Santa & The Jolly Trolly

We took the kids downtown yesterday to visit Santa & Mrs. Clause, visit his workshop, and ride the jolly trolly. For those of you who have tried this- I would highly recommend this over waiting in a huge line at the mall. Taylor was so brave this year, and couldn't wait to sit on Santa's lap. She was also able to write a letter, make a necklace and an ornament in his workshop. Zach wasn't so sure about Santa, and lasted long enough to take a picture. After Santa, we took a ride on the jolly trolly around downtown Kzoo.
Taylor & Santa. When he asked her what she wanted for Christmas, she told him a Pony. He thought she might have meant a real pony, so he asked her where she was going to put it? So, then she explained a My Little Pony.

Zach checking things out. He was really more into the ramp leading up to Santa, then Santa himself.

Classic.

Santa's workshop.

Mommy & Tay-Tay riding the jolly trolly.

The Family.

Bouncing the night away...

Last week Taylor, Zach and I made a trip up to Grand Rapids for Taylor's friend Grant's 5th birthday party. Taylor was so excited to be invited to a Bounce Party! She talked about for days, and couldn't wait to see her friend Grant. Of course, once we arrived she stayed attached to my leg for about an hour... but eventually she warmed up, made a few new friends and had a lot of fun! We can't believe Grant is 5 year's old- it seems like just yesterday I was driving up to the hospital to meet him for the first time. Happy 5th Birthday Grant!
The Birthday Boy.

Lesley & Grant opening up gifts.

The group. Pretty impressive... Matt & Les did a great job handeling this many kids. :)

Zach & Molly enjoying their own little party. :)

Traditions

My little baker and I started a tradition last year of making cut-out Christmas cookies from scratch, including the frosting & decorating. It's quite bit of work, but Taylor loves every minute of it especially rolling the dough, and decorating the cookies. She is always asking if she can help me in the kitchen, and her favorite things to make are bread, muffins and cookies! I love teaching her, and I am so impressed with how much she can do.


This year we made stars, stockings, Christmas trees & gingerbread men.Taylor ready to decorate.
The finished product. Now aren't you impressed?

Attempt at a Christmas Card

Am I the only one who has a hard time getting both children to look at the camera, and sit nicely for a Christmas Card picture? Below are a few shots of about 100 that didn't make the cut. It was hard work, and I found myself telling them to SMILE through clenched teeth! Most of our photo shoots resulted in tears by both children. In the end, I settled... and Christmas Cards will be arriving a little bit late this year.

Zach refusing to sit up.

Now this is something to smile about...pushing on my sister.

Won't it be funny if I close my eyes and make this face on a lot of the shots.

Maybe if Daddy holds you, you will sit still.

Zach just didn't appreciate being held in place by his big sister.

Are we done yet?

1st Christmas Program

Last weekend Taylor participated in her first Christmas Program for St. Mike's Preschool. I think Mommy & Daddy were just about as excited as she was, and we couldn't wait to see her perform all of the songs she had been practicing for weeks. There were over 100 kids in the pre-school program alone, and the auditorium was packed to standing room only with all of the families wanting to see their precious little ones. Here are a few pictures of the special night.

Taylor during prayer time.The lighting made pictures kind of difficult, but she is on the bottom row, 3rd from the left.

One of few in the 3's group who was actually attempting all of the hand signs with this song.

Taylor and her friend from church, MacKensie.Zachie watching big sister.

15 months come and gone

Zach turned 15 months on the 23rd of November, and because we had our visit to the Dr. this week, and it has been a while since I have posted his stats.....

Here we go.

1. He is 20 pounds 4 ounces, and 30 1/4 inches long. I know, hold your gasps.. he is tiny.

2. He has had 3 ear infections, or one long one for the last 3 months, making for a cranky boy.

3. He has FINALLY started trying to say a few things. Dada, Mama, Nana (Banana), iya (hi), uh (up). That would be it, and when I say just started, I mean pretty much this week. We are also pretty sure he says his own version of Tay-tay, but it sounds like Day-day. He doesn't like to do any of these things on command, but we are working on it. I really feel like his ears have affected his speech, and it had me worried ... because he really kind of went backwards in that department after his 1st b-day. After this last dose of antibiotics, we finally kicked the infection and fluid.. I'm praying it will stay this way :)

4. He loves to give kisses, give fives, head butt, throw balls, bark like a dog, tackle his sister, climb EVERYTHING, play with cars and trucks (with the appropriate vroom sound), scribble, take baths (aka stand in the bathtub) eat, dance, whine & smile.

