Friday, December 19, 2008

Holiday Fun

As most of you, we have been busy with all the fun things that Christmas brings. Here are just a few fun pictures to share!

William was SO excited to get to make and decorate his very own Gingerbread House at preschool yesterday. He couldn't wait to share it with all of us! (But I made him wait until after dinner! and he is such a good sharer!)



Gabriella recently had 2 dance performances. The first one (where the picture is from) was at The Poinsettia Festival a couple of weeks ago. And then on Tuesday nite her studio had their Christmas Recital, where her team performed the same dance. She did a great job and she is loving her new, fancy little footie things (she is, but I'm not - they were pricey little buggers!)



And today was an overall busy day. I LOVE making sugar cookies and used to do it every year, for Christmas, Halloween, and Valentine's Day and we'd take them to all our neighbors. Well, I have just been plain lazy about that the last couple years - not wanting to bother with the mess that cute little kids make with things like that, but today I had the sudden urge to do just that! So William and Tabitha helped me make the dough, roll it out, cut out the fun shapes, and bake the cookies this morning. Then after dinner we all had fun decorating them. Tabitha just wanted to eat anything and everything she could get her little hands on. William loved trying to copy mom & dad's ideas and he did pretty good, too! And Gabriella did a little copying and a little of her own. It was fun, and went a LOT better than I had planned.

In between our cookie making/decorating, the kids BEGGED me to go sledding. This morning and early afternoon was cold, but clear. Rick thot he'd be able to come home early so silly me put the idea in the kids' heads that when Gabriella and Daddy got home, we could go sledding. Right about the time Gabriella got home, it started snowing and blowing a LOT! And then we found out Rick wouldn't be coming home eary (too much work to finish) and then eventually the snowing stopped and the kids begged to go. Do we bundled up, took our 1 little sled and drove to the sledding hill. It Was COLD!! The wind had not stopped. We were there no more than 15 minutes, but the kids had a blast. Tabitha even went down all by herself! Brave little girl, there! But since it was just me and the 3 kiddos, no pictures this time.

Rick, the master cookie decorator, hard at work.



And William, proudly showing off the mouse he decorated just like mommy's mouse - he really did a pretty good job!



A couple of silly girls, with some of their yummies.



And a baking sheet full of all our finished masterpieces! The top 3 are "Super-Bears" - Rick did one and then Gabriella and William tried their hands at it. Below that is Rick's "Easter Egg" - somebody is going to be a bit confused! And then Rick's and William's "Aliens". Under that are mine and William's "If You Take a Mouse to the Movies" mouse.



And now I think I am going to join the other 4 sleepy heads and get myself to bed early!

Tuesday, December 16, 2008

Morning

It is now 8:38 AM.
While many children are probably just waking up or
eating their bowl of Froot Loops, mine have been busy!


As soon as Gabriella was out the door for school - at 7:45 - William was
begging to go play in the snow. It snowed all night and is still going.

They are just finishing their hot cocoa now.
And I'm sure they'll be back at it later!

Wednesday, December 3, 2008

Often Overheard

There is a new phrase that is one often overhears in our home.

"I'm gonna beat you up, guys!"

It is not said with malice or anger. No harm is intended.
And no, we don't suddenly have a big, bully of a teenager living with us.

Instead, it comes from the sweet little voice of our petite, sweet little angel.

Tabitha.

Overheard at the dinner table - "I'm gonna beat you up, guys!"
and then when she has "beat us up" (finished her dinner before anyone else has finished):
"I beat you up, guys! I beat up Gabriella and William and Mommy and Daddy!
I beat you up, Dad!!"

Overheard at jammie time - "I'm gonna beat you up, Gabriella and William!" and off she runs to be the first one to have her jammies on, so that she can happily and proudly exclaim:

"I beat you up, guys!"