Thursday, December 31, 2015

Family Pictures 2015

Our family pictures this year turned out great!  Kim always does a great job capturing our family and this year didn't disappoint!
About 10 minutes into our session, Lily decided that she HATED getting her picture made and had a complete meltdown/tantrum complete with screaming and running away from me.  I honestly thought we were done and was about to head back to the car when Kim suggested that I just walk away for a few minutes and leave her to work her magic.  I was doubtful that she would be able to calm her down but she proved to be a miracle worker and got Lily to not only cooperate, but to take some of the best pictures we have ever had, especially of the three kids together!
I am so thankful to Kim for another great year of pictures!  I can't wait to get some of these in frames!

December Little Things

2015 is officially over and it seems like the years go faster the older I get!  December was a very busy month and there are just a few more things I want to remember before we start a new year of making memories.

Lily had Craft Day at preschool but I was not able to leave work this time to join her.  Thank goodness for my mom who is always willing to step in and help out!  Lily had a lot of fun and came home with a several cute crafts to display.
UNO- the story of my life!  Lily is loving UNO right now and is actually really good at it!  We play every day, and usually several times a day.
Our elf, Charlie, came again this year and the kids were so sad to see him go on Christmas Eve.  If you look closely, you can find him at the top of the Christmas tree in the picture below.
The kids don't play dress up as much as they used to but one day last week they all decided to dig in the dress up box at Granna's house and see what they could find.  It's quite an eclectic group!
Parker gets the prize for dorkiest super hero!
Eden and Lily enjoyed some crafts that Puff and Pops (aka Dr. and Mrs. Wedel) gave them for Christmas.
Parker joined a new select baseball league in town called Spitfire.  He is excited about starting baseball again in the next few weeks.
Ryan is finally old enough to play more with Parker and he absolutely adores Parker!  He wants to do everything that Parker does and he tells Parker "I wuv you" all the time!  Parker has been so sweet to play with him the past few times we have been together.  It's been fun to watch their relationship grow and change over the past few months.
So long 2015!  It's been a great year with a lot of good memories!  2016...Bring it on!

Wednesday, December 30, 2015

Gingerbread Houses

The last activity of our holiday season was decorating gingerbread houses.  The kids are old enough now that they don't need much assistance.  Other than helping a couple of them get the icing on their houses and trees, Emily and I were able to just sit back and watch them be creative!
The finished houses!
I just can't say enough how much I love the relationship my kids have with their cousins!  They are such good friends and Christmas (and all other holiday) activities just wouldn't be the same without them!  We are so excited about adding another cousin to this crazy group next year!

Tuesday, December 29, 2015

Christmas with Grandma and Papa

After we finished our family Christmas, Grandma and Papa came over for a yummy breakfast and more presents!  The kids all thought we were torturing them to make them wait until after breakfast to open presents but luckily they survived!  Luckily they had the new trampoline to keep them busy while we cleaned up breakfast!
 
The girls were excited to get doll carriers and new clothes for their American Girl dolls! 
 
Parker was most excited to get lots and lots of new Lego sets!
 
We had a great morning relaxing and visiting with Cory's parents.  It was a great way to end all of our Christmas celebrations!