It Christmas Time!

This is, by far, my most favorite time of the year....until the next holiday rolls around:) I love decorating the house, doing Christmas activities with the kids, spending time with family, and anticipating the birth of our Savior, Jesus Christ!!! That being said, this weekend we got to work! We got the tree and decorations put up, the kids Christmas outfits all lined up, and had a photo session Sunday afternoon at the park. Megs was the photographer, and though she did a great job, it is just hard to get a shot of our family of four. I wanted them for our Christmas cards and there ended up being a few to choose from. Getting Turner to smile with the rest of us is no easy task! But he still looked super cute, so we will take it! Here are a few pictures from today.

-I will never admit this Kevin, but we should have used the flash outside!!! (He suggested it:)

In the upcoming weeks we will be visiting santa claus, going to the Christmas parade, participating in programs with Church and School, decorating gingerbread houses, going light looking, and spending lots of time with family. December will be filled with posts!!!

Happy Thanksgiving!

I think in my last post I mentioned that I was determined to bring my camera to Savannah for Turkey Day. In our rush to get out the door we were in Oakland before I realized my camera was upstairs in our playroom!! I was so disappointed. We had lots of family over at Nonna's for Thanksgiving Day and then spent Saturday with my family. We have so much to be thankful for and have had an amazing year. I wish I had pictures to go with this post, so I am keeping it short and simple. We are loved, blessed, and just so very thankful!!!

One Little Indian...

Today was Maddie's Thanksgiving Feast at school. I took the day off so that I could get her ready and help out at the school. I made my first ever homeade apple pie! It smelled delicious but I didn't get any, so am not sure on how it tasted:) Maddie was an Indian and looked super cute when I dropped her off. When I went back to help with the lunch, she had taken everything Indian like off, so you couldn't even tell we had participated-oh well!

I am not very creative and when I heard she had to dress as either an indian or pilgrim, I went into slight panic mode. Well thanks to Ney Ney, Facebook, and Family, Maddie was cute as a button today. I was given tons of suggestions, offers of outfits to borrow, and a fantastic Ney Ney that turned Thursday into craft day and the kids made their own Indian vests out of a brown paper sack. Maddie wore her vest with a feather band and I did manage to put her hair into 2 braids.

I loved being able to help out with another mom preparing their food. Maddie was upset when I had to leave, but lit up when I arrived. She had a good day and I love being her mommy!!! It was a fantastic day to take off and after the party I hit the stores and got all of their shopping done!!! Mimi was kind enough to pick Maddie up from school so I could wait till Kevin got home to put all of their gifts away. Now if I can just get through 2 days off work we will be off to Savannah to spend the Thanksgiving Holiday. I am determined to take my camera this trip and will have lots of pictures to post afterward!

Our Weekend!

We had a good weekend. I had a four day weekend which is always extra nice! I spent Friday at home with the kids. They are both steadily coughing and I have been giving Maddie breathing treatments on and off for a week. So Friday we stayed at home in our jammies and played. Maddie got some Moon Dough for her birthday so I let them play with it for a while. Big Mess-Lots of fun. Both kids sat at the table and made dogs, bones, and food bowls for about 30 minutes. That is a long time for Turner to do the same thing (besides cook:) We kept the house pretty clean until about 15 minutes before daddy came home! So of course he didn't believe me:)

Saturday we went to a birthday party at Pump it Up and daddy had a football banquet to go to that night. The kids and I went to visit Mimi and Boo Boo for a while. We had a good visit and I took the kids home and in bed. Sunday we had lunch at church-Colletta's (it was great) and then Maddie and I went to a friend's house to buy some jewelry. After Turner woke up we went to Meg's and Bubba's to see their new dog Punky. Maddie LOVES Punky! Turner is TERRIFIED of Punky! Punky probably weight 3 pounds.....poor Turner. I ended up taking him home for fear of him having a panic attack. He was only a few months old when we gave Karsey away and is never around dogs. I hope he will get used to use and maybe even start to like her. Maddie is wanting to spend the night with Megs. I hope this doesn't affect her allergies too much and that we can be around Punky some. It really made Maddie's day.

There is so much going on with the Holiday's coming up that I hope to be able to stay on top of my blogging. This is just a brief rundown of our weekend for now...with a few pictures of our Friday at home.

The Great Debate!

When it comes to parenting Kevin and I are usually on the same page. We back each other when it comes to disciplining and want the same things for our two kiddo's. There is just one thing that we disagree about on a pretty regular basis-how to dress Turner!!!! Let me start by saying since we have been married, I am the only one that buys clothes for both Daddy and I. Since we have had Maddie, I am the only one that has bought her clothes (besides generous grandparents). And now, since we have had Turner, I am the only one that buys his clothes (besides generous grandparents). So.....if I want to buy him cute little smocked outfits until he starts school......that is exactly what I am going to do:) Daddy is just going to have to deal with it, because our "little man" is really still my little baby and I think he looked extra cute Sunday going to church!!!

Maddie's Doings:)

I have been reading different posts I made throughout the year and noticed at the beginning of the year I did a lot more posting on their favorite things, accomplishments, etc. Since Maddie just turned four I thought I would give a little update on her!

-She loves Jesus and asks a bunch of questions that can be tricky to answer.

-She still loves, loves, loves to color and do anything crafty.

-She can write and read her name, Boo Boo, Turner, Mimi, Nonna, Mommy, Daddy, Da, and every letter in the alphabet.

-She is memorizing songs that she hears rather quickly and has started singing songs from church and choir when at home.

-She talks about Heaven and Mom a lot. Mom is my dad's mother that passed away a year ago. Maddie really didn't see her a whole whole lot, but remembers her well.

-She loves going to preschool and loves going to Ney Ney's the other days.

