PRETTY IN...

purple :0)   Thanks YiaYia and Popo, for the new shirt!  Ended up fitting perfect!

 

AND THEN...

there were gifts.  We're very careful to keep Jesus the focus of Christmas, but this doesn't mean that our children go without gifts... not by a long shot.  While Mommy & Daddy give each child one gift, and Santa gives them another... by the time you add on gifts from YiaYia & PoPo, Grandma & Grandpa Siver, Aunts & Uncles... well, let's just say that they did not feel deprived (especially since they didn't need a silly thing to begin with! :0).

Favorite gifts?  For Boo, probably her My Little Pony figurines and for our little man, a refurbished coffee table turned train table (best $80 I've ever spent on a piece of furniture... I purchased this coffee table from Target 17 or 18 years ago and I can't even begin to tell you how many things we've used this for!).  Funny thing about these two gifts...is they were both one of the cheapest each got as I don't think we spent more than $12 on either!  Oh. come to think of it, another favorite for Boo...her light up little mermaid shoes.  Mommy likes those too :0)

 

Love the hair :0)

Boo made a Christmas workbook for Daddy :0)

Hmmm... so I can use this, to brush my teeth?

Legos were also a big hit (for both kiddos :0)

MERRY CHRISTMAS!...

Merry Christmas!  Missing family and wishing you/we were near.  Hope each of you has a wonderful and blessed day of celebrating the birth of our Lord:  

"For unto you is born this day in the city of David a savior who is Christ the Lord"  Luke 2:11

Happy Birthday Jesus!

SANTA CLAUS IS COMIN' TO TOWN...

Or, maybe he was already here... you never know when you'll see the "real" Santa.   Or, at least that's what I tell Boo :0)

For the past few years, we've made a point of stopping by a home in the area. This family goes all out with tons of lights and a special guest...complete with sleigh, reindeer and all :0)  We made our visit last week; Bailey was SOOO excited.  She had written her first letter to Santa (her idea, which I thought was very cute) and she put it into Santa's box.  When we checked the box later that night, Santa's elf must have been there, because the letter was gone!

Brandon loved, loved the lights and he didn't even mind the old man.  Sitting on his lap was fine, but then he announced it was "Brandon's turn" to sit (by himself, as sissy had done) next to Santa.  Really what he wanted, was to ring Santa's bell and old St. Nick didn't disappoint :0)

Boo was telling Santa, what she wanted for Christmas...

Love that Bailey insisted on wearing her butterfly "mask" :0)

Sweetest Santa helper EVER!

PAINTING...

These past few days, Boo has brought out the face paints and insisted on being "transformed".  First, she was a magical butterfly (who had a pet bird)...last night she was a Christmas Fairy :0)  Kuddos to her for sitting so still, for so long.  Mommy is pretty new to face painting, so I am not the quickest...but she did great both times, sitting still and holding (her face) very still.  Great job Boo!

STRIKE A POSE...

At our visit to Picture People a couple of weeks ago, our little man got his photos taken along with sissy.  He did much better than I expected; he sat where the photographer put him (amazing for a two year old, if this mama may say so herself :0) and even smiled for several of the pictures.  This one below, I absolutely loved.  The photographer was trying to get him to smile and Tom stood behind her and told Brandon to, "strike a pose"... this is what we got :0)  I adore this photo because it shows my little man in all his sweet, sweet, spunky, full-of-attitude glory.

Crazy, in-love, with this little man...

COLD...BUT SUNNY...

Yesterday was chilly (low to mid 50's), but it was sunny...so out we went!  They did have their hats on, but I took them off for pictures :0)  

This year has been a bit tough, as we've been trying our best to avoid any sick bugs.  Last year was so, so rough on us...that we've sworn off any indoor playgrounds (jumpy houses, Chick-fil-A play areas, etc) and any indoor play dates/parties...simply in an attempt to stay away from the big, bad germs.  It's extreme and tough as it can be isolating, but after going through 3 months of sickness with our family last year...we're willing to try just about anything! 

So, here's praying for more sunny (and hopefully a bit warmer) weather!

ABC...123...

Our little man has known his abc's and 123's for a few months now...but yesterday, I finally thought to take a video :0)  I love, love, love his sweet baby voice!  In case it's hard to hear, he knows a-z, 1-10 (counting he goes up to 15 most days) and on shapes, he can tell you a circle, square, rectangle, triangle, heart, diamond, star and crescent (aka "moon").  He's one smart little man! :0)

PICTURE PERFECT...

Our beautiful girl, in so many ways, truly is...picture perfect.  Oh, don't get me wrong, this girl of ours is most definitely sassy, overly emotional and (often times) not the best listener (who are we kidding, it's her M.O.).  However, she is also smart. sweet. thoughtful. loving. hilarious. kind. completely adorable and completely loved.

Because this blog not only serves as an opportunity for me to update family and friends, but also a diary of sorts for my/our memories... I wanted to make sure to write down a few of Boo's latest, so that I don't forget these sweet times.

- A while ago, we were at the market; it was the end of the day.  I was tired and the kids were hyper.  I had put them in the car and was trying unload the groceries from the cart; Brandon was singing at the top of his lungs, while banging a toy car together with a toy train (very loud) and I caught another mommy (older so probably a YiaYia/grandmommy) laughing at me as I had to say to Bailey, "Babe...stop barking like a dog". I have no idea why she was barking, but I smile now when I think about the moment. Chaotic, yes...but I know all too soon, I'll be the woman walking by, missing my child barking like a dog.  So I'll take the chaos.

