December is a crazy busy month for us, as I assume it is for most. Christmas parties, school parties, decorating, shopping, more decorating, more parties, etc, etc, etc. It goes by so fast but is really my favorite time of the year. It has become even more exciting now that I have little ones to "help" me with some of these activities. Such as decorating. Can you spot the additional decor in this picture?
Yep, that is a Lego cottage. He told me he built it specifically for my village. I mean it fits right in. This really brings me back to a memory from when I was 6-7ish and my momma had a cute little village much like the one above. My brother would put He-Man figurines within the village -- turning over houses, picking up trains, etc. It would make my blood boil. I wanted it to be just perfect and was so irritated because he was "ruining it." I vividly remember my mom telling me it was just making it "extra special." So, I refrain from removing my son's attempt to make my village "extra special" as not everything has to be perfect.... or maybe this is just that, perfect.
And then you have the hubs attempt to decorate the front yard. He loves to be Clark Griswald but has had to tone it down since the new house has a crazy high roofline. We line to lower roofline, put out a few cute inflatables and a couple of Christmas trees. It is perfect! Oh and yes he is wearing shorts as it was that warm in December.
My front door, which I love. Notice the baby monitor in the corner. You have to work fast while the baby is snoozing.
and here is some of the rest.
Random Chuck E Cheese in December. Why not? It is really just an attempt to wear them out for bedtime!
And we bring some friends along for the fun!
Chaz is something amazing. For many, many reasons but one of my favorite is how much work it takes us to get him to go to bed. Between the "MOMMMMMMMMY, I neeeeeeeeeeed a miiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiilk" to "I need to pee!!" to "Can you read me another book??" to "I need to tell you something" to "Are you still here??" to the now famous "Roll me like a burrito" Yes, a burrito. Ryan started this and I have to give him the Genius Award for this one. He rolls and tucks Chaz into his blanket as tight as he can be, think swaddling for a five year-old. Note: Chaz NEVER liked to be swaddled as a baby. Anywho. He then proceeds to pretend to put lettuce, tomatoes, olives, guac, etc on him to complete the burrito. Usually after the burrito ritual, we don't hear another peep. Amazing!
My MIL does something so very special for the boys every year. There is an online service where you can create a custom letter from Santa to your children/grandchildren. She calls me and asks a few specifics and then a few weeks later we get this sweet letter in the mail-- complete with a postage routing stamp from the North Pole. Chaz now understand and waits for his letter from Santa. And as you can tell from the below, he gets a little excited. A little.
His daddy always reads it to him. Such a special moment.
Telling me all about it. Again, there is just a little excitement in this little boy.
One for Chaz, one for Dane. Adorable. Thanks Mah and Dah!!!
We always plan an evening with the Schmidts so the boys can exchange presents. The older two are in charge of picking out each other's presents. I think it is simply adorable. Now to be fair, the mommies may also text back and forth in order to properly coax the kids into the proper presents but as far as they are concerned, it was their idea.
Such good friends. I love that these boys will grow up together. They have known each other since birth, I hope they are friends forever and ever. Oh and yes, Chaz has a multicolor mohawk. Crazy hair day at school.
Chaz was so excited to watch Fletcher open his present that he couldn't even focus on his own. Although this is something very sweet, I have to say it probably had something to do with the fact that he wanted what he knew Fletcher was getting.
Annnnnnnnnd ... yes, they did get the same Lego police helicopter. A+ for the mommies!
and then there was a very lengthy discussion about how cool these presents were. Needless to say, they were happy campers!
and then it was brother's turn. You know he had lots of help!
Precious! Precious little ride-on dinosaur!!
Yeah, he holds his excitement like his brother-- from ear to ear.
Time to help clean up! He is all about putting things back and throwing things in the trash. Such a little helper!
The next morning, it took about 2.5 seconds for him to rip open the Lego and get to building. I am pretty sure he had the Lego helicopter (which is a 7+ age level) together in about an hour. He is AMAZING at his Legos!
Ryan's Aunt was in town from Thanksgiving until Christmas so we had many nights of dinners with the family. It was so nice to have tons of cousin and family time. The boys were boys, either wrestling and fighting OR playing video games on their iPods. Boys.
Sweet, sleepy baby.
George. One of my favorite dogs on the planet. He is awesome.
