7 months old

Ada Grace is 7 months old today!!!

Happy 7 month birthday, sweet Baby Ada!!!

Christmas Eve 2010

On Christmas Eve, we went to my mama and daddy's house to have steak and salmon. And, of course to open presents! The kids had not been feeling well (at this point, Tate had run a fever for 8 days, Ben was on day 4, Cora was on day 2, and Ada was showing signs of being sick, but no fever) so before we left, I had them all open one present from us - Christmas pajamas! They had all been staying in their pj's for most of the Christmas break already, so they were delighted to have a new pair and get to wear them out to my mama's.

To say that Christmas had arrived at my mama's would be an understatement. The amount of presents under the tree was enormous! We barely had a place to walk or sit!

The kids really enjoyed opening all their presents and received a variety of cool gifts. Some of the following were the highlights of the night:

For Cora, the unicorn pillow pet was a huge hit.

Tate was super excited over the skateboard and indoor basketball hoop.

Ben loved his dragon ship and keyboard!

And Ada, well, she was just looking at us all in amazement, wondering what in the world was happening.




After we finished up at my parents, we headed back home to open a few more presents. Craig and I had gotten the kids a few small items, the kids had gotten each other a few items, and then Craig and I exchanged gifts that we purchased for one another on behalf of the kids and each other. It was lots of fun!

Now, for a little back story regarding the kids' gift-giving. This year was the first year that we had "required" the kids to buy something for one another. A couple of weeks ago, I came up with the idea that since they have been earning money that maybe this would be a good year for them to use their own money to buy each other a small ($2-$5) gift. I thought it would be fun for them to pick it out, buy it, etc. I wanted them to also see how much fun gift giving can be so that they would focus on the giving part instead of just the getting part.

Well, when we first told them of the idea, let's just say we weren't greeted with the warm, fuzzy enthusiasm that I had hoped for. It was more like, " What??? We have to spend our own money???"

Tate was the first to come around to the idea. I think it was mainly because he had a lot of saved money so he was thinking he could spare a few dollars for gifts. Ben was having issues because he had a few dollar bills and a $20 bill. He was concerned because he didn't want to spend his $20 bill. Cora told me she didn't want to buy anyone a gift and when I told her that if she didn't buy them a gift that she would not get one from them, she replied, " I don't care. I just buy my own self sumpin". Well, there you have it.

Since they were all so keen on the idea of spending their own money (which in fact was really our money that we gave them for "helping" out), it really made us want them to do it that much more.

I talked with them more about the gift giving concept, and they started to come around. Tate was really excited about it and started to come up with ideas of what to buy each sibling. Ben realized he didn't have to break his $20 so he also became excited about it, especially buying Ada a gift. Cora was a bit indifferent about it all but she didn't complain when I asked her for money.

My original plan was for Craig and I to take turns taking the kids to shop for gifts. Then, everyone started getting sick and we were running out of time. Cora and Tate each gave me money and ideas so that I could shop for them. I was going to pick out Ada's gifs for her siblings. Ben wanted to go shopping with me. So, we went to Wal-mart and he picked out his gifts and paid for them with his hard-earned money. And, I picked out the other gifts for the rest of the kids. I had to be kind of sneaky to get Ben's gifts in the bag without him seeing them and he had a small breakdown because he thought I wasn't buying him anything, but other than that the shopping trip was a success. When we returned home, each of the kids helped me wrap their gifts and label them. At this point, they were really excited about giving a gift to one another. Next year, I want to prepare a bit better. I want each one of the kids to actually go shopping with me, pick out and purchase the gifts. Ben really, really enjoyed that part and I think the others would as well.


Back to Christmas Eve, after we opened presents, we put out cookies and reindeer food, and off to bed we went. Well, some of us put out the cookies and reindeer food, while others were already in the bed. Poor girl just wasn't feeling very well!

White Christmas

Our First White Christmas

Visit with Santa 2010

Seriously, I know that I am behind, but I have to recap our Christmas. It was, after all, Ada Grace's first Christmas. So, the next few posts will be dedicated to Christmas 2010.

We shall start with our visit with Santa Claus. The school that Craig works at has an Evening with Santa every year and so that is where we choose to go see Santa. We have an "in" with the picture taking people (love DragonFly photography) so we know exactly what time Santa gets there so we are usually first or at least the first 5 in line each year to see Santa and have our pictures taken. It sure beats the mall. Plus, the Santa looks the best of all the Santas around (in my opinion.)

Since 2006, when I was pregnant with Cora, I have had to be a part of Santa pictures because of one or more of the kids being scared to death of Santa. So in order to capture the moment, I had to be in the picture. A few years ago, I smartened up. I started dressing a bit nicer so that the pictures served a dual purpose: family picture at Christmas and visit with Santa picture. Then, I got even smarter. I started having Craig dress nice as well and voila - family photo time!

