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)