5. He signs for more, all done, and please.

6. He runs everywhere.. and hits his head all of the time. It's hard to capture him without a bruise or a scratch.

7. He is just as stubborn as the day he was born.

8. He is the smiliest kid you will ever meet, when he is not whining about something. Seriously, he is still the child of extremes.

9. He loves meat, beans, carrots, cheese, yogurt, grilled cheese & Mac n' cheese. He is a GREAT eater, and has a huge appetite.

10. He sleeps 11 hours at night, and 2-3 during the day. We go back and forth on 1 and 2 naps depending on what we have going on each day.

11. He loves his sister, and loves everything she loves... so this usually makes for a lot of, "No, Zach you can't play with that!".

12. He goes by Zach, Zachie, Zachary, Zacker's & Z.

13. He has no fear, and doesn't seem to mind if you tell him no 500 times, yell no, etc. He just turns and gives that mischevious smile and goes right back at it.

14. His favorite things to play with are the videos in the tv cabinent, the cord and wires in the computer hutch & the stairs.

15. He is a blessing from God, and I love him for all he is. He is so complex, and so lovable.

Christmas Cuteness

While walking through the store yesterday Taylor was singing loudly enough, in an off-key soprano to make people stop and stare. What was she singing? "Jesus died for our sins! Jesus died for our sins! Yes, he did, Jesus loves us and he died for you and me!" Nothing like a little 3 year old proclaiming the Gospel for you this Christmas season! :) ha..ha..

Taylor asked a few days ago if while she was in my tummy an angel had come to me? I told her No, honey. She said, why not? Did an angel come to Daddy? I said, no not to Daddy either. So I explained that Mary was chosen by God, and an angel came to her because she was having baby Jesus. "Oh", was her very bummed response.

A few days later, she came into the bathroom while I was getting ready and said, Mommy, did you know an angel is going to come to visit me? Hmmm.. not sure how I was supposed to respond to that.

Merry Christmas! May we all have the boldness to sing about Jesus as we walk through our local department store this Christmas, after all that is what we are celebrating.

Growing up...

Taylor will be 4 in 2 short months, and it seems like in the last few months she has really grown up on me. We seem to have our hardest times with the 1/2's... 2 1/2, 3 1/2... etc. For now, we seem to be over the anxiety/behavioral issues we were having a few months ago, and she is loving pre-school, and tap class now! She has also conquered staying dry through the night, and through her entire nap! (Yes, she still takes a 2 hour nap every day). In fact, an even bigger step has been that she now wakes up in the middle of the night on her own to go to the bathroom, goes in and goes, and then gets back in bed herself without waking us up! Heaven, and I can hardly believe that day has come. Taylor has been potty trained since 2, but bedtime was another issue. She can also spell her name now & write it, and loves to practice this.. She and Zach have started fighting more, but they still seem to really enjoy each other, and I can honestly say she is having another little Mother in the house. She is constantly looking after Zach, and trying to help him. She also loves to tell me what needs to be done, and how I should do it. She is pretty much the same girl she has been since birth, high energy, full of personality... and while she might fight you on some things, it usually only lasts about a minute. I love that when I tell her no, she always ends up saying Ok, Momma. I have realized from having another child who is completely opposite... how well behaved she really is. I was putting her clothes away the other day, and going through some of her baby stuff... and getting pretty nostalgic. These years go by SO fast! It's really amazing to see how much they change from one year to the next.

Visit to GR

Taylor & Grant. You've got to love the leg in this picture, and the look on Grant's face. He looks like he's 16!

Molly and Zach.

A few weeks ago we took a trip up to GR our friends Lesley, Grant & Molly. Taylor and Grant, and had a lot of fun together and I can honestly say we didn't see much of them.. as they were pretty much off playing the whole time which was a nice treat for the Moms! :) We only had a few incidents, when a clock got knocked off the wall, and when Taylor spilled this mysterious tub of stuff with a bear on it... hmmm.. ??? Sorry about that Les. Zach and Molly took nice afternoon naps, which gave Lesley and I a few hours to chat, and catch up. I am so excited by the possibility of doing this on a regular basis, and in fact we are expecting a visit from them next Tuesday. Yeah! Can't wait to see you all again soon.

My new life....

I know I have been kind of slacking the blog department lately, and it's not that I haven't had a lot to write about... I've just been lacking the time, and motivation. I have been busy adjusting to my new life of running back and forth to school, playdates, appointments, tap class, library story time, errands, constantly picking up after my messy children, and constantly meeting someone's need... I think you get the picture.