This year, Cora is still not too keen on sitting on Santa's lap. So, this is the best we got!



Ben has no problem telling Santa what he wants...he even made him a list. He told Santa (much to our dismay) that he wanted an iphone. Yep, an iphone at 6 years of age. Much more to our dismay, Santa replied "I think that can be arranged". Thanks, Santa!





Ada Grace was most interested in Santa. She didn't squirm or cry. She just sat there perfectly with Santa and peered into his eyes.

What a precious doll!!

Lolly

Resolutions

So, I am not much for making resolutions because I am not that great at keeping them. But in the last few days, ideas of resolutions have been swirling in my head, so I thought I'd share. Here goes nothing.

I resolve to....

1. wear earrings more often.
2. eat healthy foods more often.
3. exercise more often.
4. blog more often.
5. laugh more often.
6. exercise patience more often.
7. read the bible more often.
8. stop everything and play with the kids "right when they ask" instead of saying "in a minute" more often.


I'll let you know how it goes.

Happy New Year!

Lolly

Ada's Favorite Things- Nov 2010

Truth be told, Ada's list of favorite things is quite simple...

1. Bottle

2. Naps

3. Being held/Sitting with the kids (or us)

But, in the interest of being fair and since the other kids have a much longer list of favorite things, I thought I'd add a few more for Ada.

4. Baby Legs: Ok, so maybe it's not Ada's favorite thing but they are one of mine. How cute is this?

And, this?

5. Sitting up: She really loves to sit up these days. She can't sit up completely unassisted quite yet, though it appears that she can by this photo. I sat her up this way, let go for a few seconds, took the pic, then grabbed her before she toppled over. She is really getting much stronger so it should be any day now when she can truly sit like this for a longer period of time.

6. Rolling over on her stomach: She loves to roll over onto her stomach, much to my dismay. It's cute and great for her and all, but it makes me worry when she is napping.

7. Camping/Outdoors: She loves camping and staying outside. She also enjoys watching the kids run and play. Luckily, she also really likes the carrier - I think she likes it because she can still be carried and be able to see everything that is going on as well.

And, that's my baby!

Cora's Favorite Things - Oct/Nov 2010

On to child #3's favorite things....

1. Lucy: her favorite name right now. Every new animal/baby is to be named Lucy.

2. Build-a-Bear Bunny (aka Lucy): This is where the Lucy saga begins. Cora loves her bunny, Lucy. She hasn't had Lucy very long...just a few weeks. Lucy was a prize for Cora going to the potty for so many days in a row. After we bought Lucy, she stopped going in the potty (just for the stinkies.) So, basically she did what we wanted just long enough to get what she wanted, then she quit doing what we wanted. What more can I say?

(That's Lucy underneath Cora, along with her favorite green pillow and I am almost certain there are a few blankies in there too!)

3. Playing haircut: Cora likes to comb our hair, dry it, cut it, etc. with her "fake" hairstyling set. Even though the scissors are fake, everytime she "cuts" my hair with them, I always have that thought..."What if she is actually using real ones this time?"

4. Dora shirt: She is attached to this Dora tank top that is almost one size too small. She even wants to wear it now as it has turned cooler. I gave in a few times and put it over a long sleeve shirt but now I'm thinking it will have to magically disappear. (No picture available b/c I conveniently "lost" the shirt.)

5. Green pillow and blankies: She must have her green pillow and blankies in order to be a happy girl. She doesn't carry them around everywhere but at night time, they are a must. She quit carrying the blankies (actually burp cloths/cloth diapers) for awhile but they have recently resurfaced.

6. Mermaids: She likes all things Mermaid. One of the first things she always picks out in the toy dept. are those little Polly Pocket teeny tiny dolls with dress up clothes but she always picks the one that has a mermaid outfit.

(And, did I mention that they are often found lying around naked? And, without their mermaid tail? And, did I also mention how impossible it is to get the mermaid tail on?)

7. Cartoons: She has to have her cartoons. Loves them. Most all of them. A few of her favorites are Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, Wow Wow Wubbzy, Little Einsteins, Dora, Diego, and Max and Ruby.

8. my IPHONE: This is her number one toy of choice at the present time. If I lay it down, she swoops in to take it so she can play her games. I have put a few apps on it that she really enjoys playing. She likes to play the coloring games, the "block" (Tetris) game, and the dress up games the best.

9. Raw veggies/apples: She could eat her weight in raw cucumbers. One day, I found her in bed with a bowl of cucumbers that she had gotten out of the fridge. Her next favorite raw veggies has to be red/yellow/green peppers. She is also very fond of fruit especially strawberries,blueberries, and apples.

10. Fruit roll ups, fruit snacks, junk food: As much as she loves her fruits and veggies, my girl is also a junk food junkie. She loves fruit by the foot and is very fond of mini Hershey bars.

And, that's my Cora's favorite things at the time.

The girl knows what she likes and usually knows how to get it!

Lolly