Playing catch up!

I'm playing catch up here, trying to upload some photos from the holidays so bear with me! 

Prior to Christmas, i did a mini photo shoot with the kids, trying to get a nice picture for the Christmas card. Here is how that went...

this face was unprompted... ha!

visiting Santa :)

my Christmas elf!

whispering secrets to Santa!

Maddy decided to feed Ethan his breakfast one morning :)

We also had a visitor from "Nimble", our elf....  BOTH children really enjoyed looking for him every morning. Even little man would look for him when he woke up! Definitely a fun Christmas tradition! Here are just a few of the places that we found him...

riding the reindeer

playing the piano

hanging on the tree... he also added a Santa hat as the topper this year... it stayed all season

he hung a string of crazy star lights around our table

No idea how he got up that high! ;)

He was also found hanging from the lights many times, reading Christmas cards, hanging candy canes, etc.  On the "rare" occasion that someone may have had a behavior issue, he was known to leave a note for an incentive for good behavior. :)


Here are a few more pics of Christmas fun...
making Gingerbread houses

watch out! here comes Molly

getting so big!

me and the kiddos!

Hope everyone enjoyed their holiday as much as we did!

Holidays

Merry Christmas! Happy New Year! 
I can't believe Christmas is over!! Well, it is TECHNICALLY over. We are still acting as if it is Christmas every day at my house. All of the lights are on and the Christmas tree is plugged in as soon as we walk downstairs. :)  I do not know what I am going to do once we take all of the decorations down. Little E-man still "ooos and ahhs" over every little thing, EVERY time I plug things in, or light a candle, like it is the first time he has seen them.  So sweet!  I find myself getting sad, thinking of the holidays being over. I LOVE this time of year! So much thought and preparation goes into planning for the holidays. Not just the gift part... though that does take a lot of planning/effort/thought. I'm talking about the "magic" of the season. I remember Christmastime in my early 20's prior to having children. The "magic" was missing. I still loved Christmas and being with family, etc.  But the "magic" was missing. My daughter's first Christmas... there it was! Back again! I think it is being able to witness the season and all of the excitement through their eyes that brings it back to me.
Our family had a wonderful Christmas!  To help keep the magic alive, we had an Elf ("Nimble") come to live with us. He arrived right after we got home from Thanksgiving in Ohio (which I will be posting pictures of a little later). The kids thoroughly enjoyed his presence. He left little notes, hung around in weird places (like the ceiling fan, light fixtures, Christmas tree), he left a special candy canes, hung a Santa hat on our tree, hung tons of paper snowflakes in the family room for Christmas Eve morning, had a tea party with my daughter's stuffed animals (she was actually very angry about this!!), rode on some of the reindeer decor, among other things. Nimble was not as mischievous as other elves that I've heard about.Thankfully our elf encouraged good behavior! ;-)  My daughter enjoyed him, finding him every morning. Surprisingly E-man was TOTALLY into it! He seriously looked for him every morning. They also enjoyed an advent book basket from Grandma Locke.   We tried a new routine this year for Christmas. We spent Christmas Eve with the Locke family, had our own Christmas morning at home and then spent Christmas evening with the Harper family. It seemed to work well and the kids didn't feel rushed around on Christmas. 
Unfortunately I have been unable to visit with either one of my grandfathers due to illness and bad weather. Hopefully we will be making those trips VERY soon!  Anyway, I just wanted to share a few pictures. I hope everyone enjoyed their holiday, had safe travels and spent lots of quality time with loved ones. Keep that Christmas spirit alive!!! 

Christmas Eve with Grandma and Granddad Locke

enjoying the train

CHRISTMAS DAY....

Santa came!!

He plopped right down in the middle of the "choo choo" :)

She loved her "elf" hat

playing his drum from Santa

Christmas afternoon at the Harper house

and they wrapped up their Christmas day... playing with the train. :) 

Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night!

