Merry Christmas!!

    I hope all of you had a wonderful CHRISTmas!  We had such a great time together as a family.  We didn't get to go to Arizona this year, so it was just our little family, and that was perfect!! We enjoyed some old family traditions and made some new ones.
    Christmas Eve we baked cookies and listened to carols and then watched The Santa Clause.  Christmas Eve service was AMAZING and really focused us to the reason for this special day.  We came home and the girls got to open one presents - Christmas (Tinkerbell) PJs, and then we watched The Nativity Story, put out the reindeer food and cookies for Santa, Aubrey sang Happy Birthday to baby Jesus in our Nativity and then off to bed!!!!

Rolland and I played Santa and toasted with champagne to a job well done... It was a busy, but perfect day!
 

Aubrey was so excited for Christmas morning that she woke up at 3:30!! It took an hour, but I finally got her to go to sleep.  (I told her Santa hadn't made it to our house yet, and couldn't until she was asleep.  What am I going to do without the Santa incentive at bedtime now?!)  So at 7:30 we were ready for Christmas.  The  girls were so happy with their Santa presents that they didn't really care to open the rest until after breakfast - so much different than me as a kid, a give it a couple of more years.  Rebekah loved her new Princess dolls and dress up and didn't take her gloves and shoes off all day!  Rolland surprised me with a new wedding / anniversary band. AMAZING!  I was totally shocked and it is BEAUTIFUL.  The boy did good, he is off the hook for the rest of the year (hee, hee... OK I'll give him next year too!)  He liked his gift too - a PSP, so he can play FIFA Soccer from anywhere now!  All of us made a haul...thanks AZ family for all the wonderful gifts!  The rest of the day was spent playing with all of our new toys and watching movies, eating too much, and enjoying each other.  It was a very Merry Christmas!!!

  

Its Beginning to Feel a Lot Like Christmas...

Tonight for a family activity we made a gingerbread house.  So much fun!!! I love doing things like this, it makes me feel so Christmas-y.  Afterward we watched the Santa Clause as a family and I think Aubrey started to wonder is she was good enough to get presents because at bedtime she started crying and said, "I don't like to take naps and Santa isn't going to bring me presents."  Such a silly girl!

Snow Much Fun!

We are getting so much snow here! So earlier in the week, before we literally got snowed in, we took the girls to my good friend Jennifer's to play in her back yard. We had fun "painting" the snow and sledding. The kids lasted maybe a half hour and when we came into the house Jenn had sandwiches, snacks, and hot cocoa waiting for us (Thanks Jennifer!!) Maybe if we get brave enough we'll take the kids out to play again before Christmas!

I was tagged

1.How long have you been together? October 21 2001 - 7 years 2 months

2.How long did we date? We were married Feb. 9th 2004 so... 2 years 4 months

3. How old is he?26 - a baby!! I am 2 years older than him

4. Who eats more? Rolland hands down. And "boy" food too, gross!

5. Who said, "I love you," first? probable me, I'm the romantic

6. Who is taller? Rolland

7. Who does the laundry? Me

8. Who does the dishes? Me unless Rolland is home on the weekend than he usually loads the dishwasher
9. Who sleeps on the right side of the bed? Me

10. Who pays the bills? Pays as in sends the money? Me Rolland makes all the big money though (and funds my hobbies - thanks honey!)


11. Who mows the lawn?Property management. The joy of renting

12. Who cooks dinner? I usually do, but Rolland has taken an interest in cooking and I love not having to do that

13. Who is more stubborn? Equal tie totally - you should see how long arguments last in this house. Neither of us backs down!

14. Who kissed who first? I think I win this one
15. Who asked who out? We didn't really have a first "date" it was a lot of hanging-out with friends, movies and pizza. Our first date was probably a movie or something

16. Who proposed? Rolland ... interesting story though

17. Who is more sensitive? I am more of a crier but Rolland has a soft heart. I am more like that's sad, get over it. He feels things deeper than me.

18. Who has more siblings? Same. We both have a brother and a sister. I am the youngest which explains a lot. Rolland is the middle which explains a lot

19. What were you doing ten years ago? A senior in HS, probably doing Christmas concerts for choir, dancing in the Christmas Spectacular, figuring out what to do during Christmas break

20. Five things on my to-do list: pack my house, not stress out about Army stuff, spend time loving my family, have a cup of coffee, figure out a way to entertain kids today


21.Things I would do if I was suddenly made a billionaire. Pay off my parents house. Buy one for me. Student Loans. Travel. Change the life of someone deserving. Personal Chef and trainer in my house.
22. Three of my bad habits: being too busy, bread and cheese, tv

23. Five places I have lived: Snowflake, AZ Yay! Alexandria VA Yay! Fort Drum NY Yay! Mesa AZ Yay! Under a park bench.. just seeing if you are actually reading this!

24. Five jobs I have had: Dance teacher - my favorite this far other than being a mom! A Director at PBS for Horizon, Sports Producer Assistant for ABC Sprts / ESPN, Cheer Coach for a ridiculously swanky school in Phoenix (Phoenix Country Day School) And being a MAMA!!!

25. Things people don't know about me: theres not much, I am pretty open person, lets see... I still believe in Santa, I hate humidity, I am going back to school to get my teaching degree.


I tag Holly, Jennifer, Alicia

What Will Forever Be Known as "The Powder Incident"

This is what your kids are doing when they are a little too quiet.

Family Photo Shoot - New Pics

We received the rest of our family photos today and they turned out great!! Enjoy!