O Christmas Tree

Christmas is perhaps my favorite time of the year. I absolutely love the traditions, the gift-giving, the carols, cookie decorating parties and being with family. Of course, the real reason for Christmas is why celebrating it is so much fun. We have a holiday that gives us a great platform to let every one know about the birth of our King.

As I sit here on my couch with the dark room being illuminated by the sparkling white Christmas tree lights, I am amazed at the amount of ornaments hanging from the branches. Thirteen years ago when we got married we only had a few to hang and now the limbs are bending from so many colorful ornaments! Almost every ornament has a special meaning....which makes getting them out of the boxes and dusting them off so much fun.

We have the purple circle with the word "glitter" on it that Taylor picked out the year Rachel was born. I remember her picking it out because it was purple -- that was Rachel's nursery color.

There is the Barbie ballerina that Rachel picked out when she was four years old because she wanted, more than anything, to be a ballerina. The next year she picked out pink ballet shoes.

This year we added a large, blinged-out "T" to the front and center of the tree. I smile every time I see that ornament because it so fits Taylor's personality as a ten year old. It makes me wonder what kind of young lady she is going to be? Fun and wonderful, I have decided.

We have the black and orange "B" ornament that Taylor made her daddy. It is hanging right at the top next to the star. She knows her daddy loves the Bengals and wanted to make him happy. Isn't it funny that no matter how old you are, making your daddy happy, always makes you happy?

Then there are the ornaments that the girls bought last year. They weren't particularly pretty but they each wrote their name on the front. Now I have their handwriting frozen in time.

We have the obligatory foam "made in school wth the school picture on it" ornaments. Each year I look at them and can't believe that they grew that much in just one year!

There are angels, snowmen, Santas, Mickey Mouse and lots of glittery, girly ornaments.

Over in the corner of my living room each year sits a box of ornaments that never get hung on the tree. These are my beautiful Lenox ornaments that my aunt has given to us over the years. They are left to put on last but there never seems to be enough room.

It occurred to me yesterday that one day, not too far away, they girls will be taking their yearly ornaments with them for their own tree, in their own home. Then my tree will be bare and I will have plenty of room to hang the Lenox ornaments. Oh, how sad I will be. I will miss the mismatched ornaments and glitter ballet shoes.

Perhaps that is why I like to look at the Christmas tree each year. It takes me down memory lane and I can pretend, just for a minute, that all will stay the same. My little girls will be little forever, snuggled tight in their blankets upstairs, dreaming about the toys they will receive in just a few weeks.

I am going to take time this crazy, fun holiday season to slow down and really enjoy the girls. I will make a mess decorating cookies with them, go to a movie they want to see in the middle of the day just because we can, surprise their daddy with lunch, have a campout by the Christmas tree and love every minute of it!

Merry Christmas!

1st Day of School

Sorry I don't have time to blog, but I have promised pictures! To sum up the day -- it went great! Taylor loved one of her teachers and thought the other to be boring. Rachel still thinks her teacher looks like a princess and it was even confirmed today when Mrs. L sprinkled them with "smart sprinkles" from a fairy princess wand.

Chris took Taylor to school this morning so she didn't have to catch a 7AM bus! It was a good thing because they got lost once they got inside the new building!

Rachel was super excited about school today! She is my Little Miss Independent!

A quick picture before the bus came. Does watching your baby get on a bus w/ a stranger ever get any easier?!


Finally after a long day of school, Taylor & Rachel saw each other. They shared the fun things they did today and had a snack. Taylor then went and pllayed school while Rachel played her Barbies & Polly Pockets.

Chicago

We are back home after a long weekend in Chicago! We had such a great time and did so many fun things.

The first thing the girls wanted to do when we arrived was to go swimming! Chris and I laughed -- we drove five hours to a great city and they wanted to stay in the hotel to swim. Typical kids. Since the hotel has free "munchies" at 5:30, we snacked a little, went swimming then went out to explore.

We ended up at:

Are you familiar with this place? It is the 50's-style diner where the waiters are rude to you. Chris and I thought the girls would think it was funny. However....