Christmas lights

I drove home last night, extra slow through our neighborhood like I always do this time of year, enjoying the sounds of my 15 month old Oohing and Aahing over the Christmas lights. All I could think about was how sweet that sound is,  his babbling and excitement over the lights, and how there are parents/families of 20 sweet, innocent little Elementary aged children who would never hear those sweet sounds from their babies ever, ever again. There are 20 families who will sit helpless, devasted as they decide what to do with the presents that were carefully picked for each of those children. What about the siblings of those children? What about the other children in the school and their families? And those of the adult victims lost in this horrific tragedy? What about the first responders to all of this? What will Christmas now mean for them? And mostly.... WHY?!?! Anyone lost in this type of manner is tragic, but those poor, sweet, innocent little children... in this type of horrific manner? They said goodbye to their parents and went to school that morning, excitement in the air because of the upcoming holiday season, only to leave this earth in an unimaginable way.  My heart is broken for them and for all of the families affected.
I am so scared as a parent of two young children. I am already the type of person who kisses the kids extra EVERY SINGLE TIME I put them in the car .... just in case.  I have been known to say a prayer when one child leaves with  my husband to run errands, or any time they are separated from me. Call me paranoid or a pessimist, I don't care.  I know if something happens I WILL NOT be that parent that says, if only I had kissed them goodbye, etc.   I feel like I appreciate my children and family but it is times like this that makes me even more appreciative.  I'm also thankful that my children are not yet old enough that I have to explain any of this to them right now.  I fear that I do have to prepare myself for this talk. I fear that at some point, some tragedy like this will happen and I will have to explain to my children that the world isn't as wonderful I, as their mother, have tried to paint it.  I wish that I could protect them from this harsh reality forever. There are so many things to worry about as a parent already... nutrition, safety as they begin to crawl, teethe, walk, chemicals in food, are they safe in school, on the school bus, drugs, driving... etc. etc.  The concerns as a parent are overwhelming and endless.  Now add to that the harsh reality of things that are happening in this world, in this time.... *big sigh*
What I do want my children to know is that horrible, horrific things DO happen in this world. I will try my hardest to always, always protect them but sometimes I won't be able to. I want them to know that there is also A LOT OF LOVE AND "GOOD" out there too.  It is easy to get hung up on the negative and all of the "bad" out in the world, especially in the wake of something like this. However, after the dust settles, try to find the peace/the good.  There is always a hero, even if it is one small child holding onto another child's hand to find comfort. There is always love. Be one of those people who can help others by finding peace, finding love and sharing it with others. Never lose faith that there ARE good people out there. To my children, always BE one of those people. Never lose faith in yourself, in your own ability to do good and make positive changes and never lose faith in God.
I hope that the peace and love of this season surrounds all of my family and friends, as well as ALL of those affected by what has happened, so that we may all feel love and comfort.
I also pray that we as a country can come together and that this incident will motivate the necessary people to make the changes needed so this will never, ever happen again.
Take a child, a loved one to see Christmas lights and enjoy those beautiful, musical sounds of excitement and awe. There is something very magical and calming about Christmas lights. Keep a look out for extra bright "lights" in the Christmas sky. There will be 20 of them.

Giving thanks...

It is almost Thanksgiving!! Where does the time go? I have felt so "ahead" this year... prepping for the holidays. Now it is almost Thanksgiving... ALREADY! :) I'm happy. I LOVE CHRISTMAS!  My husband's favorite holiday is Thanksgiving. This year, it is our year to spend his favorite holiday with his side of the family in Ohio. We haven't made the trip in several years and we are all looking forward to it! :) I have been busy busy busy getting ready to leave but I wanted to take a minute to write a note on here. I am thankful for all of you who are reading this blog... friends, family... and whomever else may be reading along on our journey.  I am especially thankful for my beautiful, healthy babies. They bring so much joy and happiness to my life. I do not know where I would be, or who I would be without those special little people. 

I am also extremely thankful for my husband.  He works hard every day to give us a wonderful home, to provide for our family, which gives me the gift of staying home with our sweet babies. :)  I am so thankful for my family, my home, my life.  I will be thinking of all of those effected by the recent Hurricane and hope they can rebuild their lives quickly.
I hope wherever you are going for this holiday, that you are surrounded by people you love, and who love you. I hope that whatever struggles you may be facing in your life, that you may find peace.  
Happy Thanksgiving!