a very nice Halloween.