Christmas Eve 2010

 It was really hard getting the kids happy and into the Christmas spirit with them knowing that their Daddy wouldn't be home the next morning to open presents on Christmas. After getting to talk to him over Skype, we made some some cookies for Santa and a big batch of puppy chow to enjoy over a movie. Of course it didn't remove their Daddy from their thoughts but the treats at least brought a smile to their faces!

Poor little guy! I just love how big sis jumped in to comfort him when he was sad!

{This years Christmas ornaments we had made at the mall}

 I made things as simple and pretty as possible with John in Iraq and me very much pregnant with Landon. I didn't go to our storage unit to get our 7 foot tree and I let a few things slide in order to focus on my kids so they had the best Christmas they possibly could with their Daddy away. I was running out of steam hitting my third trimester anyways. I hope they know just how much they are loved!!!

I actually love the little prelit 3 foot tree my Mom bought us while she was here for Thanksgiving. It's different than what we normally decorate but I loved it the same! I think it's just the right size for the two younger ones too. :) I stayed up late this evening wrapping presents and wishing my husband was here to make good memories with us. It's so hard having him away. Instead of the normal 20 minute limit to talk over Skype, he gets 30 tomorrow so I'm beyond excited to talk to him while the kids open their gifts. Wishing all of our friends and family a very merry Christmas!

3rd Trimester!

{29 Weeks}

Yeah! I've made it to the third trimester - and all I want to do is meet this sweet little boy of mine. But I suppose I can be patient for another 10+ weeks. I believe this to be the hardest trimester to endure...being tired, dropping things and the ever growing heavy belly but being a mom is so worth it! We still can't decide on a name. With our other three, we knew before they were born what we'd name them. I think this time around, we are going to have to meet this little guy before we know what his special name is going to be. I can tell you though that the kids are so excited to have their little brother join our family in just a few short months. And John and I are anxiously waiting to hold him in our arms.

Andrew Turns 2!

Andrew turns TWO today! And he's getting so big so fast. John wasn't here to celebrate due to work, but he was still included via Skype. He was very much missed! As most years have proven on his birthday, snow is usually involved and we choose to stay inside to have his birthday festivities. We had pizza and cake and invited some friends over for a little party. Besides having a cold, I think he had a lot of fun!! :)

He's such a sweet little boy. Always wanting to help me and always so sweet and caring.

Right now he LOVES:

* Legos

* Putting canned goods into the pantry after grocery shopping

* Being held

* Playing with his sisters

* Running around to his little heart's content

* Coloring and drawing me pictures :)

* Sesame Street

* Anything cars or trucks

* Reading books

* Taking trips to the playground

Mommy loves you sweetie and I'm so glad you are a part of our family!

 Me holding the birthday boy while 7 months along with his brother.

 VERY cold birthday!

 Blowing out the candle

 Andrew talking to Daddy on Skype: "Look at my cake, Daddy!!" :)

 Later on, we got some presents in the mail from family. He had fun opening up some more stuff!

Happy 2nd Birthday Andrew!

WE LOVE YOU!

DC Festival of Lights

{Washington DC Temple}

It's Christmas time!! I must say that in all the years we've lived in the DC area, that we had yet to see the Temple all decked out in lights for the Christmas season. I really wanted to go but was nervous about it since I'm 7 months pregnant along with John deployed...but I wasn't about to let that stop me from taking the kids to see them. I also felt it would be good to go up there so we could see my cousin and her family. I packed us up some dinner for later and we left early so we could avoid traffic. It worked out perfectly - and I was successful in making this whole trip a surprise for the kids. They had no idea where we were going and who we were getting together with. :)

 

Pulling up to the Temple and seeing all the beautiful lights was so much fun! The kids screamed with excitement when they saw where we were. They LOVE the Temple! I love seeing how happy it makes them. Especially when they saw that their cousins were there! So cute! The first thing we did when we did was walk around (in the freezing cold) to check out the lights and the lifesize nativity set.

It was getting way too cold outside and the kids were crying so we jumped inside the Visitor's center to get warm and listen to a few local choirs sing. After that, we wondered around and looked at all the decorated Christmas trees and nativity sets from all across the world.

I then had the pleasure of finding a missing Andrew!! That was beyond scary to have him next to me one minute and gone the next. My cousin and I ran around trying to see where he was and one of the workers asked what he looked like and off they went to help us find him. What seemed like hours later, I walked back to the area where they had a room set up as a living room and he was playing on the computer! Agh!! I wasn't even upset at this point! Just happy to find my boy safe and sound. I ran and hugged him and pretty much didn't let him out of my sight for the rest of the time! 

Besides this scary incident, it was such a fun night! :) I'm so thankful that my cousin and her family joined us in this last minute night at the Temple!

{My family with my cousin and her family}

Laundry

Is it just me, or does doing laundry seem a tiny bit more enjoyable with Christmas music playing, Christmas lights on and a cookie candle burning? I'm not going to go to the extreme to say I'm going to do cartwheels about it or anything, but at least I have a few weeks left to enjoy washing and folding laundry more than I normally do. I suppose it adds some excitement to the never ending task! :)

Simple pleasures!

Town Parade

So for the four years we've now lived here, we finally made it to the town's Christmas parade for the first time! After going, I now know why. Not because parades aren't fun or something the kids will enjoy. But because I can't see a thing (I'm on the shortish side remember!) and I get very nervous and irritated in large crowds. But our friends were going and I wanted to take the kids to do something fun so I put my nerves and irritations to the side and jumped at the chance to go.

It was cold! And I do mean COLD! No matter how warm I dressed the kids, they still complained. We got there a little early - dragged our camping chairs and blankets to catch a good spot to sit and watch. But we were soooo mistaken! The line along the street was a good 5 feet deep. Which translates into me not seeing a thing! Picture taking of the parade was a bit sketchy for this reason alone. Aubrey and her friend stood on the chairs along a business wall and Jocelyn and her friend sat on adult shoulders from our group so thankfully they could see. I on the other hand had other interesting things to do such as hold a cranky and cold 23 month old while being 6, almost 7, months pregnant and trying to dodge cigarette smoke. He cried and whined the entire hour we were there. The parade was scheduled to be 2 hours long but we cut out of there early!! (Which was good as we didn't hit any traffic.) As we were driving back to the house to have pizza with friends, we saw snow flurries coming down. It started to stick when we were leaving to go home but nothing more than a light cover. Despite the parade mishap, we still had a wonderful night out with great friends! :)

 {Kids before parade started}

 {Me with my little crankster hanging out :)}

 {I liked the business we were standing next to - very cute decorations on the windows & toys inside!}

 {The crowd we were up against}

 {Jocelyn and her friend watching the parade}

 {Aubrey & Andrew looking at the neat hanging toys through the window}

 {The camera with flash off + a moving object especially at night = not a good turn out. But I still liked the colored squiggles}

 {Here is the blurry blob once it stopped moving - The Girl Scouts float}

 {Some Navy personnel standing near us}

 {A restaurant dressed pretty for the holidays}

 {Lights in the trees}

{A tree lit up with Christmas lights and decorations in one of the downtown parks}