. . . can you see the tears? It was all a little too much for Taylor. Rachel was glued to my side. After they got a little used to it though, they were all smiles. The waitress took our order by telling Chris to "scoot over, would ya?" and plopping herself down right next to him. After we were done ordering it had occurred to me that I forgot to order myself a drink. I bravely asked the waitress if I had ordered a water. She replied, "Yes, a water with lemon, Ms. High Maintenance." The girls thought that was hilarious. When the food came, Chris' hamburger had a huge glob of guacamole, which he hates. I asked if he knew that was on there and he said yes but he was scared to tell them to keep it off! We had good laugh at that one.

By the time we got out of Ed Debevic's it was late and the girls were pooped. We stopped by a Baskin Robbins (yum!) and headed back to the hotel. We all went to bed to get ready for another great day!

So this morning, I bet you can guess what was #1 on our agenda!

The girls had saved up enough money (thanks to a garage sale with donated items from my Grandma, aunt Terry, and my parents) to purchase their own AG Dolls. They had looked at the catalog to know which ones they were interested in - which made it a lot less overwhelming for them. They had also brought their other AG dolls to have their hair redone at the salon. I am not kidding -- they have a hair salon for the dolls. Not only that but you have to make an appointment - we had a two hour wait for our dolls! Whoever started the AG brand is a genius!

While we were waiting for our doll salon appointments (it doesn't sound any less ridiculous the more I say it), Taylor decided she wanted to do this:

She got her ears pierced (again!). For those of you who don't remember, when Taylor was about six years old, she got her ears pierced. However, something went terribly wrong and about three weeks after she got them pierced, the earring went inside of her earlobe. It was awful...lots of screaming and blood. It obviously was much more traumatic for me than her because she wanted to do it again!

By the time we did that, it was time for the hair appointments. I must admit that Chris and I didn't think there was much hope for their doll's hair to look like it did when they were brand new, but we were wrong. The stylists did a great job and taught us some tricks to make it look new anytime!

After shopping till we dropped, we ate lunch and headed to the Navy Pier. Cirque Shanghai was showing so we decided to go see it. The girls loved it! They were especially impressed by the contortionists.

We had been telling the girls that there were beaches in Chicago that they could play at while we were there. We had not expected the weather to be so cool. It never got above 75, I don't think. It was rather chilly and windy. So on the way home from the Navy Pier, we let them walk on the beach and they let me take some pictures!

After the walk on the beach, we went back to the hotel and let Taylor swim again. Rachel wanted to stay in the room with me and play with her new doll. We hung out at the hotel until my mom and dad arrived. They had never been to Chicago before and we were so excited that they were going to be able to enjoy the city with us and the girls.

After going to the ESPN Zone for dinner, we all came back and crashed. We got up on Saturday morning ready to enjoy another day in the Windy City! In Chicago there are these people who dress up and act like robots for tips. The girls were fascinated by them! I tried having the girls pose with him but they did not want to get too close!


Of course the girls had to take MomMom and GrandBob to the AG Place! It is pretty amazing even if you aren't a little girl. Then we walked and walked and walked...and the girls never complained. We went back to the Navy Pier so GrandBob, Chris and the girls could ride the Ferris wheel. My mom and I said no thank you to that little trip!

That seemed to wear everyone out so we went back to the hotel so Taylor could swim, Rachel could play, and the adults could take a nap! Once we recharged our batteries, we headed to the next place on the girls "to do" list: The Rainforest Cafe.

My mom & dad left on Sunday morning but we had one more quick trip to make before heading home. . . the Lego Store.

The weekend went entirely too fast but we are glad to be home in our own beds tonight. It was so much fun having one last summer get-away. Rachel and Taylor are already planning a trip for next year . . . the destination yet to be determined.

Only two more weeks left of summer vacation then school begins. I am going to enjoy every minute we have left! You can check back on Tuesday and I will post some random pictures of our trip. TTFN!

Almost Slumber Party

It wouldn't be summer around our house without our annual Almost Slumber Party. This is one day in the summer when the girls can pick out two or three (or four!) friends to invite to come over around 3:00 and stay until 10:15. It is a night that the girls and I look forward to as soon as school ends. Here is a typical Almost Slumber Party agenda:

The girls arrive and hit the pool! Although this year the weather never quite got hot enough to warm up the pool so they did not stay in their bathing suits for very long!

