Men with facial hair

And a train... thought it was adorable that the big kids made a train with McK the other night while she was in her bumbo. They are so ready for her to get bigger so they really can play with her!





Pop came for dinner the other night since we didn't get to see him over Thanksgiving and he missed J's Christmas program. We had a great time...and the kids were SO excited! After dinner, J performed a couple of his songs for Pop. Miss E couldn't stop hugging on her Pop. McK finally woke up and spent some quality time with Pop. They were sad to see him head home, and we all look forward to having him share Christmas morning with us!

Will wonders never cease...J asked to sit on Santa's lap this year! His first 2 Christmases we tortured him with the traditional Santa photo op. Last year, we just skipped it. When we did a family photo at Prairie Lights last year, we made sure he was pretty far from Santa and he still looked terrified! When Miss E showed her hesitation toward the man in red when we made McK's Christmas present, I decided once again we should just let it go. We ended up at the mall tonight, and the kids started asking where Santa was. We walked to his "house" just to see what would happen. Miss E immediately let us know that waving to him from a distance was just fine with her. J seemed hesitant at first, but then started asking to sit on his lap. We had to wait a few minutes, but he kept telling us he wanted to talk to Santa. Sure enough, he walked right up and sat on his lap! He told Santa that he wanted cars and monster trucks. He never ceases to amaze me with how he is growing up... I'm so glad they allowed us to snap a couple of pictures!

Side by side

After some absence, I'm a blogging nut tonight. Enjoy these posts with more pictures than most can stand...all for the grands, great, aunt, and other family that don't get to experience our life on a regular basis.
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All 3 of our kids have worn the same outfit during their first Christmas season. Interesting part is the age difference and how well they filled it out. Thought a side-by-side comparison would be fun.

2005 - J - 5 months *** 2007 - E - 10 months*** 2009 - McK - 4 months

Christmas Program

Sunday was J's Christmas program at church. The kids all looked great that morning in their Christmas attire - so pictures had to be taken. Later that night, J finally got to perform on stage. He's been talking about it and practicing for DAYS/WEEKS! This boy loves to sing. He provided many laughs...especially with his "six geese a laying" choreography and adding his own throughout the show. He really did well...and is still singing the songs today. We were so excited Grannylou, Aunt Kristi, Kadyn and Dylan got to come. And we all enjoyed some amazing desserts after the program.


Here's a short video of the last verse of 12 Days of Christmas...our little man really gets into it!

This and that

Because decorating our house wasn't enough insanity by itself, I chose that night to feed McK cereal for the first time. She's been waking up at night again, and I was hoping it would help her sleep through the night again. This time I had a helper too - she is one little mama!

I started taking pictures one night of McK in an outfit all 3 kids have worn during their first holiday season. I hope to later do a side by side deal of them all in it to show their size difference. Anyway, Miss E wanted in on the fun. Followed by Big J. Later that night, E was riding dinosaur J. I love how well they play together...most of the time!

Had to capture Miss E asleep the other night. I love this picture of pure abandon and pure relaxation. She's totally surrounded by her special friends.

McK's world has just changed for the better thanks to a friend's generosity. Once again we are blessed to borrow a bumbo. E wasn't too big of a fan, but McK is ALL ABOUT sitting up and observing her world. This is just what the girl needed.

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas

We finally decorated for Christmas this week. I got the kids "warmed up" by playing Christmas music and bringing out the bells while we waited for Clay and Grannylou to arrive. Decorating wouldn't have been possible without Grannylou's help. She entertained the eldest 2 children making ornaments and garland for their rooms while Clay and I pulled everything down from the attic and got the tree up. It was great to have extra hands as Miss McK was a little fussy. It was a great, exhausting night.