Christmas 2009

IT CAME IT CAME!!!!

These three could not have been happier.

Birthday and gingerbread

Our sweet Claire turned 5 yrs old on Sun.  Where did the time go?  She is growing up so fast.  She has become a great big sister.  She and Kevin are inseperable now.  We have been busy with the holiday preparations.  We did manage to get a gingerbread house made.  Kevin just liked the icing part.  It was really fun to squeeze the icing EVERYWHERE.  It is really fun to enjoy the holidays through Claire's eyes.  She really understands the WHOLE deal and is really loving it.  Kevin is going along for the ride.  He likes that everyone is having a good time and he is getting treats more often.  Hannah is showing great patience with the small ones this holiday.  She has been excited for them with everything and even helped with the house.  Such a great big sister.  We are going to the movies on Christmas day...just us...to see New Moon.  She will be floating the rest of the day.

She told everyone she saw she was 5

LOVED the singing part

Getting ready to blow

She calls this her "pretend teeth"

With our MAMMOTH tree at the college

So proud of the house

MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL

Whew....that was kinda painful

Get ready

Get set

Christmas card!!

Ok, I will keep trying for a holiday photo

My first Sunday snapshot...Claire

This is my first "shot" at Sunday snapshot.  I am going to highlight Claire our middle child.

This was our first glimps of our girl.  We were blown away.  She is named after my mother-in-law and my grandmother. It was love at first sight.

Our girl has found her family

                           

She is always ready with a smile

                                               

She loves to have a good time

                                                           

She is truly gorgeous

                                                              

She is soooo thankful for everything!!

And then there is this...

And thanks to God...she is all ours.

We love her so much it is palpable.  She was our LONG awaited sibling for Hannah and another sweet blessing from God.  She will always be our princess daughter and the one who wants to teach and not do.  I see great things in her future.  I just don't want her future to come too soon....I would like to hold onto her toddler hood a little longer.

Head on over and see all the other Sunday snapshots.  It is amazing what you will learn

Thanksgiving and birthday pics.

We did the big cousins picture with moderate success.  Funny the little ones were the easiest ones to work with.  It was so great to see everyone together.  Lots of food, talking, and memory making. I was sooooo good to take my video camera AND the still one.  Kevin's first Thanksgiving will be well documented.

We had two boys with birthdays on Sat.  F was 15 and Kevin was 3....F was gracious to share the spotlight with our little one.  It also helped that Kevin adored all his cousins and is so incredibly cute....everyone wanted to carry him and help with him....nice.   We also went shopping on black friday....it is truly unbelievable what lenghts to get a bargin.  My sister and I aren't that deteremined to get the bargins.  It is almost as fun to people watch.  The registers in the electronic dept went down in Toys r..WOW what a show to watch there.  The employee who was to keep us out of the electronics was super nice, but really firm.  I don't think they payed him enough money to put up with angry shoppers.  I think I heard a few remarks about his mother, but I can't be sure. 

Rememember you can click on the pics to make them larger.

This was try #972....

Best we could do with 10 faces.

This was Claire's reaction to laying on the ground.

Trying to get a good one with Nana.

Loving to slide down the stairs with L.

Handsome grandsons

K and my beautiful, smiling Hannah

A and K and precious Claire

Hope everyone had a wonderful day.  We are all truly blessed

For these things and more...

My God sent husband

My precious daughter from China

A son to call our own.  Perfect

A daughter JUST like me. Wonderous

All the wonderful friends that have blessed our lives.

                     I give thanks

       God is forever faithful

Preparing for the holidays.

We are into preparing for the holidays.  We have Thanksgiving, Kevin's birthday, Claire's birthday, and Christmas before the end of the year.  Thankfully I have been bitten by the layaway bug and have 99% of all shopping done. 

Hannah took this picture....I love it

Always has a cell phone handy.

We are having regular teen troubles around here.  I guess those wings have to be tested and we DO want her to be independent in her thinking, but wow....it is about to kick my booty.  I have no idea when she will get her phone back....her achilles heal.  Then to add toddler squared running around, we are truly living the dream.  Kevin and Claire seem to be getting along better, it really runs in cycles, we are now in a good cycle.  Kevin is learning to play more independently and Claire isn't sure if she likes his new found independence.  She sure has loved having someone to completely boss around.  Nothing else exciting going on around here, just living life and working.  I hope to make the holidays as stress free as possible, lots of hot toddys by the fire followed by s'mores!!

Wishing you another great 40 yrs.

Go to http://www.bakearella.com/ and see how to make these beauties.

Happy Birthday Sesame Street.  You have taught us well.

Hatching a goose egg

Claire took quite a tumble during a wonderful chasing game with her brother.  So sad to see fun come to a crashing halt.  Needless to say, she has quite a goose egg to prove it.  I received another lesson in how LITERAL an almost 5 yr old can be.  She has continued to ask about "when the goose egg in my head will hatch".  Funny girl, I can't seem to make it right that she doesn't have a goose egg IN her head.  I tried to explain swelling, and how the egg was ON her head not IN it....no go, she can't FEEL an egg on her head so it can't be true.  When she rubs her head she only feels hair and no eggs.  I guess when all the swelling goes away, she will believe the egg hatched....

Funny story about Kevin....I can watch him in my periphal vision while Claire and I are playing together.  He watches INTENTLY to what we are playing...we happen to now be playing teacher and student (guess which one I am) and he rushed to get books and began jabbering whatever Claire has just said.  He LOVES to do things to please us.  He watches reactions to things done around the house and trys to often do those things that make us happy. The moments are sparodic but are coming more often.  HE is really two yrs old and lives up to the terribel twos alot.  His constant chant now is "do by self".....he doesn't seem to notice that he only really has one hand.  Husband always says "to him it isn't broken".  I have learned more patience in the last few weeks.  The joy on his face after he accomplishes his task is sooo worth it.

Halloween 2009

After the fun was over.She was still ready to go.....

We had a great time gathering candy.  Kevin caught on really quick.  We have many generous friends that weighted their buckets down with candy with each stop.  Their sugar high might last for weeks.  Hannah was a great doorbell ringer when it was too high.  She was "too old" to recieve any candy, but her siblings gladly shared their harvest.