-Time is important to her. She always wants to know what day we are doing what and keeps up with it. She likes knowing if something is in one day, two, etc...

-With very little assistance she can count to 100.

-She is currently into the movies Ice Age, Hook, and the show Calliou. Turner is just getting interested in the tv (Barney) and we are having to take turns which she is handling well.

-She still talks about Karsey on a pretty regular basis and tells us she wants her to come back home.

-She is still terrified of going to the doctor and getting shots. We went last week and had to pin her down:(

-We still lay down with her at night while she falls asleep (mostly her daddy). This is supposed to be changing now that she is four-we haven't started yet.

-She carries her Bible with her a lot and reads it to herself, her brother, and her babies.

-She is definately a Daddy's girl! (but likes her mom and brother alright as well:)

-She can be stubborn at times and we have started telling her something one time and if she doesn't obey, she gets a spanking. I can't tell how effective this is yet.

-She loves spaghetti, corn dogs, breakfast casseroles, cereal, and her favorite thing ever is CANDY! That is the treat we gave her to start pooping on the potty when she was 2 and I think we will try something different for Turner.

-She is very loving and protective towards Turner.

-She is taking dance again and joined the choir at church. I think she really enjoys doing both. Her daddy is ready for her to be able to play soccer.

-I could probably list a thousand more things, but I will end by saying that we are so proud of our Maddie Mo and just love her to pieces!! We are blessed to have her as a daughter and can't wait to see what this year brings!

Pump it Up Party for Maddie!

After posting many times about different Pump it Up parties we have been to, this one is all about Mo:) I really feel like I took the easy way out on this one, but Maddie had a great time and I think everyone else did too. Pump it Up parties are soo easy! They give you the invites, they set everything up, provide the entertainment, write down the gifts, and clean up! We had to show up with cake, ice cream, and juice boxes....they did the rest (for a small fortune). It was kinda nice. We had it at ten this morning and served pizza and cake after the kids played for an hour and a half.

Mimi, Boo Boo, Nonna, Marci, Megs, Davids, and Aunt Debbie were all in attendance and even without kiddos I think they still have fun. I say that, but cute Ellie was with Debbie and Maddie's best friend Brayden came with Nonna. We had church friends, long time friends, and a few school friends come. Maddie and Turner both love the jumpers and have been worn out the rest of the day. We had an ariel and flounder cake, with ariel themed cookies for take home treats.

After the party we came back to the house and Maddie got to open her gifts from our Savannah family-it was a small party in itself. After Nonna, Marci, and Brayden left we had another set of visitors. Kevin's friend DJ and wife Alicia have a son Ethan that Maddie loves to play with. DJ thought the party was at 3 and they missed it:( Kevin tried calling them during the party and didn't get an answer. DJ felt bad and I think Ethan was a little sad (I think he has a little crush on Maddie:) So they stopped by to bring her a gift and tell her Happy Birthday. They are very sweet friends and I know Kevin appreciates DJ's friendship.

It was a full day-a fun day, and now both kids are asleep and we are about to join them. Maddie has had a week full of birthday treats and I hope turning 4 has been as special to her as it was to us! We love our Maddie Mo!

Happy 4th Birthday Maddie!!

I can't believe Maddie turned four on Tuesday!!! Time has gone by so unbelievably fast, and I am so thankful to have had an amazing four years with our Mo! I can't believe how much she has grown and changed this past year. She has had a pretty special week. We started out by taking donuts and juice to her preschool on Monday. When I picked her up she had a crown on with her name on it and she had picked out a horse keychain from the treasure box at school. They made her special for her special day!

After I put the kids to bed that night, I stayed up and made cupcakes. I iced half of them to take to Ney Ney's and saved the rest for the kids to do on her birthday. Ney Ney had a special activity for the kids to do that day. They made shakers out of water bottles and painted them. I know I say this all the time but.....I am so thankful for Ney Ney!! Having Ney Ney keep my kids while I am at work is the next best thing to me being home with them myself. She loves my kids like their her own, they love her the same, and she has become one of my dear friends over the FOUR years that I have known her. Her husband and three kids are just as great with the kids and the Wilke's family loves them all! I don't know what I would do without her and she helped make Maddie's day special as well! (I hope you read this Ney Ney!!!)

Let me back up and say when I woke Maddie up that morning she didn't believe me when I told her she was four. She said she couldn't be because she hadn't gotten any bigger:) But she was excited all the same. That afternoon we iced the cupcakes while Turner was sneakig licks every chance he got! We were getting the dessert ready because we had visitors coming for dinner. My parents, sister and bubba came for spaghetti, cheese toast, salad (brought by Mimi) and cupcakes. While we were eating dinner, Maddie thanked me for making spaghetti and it made my night. She understood that I did it for her and she is starting to appreciate the little things-I am so proud of her and the maturity she already shows at 4!

After dinner it was my favorite part-present time!!! Mimi and Boo Boo gave Maddie a new Bible that came with a carrying case. She is so proud and took it to church Wednesday night with her. There is nothing more precious than watching your daughter carry her Bible to Choir practice. Another proud moment this mommy had this week:) We also all went in together and got her the Bitty Twin Dolls starter kit. She got a boy and girl doll by American Girl and a carrying case, some extra clothes and training pants, and some toys for the babies. She is so excited about those babies! They are named Kylie and Zach and one is with her everywhere she goes. She reads to them, puts them to sleep, and changes their clothes constantly. I am afraid these dolls could lead to an expensive hobby, but they definately made her night!

Maddie had a great birthday and we are looking forward to Saturday where she is having her party at Pump it Up. I am sure I will have lots more to post about then. We have lots of friends coming and Nonna and Brayden are coming to town! It will be a fun day!