Monday, December 22, 2008

I love Christmas

Christmas is my favorite time of year. Not just because of the gifts, but because of the warm feeling in the air! I just love snuggling up and watching Christmas movies, listening to Christmas songs all day and most of all I love bundling up for outings! We've had a great time this season, here are some pictures of all the fun! (remember if one of the slideshows doesn't come up, refresh the page)

Tyler playing in the snow






Spencer's Jingle Jam concert at school: He was so funny! When he first walked in I could tell right away that he felt dumb wearing the reindeer nose and antlers! He had this super grumpy face on and was staring at the floor. But as soon as he saw me and Tyler waving at him he perked right up and sang with gusto!! We love our Spencer!





Christmas outings :)





Jim Brickman concert: FM100 was sponsoring 1 hour Christmas concerts at SouthTowne mall in December. We lucked out and happened to go on the day Jim Brickman was performing!! He's a little bit of a goon while he plays (he would end each song by swishing his arms up and around to face us.. it was so strange) But he was fantastic to listen to!





Merry Christmas everyone!

Friday, December 12, 2008

Less TV, More Playdough!

In an effort to cut down on the embarrassing amount of TV watching that goes on in our household, I have been trying to come up with different activities for the kids to do. Last week Gavin was over and I decided to break out some Apple Jacks and yarn to make necklaces. I'm not sure any of the cereal actually made it on the yarn by their doing (they mostly were eating 5 to every 1 they put on... and then eating that 1). Truth be told I ended up stringing the cereal for them, but they loved eating the cereal off and it made me feel good that I was able to have an activity that didn't include Diego!
Yesterday I decided to be adventurous and make playdough for the boys to play with. Now the last time I attempted this same task (about 3 yrs ago) it didn't work at all and ended up being a HUGE gooey, yucky mess. I was determined to make it work this time though and it did! It's funny how, as a Mom, successfully making playdough can make you feel great about yourself. haha The best part though was that the boys had a great time cutting out shapes and making snakes and snowmen. I literally had to tear it away from Tyler after about an hour to eat lunch.



Here's the recipe I used in case anyone else wants to give it a go :)

Playdough

2 cups baking soda
1 1/2 cups water
1 cup cornstarch


Mix with a fork until smooth.
Boil over medium heat until thick.(I kept stirring until it was a big lump resembling mashed potatoes)
Spoon onto plate or wax paper. (let it cool for about 10 min, then knead it all together. Don't be deterred by it looking a little crusty, once mixed in it's fine)

Thursday, December 11, 2008

Bathtime

Brooklyn and Tyler crack me up when they take a bath together. They love to splash and splash and SPLASH!!! Which I can't say that i'm too fond of, but they enjoy it. So long as I scoot way back then everyone is happy :) Brooklyn has also started SCREAMING along with the splashing. Here is a video of this blessed occurence. (fyi: no baby private parts are shown)

Tuesday, December 2, 2008

Our little girl has just about got it!

It's been a slow process (well compared to my boys who both walked at about 9/10 mos) but Brooklyn has just about figured out the whole walking thing. If it weren't for my sweet nieces carrying her around all last week I think she would be toddling around perfectly by now. I got some video though of her recent achievements in walking and wanted to share. Now I'm just shooting for Christmas for her big walking debut!

Monday, December 1, 2008

Thanksgiving in AZ

Thanksgiving this year was so much fun! We went down to my sister's house in AZ to celebrate the holiday. We had a great time talking, playing games and preparing all the yummy dishes for Thanksgiving dinner. Don't you love how you spend ALL DAY in the kitchen for about 30 minutes of actual eating! Ruthanne and I braved the Black Friday sales at 5 am which are always extremely hectic but so much fun. I'm definitely one who appreciates a great deal so the movies I got for $2 a piece made me especially happy! I have to say the highlight of our trip though had to be going to see Twilight again with my sisters and our hubbies! If it's even possible, I think I loved it even more seeing it the second time. I honestly could watch Twilight every day all day long and not get tired of it! haha I love spending time with my family and was so sad to leave. Here's a slideshow from our time in AZ