I am adjusting really well, and I can honestly say a whole level of stress has been removed from my life and it's really nice. Now don't get me wrong, I have hard days... and days where I really just need a break, and where I feel like I might go insane, but it's so much more manageable now that I don't have to worry about trying to balance work on top of it all! Ben has been so great about letting me get out with my friends in the evening, or just letting me leave without a destination whenever I need too. I am so blessed that I have a husband who can totally handle the kids on his own, and who understands how hard the days can be sometimes. On top of that, I honestly have so much more energy, it's kind of crazy! So here's to my babies and my new life at home... I am so glad I will be able to spend this years with them, because I know it won't be long before they will be grown up.. and not needing me so much, and while sometimes I wish for those days- I am trying to remember I will never get these back.

Jungle Joe's

Last week we had a playdate with some of the other Mom's from pre-school, and 6 other kids from Taylor's class (one is missing in the above picture). We ventured out to Jungle Joe's, and the kids had such a fun time! It was also nice for me to get out, and spend time with the other Mom's...although, that can be difficult while trying to keep track of a wandering 1 year old. :) Taylor didn't seem to mind being one of 2 girls in the group, and seemed to really have fun with her friend Ben while we were there.

The Princess and The Frog

Happy Halloween! We had a lot of fun this year. Taylor was a Princess, and Zach was a frog (thanks Ang for the great costume). What amazing weather we had! I can hardly remember such a warm Halloween, and I have to say it made the whole experience so much better than usual. Everyone on our street pretty much sat outside to pass out the candy, and we had a lot of kids! We managed to go through every bit of candy we bought. Taylor and Zach were adorable, and it was cute to watch Zach as he pretty much toddeled along behind his sister all night. He seemed to really love having his costume on, which was a huge surprise. Taylor was so excited, she was squealing the entire day, and one of her favorite parts besides eating candy was passing out candy to all the little kids who came to our door. Grammie, Papa & Grandma Terry all came over to share in the experience.

How cute are they?Pretty Princess.So excited, and ready to leave... enough with pictures Mom. Little Froggie.. Ready to do whatever Sissy is doing.Heading out to their first house with Daddy!Trick or Treating at Jake & Katies house! Waiting for trick or treaters with Grammie. Grammie, Papa, The Princess & The Frog.Where are they? They do such a good job hiding, don't they?

Creation Celebration

Wednesday, Taylor's pre-school had Creation Celebration. They have spent this past month learning about creation, and at the end of the month they had a special Creation Celebration Party ( I am guessing this was substitute for Halloween)! Now that I am a SAHM, I was able to help out with Taylor's class... so Zach and I spent the morning at school. We traveled between the 3 pre-school classrooms, and learned about different days of creation in each room, and we got to do "cool" things in each room to represent the different days.
Lining up to get started.

This was part of day 3, where God made the sea... I think. The kids loved this day the best, and they all had a hard time with the concept that a fish doesn't like to be squeezed and held out of water. I believe Taylor's words were- " But, I just wanted to pet him".

God made the light.

The banana song.

Taylor's class- with the t-shirts they made on. The shirts say, "He's got the whole world in his hands".

Slimy Goo Touching.... a.k.a. Pumpkin Carving

This past Sunday we carved Pumpkins for Halloween. Believe it or not, this is the first year we have done this with Taylor. I'm not super into Halloween, but I do enjoy dressing my little cuties up, and watching them run around. She named her pumpkin, Carlos... and would have preferred to talk to him, rather then stick her hands inside of him. Too slimy!, she said. After much coaxing.. this child finally did put her hand inside the pumpkin, and only to carefully pick out the pumpkin seeds one by one. She then proceeded to carry those seeds around for 3 days in a cup with water and talk to them. Finally, I told her she would need to dispose of the seeds, to which she replied that they were for planting a pumpkin patch. So, I told her she could go out back and plant them. She came back in a few minutes later with dirt all over her hands, and told me they were all set. I'm not sure what I should expect come next fall in our backyard!
Daddy trying to show her how it's not bad.. Um, and not doing a very good job at it I might add.

Finally took the plunge. If you look carefully, you can see the pile of seeds she was accumulating next to her.

Posing with Mommy.

The finished products. Ben drilled holes in Pumpkin #2, I forget what his name was. More of a classy polka-dot pumpkin. :)

Little Monkey

As you can see by the pictures below I am in for a little bit of trouble with this one. He is already practicing his climbing skills. The pictures below were all taken within the same day! I have a feeling this one might be attempting to climb out of his crib! Yikes.

I came in from the other room, only to find him sitting on this table.