Christmas party fun

It was time again for my girlfriends annual Christmas party. She lives on Christmas Card Lane. We enjoy yummy food and drinks and a stroll around the neighborhood to admire all the lights and decorations. Aiana loves to sip hot chocolate and eat popcorn. Anika just sits back and stares at all the lights. Caylin likes to keep her eye out for baby Jesus. When she spots a nativity, she runs up and kisses baby Jesus. We enjoyed another party with our fabulous family friends on Sunday. The kids played duck duck goose, put together fun crafts, and participated in a gift exchange.

Singing for Santa

We have been having some rainy days which has been nice and cozy, but after one day of hanging out in the house it's not so cozy anymore. To get out and do something fun, we went down to what Caylin calls "the princess place". They were having a tea party complete with karaoke and Santa. Caylin and her two little girlfriends got dressed up as rockstars and sang karaoke for Santa. The girls had a blast! It was so cute, and they were so confident up on stage! They rocked out to abc's, Jingle Bells, Twinkle Little Star, and The Wise Men Followed the Bright Star.

Burrrr...

It's been ccccold around here! We went out to the Festival of Lights at the Wild Animal Park this weekend. I was a little nervous to take the girls out because it was so cold and a lightly drizzling, but actually it ended up adding to the experience. There were fun lights up all over the park, music, crafts, buble snow, real snow, and Santa! Both girls enjoyed seeing Santa, Caylin told Santa she wants rockstar clothes...(wth?). The girls had fun playing around on the little snow hill and Caylin took one sled ride down the hill. She is so daring! I thought for sure she'd be crying when she reached the bottom, but there was a smile on her face. The night was very festive, but we missed Aiana, she was at a birthday party playing Rock Band.

Today has been a very rainy day. We stayed indoors and did a little more decorating. While Caylin fed the animals in the nativity, I put up the Christmas village that Nana passed on to us. It was so nostalgic putting it up. Nana LOVED her village! Every year she couldn't wait for us to come over and see it once she put it up.

By the afternoon the girls were going crazy. So I decided to go out and head to the bank and DMV to replace my license and credit card that I had lost last week. NOT something I was looking forward to. I had already canceled my card, and more than anything was just a huge pain in the butt. I was in my closet proceeding to get my passport when I stopped to try and figure out what the heck happened to my cards. We have a small refrigerator in our closet that is unused, and something told me to check in there. When I opened the door I found a ton of stuff! Random stuff...ribbon, receipts, a watch, and in the bottom drawer...what do you know...my license and credit card!!! Caylin, the stinker, has been using this fridge as a personal den for her treasures! I was relieved to find my cards, but also so annoyed!!!

Since I'm confined to my bed at the moment with stomach bug I figured it would be a great time to catch up here. We had a wonderful Thanksgiving this year, it was very relaxing. It rained in the morning, the girls got on their coats and played in the puddles. Something we dont get to do very often! It was a great sight to see out of my kitchen window as I prepared our meal.

We had a suprise visit from my mother-in-law's sister who was traveling with her grandson from Austrailia. They were traveling by bus to New York! Such an adventure! And very fun guests! We had a great time learning about the dingo's and the brumby's! :)

Over the weekend I felt the holiday season in full effect! We went to Sea World and enjoyed Christmas Carolers, Christmas trees, and snow! However, here in San Diego, snow is made from a bubble machine!

We also went out and bought our tree. Aiana picked it out this year and it is probably the best tree we have had yet! So much better than our tree last year! It's full, stands straight, and smells soooo good! This year we decorated with shatterproof ornaments and suprisingly they look great. We also put up the advent calendar that Will's mom made for he and his brother when they were kids. Each day the girls find a little treat in the pockets as they count down the days until Christmas.

We celebrated daddy's birthday earlier this month. We had a picnic dinner out by our Christmas tree, enjoyed a cozy fire, and watched frosty the snowman. Then ended with an awesome gluten-free chocolate cake! (my new FAVORITE dessert).

With all the hustle and bustle of this month of December we are trying to savor each moment and stopping often to refocus our minds on Jesus, the reason for this joyous holiday.

Caylin had her first dance recital at Horton Plaza mall. We had a bit of trouble getting there and showed up right as her class ended! So I talked to the teacher and asked her if the girls can please do their dance again. Surprisingly, at the end of the show Caylin and her little girlfriend, Kaylee, got to go on a perform. They were the only girls left so they ended the show! It was SO sweet! We ended the day with dinner at grandpa's.

Anika is a big climber these days...but still not walking. So that little stinker gets herself into a lot of trouble. She can be found on the couch, fireplace, open dishwasher, etc...wherever she sees an opportunity to climb, she's all over it!

Aiana is excited for her upcoming small group meeting. The girls got to pick a secret santa and will be exchanging gifts, while sipping hot cocoa, and caroling around the neighborhood.

I absolutly LOVE this time of year!!!!

I'll end with a couple of Caylin funny's:

*In the car while I was praying outloud thanking God for all the wonderful blessings in our life "Mom, who are you talking to"

me: "I'm talking to God because I'm so happy that I have you in my life and we are healthy"

Caylin after a pause of silence "Umm, I dont hear him"

*Caylin was studying one of her barbies that has a bent arm and says "mom, her arm is broken"

me: "Oh no, that is the way she was made"

Caylin as she looks at her a little more and puts her arm up in the air "Ohhhhh, she is worshiping"

*Last night while I'm changing into my pj's "I see a weadgy" (you know she has an older sister)

Twenty dollar craft...

As we all know...it's rarely a good sign when a child is quiet...

Holiday fun

One of the things I miss about the corporate world is the holiday parties. Well, now that Will is back in the corporate world we were able to attend his company party last night. We had a great night out without the kiddos. While they were safe at home with mimi, we were out having a fun time! All dressed up and somewhere to go! There was a photo booth at the party that Will and I were having too much fun with :)

When Aiana saw these pictures she said "You guys have so much fun when you're not with us kids" (geez are we that bad??).

Elf dance

Gotta love the elf dances! No matter how many times I watch these things I still laugh! Have fun with yours! http://elfyourself.jibjab.com/view/hqRBBguQAyFHupcuxOwc