More cousin time, more video games.
Poor Chaz, he was so worn out one night that he got on his pjs and passed out in the chair. I.mean.out. The terrible part is that while he was totally zonked, the rest of the cousins were still riled up and ready to go. The parents were in the other room and really not paying much attention as they were all playing while Chaz was sleeping. Next thing I know Chaz is WHALING... I mean LOUD! I ran in there to see what happened and after some hugs to Chaz and some long interrogation of the cousins we discovered that Brandon (who I honestly think thought Chaz was playing around) walked up to him and punched him in the face. Yep, that happened. In true "monkey see, monkey do" fashion, Campbell quickly followed with another blow to the face. Really, poor Chaz. I tell this story because one day I will want to tell it to them around the Christmas dinner table and listen to them roll with laughter. Kinda like Brad, Meghan, Ryan and Cameron when we tell the story of the butter knife in hot potato + arm OR locking Cameron on the porch naked OR the kids convincing Cameron to give himself swirlies. Yes, like those stories!
Clearly on the way home, he was WIDE awake!
This may be one of my favorite pictures this season. The lights, the tree, the baby.. perfection!!
Finally, he loves books!!! He took a little longer than Chaz but he has come around. He loves to read, but on his own terms--his choice, his pace, etc. I play along. How could I not? Look how stinkin' cute he is!!!
One evening Ryan was out and about with the boys so I put the baby to bed and cuddled in bed with my boy. We love these kind of nights where we can just curl up and watch a movie. I was trying to get a picture of him for his daddy and he got tickled. Really tickled. He could not stop laughing. It was hilarious! What a goofball!
A few days later this boy was not feeling so well.. A little time in momma's bed will make everything better.
More sleeping sweetness!
Soooo, when it is cold, you get bored.... and when you have a 5 year-old, he thinks of interesting activities all.the.time
So this became the activity of the season. He was so very proud of himself every time he built a structure. And yes, we sang 'Red Solo Cup' every time.
The best part of the entire thing was tear down--now that was fun!
It didn't take long for our new family member to make himself at home. This is my view from the rocking chair in the baby's room.
Spitting images of each other. Heart these boys!
AND then this happened... I had the house decorated to the tee. Everything had a place and it all looked so good... and then I came home to this, damn dog. Ryan received more than a few text messages about HIS dog. I was so ticked. There was stuffing and rocks EVERYWHERE. Yes rocks, I guess that is what was in my snowman's butt that made him sit so perfectly. Damn dog.
I mean for reals. How cute is this???? This was one of my friend's instagram photo one evening. I have never laughed so hard. I really think she should use it as her Christmas card one year. LOVE!
Another shot from the
SSX Christmas party. What an awesome night!!!
We were crunched for time, the kids were cranky, we were tired... so we just opted for something we (at least the adults) NEVER eat.. McDs. Then I realized this was the day that everyone was saying the world would end. I never believe the hype and honestly if it is going to happen, then that is just what is meant to happen. I mean, you can't really fight the end of the world. But when I looked up to see this in front of me, I realized this really could be my last meal. Bad choice, bad choice.
Some of the last few days of Pingle. I love this experience every year.
I have no clue what is going on in this picture but I love this face. Completely what-are-you-looking-at face.
I think he has found his new home... and if he will stop eating stuff, he can stay.
My Spiderman ninja. He wanted to show me his skills. This kid is a riot.
The reason for the above excitement is out final destination. He had officially earned a Build-a-Bear and he knew exactly what he wanted-- Spiderdog!
Rubbing the heart-- brains, love and some other stuff they tell you.
Brother trying to help.
and creating complete chaos. He is REALLY good at this!!
One of our only snows of the season, it didn't last very long. Poor kiddos. I guess I will pack up the snow gear, again. I swear two years ago I bought a great snow suit on sale for next to nothing. It has now been hanging in the closet, with the tags, for two years. I bought it big, but not that big.
I put up my holiday decor as early as possible, I think I actually had it up before Thanksgiving this year -- I know, I know. However once Christmas is over, I am ready to pack it up and get the house back to normal. With the
light issues on our main tree, it was humanly impossible to disassemble the thing. Therefore, the hubs got to do this--all.the.way.upstairs. I wish his face wasn't so blurry, I really wish you could see the pure bliss on his face. Bliss.
