prek christmas party 2012.

Our little Rudolph did a great job at his Christmas program/party.  Such a big boy this year!

He had a blast at the party...snowball toss, pin the nose on Rudolph, coloring, and of course singing for the parents!  Great job buddy!  We are so proud of all of your hard work!

Cutest reindeer I've ever seen ;)

Camden sure loves his teachers Mrs. Blesse and Mrs. Taylor!  So grateful for these ladies!

the talty polar express.

Probably one of the most fun new traditions we've started in our family around Christmas is our very own Polar Express!
The kids went to bed as usual on an unsuspecting night and shortly later, Daddy and I went into their rooms and announced that we had a surprise...it was time for the Talty Polar Express!

They hurried down the stairs and this what they found...tickets, popcorn, and candy canes!

I think they were excited :)

Then when they got to the van...Christmas lights and music along with some "hot" cocoa waiting for them...they were ready for the ride to begin!

When we arrived home, the kiddos put their bells on the tree!  What a fun night!

A funny part to this story that I hate to tattle on him about but this will be a story that goes down in the record books...Camden's reactions to all of this.  We are in the van looking at all of the beautiful lights, eating popcorn, drinking "hot" cocoa, listening to Christmas music...supposed to be in bed asleep...and this is what Cam is yelling from the back seat, "This is so BOWING (boring)!!!!!  This isn't even a weal (real) twain (train)!  And this is NOT hot chocolate, it's chocolate milk and I don't even like chocolate milk! This is so BOWING!!!
Hmmmmmm.....
Daddy and I weren't sure if we should be mad, embarrassed, frustrated...or laugh, because, YOU HAVE GOT TO BE KIDDING ME THIS IS MOST CERTAINLY NOT BORING!!!!! ;)
Merry Christmas!

deck the halls.

We opted for all of the fun ornaments this year and it was my favorite tree by far to date!!!  Although we decorated everything off and on for weeks leading up to Christmas, nothing was ever really DONE, but I'm learning that things just don't get done like they used to around here.  And I'm working on being okay with that ;)
This particular night was one the kids were looking forward to though.  Putting the star up is a family event that everyone gets a hand in! (With the exception of the sleeping baby this year :)

wings and carrots.

Daddy and I went on a "date day" provided by church and took our little sidekick along.  Buffalo Wild Wings was on the agenda for the day and Callynn found the perfect teething option there!

tooth explanation.

 Cole had some explaining to do a couple of months ago when she came home with one less tooth in her mouth and none in her pocket ;)  So that is just what she did!  (Love the illustration that shows she was in the cafeteria when the incident took place :)

callynn's 5 months.

Okay, so I am officially 2 months behind now that little miss Callynn turned 7 months yesterday, but little by little memories are being documented ;)
We are absolutely in love with this precious girl!  Her smile lights up the room and her curiosity is beyond entertaining!  We love you sweet girl!

first grade christmas program.

Cole had a Christmas Program this year and it was the cutest show I've seen!  For starters, it was only about 20 minutes long...whoever came up with that idea was a genius! :)  Second, it was all about bugs and their ideas about Christmas so different than Frosty the Snowman and Jingle Bells.  So cute!!!  Our little bug was a dragonfly and she had a special speaking part...Cole Brianne, you ROCKED it girl!

siblings.

Love these two! Watching a little tv after school is okay by me when this is the scene ;)

operation christmas child.

Something that is extremely special to our family every year...Operation Christmas Child!  The kiddos were particularly into it this year!  It is always such a blessing to share with our kids the experience of loving and caring for others!

The kids with "Auntie Les"...we love you Les!!!  I just love the look on all of the kids' faces holding their finished boxes that they worked so hard on and knowing the smiling child's face that will be holding it on the other side of the world for Christmas...priceless!!!