Cowboy Casanova

It takes a real man to be able to rock KU basketball shorts and a cowboy hat at the same time!

New Best Buddy

This is Sophia, one of my cousin Karren's kids. Isn't she cute?This is Miss Bailey, my own little cutie pie.We fully expected them to hit it off (given their wild-woman tendencies) and have a grand 'ole time at the Sutton Family Christmas gathering.
BUT

We over-looked one thing....

Kale He got to Sophia first...and has since appointed her to his best-buddy list.

(She is the first girl to join the ranks of Kaden, Josh, Grandpa Ballard, and Grandpa Hammy, Daddy and Uncle Brett).

Way to go Sophia!!!

After we left the party, Kale announced that he wanted to have a camp out with his new friend, Sophia.

Jon and Karren--you just let us know a date and we'll drop him at your front door :)

2010

Happy New Year from our family to yours!

[Don't look too closely at the pics or you'll notice that the picture of Dain and I is really just a cropped version of the larger photo :) I noticed the other day that I have a grand total of about 2 pictures of Dain and I without the kids from the past 4 years.....we take what we can get when it comes to "solo" shots :)]

Let It Snow!

One of Kale's favorite gifts he got this Christmas was a new sled.
As you can imagine, it's been VERY useful :)
Thanks, Grandad and Sharon!!

After sledding down the "hill" in our front yard (as seen in the video), Kale moved on to sledding down our drive way and in the street
(don't worry....there was adult supervision)!

A Few Christmas Highlights

I have about a million pictures of Christmas that I'll force you to scroll through at a later date, but for now here's a few of my favorites...

The kids on stage with their cousins after our nephew Chase's Christmas program

Opening presents with cousin Kaden

Kale's sign that he taped to Grandma Ballard's front door so Santa would be sure to find him

Bailey feeding one of her new babies...and a sled that's already been put to good use :)

Magic bells from Santa's sleigh
(The story goes that only those who truly believe can hear their jingle)

Kale and Kaden proudly holding baby Brooks

The Perfect Christmas Present

I think Brett and Kelly got the best early Christmas present anyone could ask for: a healthy baby boy! Weighing in at 5 lb 11 oz, Brooks Mason Ballard was a few weeks early, but seems to be doing great.

Kale and Bailey visited their new cousin yesterday. Kale said, "Mom, I'm great at holding babies." Bailey was more interested in messing with everything in the room, but she did acknowledge her cousin by saying "Hi be-be" and flopping his stuffed Jayhawk on top of him. (I have a limited number of months to teach her the concept that newborns = fragile = no sticking fingers in their eyes)

Congratulations Brett, Kelly, and Kaden!!

Holiday Baking

A few things to keep in mind in case you ever feel compelled to bake sugar cookies with your children:

8. Block out at least half of your day to accomplish the task...not because the prep/baking/decorating actually takes that long, but because of your "helpers".......enough said.

7. Plan on only getting 2 or 3 shapes cut each time your roll out the dough. Maximizing space means nothing to someone under the age of five.

6. With #7 in mind, count on your cookies getting a bit over-floured since you will be forced to roll out the dough again, and again, and again..........

5. Do not plan on your cookies being a uniform thickness. Have you ever watched a pre-schooler with a rolling pin?!

4. Buy the econo-sized box of sprinkles because: a) in 4-year-old world, you can NEVER have enough sprinkles and b) at least half will end up on the floor

3. Expect a 1 to 5 ratio for your cookies: 1 cookie will get eaten for every 5 that your children decorate

2. Don't be surprised if (with 3 cookies left to decorate) your 4 year old suddenly exclaims, "I'm done. Can I go play dinosaurs?"

1. Remember that despite the appearance, the cookies were made with A LOT of love :)