It’s been a busy December getting ready for Christmas, so I’ll
keep this brief!
Always time for hot chocolate
Our kitchen helper
Not much new in our house.
Evie is talking a lot more, and is even learning to say “please.” Maggie is really excited for Christmas this
year (best age ever?), and likes to tell us all about Jeeeeeeeeeeesus (her
pronunciation) from school.
I love my girls
We had our first big snow storm of the year, and had a
ton of fun playing in the snow while poor Daddy used the snowblower.
We need a bigger sled.
Ready to help Daddy!
Never thought I'd be the mom to make her kids match all the time....turns out, that's exactly who I am.
Time for a ride?
Pitching in to help... shovel the deck?
Snow angel!
Catching snow
Evie finally had her first haircut! You can't really tell, but the back was really long, so we just evened out the length. She wouldn't sit still without me holding her, so sadly, I don't have any action shots. We spent about five minutes looking at pictures on my phone to distract her while the beautician snipped as fast as possible!
Before...
After... yeah, you can't really tell
We celebrated Uncle Rex's birthday at our house, and then the grown-ups went to see Star Wars!
Happy Birthday, Uncle Rex!
Evie loves this singing/walking Santa... Maggie was terrified of it
Hanging with Grandma at home
A few others:
These girls love to share the kid couch to watch tv
Maggie celebrated her 4th birthday on Saturday! This little girl is extremely kind and funny,
loves to make jokes that make no sense, helps with cooking and baking, enjoys
narrating stories from pictures, loves horses, likes to help her sister, and
has a really creative imagination. I can’t
imagine life without her!
Four years old?!?
Maggie got to celebrate her birthday at school on Friday. We worked hard to make these rice-krispie ice cream cones (and taste-tested everything along the way). I got to read a story to Maggie's class for her birthday, so we read the "Orange Ardvark" - one of my faves! She also asked me to read "Oh the Places You'll Go" by Suess, which made me a little bit weepy, but was perfect for her birthday.
Sugar, then sugar, and then some sugar on top
The birthday girl!
Here's Maggie opening her Toy Hospital from mama and daddy... love her reaction:
Maggie had her first friend-birthday-party to celebrate! She wanted a Doc McStuffins theme, so Jamie
and I put together some fun things for her and her 14 friends (next year we
might just do a few friends…). We held
the party in Jamie’s art rooms at Bishop Foley… this seemed like a great idea,
except that we spent about 3.5 hours cleaning the rooms the night before the
party (never looked better though!).
All the kids were “toy doctors” for the day… we had lunch,
and then they each made their own stethoscope.
Grammer (our most dramatic player) entered the room desperate for some
toy doctors to help stuff some unstuffed animals. The kids had a good time putting together
their animals, and then we did a story that involved each animal. It was cheesy and theme-y, so naturally I was
happy!
Some of the kiddos
Cousin buds
Trying to get photos at the end of the party... perhaps not the best time for kids...
Grammer and Pops
The toy OR
Lots of nurses to help out the doctors
Story-time
Happy Birthday, Maggie!
Waiting for the song to end...
Sugar rush, post-cake
Following right behind!
Slap-happy
Hanging with Grandma
Trying to get some of the kids together... not quite successful
Snuggles with Sarah-Beara
Jamie and I took Maggie to her orthopedist appointment on
Monday afternoon. This was a huge
milestone date that we’ve been looking forward to since she was born – at 4
years old, no more foot brace at night!
We were really excited… but the doctor wants her to wear them for a few
more months because her ankles are turning in a little bit. Jamie said it best – it’s like running a
marathon and being told at mile 26 that you have one more mile to go. I know this is not a big deal at all, but we
were both pretty bummed. Thankfully, her
hip xray looked good, and now her doctor does not think she will need hip
surgery in her future. He said she may
need a tendon-transfer surgery at the ankle… time will tell!
Helping Evie eat a birthday muffin
Now… time to start thinking about Christmas… ahh!! I told Maggie that I was so happy my big
sister was coming to Michigan with her family for Christmas. Maggie asked if her big sister could come too…
she was very upset (like in tears) when I told her that she didn’t have a big
sister because she was the oldest. After
a lot of explaining, my little negotiator asked if Aunt Jody, Alex and Grammer
could be her big sisters – and they agreed!
Feeling nostalgic, here's a few of my favorite photos from Maggie, the younger years.
