Merry Christmas!

Isaac - 4 years
Elise - 2 years

We wish for you a Christmas filled with encouraging fellowship, joyful memories, and the overwhelming peace that comes from God alone.

Recently heard...

Elise: "Mommy, I really need my pappy." (said to me when I picked her up at preschool, where she typically doesn't have her pacifier.) "Mommy, it's in my bag! I really need it!"

Both kids singing "Jingle Bells" together... as well as "Christ is Risen From the Dead" and "The Wheels on the Bus".

Isaac asked me to "sign" a song last week. He's seen me use sign language to interpret a couple songs before, so he was requesting that I sign one that we were listening to. Then he tried to sign with me! So sweet!

Steven asked Isaac if he wanted to work his United States of America puzzle one night last week. He replied by saying he just got a new puzzle from the store called the "United States of Cats & Dogs"!

Steven took the kids to my parents' house to play a couple weeks ago. While they were there, they got the Lincoln Logs out. Isaac said that they were actually called "Cat-a-logs".

After telling Isaac that brown foods (like brown rice, brown bread, brown cereals) are good for him and make him strong, he said, "How about brown sand - does that make me strong!?!"

Last week, Steven and I were singing Feliz Navidad and Isaac started singing along with "EliseMom-a-Dad, EliseMom-a-Dad"! Such a silly boy!


Isaac hadn't eaten his breakfast well this past Monday morning, so he wasn't able to have goldfish crackers like Elise (she had eaten very well). Isaac kept asking me for goldfish and I said, "No, you didn't eat your breakfast." So he took Elise into the other room and said, "Elise, go ask Mommy for more goldfish." She then came into the kitchen and asked me for more goldfish. I asked her why and she said, "Because I hungry!" This is the first time that Isaac has been sneaky like this in an effort to get what he wanted! It's only the beginning I'm sure...

Shortly thereafter, Elise told me, "Isaac's on the run!"

Christmas with Pawpaw Ronny, Theresa, Michelle, BJ and Carly!

This past Saturday, we celebrated Christmas with some of Steven's family - Pawpaw Ronny, Theresa, Aunt Michelle, BJ, and Carly. We had brunch of sausage balls (thanks Ronny!), cheese Butterbraid pastry, and a turkey bacon and cheddar quiche. We ate together, visited, laughed at our silly kids, exchanged gifts, and had an overall great time!

Our tree, with all the gifts under it!


Elise opening her my-size doll from Michelle, BJ and Carly... She named her doll Whitney and likes to take her everywhere we go!


Isaac loved his new Nerf gun from Michelle, BJ and Carly...


Isaac and Elise also got lots of craft goodies and books from Pawpaw Ronny and Theresa.

And, again, the iPad was a hit. Here are Carly and Isaac playing a game:


And thanks to Michelle and her tripod, we got a picture of everyone!


YAY for fun family Christmas time!

Loving this moment...

Until we ask Isaac to hug Elise, and this is what happens...


She only likes hugs on her terms... ;)

Making Cookies...

Last week, I attempted to make cookies with the kids. I bought a stick of sugar cookie dough and some sprinkles. The kids were so excited! I sat them at the table, gave them some wax paper to work on, and then sliced the cookie dough. Isaac loved pouring the sprinkles on the cookies and he had a blast. Elise, on the other hand, wanted to eat the dough. The tiny taste I gave her wouldn't do. When I wouldn't let her have more, she pitched an absolute fit! She wasn't stopping until I gave her what she wanted. So, her cookie-decorating time was over and I decided she was going down to nap early! Isaac and I finished the cookies, baked them, and enjoyed some warm sugary yumminess together.

Sweet togetherness...

For a brief moment yesterday, the kids were coloring together and not fighting, bickering, or taking markers from each other. Thankfully my camera was nearby and I could capture this oh-so-rare moment. ;)

Visit with Pawpaw and Granny!

We had my grandparents come over for a visit last week, and it was a wonderful time! The kids enjoyed showing Granny and Pawpaw Gurley their toys and our Christmas tree. Isaac even got Granny to play on the iPad!


