Another Merry Christmas

I hope you all had a merry Christmas!

Silly Bunnies

Oh, what fun I had dressing the kids up for Easter! Emma picked out her dress months ago and we recently shopped for shoes and other accessories--so fun! The boys practically gag when I say we're going shopping but they did smile a little when I gushed about how handsome they looked in their ties. Nonetheless, I could not get them to hold still or be serious long enough for a "normal" picture. Honestly, though, I love seeing their little personalities captured on "film."

My Little Valentines

We officially have a family tradition--fondue dinner for Valentine's Day. Last year was only fondue dessert because I couldn't find my other fondue pot. My garage spring cleaning paid off and I found the pot. Alas, Valentine's Day Dinner 2010 included hot pot and chocolate. Ethan gagged when he ate shrimp and Alex loved the soup. We had a lovely evening and exchanged lots of xxxxs and oooos. I love them so much.

December!

December has already been a whirlwind of activities. I can barely keep up but have managed to capture the fun on film. Here are a few pictures . . .

Okay, this is from November . . . Thanksgiving day.


















Just Audi . . . isn't she sweet? Out of everyone at our house, she loves the snow the most.



Emma and her friend, Kiana, got their nails painted. Emma picked her polish off two days later during nap/quiet time. It was worth the $10 because we had a fun girls' night out.
















Alex and Emma gave an amazing performance in their Christmas program at Challenger. All the kids did a great job and were so excited when Santa arrived for a surprise visit. Emma said Ms. Cindy, the Headmaster, promised her it was the real Santa and not just a guy dressed up in a suit.


Emma gave another awesome performance in her Christmas dance recital, even though she didn't like "all those movements" she had to do with her hands. I think she was more excited to dress up and wear make up.



Ethan's second-grade class decorated gingerbread houses. Ethan definitely put more candy in his mouth than on his house!


The rest of the month will include celebrating Alex and Emma's birthday, Christmas, a visit from my mom, a break from work and school and hopefully some fun time with friends. Happy December to you!

Santa and Things That Make You Go Hmmm . . .

One of our family traditions for three years now has been to ride The Polar Express (the Heber Creeper) to visit Santa at the North Pole. It was just as fun as the first time! For two years now we've had dinner afterwards at a cute little restaurant called the Spin Cafe where they serve "spinny" (curly) fries and delicious gelato.

When I was pregnant with Alex and Emma and would tell people we're having a boy and a girl an occasional person would say, "Are they identical?" Then the same question continued after they were born. I would politely say, "No . . . they're a boy and a girl." Some people would get it then and say, "Oh yeah." Others would need a little more information . . . "they have different parts which means different DNA." A couple of times that didn't even click. Well, our waitress at Spin Cafe last night was chatting with the kids and asked Emma how old she is. Emma said, "Four" and then the waitress pointed to Alex and said, "How old is he?" I said, "They're twins--they'll be five in a couple of weeks." She looked at Emma and exclaimed, "Oh! Twins! Are you identical? Let me see . . ." She looked at Emma, then looked at Alex and said, "Yep! That is so cool! If he gets hurt, do you feel it? If she gets hurt, do you feel it?" After she walked away Emma whispered in my ear, "She is so nice!" Then Emma gave her a big hug when we left.

It was a fun night to start the holiday season and I keep smiling when I think about the waitress.

Do You Fondue?

We introduced the kids to the delicious indulgence of chocolate fondue. They quickly caught on to the skill of dipping then twirling and wholeheartedly agreed that this should be a family Valentine's Day tradition!

Our main course was going to be Mongolian Hot Pot but my other fondue pot is nowhere to be found. I didn't discover this until after buying all the ingredients so our meal consisted of frozen chicken sandwiches with a side of lobster and shrimp. Yum.

Strolling Down Memory Lane

Valentine's Day is fun. This morning the kids were giddy about the fun day ahead - parties at school and most importantly, LOTS OF CANDY!

David and I don't go crazy over Valentine's Day but it is a fun time to express our love for each other and now it is especially fun with the kids.

Last weekend Ethan hid out in his room and made love bookmarks for David and me. They're perfect.

Here's a picture of my little munchkins from February 2006.

Happy Valentine's Day! xoxoxo

P.S. I'm experimenting with backgrounds . . . I like the background but not the overall look. It's like decorating a room . . . you know when it's right.

A Delightful Day

Emma and Alex have been practicing "not smiling" for pictures so this is what I got . . . then they burst into giggles after the camera clicked. Ethan was trying to join them with his own serious expression.

They had a great time tearing open the packages and we all received many nice and thoughtful gifts.

Ethan was very excited to receive a Nintendo DS from Santa Claus (now he can continue saving his hard-earned allowance). Santa gave Alex and Emma their own handheld games (Leapsters) so they can play alongside their big brother. Here they are on Christmas night (in the new pjs--a present from Grandma):

Here they are the next morning, snuggled up in mom and dad's bed:

As cozy as this looks, the quiet concentration soon turned into "don't touch me," "you're in my spot," "Mommy!!!" etc.

In lieu of going outside in the cold weather the kids chased Audi around the house to get the wiggles out. She (the dog) loves to do laps around the kitchen/family room--the kids chase her and then she gets smart and starts chasing them. It's a pretty loud scene--lots of screaming and giggling but thank goodness, not much barking!

We also played card games and board games, read books, the kids battled with light sabres and did artwork with markers, crayons, stamps and stickers. Oh yeah, we also built a gingerbread house and two workshops for Santa (the sticker and glitter kind, not the cookies and frosting kind). Boy, am I tired!

My mom was with us for a few days and we all enjoyed having her here. Emma had great fun playing Trouble with her and sitting on her lap. They all beeped the horn on her wheelchair every chance they got!

83 Days and Counting

I'm not a big fan of snow, wind, cold . . . I would be quite happy to skip directly to spring (who needs those extra 83 days anyway)! I realize this would be different if we lived in a fair-weather state but that's not the case. Actually, we enjoy a lot of nice weather here but that hasn't been the case this week! We enjoyed a fun Christmas at home and luckily we didn't have to drive anywhere because it has been snowing like crazy. Now that the snow has stopped it is too cold to go outside and play in the powder, so we're all going stir crazy!

Gettin' Groovy with the Mc5Family!

Did you have any idea we had such impressive dance moves? We wish you a Merry Christmas!

Oh, the Magic

We had a less than joyous weekend - no sleep because of the dog, sick, cranky kids and too many things to do. But then last night we headed for the mountains and boarded the Polar Express for a visit to the North Pole. The kids were filled with excitement as they watched out the windows, looking for Santa and his reindeer. When Santa stepped onto the train I'm pretty sure all their eyes REALLY sparkled--it was truly magical!