Our Snow Day

We woke up a bit late this morning, but it was just as well. We quickly discovered school had been delayed for 2 hours for the kids and for me. After we celebrated that tiny victory, we soon after learned that school had indeed been cancelled for the day for us all! We spent the morning in our PJ's and had a lot of fun snuggling, watching Frosty the Snowman, and slowing down with the gift of an extra day of family time. Here are some pics of the fun we had. My favorites are the ones where the girls decided to put on a show for me in the living room. They would tell me songs to play for them and they would perform...so cute! Enjoy! Let it Snow!

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Happy Birthday Honeybug!

Our Christmas elves have been visiting us from the North Pole and surprised Sofie with a breakfast birthday party this morning. She was thrilled!

Leaf Pile!

Last Sunday Marty put the kids to work helping rake leaves in the backyard. Of course, they did a little raking, a little playing...enjoy the fun!






They definitely earned their keep...but it was worth it!

Lily's Recital

On Saturday, December 13th, Lily performed in her first ballet recital. Her class danced to the tune It's The Most Wonderful Time Of The Year. She was really nervous at dress rehearsal earlier in the day, and even shed a few tears. So, I just told her to imagine Mommy trying to do all her moves only tripping. Ha! And to calm her nerves, I took her to Starbucks after the rehearsal for some hot chocolate. That seemed to help her find her smile...and at the performance that evening, Lily was all smiles, grace, and beauty. We stayed for the more advanced dancers presentation of The Nutcracker and Lily was absolutely mesmorized by the Snow Queen. We have a few still photos of the evening, and I am waiting on my friend Gretchen for action shots. She had better seats and a better camera than me. One of the most precious moments was when Gretchen waved to Lily and Lily waved right back..not missing one step. Marty and I cracked up and knew exactly what was happening, as Lily is Gretchen's split apart. Ha!

After her performance, we awarded her with flowers and her very own Nutcracker. She was thrilled!


Posing after the show...





Enjoying the rest of the show with Daddy and Sofie.










Ballet Slippers....$20
White tutu with poinsettas...$35
Watching your daughter in her first recital....priceless!

Jack's Tournament-Yellow Belt

Jack participated in his second Taekwando tournament this weekend on Saturday morning. Though he was pretty droopy from his alllergies, he insisted on competing. Marty cheered him on since I was home getting ready for Sofie's birthday party. We were excited to hear he got 3rd place in his one steps again. Great job, Jackman! Hiyah!

Jack is setting his sights on his camo belt, as testing is December 18th. He has all his stripes and is now just perfecting his form. We are so excited for him to reach his goal.

All I Want For Christmas...

Lilybelle FINALLY lost a tooth. In fact, she lost two of them in the same night! She was thrilled to finally get to use her new tooth fairy pillow, and looks adorable with the big whole where her two bottom teeth used to be. I especially love the lisp she now has when she talks. So cute!

Before....



After...

Sofie's birthday party

Sofie had her birthday party a bit early this year (it is tough competing with Jesus), but we managed to pull off a great time despite the many distractions of the season. A few of Sofie's friends from school and our dear friends Michael and Ava celebrated with her and it was big fun. We had a Mickey Mouse theme party, as requested by the birthday girl. After jumping on the trampoline in the backyard, creating fabulous play-doh sculptures, and making party sticks with popcicle sticks, curling ribbon and stickers, we had cake and presents...then more fun on the trampoline, this time with bubbles. Ha! Needless to say, everyone left smiling and very tired. Ha! Enjoy the pictures. Wish you could have all been here to celebrate with her. You were all missed!


Fun on the trampoline...


Sofie is working very hard on her project. Great art takes great concentration. Ha!




Blowing out the candles...make a wish!



Sofie had a little cake with her frosting. Ha!