Pawpaw and Elise had fun dressing Elise up as Mary (using her favorite blanket)...



And more iPad fun...


We are always blessed to spend time with Granny and Pawpaw! We love you both!

Unwrapped!

Elise has successfully unwrapped at least four presents under our tree this week... One was a set of personalized greeting cards, which she spread throughout the living room. Another was a necklace for a young friend of ours. She walked into the kitchen wearing the necklace and said, "Look Mommy!" She now knows that the presents are off limits, but she's definitely tried to sneak her way into getting a hold of them again! This morning she was unwrapping our pediatrician's gift while I cleaned up breakfast. Oh well, they'll all just go in gift bags before we give them away! I had just wrapped a few gifts last week while I had some time, but those few gifts are huge temptations to our curious little lady. I'm not quite sure why I thought I could wrap presents and put them under the tree before Christmas at all with a two-year-old in the house?!! Silly Mommy!!! ;)

Christmas Tree 2011!

On the Friday after Thanksgiving, we went to Cedar Lake Tree Farm to pick out our Christmas Tree! We had a great day as a family, seeing the animals, playing in the hay, and picking out the perfect tree. It was also fun to see our old friends, the Cline family, who run the farm. My mom helped homeschool their daughter years ago, so we were glad to reconnect. It was overall a wonderful experience!

First, we saw the alpacas...


Then we visited the cows, donkeys, chickens, and turkeys:




Then we did some posing in the sleigh:




After that, the kids wanted to play on the huge stack of hay bales. Steven and I got up there, too, but Steven was much more daring than I was. I would prefer to take pictures, anyway. ;) Here's a taste of their fun in the hay:






Our tree on our van, all baled up and ready to come home!


Isaac was a big helper to Steven, cutting the tree loose once it was in the house:


Decorating the tree was fun - the kids took part more than ever this year! Isaac really helped hang ornaments and Elise really helped take them all off. ;)


All done!


Welcome Christmas season! We are glad you're here. :)

Thanksgiving 2011!

We had an absolutely wonderful Thanksgiving weekend! Steven was off Thursday and Friday, so we had four straight days all together. On Thursday, we had a leisurely morning, ate danish and turkey bacon, and played together at home. Then we had a light lunch and the kids went down for early naps. While they were sleeping, Kati and Ray came to our house to visit. We had a great time catching up with them! In the mid-afternoon, we woke the kids up, got them ready to head out, and then went over to Granny and Pawpaw's for Thanksgiving Dinner. We spent the rest of the evening there - eating, talking, laughing, singing, giving thanks, and playing several rounds of Taboo. It was just splendid family quality time!

Ray and Elise snuggled when she first woke from her nap...


Some of the girls at our family dinner (Kati, Katelyn, Shannon, Julie, and Pam):


Gramps and Isaac getting ready to down some Reddi Whip:


Ray and Uncle Mike, playing on the iPad:


Granny and Kati:


We were looking for Elise after dinner, and we found her in the hallway, reading a book: (she loves to read!)


Sisters! (sometimes we're mistaken for twins!)


Elise enjoyed looking at herself in the mirror:


Our sweet host and hostess:


Elise and Granny, snuggling:


Family pictures! First, the formal one:


Next, the fun one! Our kids love to be tickled! (who doesn't!?!)


My Daddy and me: (we realized that we don't have many pictures together, so we had a photo shoot, too!)


And a close-up:


Isaac taking our picture, too: (with a little digital camera that Gramps lets him use!)


We changed the kids into their nightclothes before we left. They'd had a fantastic time running around and playing (and thanks SO much to my Mom for playing Play-Doh with them while the grown-ups played Taboo! Momma, you're the best!) Before we headed out, the kids got a second wind and started climbing the steps on the outside of the stairwell. Fun! (We had to get a picture before we pried them off!)


Thank you, Lord, for this past year, filled with your faithfulness and grace. We are grateful to always be upheld by Your righteous right arm.

I stutt!

Elise got herself stuck in her booster seat when it was on the floor, ready to take to Granny's for Thanksgiving. She said, "I stutt! I stutt!"