New and Improved...

The poor kid will actually be able to see now!! He is thrilled- and is loving them...so far! He even got a cool blue case for them- he will probably not sleep well tonight, just dying to wear them in the morning! Isn't he too cute?!
Amazing what a couple hundred dollars will do!

Light Up the Night

Over Thanksgiving break, we took the fam, along with the big fam to the zoo lights. My new camera was super fun in getting good shots- though I still need lots of help when it comes to all it's features. (On a side note, Dana ordered me a camera bag this week, so that will be much nicer than carrying it solo.) It was freezing, of course, but we had a good time, nonetheless.

I know it's hard to see how fat I am...this coat barely buttons!

We plan to go again, so we can see more lights...as you can see, we went with so many people, that it made it hard to go through fast and see it all. We loved it, though. Next time, we have to get hot chocolate...

Thanksgiving 2010

We were blessed this year to have another wonderful Thanksgiving!! Dana's mom and brother flew in from the West and were able to spend a few days with us prior to the holiday, and then, after stuffing ourselves at my parents, we got to spend the evening with all of Dana's siblings and nieces and nephews! It couldn't have been a better holiday! Here are some highlight pics:

Oh how they love their Uncle Chris!

Gee Gee and her babies all grown up!

Alex and Isaac share birthday cake!

Leah loves Evey!

Charlie's Angels...

All the crazy grandkids!!

Aunt Esther passes out stockings filled with Christmas gifts!

Family is awesome! Love that we got this time to be together with those we love.

It's Official...

Now we need to pick a name for this angel....
Any ideas?!
The winning name will get a prize- from me!!
Here's our only request for suggestions:
Either her first name or middle name has to be Blake.
We are open to any variations....HELP!!

Pic of the Week #4

Good jeans (thanks, Lisa) make life better....but bigger and bigger is what is happening- at least I got a great haircut! ha ha

Terrific Tuesday #6 (Cool Caterpillars)

It seems that everywhere we look, we see these amazing little creatures....we have found 4 caterpillars this fall! Leah had found and "rescued", later killing (on accident) 2 of them, and then when Alex and I were taking his picture, found this one. We brought him home, but instead of putting him in a jar, we put him in a small tree in our yard. But first I snapped these- and man, do I love this camera! I haven't even learned a fraction of it's features, but just being able to snap these up-close, is so nice!

Pic of the Week #3

I can't just post these without a disclaimer for my adorable 10 year old son:

Celeste LOVES footed jammies- she has one pair that are getting too small-so I asked my mom to get her a new pair for her birthday.

She calls from Target and says, "are you sure you want the 6?" I say, "Yes, she is getting too big for 4/5, so go ahead and get the next size up."

She is insistent that they will be far too big. I disagree and tell her that she will be fine if they are a little too big- buy them in the 6 and they will be great.
So, she does as I ask, and this is the size 6. When Celeste opened them and held them up- we all gasped and I felt awful that I insisted that she get the 6.

Sean quips quickly and dares Alex to put them on for a dollar-

a dollar...

my son, carefully saving his money for whatever, leaves the room with them in his hand.
He appears out of nowhere...
I snapped the top shot as fast as I could, holding back the tears of laughter.
Everyone is dying at this point, and Sean nearly wets himself.
He gladly hands him the dollar and
I exchanged the jammies for the 4/5. They are still too big....

Priceless.

And it goes on and on and on...

We finally finished celebrating Celeste's birthday! We had a bonfire cookout dinner at my parents house with Sean and Steph and their girls- it was super fun! It was kind of cool outside, so I stayed in and sipped my soup and hot chocolate, only slipping out to take a few snapshots!

Then it was time for cake and presents...again! What a lucky girl! She got everything she asked for, and MORE! She is super happy and we are glad it is all over!! ha haYesterday, everyone was out of school, so we made it a family day and went a lot of places, including taking Celeste out to lunch for her birthday- and where do you suppose she picked?! Bob Evans, of course! She ate every single bite of her french toast- and even a roll! She drank all her soda and was very happy. Today she took in treats to her class to share for her birthday too- she made a crown and got a card from her teachers- I am telling you- she is a lucky little 5 year old! She made out big time!

This is what 5 looks like:

5 years ago today, this angel joined our family, completing it, or so we thought! We could not love her more than we do- she is one special little girl and we are forever grateful she blesses us in our family each and every day.
When I put her to bed last night, I said, "goodnight 4 year old"- and she said, "mom, when I wake up, will you be here to say, Happy Birthday my 5 year old?!!" She is so fun! Our family would not be the same without her- she is just sweet, sweet, sweet.
We had a fun birthday party with her and my nephew Julian on Saturday- here are a few snapshots of that fun event:
I got her this little birthday button- she insisted on wearing it Saturday, Sunday and even today on her actual birthday! How big is 5? Well, this is my 5 year old!!

I think we'll keep her.

Happy 5th Birthday, Celeste Avery!

Happy Halloween 2010

Another Halloween down- whew! Thankful for that! I love that my kids love it and I love decorating for it- but I swear it lasts forever around here! We have the church trick or trunk, then trick or treating, then school parties, then Celeste's birthday- yeah, I am over it this year! But how could you not love the holiday when your kiddos are this cute?!Alex thinks he is "too cool" to dress up these days- but he came up with this Alvin costume, nearly all on his own. Then he whined about having to trick or treat, until I told him he didn't get any of his sister's candy unless he begged for his own! That worked! They got tons- and tons, too much, actually. But thankfully, I can eat candy again- a little more than I could before without getting sick, so I have a candy shop right in my own house! Thanks to my kids!!
Here is a montage of them this year:If Celeste isn't the cutest Supergirl you have ever seen, then I feel for you! She totally rocks that costume! She loved wearing it, and it will get tons of use in her dress-up box!
Leah loved being a Hippie in her 70's dance outfit! She rocked it as well! The sad thing about the actual night of trick or treating, is that it was FREEZING and they were nearly totally covered up! Alex was the only one who could get his shirt over his 2 coats! Thankfully Dana took them around while I made hot chocolate and sat inside the house! I am grateful for that!
Now tomorrow we have a small birthday celebration for Celeste and Julian- who also turned 5 this week, and they are going to wear their costumes yet again! I will be sure to post more of the cuties dressed up for that too!