Merry Christmas!

I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday. We had a wonderful low-key day, which was exactly what I wanted this year. On Christmas Eve Evan asked me how early he was allowed to get up Christmas morning, and I told him 7am. He was in our room at 7:14am then next morning, ready to open presents! Santa was really good to the kids this year and brought them each a tablet (one LeapPad & one Innotab), plus an adorable wheelbarrow for Jack & a gears set for Evan.

Mark and I purchased a dress-up box for Jack this year. The only disappointment is when he has to take his costume off for nap time. Jack-Jack has mastered the Pouty Face. :-)

Evan received quite a few board games this year, including Zingo, Twister, a Hopscotch mat, I Spy Quest, I Spy Flipster, and Operation.

We have played many, many rounds of Twister so far. Evan is pretty flexible and does a great job following directions, but half the fun for him is getting twisted up on the mat and purposely falling over.

And I had to post this picture of Rocket. I was working in my office when Mark took this picture, and it cracks me up. I'm not even sure how Rocket got in this position, let alone stayed there.

My three boys. This is my favorite picture of the week... all (mostly) smiling, happy, and thrilled to be spending some time together.

Jack and I spent most of the day in and out of doctor's offices, so I'm exhausted. Have a wonderful weekend!

Merry Christmas Eve!

I hope everyone has a wonderful & relaxing Christmas Eve. We are getting ready to Skype with my parents and sister so they can watch the boys open their Christmas presents. We did this last year, and while it was chaotic, we enjoyed feeling connected to our family... from 3,000 miles away.

I pulled out my iPod today and took a few pictures of our Christmas decorations, baking projects, and our tree.

(left to right, top to bottom)

1. At the beginning of the month I created a December calendar on our chalkboard in our kitchen. Everyday Evan crosses off the day and tells me how many more days until Christmas. He took great joy in telling me today: "Only ONE MORE DAY!!". And I love the notes Evan has written at the bottom of the calender.

2. Mint drop cookies. Yum. My mom made these cookies every year when I was a kid, and I have continued the tradition. They have become a favorite of Mark and Evan's, too.

3. Our tree! I love how it turned out this year. It's sparkly & festive, and we have a great selection of ornaments. One of Mark's co-workers, Scott, helped us decorate this year & we had a great time. Jack was so super helpful & tried to put every icicle ornament on one branch.

4. My cute little snowman salt & pepper shakers. I purchased snowman dishes from Target almost 8 years ago, but we've only used them once (the first year). They have been packed up since them... but not this year! We will be using them tonight & tomorrow.

5. My mom sent me this beautiful Lenox Santa in our Christmas box, and I have it sitting on our side table in the living room. Jack likes to touch the tree Santa is holding and shriek: "I touched Santa's tree! No touching!". That kid is going to be the death of me!

6. Nativity scene, also from my mom. She found it after Christmas last year & it has been stored in our closet since then. I placed an Ikea star behind it and I love it. :-)

7. Poinsettias and a very silly snowman. I really wanted to have poinsettias in the house this year, because they are so festive, but I was concerned I would kill them. I am proud to say that after 4 weeks they are still looking good & haven't dropped any petals. Go me! I can't remember the story behind Mark's snowman, but he loves it so I proudly display it... this year on our bookshelf in the living room next to one of my poinsettias. The red and white doilies under my poinsettia are made from Papertrey Ink's Persian Lace die.

8. A few years ago, for Christmas, my Uncle gave me a set of three crystal candle holders. They, too, have been sitting in our closet, waiting for the perfect place to put them. I purchased 3 green candles from Michaels and I am displaying them next to the other poinsettia in our living room. So far Jack hasn't tried to touch (or break) them, so I plan to keep them out year-round.

Have a very Merry Christmas!

Erin.

Before and After

Mr. Jack desperately needed a haircut, which he finally received earlier this week. After two people asked me if he was a boy or a girl, I knew it was time to cut off the curls! Doesn't he look so much older? I think he does. And he isn't constantly wiping strands of hair out of his eyes anymore... he is very happy about that. I'm sorry for the horrible pictures... I quickly pulled out my cell phone so I could get before and after shots, which resulted in grainy photos. But grainy photos are better than no photos, right? (And his haircut isn't uneven in real life... he kept running his hand over his new short hair & the front got swept off to the side.)

I have been home with Evan all week, who is really, really sick. I thought he was on the mend & ready to get back to school, but his fever spiked again tonight. It looks like I am going to be home with an antsy 2 year old and a sick 5 year old again tomorrow.... lucky me!

Erin.

This is what happens when I go to the bathroom:

Do you see that face? That is Jack's "I'm NOT going to smile for the camera & I'm NOT going to listen to you!" face.

We've been getting that a lot lately.

Luckily he mixes in lots of hugs and kisses and snuggles.

The twos are so very up and down, happy and sad, playful and frustrating. But it's also full of laughs, giggles, tickles, and seriously silly moments.

And apparently, drawing all over everything. With green marker.

At least he's cute. :-)

T-Ball | A Layout

Karla has created some amazing kits the past few weeks, and I created a layout using one of my favorites: Protectors Set 1.

(All supplies are Karla Dudley Designs. Font: Georgia.)

I just love the Warehouse Alpha I used for the title, "t ball". And if you have a few minutes to spare, check out Karla's hybrid card tutorial here. Her cards are beautiful and you can even download a couple of free products.

--

Is anyone else getting into the holiday spirit? I am! I have two beautiful poinsettias in my living room (that I haven't killed yet... a miracle for sure), hanging snowflakes above our bookshelves, and a beautiful nativity scene in my kitchen. I have a few more crafty projects planned, but with holiday parties, presents to wrap, Christmas cards to make, and lots of cleaning to do, I don't know if I'll get to them this year. There are definitely not enough hours in the day, especially this time of the year.

Have a wonderful week!