Highlighting 2011

What a big year for our family, but isn't every year.  I started this morning but looking through old photos and wow have my kids grown,  Wow has my family grown.

I looked at my old post for goals and resolutions for 2011 and well I did not achieve any of them.  So why recap?  In stead I will just review are year and some of the highlights.

January 
There was a LOT of snow.  Every picture I have there is snow outside.  I don't consider that a highlight nor the single digit temperatures it brought.  However with cold weather comes ice and every January comes the Icefest. That is defiantly a highlight.  We look forward to this all the time.  Ice sculptures, chili competitions, ice slides it is a nice time that we only manage to stay out for an hour or so at.  remember it is just so darn COLD and we are wimps.



February
Basketball took over our weekends.  It was the boys first years playing and the just loved it.  good thing because they start again next weekend.



March 
Evan turned 6. This was the highlight of the year too.  The birth of our 1st baby girl!!!!



April 
Shopping for an Easter dress.  Finally after so long I was able to go out and buy beautiful, lacey, girly, dresses and bows.  And have not stopped.  Easter was wonderful and also my mom's birthday this year.



May
The weather warmed up and we were outside a bunch.  Soccer was in full swing as well as baseball.  Evan invited me to school for a mothers day tea and made me a vase.



June
School ended.  Gregory sang like a superstar in his spring show.  Evan graduated out of kindergarten.  Smiley turned 2!  Soccer ended and we left for vacation.



July 
Gregory turned 8.  4th of July Jubilee was another fun time and this year we all wore matching tie die the kids and I made.  Lots of picnics and parties.  And a trip to a wild life park.



August
An east coast earthquake.  School started back up. We spent some time down at my parents and went to Berkeley Springs.



September
We enjoyed the warm weekends watching soccer games, skateboard lessons and picnic afterwards.  The boys got great at skateboarding and managed to go down ramps.



October 
We got our first major snow storm of the year!  We were blanketed with inches of snow.  But it did not spoil our Halloween since in Pennsylvania they do it the Thursday before Halloween.  The most fun was the fall fun going to the farms and to the Apple Harvest festival.



November
Thanksgiving time.  And the announcement we are having another baby!  We are all excited but it still does not seem quite real.  We got our Christmas light up this year before it got cold, before Thanksgiving.



December
Hands down the best part no school no work just time with the kids!



It was a good year.  Ups and downs of course but time will forget the worst and memories will treasure the best.  So we leave this year healthy and happy and pray for the same for next.  May it be an even better year full of babies and blessings, adventure and prosperity, more ups than downs.

Smiley's First Haircut

I hate getting the kids hair cut.  They have all had such beautiful baby hair and once it is cut it is never the same.     However Smileys hair just really started to look very shabby,  Although he loved to sake his head to have his hair spin around.  With Christmas coming up it was time for a trim.We found a great place with really nice girls and one car ride later his hair is cut.



Sitting smiley the last of his long locks.





It looks like he was scared but he was laughing.  I think it tickled.



All done and not to different looking.  He is still my cute 2 and a half year old.



He even got a sheriffs badge.

Christmas 2011

Usually the children are up so early on Christmas morning it is dark.  Just like every other child in the world they are so excited they can not sleep.  Not this time though.  Me who went to be so very late, woke up exceptionally early, just a few short hours later, and could not fall back asleep.  However that was fine because this Christmas morning was going to be a little different than others, this Christmas morning was going to be on a Sunday.

We had actually not planned on going to church that morning.  Sunday school classes were all canceled and they were just have a few services in the auditorium.  We both thought it would be to hard to pull the kids away from what they wanted to do, presents, for Christmas.  And then the week before as we were talking to the a pastor he said they were having a terrible time finding anyone for the nursery Christmas day.  My husband said "I can do it.  I can stop by on my way home from work and watch the 8 Am service nursery. "    Since no one would volunteer 2 of the pastors were going to do it.  I believe for the other services too.  But now he was going to join them for the 8 am one.  He said if you want stay home with the kids and I will come by at 9:30.  Any mom I bet you could imagine what was going through my head.  Yeah right.  Keep the kids away from the presents from what I thought would be an early rising to 9:30.  That would be misearble and next to impossible.  I deiced we would join him in the nursery and then the pastors would be free too.

It wasn't even hard to talk the kids into.  A little complains right away but then I explained that God gave us Jesus for Christmas and our present to baby Jesus would be to watch the other babies first that morning and then come home to open our presents.  They were okay with that and never complained again.  And mind you they could not open anything before we left, not even there stockings.

So me up at 5 got the coffee ready and a shower.  The children had got there showers the night before and set there clothes out.  It was all rolling smooth except my early risers were sleeping!  They did not wake up early so I started waking them up.  They got dressed and then were allowed to go down stairs to see if Santa had come and YES he had been there!  Now they were jumping around in excitement.