Then they have to have a snack! This year's snack choice was a fruit bar complete with strawberries, cantaloupe, watermelon & chocolate covered bananas. The girls loved it!

All the girls bring their bikes each year and we ride to our local pond to feed the ducks. This year the ducks weren't hungry, so they fed the fish instead. (I do have to say that there must be something about us and weird ducks. We saw one whose foot was completely backward! I tried getting a picture but I couldn't quite get it.)

After heading back home, the girls decided to do their craft. This year they made bracelets. It was a big hit. (Thanks to my mom who came over today, I no longer have a hundred tiny beads on my carpet!)

Chris went and got the pizza this year (any excuse to get out of the house!). The girls devoured it!

The girls wanted me to dye their hair this year. I decided to go a less permanent route and spray in some color that washes out. After that, it was fingernail painting time!

Let's not forget the toenails....

Then the makeup.... (see the pink in the hair?)

One of the little girls lives on our street so they wanted to go show her mom. Aren't they precious?

After playing for a while, they are ready for ice cream.

As the night winds down, it is pajama, movie and popcorn time!

The girls and I always have a fabulous time! We are already thinking about next year's Almost Slumber Party :)

Our Trip to Michigan

This past weekend we had the opportunity to travel to Michigan to be with Chris' side of the family. The four days we were gone went by quickly! We had so much fun!

If you have read this blog in the recent past then you know that Rachel broke her ankle and was in a purple cast. Well Chris' best friend happens to be an orthopedic surgeon who specializes in feet & ankles. On Friday, he was so kind as to x-ray Rachel's ankle and take her cast off for us! This was wonderful! We wanted to walk along the beach and go swimming, but knew that even though the cast was waterproof, it wasn't "sand-proof".

After visiting her "uncle" at his office and getting the cast removed, we drove around the town while Chris showed us some of the places he hung out as a teenager. We stopped at this one spot to get out and look at the real swan (as opposed to the plastic one that floats around our man-made "lake" in our subdivision) and the boats. Of course, to me it was a photo-op!

Imagine our surprise when we looked down and saw the strangest thing we have ever seen! It was a duck with its foot growing out its back! Eewww!! The other ducks were helping it swim by surrounding it and helping it keep its balance.

Later that night, the entire family came over for dinner and then a trip to the boardwalk and beach. The girls had a blast getting their feet wet and giggling with their cousins. The water was way too cold to get in, but it didn't squelch any of the fun for the kids.

The next day we went to another little beach and let the kids build sand castles and play in the water. It was an absolutely gorgeous day!

After a while at the beach, we went to my sister-in-law's parent's house and swam at their pool for a good chunk of the afternoon. I was so nervous because they have a diving board and a deep end . . . and I can't swim! However, Taylor never showed any fear and dove right off the diving board! I was so proud of her!

While we were glad to get back into our own beds on Sunday night, the girls miss their cousins already! We had such a good time just hanging out with our family that we don't get to see very often.

Now back to reality....

Another Broken Bone

I am going to make this short & to the point: Rachel is my daughter, thus another broken bone. This makes two bones before 1st grade. At this rate, she in on a good course to beat me for broken bones. I guess we should be thankful that ballet is her chosen sport.

Rachel is a trooper and has a high tolerance for pain. She picked out the purple cast and is doing remarkably well. She won't have it on for too long and it is waterproof - both very important for summer time.

Here she is...along with her sister who might have been a little jealous of all the attention Rachel was getting :) This is prior to going to the doctor. She played her DS for about two days straight because she could not walk.

Taylor chose to read a book or two instead of the DS. That's my girl!

The proud owner of a purple cast!

VBS 2009

VBS was a success again this year! Our theme Boomerang Express was a hit with the kids and proved to be quite fun. We had 497 children register (I am thinking we could have found three more children to hit 500, don't you think?!) but most importantly we had several children accept the Lord as their Savior. It makes it all the late nights, missed suppers and early mornings worth it.

Here are a few pictures of the stage and the girls: