Pageant time begins

Another Christmas tradition, our daycare Christmas Program, was this week. Of course, the stage was filled with cuteness. M did the same thing as last year... snuggled with her favorite teachers, looked cute, pretended to be a dog, and did not sing one word at all. L, on the other hand, was a different kid this year. Something about being in Kindergarten seems to be a lot like being 12! She was rolling her eyes, giggling with her BFF, and being really quite silly. She did sing and smile nicely in between... but it was a bit of a flash forward! It's always so cool to see how much the kids have learned, and to celebrate the holidays with this fantastic group of teachers and kids!

Holiday traditions begin

Every year, we set up our Christmas tree after Christmas with Santa. This year, we got the tree set up, and the lights on, but the decorating happened first thing Sunday morning (L was sick on Thursday and Friday, and everyone was a little tired by the time the lights were on the tree). Everyone had lots of fun working together to decorate the tree, and the kids have been rearranging the decorations ever since. G and L carefully monitor that certain types of ornaments aren't too close together, and M likes to take the balls off and throw them around. Good thing most of the breakable ornaments are out of her reach. It's only almost tipped once so far :-)

Too lucky

We really were too lucky to have a beautiful, warm November! For most of the month, we had temperatures that were in the double digits. It was so nice to get to enjoy some extra time outside. The photos are from November 22, and everyone was warm enough outside in fall jackets! G and Dad played catch for a long time... and G's throwing and catching were really impressive. L and M spent some time in our tree, and digging in the garden. It was really nice right until last week, and then it got really cold, really fast :-( We had two warm days with lots of snow, and there were HUGE snowmen built all over the elementary school yard. Then the temperature started to fall, and we've had a few days with extreme windchill warnings. Ick. We'll adjust.

Thanks Auntie!

A few days after her birthday, we picked up this package from Auntie at the post office. One of the perks of faraway relatives is the bonus gifts that arrive a little late :-) When she saw the tent that was in the box, she pumped her arms and shouted "WooHoo! I got a TENT!" We set it up right away, the girls hauled in a sleeping bag, and played like crazy. Of course, they have this believe that clothes are not necessary in a tent (so they came off) :-) They tried (unsuccessfully) to have a camp out...and both ended up back in their own beds.

Happy 3rd Birthday M!

This little one was sick on her birthday :-( Despite a fever, we decided to have her little party anyway. We had all baked a Pineapple Velvet cake the night before (a gluten free, dairy free version of birthday cake that we all could eat), and Grandma and Grandpa joined us for supper, presents and cake. M was excited to open her presents, despite a few screams and tears at her brother to get out of the way. She was happy to let her excited siblings help her, and she loved the presents that they chose for her. L got her an Ariel Disney Princess doll. Grandma and Grandpa got her a Tinkerbell doll (which included a PixiePass...which has led to a very excited big brother spending his screen time in Pixie Hollow the past few weeks). G got her a xylophone. We got her a baby doll that pees. The girls have had lots of messy fun with that one!

As you can see from the photos... M still prefers to be in her birthday suit. Her dress was off before we even started with presents, but we managed to convince her to keep her undies on. She looks for any excuse to take off her clothes. On most days, when we get home, she looks out the window and says, "It's dark out! Time to take off my clothes." She also takes off all of her clothes to go to the bathroom. She also loves to tell stories, and most of them begin with "You know what?!" (with great big eyes). She is one smart little cookie... and we often hear her singing her ABCs, reading letters, and counting things. She loves to pretend to be an animal, and has a pretty ferocious roar. She has so much imagination, and can be very active! She loves to dance... sticking out her bum and wiggling it.