I let them see what he brought and and fumble a moment with the keyboard.  They could not believe it.  They thought wow so many presents.  Evan said we must have been really good.  But we still had our plans so we drank a cup of coffee and ate our breakfast.  Just cereal and milk the normal routine.  I forgot I had bought orange juice and cinnamon rolls as something special, something Evan requested, something still sitting in my fridge.  We are stuck in our morning routine.  But it worked we were dressed, feed, and ready to go all 5 of ahead of time, and still in a good mood.

Then we went outside and the truck was frozen.  No snow, but sheets of ice everywhere.  Nothing we can't handle.  I just warmed up the truck and defrosted the windows and we were off.  We got to the church and headed to the nursery.  The children had a good time playing.  We ended up watching only 4 kids that morning.  Four of the most wonderful and beautiful children.  Four children that were all mine!  No other babies came.  Most the families that were there kept the kids with them and many others stayed home.  But it was fine the children played and we were able to watch the service on the tv.  It worked out well.  I was even able to sing loud to the many carols of that Sunday without embarrassing my family but having my oldest laugh along.











After the service you can believe the kids were now ready to get home and so we went.  They dove into there presents.



They got most of what they wanted. They got really nice stuff.





They also each got a ton of books.  Those my oldest who actually asked for more books than any other kid was getting disappointed at so many book and the fact that none of them were Magic Tree House.  He said those were the only books he wanted not these things.  He had to stop opening presents for a while with that remark until his attitude changed, which did not take to long.



I got many nice things my favorite being a kindle fire and a new camera!



Jay collected many super items and a few new shirts.







Evan got an art set he just loves.  He takes it everywhere.  He is happy with what he got and was so happy to give his brothers the fantastic presents he picked out for them on black Friday.  Evan is a great gift giver but terrible secret keeper.  However this year he did real good.  Usually you just say Evan what did you get me and he spills the beans.





We opened presents for what felt like hours.





Faith got many things she liked.  But needed help unwrapping.



And apparently she got things she did not want.



They played with there new treasures all after noon.  So far all week.



It was a great Christmas.  My favorite part was the meal.  Yumm.  No pictures of that we ate it too quick.  It is so special spending Christmas with the children I hold them so dear in my heart.  They have been establishing traditions making it more fun and actually easier.  It is like a road map of thing we always do.  And in that tradition and in winding down for the evening we snuggled on the couch and watched and evening of Christmas shows.

Twas the night before Christmas

And all through the house, the children were crazy, they scared the mouse.  They woke in the morning with excitement and cheer, knowing that Christmas would soon be here.
First on there list was to open a gift from there Grandma Ginny, each year with more kids she has to send so many.  Smiley got a car Tow Mater, he drove it all day and later.





Gregory got a wii game so much fun, Monster Hunter he has them on the run.



Evan opened legos this one not from Grandma Ginny, hundreds of pieces I will be vacumeing up so many.



Now Princess Faith opened a singing panda bear, she was dancing to the music and brother wanted to share.





5 minutes later when the gift opening was done we headed to the kitchen for some more fun.  It was time to bake, and then to the neighbors home the cookies we wold take.



Dozen upon dozen we made, working for hours in the kitchen never being paid.



We made chocolate chip, chocolate chocolate chip and best of all sugar cookies with lots of icing.  We ate as we made them they were to enticing.  For Santa and his reindeer there were so many, we hooked him up to erase the bad times because with 3 boys there can be plenty.





While we were cooking under the table hid an elf, red and cute it could be none else, than our sweetest girl so kissable and cute, but there for handouts for that delicious sugary food.



The baking was done, the cookies were made, as the day went on all the children played.  The loved their new toys, and together they wondered about Santa and when would he come, would he come down the chimney?  Or through the door?  They though about the presents he would bring them because they wanted more.

But have the boys been good or were they bad?  We were glued to the computer watching Santa on NORAD.  He flew to Russia, he flew to Fiji, he flew over oceans, continents, islands and more.  We watched and waited for soon he would be at our chimney or door.

Waiting the children never grew tired, we cuddled up and watched movies but nothing worked.  The were as excited as ever and the hour was late, they needed to go to bed and it had been all momma could take.  I sent them to bed but they did not stay.  I told them you better go to sleep or Santa won't stop with his sleigh.

Finally asleep I begun my work wrapping presents should have been left to the elfs.  Because I was up past 1 AM and tired myself.  But eventually it got done and the stocking filled and hung.



It was a glorious night the room was glowing, and the was a sea of presents blessings overflowing.



So many packages!  So many gracious family and friends.  We are truly blessed and I was thankful the evening was at its end.  For now I could go to sleep and rest my head  I quickly fell asleep cuddling my princess in bed.

As we slept the boys swore they heard him he thumped on the roof and never was in sight but then flew off exclaiming  "Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night!"\