Christmas 2010

This Christmas was such a fun one. Natalie loved helping with the baking and the decorating. She was so impressed that this season came with so many songs that Corey and I (sort of) knew the words to. She double LOVED looking at the various outdoor decorations around the neighborhood...the more obnoxiously overdone, the better, according to Natalie (there is a house around the corner that had no less than a dozen inflatable holiday characters in motion and it was a nightly stop for us). She enjoyed the Christmas books and playing with her nativity set and looking for our "elf on the shelf", George, every morning after he returned from his regular nightly trips to the North Pole. She was very excited about leaving cookies for Santa (and carrots for the reindeer) and waking up to way too much under the tree on Christmas morning.

And Audrey just took it all in...the lights, the excitement, the decorations. She loved to chew on our tree, she grabbed and attempted to gobble ornaments that were hung too low, she could find the surge protector where the lights were plugged in no matter how many obstacles I put in front of it, she always had glitter stuck to those chubby hands and cheeks, and she, too, liked the singing...even my singing! Her gifts mostly came from our attic, but she was pleased as can be! And as a special gift to her exhausted mother, she slept through the night for the very first time on Christmas night (this has yet to be repeated, but it was a nice gift, nonetheless).



On Christmas Eve, we constructed a gingerbread house and it is my favorite memento of this season. It is so colorful and cute! Natalie made a marshmallow snowman for the front porch (now that she's a snowman making expert). Then she promptly grabbed her new (Corey's old) cell phone to take a picture of it.


I could absolutely not pass up the opportunity to dress the girls in matching polka dotted dresses this year. I have a feeling my years of getting away with this are limited so I started now. Natalie loved being "twin sisters" and Audrey just loved chewing on her Mary Jane.
Natalie was wowed beyond words when she found a princess "big girl bike" under the tree Christmas morning (thank you, Nana and Papa Franc). It turns out it wasn't big enough so we had to exchange it for a bigger one. I find it so ironic that I have tall children.

Grandma Lala, Papa Rod and Aunt Ashley were with us for the holiday and we had a good time. Here are a few shots of Christmas morning. Corey is usually the photographer, which is why he is missing in all of these pictures. I promise to grab the camera next time.

We're a lucky bunch.

Winter Wonderland

We just returned from a whirlwind and wintry trip to Reno. We packed a lot into 3 and a half days...and so did Mother Nature. It snowed, rained, snowed, rained and snowed some more during most of our stay and our little elf couldn't have been happier! Natalie made her first snowman, ate about 25 snowballs (she even picked them off her dirty mittens after we came inside...ick) and splashed into every slushy puddle she could find!

We were greeted at the airport by Aunt Jackie and Uncle Mike, carrying warm blankets for the girls and little gifts. What a wonderful welcome!


Our first stop was Grandma and Grandpa's house. When we couldn't locate her copy of the book, Grandma recited 'Twas The Night Before Christmas from memory as Natalie's bedtime story and that wowed us all! I can't even remember my own cell phone number most of the time! Then there was all the previously mentioned frozen fun in their backyard, sugar cookie baking, a Christmas party with an early delivery from Santa and spending time with Aunt Karen and cousin John. Even though we were excited about the next leg of our trip, it was hard to leave Grandma and Grandpa's house!

All bundled up...this was Audrey's very first time in a coat!

I planned the matching outfits for the girls but had no idea they would match their great grandma that night!

Aunt Karen...you were a hit!

Natalie's first snowman. We only had a baby carrot, so she insisted we make a tiny snowman to match his little nose. He was such a cutie!

Speaking of cuties, don't you just want to eat her up???

Next stop was cousin Emma's house and Natalie was in heaven! Corey built the girls a fort in the living room in front of the Christmas tree where they chatted way too late just like their mommies still do!

Emma read a bedtime story to Natalie. So incredibly sweet!

We all met our new cousin, June, this trip. Audrey was especially curious about this baby her age and size.

This is the best we could do with a shot of all the cousins.

Aimee and Emma

It was such an awesome trip. Thank you all for everything!! We were so spoiled, as usual, and we appreciated every sweet minute of it.

Very First Christmas Pageant

'Tis the season...to be too busy to blog! I can't believe it's been over two weeks since I posted anything...so sorry.


Natalie had her very first Christmas pageant last week. It was charming and chaotic (in equal measure). My hat is off to the teachers who organize these events...some kids are totally into it and others don't seem to be fans of the stage. I'll let you guess what category our preschooler falls into.


She announced at breakfast that morning that she would only be able to wave to us from the stage, not come hug us or talk to us. And boy, did she wave! And Audrey loved watching.

6 Months Old

Audrey is already 6 months old. Actually, she was 6 months old a week ago but I am just now posting it (again, my apologies, future Audrey). She continues to be a very happy little lady, plump as a peach with a great big giggle and a few extra chins. Her cheeks are always rosy, she has two very sharp little bottom teeth and she is now eating rice cereal, avocado and winter squash. She weighs 17 lbs. 2oz. and measures 26" long.

