The Goings On

As I was cooking this evening, Olivia noticed my apron matched the one that my mom bought for her on her birthday. She was so, so excited and made me go get hers and put it on her. She kept saying, "Mommy, Olivia, Mommy, Olivia!" I never thought I would enjoy dressing in matching clothes with my daughter. :)

Speaking of matching -- Jay bought a scooter to match Isaac's and Josiah's.

Oops! She escaped from the house. Wait, what's that she's is wearing, you might ask? Yes! She is potty training herself. What? Oh no, I have nothing to do with it. Olivia is little miss independent. Should that be in all caps? Little Miss Independent.

I took Olivia to Target tonight after the boys went to bed so that she could pick out her first set of panties. Does she look happy to you? Her legs are red because she tried on all 10 pairs about 10 times each. And guess what? Yep, you guessed it! She tried them each on ALL BY HERSELF. "Olivia, Self!"

Now I Know What Happened At The White House

Olivia and I were enjoying a nice, quiet tea party with Dog and Sheep. Two boys, named Isaac and Josiah, invited themselves in and did NOT know tea party etiquette. We kicked them out of the room and said, "No boys allowed, only girls can come in this room!"

A few minutes later, we heard giggling out in the hallway and then a loud, "Hello, ladies! We are just some girls who have come to join your tea party. May we have some tea?"

Unlike those at the White House, we were not fooled.

And Did I Mention....

that I got this really adorable apron for Christmas? It was sewn by Mindy and given by my mom. I love it! It saved me from some splatters just before this photo was taken. Thanks, ladies!

Christmas Toys

He was so excited to get this for Christmas.

Hey, Isaac! Can I try out your scooter?

Sure, Dad.

Don't worry, he just bought his own daddy-sized one today. Now he'll be the envy of all the kids in the neighborhood.

Our little Josiah has really got the hang of his scooter. (He was also envious of Isaac's scooter and used his Christmas money to buy his own.)

Walkie-talkies

Another big hit. The boys even took these in the car when we went to the grocery store tonight. Isaac called Josiah, and Josiah said, "Isaac, I'm right by you. I can hear you." Duh! :)

Isaac called Josiah from across the cul-de-sac.

They decided to meet at the end of the driveway.

I told Isaac to pose for me and act like he was talking into his walkie-talkie.

Yo-yo-yo! 'Sup Homies?

Yeah, just me and the bro. (the kid with two different shoes on) hangin' out at the crib.

Come join the scooter party.

Okay. You don't hafta if you don't wanna.

(I think he gets his acting skills from his daddy.)

In other news --

Olivia used the potty for the first time today! She was so proud. :)

Christmas 2009

I tried and tried to fit and arrange all of our Christmas pictures on here. But a lot of them were deleted and then put out of order. Oh well, at least you can see some of them...all lined up in a column. haha

Sounds and Aromas

The woman who plays flute for our church and her daughter, who plays cello, came over to rehearse a song with Jay tonight. The kids and I gladly listened in on their practice. I told Jay that I could sit and listen to that every single night.

Then we finished off the night with the cinnamon rolls which filled our house with an amazing smell--no waiting until tomorrow for breakfast!

Gifts From Granny And Papa

My grandma (Gran or Granny...whichever one I feel like calling her at the moment) sent some Christmas gifts our way. Josiah was so excited and opened Olivia's gift before I realized what he had done. She received a little lamb and already loves it so much.

The boys didn't realize this, but before we left Texas after Thanksgiving, Gran pulled me aside and gave me some popguns that my grandpa had made before he passed away. She has saved them and wanted my boys to have them for Christmas. I cried. I loved my grandpa so much, and it was so special to be able to hand my boys something from someone who meant the world to me. I have wished that Papa could sit and laugh with me at how loud and full of life my kids are. He would have loved to see this.

Thanks, Granny and Papa! I love you both more than I can say.

Ring Ring Ring

The boys and I were able to spend some time outside of Walmart today as we rang the bell for The Salvation Army. We were so excited, but our excitement didn't last too long. We were scheduled to ring the bell with a lady from our church whom we had not yet met. She was a nice lady, but she wasn't really willing to let us join her. She did let the boys ring the bell when they asked, but otherwise, we were kind of in the way. Honestly, it was pretty hilarious.

-Josiah, ring a ding dingin-

-twiddling our thumbs-

-peppy Isaac-

Our friend ran to her car, so we took over for a second. Notice Josiah. He was that hyper the entire time, much to our friend's dismay.

Next year we'll ring the bell with the ladies who dressed like elves from head to toe and decorated the sign area with the poinsettias that you can see in the background.

If you have a moment, give me a call and I will tell you all of the stories from our 2 hours there. :)