Christmas-ing

We have been enjoying this fabulous Christmas season and therefore haven't been blogging. This Christmas we've been counting down the days until Christmas a couple of ways. One with a nice little treat and another by reading a scripture a day that talks about the Savior. It's been fun to eat treats and read scriptures at the same time. Hmm...I hope this doesn't become a habit.

Scripture Advent

I made a decoration out of scrap wood we had laying around and I think it turned out okay... Loreli on the other hand hates how I spelled merry so she mixes things up a bit. Yerrm...is that Jewish?

I finally got around to making stockings this year! Miracle! I was so scared that if they were horrid that I'd ruin every future Christmas or something, but I got over it. So the stockings are done, but the letters are not. I am running out of time since we're leaving earlier than planned for Christmas. Just pretend they all have letters on a ball chain and are so so cute.

Loreli LOVES them! She can't wait for them to be filled with wonderful surprises!

Loreli has an obsession with snowmen lately. So I went to the little craft store in town and got supplies to make a snowman...or in this case woman. She also is donning a snowman dress that Gana and Granddad gave her last year and lets just say she wants to wear it daily. Thanks Gana and Granddad!

Picture TIme

Sorry, sorry, sorry.  I know it has been forever since the last blog post.  I don't know what to tell you.  But I'm here now so its alright.

When we were in the Valley last time, amongst our rockin' swampin' good time, we took some nice family pictures.  What do you think?

Isn't this a gorgeous picture of this girl?

You might not be able to see, but Loreli has a huge smile on her face in this one.  She is going to be some sort of dare devil for sure.

Loreli is Two!

 Loreli is two! On Monday we had an all day party with just our family. Sunday night after the kids went to sleep we blew up balloons, hung streamers, birthday banners and set out the presents. She was so excited to see a pile of presents and all of the decorations when she woke up.

We started the day off right with some whole wheat chocolate chip pancakes. Yum!

 

mmm...syrup.

  

And then with some help from a creepy hooded man she opened a gift from Grandma & Jack.

Don't you love the PJ combo? Good thing she got new PJs from Jack and grandma!

After playing for a couple of hours it was time for lunch. So we had a Loreli inspired lunch which consisted of pigs in a blanket, chips and juice. Her kind of meal!

 

 And then it was present time!

Hmm...these look good for steppin' on.

 

Painting supplies!

A new baby doll and fun accessories!

 

 Time for cake!

 

Here she is blowing out the candles. Or trying to blow them out anyway.

And then after we had cake our party was over and time for a nap! She has never been more excited to take a nap than she was on this day because she had to try out her the new pillows and blankets for her babies.

Cute new PJs from Jack and Grandma.

The day after her birthday she got a package from Kristen and Matt and a letter from MaceyJo and Kyle. She was thrilled to get mail! Here she is opening the gift from Kristen and Matt and also decorating her poor brother with the stickers from Kyle and Macey.

Poor brother. I turned my head for 30 seconds and when I turned around she had emptied the entire sheet of stickers onto his forehead. Jack didn't seem to mind!

5 Months & 23 1/2 Months

Our kids are getting so big and cute! Yes, cute. I know I'm their mother and quite subject to bias, but lets be honest. They're cute. Jack is already 5 months old and in a week Loreli will be 2! Here are a few pictures of those cute kids of ours.

 

Aren't they so cute? Love 'em!

Halloween!

Holy Moses! Halloween came and went ever so quickly! I made the kids costumes this year. Yes. Made. Why you ask? Because I have this issue with paying $30 for one costume when I could spend $15 and make two costumes. So that's what I did. Since Loreli doesn't really know what trick-or-treating is yet we took advantage of that and only did the "Trail of Treats" on Main Street again this year. It was faa-reezing! But Loreli was so excited to get treats, see kids dressed up, wear wings and hold a wand!

Look at those rosy cheeks and nose. It was so cold!

Our friend Liam as Jake the Neverland Pirate and Loreli as Tinkerbell

Dad with Peter Pan and Tink. Check out Peter's jowls! Squishy!

"I'm Tinkerbell and I can fly! Hah!"

"No you may not have any fairy dust!"

A large portion of his day included chewing on his dagger. Sharp!

"I'll get you captain hook!"

"Nobody calls Pan a coward and lives! I'll fight you man-to-man, with one hand behind my back." Look at that face...he'd do it.