She is basically crawling. It's a cross between an army crawl, a scoot and a creep, but the girl can MOVE. The pediatrician didn't believe me until Audrey almost crawled off the exam table today at her 6 month check up. This urge to move has made her completely intolerant of being on her back. Changing her diaper is a workout because you have to hold her down with one arm and maneuver the diaper with the other or else she's on her belly in a flash. She's sitting very well, too, but who has time to sit when there's crawling to do? Mommy is not ready for this crawling business, Audrey!

Such a sweet little squishy pumpkin...

She's my little sidekick these days as I rarely leave home without her. She's a pretty darn cute accessory!

I realized I never got a good picture of her in her official Halloween costume. Oh, future Audrey, please forgive me. So, the day after Thanksgiving, I dressed her up and snapped a few pictures. She appears to actually be shaped like a pumpkin in this shot.

Happy Half Birthday, cutie pie!

Thanksgiving

We had a great Thanksgiving with Grandma Lala, Papa Rod and Aunt Ashley. Audrey slept through most of dinner (what a considerate little one) but, unfortunately, that meant she missed out on being in this picture. Natalie said grace before we ate and it was so sweet and from the heart. She thanked God for everything from Grandmas to rainbows.

Thanks, Mom and Dad, for making the trip to see us. We loved having you here.

After Grandma and Papa left, we created Christmas around here. It's been so fun to see Natalie get into the traditions as she remembers special times from last year's festivities. And, once again, she's redecorating the lower half of the Christmas tree daily and playing with the ornaments. At one point today she was performing a wedding ceremony between a Santa ornament and a Little Mermaid paper doll. You know what they say about opposites. It just might work!

Comments and Questions

Natalie is asking all sorts of questions these days. Some crack us up and others leave us grasping for a response.

As she was coloring the other day:

"I want to be a mommy when I grow up, but can mommies still use crayons?"

And after I commented on how nice her letters looked (she's writing the entire alphabet now and spelling her full name), she said,

"I'm just a smart girl."

When it was time for Natalie's daily vitamin, Corey asked her to get down on her hands and knees and "meow" like a kitty for it. I shouted across the room that we do not make children beg like cats for vitamins in this house. Natalie shouted,

"Yeah, Daddy. I don't have to beg for a vitamin (short pause) but it sounds like fun so I'm going to do it!" And she did.

When Corey was asking me to come snuggle him on the couch after Natalie had been tucked into bed, we heard her voice from the hall say,

"If you want someone to snuggle you, mister, I'll come snuggle you!"

And then, during one of those sleepy bedtime moments where wonderful questions and comments seem to just flow out of her mouth she admitted,

"I know I don't mind a lot, but I still love you."

Last night, as I talked with her at bedtime, she got really worried and said,

"I want to be a mommy and a grandma one day, but what if God is finished making things and people by the time I'm big enough?"

That one hit me like a ton of bricks. I did not expect this type of question from a 3 1/2 year old. I suspect her actual concern is how long it will take for her to get big (Christmas feels like ages away to Natalie). But I desperately want the world to be in a place that allows her to have any life she wants and my response lodged temporarily as a lump in my throat. I did my best to assure her that she would get to be a mommy and a grandma someday. And then I said a silent prayer.

Taggie, you're IT!

A good friend of mine, Victoria, made a little taggie blanket for Natalie when she was a baby. She loved it then and, now that Audrey plays with it all the time, she loves it all OVER AGAIN. Most of Audrey's hand-me-down baby toys don't do much for Natalie so she happily hands them over once they're re-discovered in a box. But this blanket is the exception...bright colors, butterflies and ribbons...it just has Natalie written all over it and she's shared it reluctantly. She decided she could best make peace with sharing this blanket if she had another one of her own.

Thank goodness the girl didn't ask me to sew. She, instead, suggested we draw one that looks just like Audrey's. So we did. I drew it to Natalie's EXACT specifications (she counted the tags, the butterflies, and the flowers and wanted it reproduced as close to the original as humanly possible) and then she colored it and cut it out.

So, she now has her own taggie capable of a paper cut but she's happy.

Both girls with their taggies.

Audrey is delighted that she actually came away from this with the REAL taggie!

Natalie wasn't too happy after I clicked this picture and she realized her paper taggie was being snatched by a slobbery hand.

If the Shoe Fits

Natalie continues to be into all things princess. And, even though she's not yet seen the movie, she's infatuated with the story of Cinderella. She gets into her princess dress (with it's tattered hem and snagged tulle skirt, this very loved dress is now a cross between Cinderella's "before-the-ball" rags and "during-the-ball" gown), slips on her Turkish dress-up shoes from Grandma Lala and gives Corey and me our cue.

She announces (in a very worried voice), "it's 1:00, I have to go!" Then, she dramatically pivot turns and dashes off, kicking one shoe loose as she runs. It's our job to collect the shoe, say, "where did that girl go?" and search for her around the house. When we find her, we ask her if she'll try on the shoe and, when it fits, she beams! She likes to repeat this short scene a few times and really loves it if we try the shoe on Audrey, Corey, me and Scarlet first.

Oh, and it's no surprise that Natalie makes 1:00 Cinderella's expiration hour...I think it's supposed to be midnight but leave it to her to negotiate a make-believe bedtime, too!

gotta love the princess dress OVER the mismatched jammies look!

the shoe

once she's officially a princess, out come the crown and jewels!