- On a recent trip to the park, we passed the field where Bailey plays softball.  A little later she tells me, that she doesn't want to play softball this year.  I explain to her that being a part of a team is important...to which she says to me (in complete seriousness, keep in mind), "Oh, I want to be a part of a team.  A princess team.  Princesses don't sweat and they get to ride around on flying horses".  Sounds like a plan my sweet girl.

- The other night at dinner, Boo was eating a couple of peas that were still in the pod.  After inspecting the pod, she so sweetly and innocently looked at me and asked, "Mommy, how did you zip up the peas?" (because they were still in the pod and she had only seen peas that had been shelled).  I smiled and told her, "God did that Baby".

Man, I love this girl....

AND THEN, THERE WAS ELMO...

Brandon loves, loves Mickey Mouse.  But every once in while...he finds a new friend to dance with :0)

You'll need to turn your volume up pretty loud for this one...

FALL FUN...

This past weekend was the "big clean up" for some of my neighbors.  We have lots of large, old-growth, trees in our neighborhood...which translates into lots and lots and LOTS of leaves.  For the past 4-6 weeks, I've done a couple hours of yard work, twice a week, to keep up with our yard (this is easier for me, rather than doing it all on one day).

B&B took full advantage of one of the small piles in our neighbor's yard; they had a great time stomping, tossing and playing.  Then it was time to bring out the trusty ole' sidewalk caulk for some outside fun.

I guess there is an upside to the leaves falling :0)

AS USUAL...

As usual, Tom and I tried the "self-portrait" (aka - hold the camera out in front of you) and, as usual, we didn't get it quite right so...sissy stepped in and helped us out :0)  Thanks for the help Boo!

HAPPY THANKSGIVING...

So incredibly thankful, for the beautiful, wonderful family God has given me. Thankful for the home we have, the food we get to eat, the clothes we wear. Thankful for our health and our safety. Thankful for the sunshine outside today and the furnace that keeps us warm inside.

Missing YiaYia, Popo and "the boys" today so... also very thankful for Skype :0)

Happy Thanksgiving!

Brother and Sissy had a "falling out" before
this picture, which is why Boo isn't sitting closer in... haha

AND SOME VIDEO...

Should have attached these with the last post, but I figured the 20+ photos were enough..haha :0)

Birthday videos; my high pitched mommy voice included  :0)

BIRTHDAY ACTIVITIES...

Brandon got a kick out of his birthday cake and gifts!  Funny enough... I went out and bought him a birthday balloon, so we had some "decorations" and I did not get one picture or section of video with his balloon.  Silly mama :0)

For sissy, sharing the spotlight is still a bit tough on her...but she was genuinely excited for him and enjoyed the cake (and presents) just as much as he did :0)

Big hit of the night, the Disney block train that YiaYia and Popo sent... our little man LOVED it.

The frosting was his favorite part; he gets that from his YiaYia :0)

 
 

He also got a remote control car, which he thought
was pretty cool....

once daddy showed him how it worked :0)

TWO YEARS OLD....

How is it possible... our little man is already two years old!  I can't believe just how fast these past two years have gone by.  Much, much too quickly.  Seems like yesterday his tiny little bottom fit in half of my hand.  Brandon Elijah has grown and changed; what a miracle he is to us.

Our little man is now 34" tall and weighs 27lbs; that puts him right about 50% on the growth charts.  He is silly, happy, emotional, high energy, full of loves, smart and completely adorable.  He is physically very strong; climbing onto and over everything.  He loves going to the park, but does NOT like the static electricity on the slides.  The first time this happened to him, I said "oh look, you have some static cling"...now he'll look at me and ask "cling?" before going down a slide and if he gets some, I have to go down with him the next time :0) His vocabulary continues to grow and I am amazed by some of the things he'll say.  I LOVE the fact that since he's only turning two, anything he says is in this cute baby voice/pronunciation...like "okay", he says it "otay" :0)  Our little man loves books, trucks and Mickey Mouse on Disney Jr.  He loves his daddy and sissy and is still a mama's boy (which melts my heart).  HUGE fan of food and actually does a little "happy dance" when he sees something that he really loves :0)

Happy birthday little man.  Love you, love you, love you.... simply could not love you more.

Yes.. my tree is already up.
Don't judge me :0)

NOVEMBER 14TH, 1998...

"This day I will marry my friend, the one I laugh with, love for, dream with, love."

Happy Anniversary Babe.  Wow... 15 years.  I thought I was so "old" back then, not getting married until 27 but goodness...look how young we look! I'm sure we'll look back on year 15 at year 25 and think "man, weren't we young?" :0)

Our journey has been one of ups and downs but...I am so thankful for you. These past 15 years have brought me so many wonderful blessings.  You know that cliche, chick-movie, saying "you complete me"?  Well, in our case, it really is true.  If you'd ask either of us, I think we'd both agree...in so many ways, we are nothing alike.  But this is how you complete me.  You balance me.  You provide different perspectives and you bring different emotions.  You run with the ball, when I drop it.  And you have blessed me with two wonderful, beautiful, amazing children.  I can't imagine traveling this journey with anyone else.

Happy Anniversary Babe.  I adore you.

ALL I WANT FOR CHRISTMAS...

is my two front teeth :0)

Yep... lost another one last night! The tooth fairy sure has been busy at our house this year :0)