Favorite Weekend Moments

 Waking up from a nap to find this on the couch.....

Snuggling with my little sleepy head

Getting help folding the never ending piles of laundry

Our in house half-time entertainment (check out those boots!)

Super fantastic dance parties

Watching the little ones count during hide-and-go seek

Seeing them all calm and quiet...if only for a minute!

These two cutie pies dancing

Contraptions

Have you heard of them?

Dain and I gave them to Kale this year for Christmas, and let's just say that he was less than thrilled when he opened the package....and really, I don't blame him...a box full of wooden sticks and two small balls looks pretty lame when you had your heart set on Madden 2012 for the Wii ;) 

As a matter of fact, the box of Contraptions sat untouched for nearly a week before I told Kale that we were going to try them out (secretly hoping that I hadn't bought a dud gift). 

Luckily, it took all of about five minutes for him (and his sisters) to figure out that there are about a million things you can create with a little imagination and a whole lot of patience!
Best. Toy. Ever. (Until I find the next greatest toy, of course)!

 Shirtless?! He always does this even when it's 20 degrees outside and our house is freezing. I'm chalking it up to being a boy thing....

 Even princesses take time from their busy schedules to build :)

I helped him figure out the L-shaped turn, but the rest is all his work!

Christmas 2011

With mostly borrowed pictures because I took all of about five with my camera :)
Thank goodness my sister-in-law has her act together!

We spent the holiday in Hutchinson/Haviland/Greensburg this year.  It was such a fun, chaotic, whirl-wind of a weekend that the kids started begging to go back before we made it home :)  Special thanks to my mom and dad who worked so hard to make it a great weekend!!

Miss Shay was a bit under the weather a few days prior, so we decided it was in our best interest to stay home an extra day so she could rest, but we sent Kale up early with Uncle Neal and a car load of gifts.  Dain and I brought the girls up the next morning, and we started things off with a birthday party for Grandad Sutton.

Here we are after waaay too much food and cake:

That night we went to church and the kids got to open up their presents from Grandma and Grandpa B before making a sign so that Santa would know where to stop.

The next morning Miss Shay woke up a little too early and had to catch a few extra zzz's before the other's woke up!

 Santa did not disappoint....

Later that morning we headed to Haviland to celebrate Christmas at my Grandparents house (otherwise known as the ding-dong clock house according to the kids).  There were about 35 people....which you would think would be a bit much....but really, there's something so fun about it that I can't imagine it any other way!

 After another short visit with Grandad we headed back to Hutch where the next morning I was faced with the super-challenge of fitting 3 kids, 3 suitcases, 2 adults and this room full of stuff into our Jeep in such a manner that Dain could still see out a window or two.  Really, I think I should earn an award or something because my packing job was quite impressive ;) 

Christmas 2011 was so much fun....I can't wait to see what 2012 brings!

Playing Catch Up....December Edition

There's a lot been going on around here as we prepare for Christmas.

We set up our new Nativity Scene, and a certain young girl has rearranged a few times....

We call this "Joseph forgets Jesus and Mary and is hitting on the angel."

 And "group huddle around Jesus."

"A Few Extra Visitors to the Manger"

The girls fixed up daddy's hair with pretty bows :)

Bailey helped me bake some holiday goodies. Her official job was "bowl cleaner."

She also decided to wrap some presents for kids whose "mama's don't haves any money."  A really sweet idea....except that she used her little sister's toys for the gifts.

Dain and I got dressed up AND made it out of the house without the kids.  I think our favorite part was the uninterrupted nights sleep and the quiet breakfast that followed....

Thanks to my mom and dad for making our night out possible!!

Miss Shay has been a bit under the weather, but you're never too sick to make a fashion statement in boots and a diaper.

Above all, we believe it's going to be a magical Christmas!

Family Photos

This was our first "real" family photo since 2006 :) 

Ya, go ahead and do the math on that one.....Kale was 10 months old......we were a family of three.....and our house was significantly quieter.  Despite having the odds against us (a toddler in need of a nap, a spirited middle child, and a six-year-old who wanted to be home watching the Chiefs), the photographer managed to get several great shots.  God bless her and her patience with us :)

I'm holding my favorite photo back....but don't worry, Christmas cards are just a month away, so you'll get to see our real glamour shot then ;)

 

*All photos courtesy of AG Photography of Lawrence

'Tis the Season To Be......Scary!

(Which means the season to be merry is just around the corner...yea!)

Here's the highlights from our Halloween....

1. Pumpkin carving.  I'd show you a picture of my sophisticated jack-o-lantern faces, but I don't want to make anyone feel bad.  Just kidding.  As previously noted in past Halloween blog posts, I'm a terrible pumpkin carver :)

2.  Getting ready to leave the house.  This year we had a princess, another princess (light-up Cinderella to be exact), and Justin Bieber. 

3.  Trick or Treating.  The kids got a lot of candy, and Dain and I have already cleaned out all of the Heath bars, Milk Duds, and Snickers we could find ;)

And just for fun.....a few of my favorite Halloween photos from years past:

Seeds of Happiness

One of my colleagues posted the following quote on facebook the other night:

“You have both seeds of happiness and unhappiness in you, planted by your parents, your ancestors, or your friends.  When seeds of happiness manifest themselves, you feel quite happy. But when seeds of sorrow, anger, and hatred manifest, you feel very unhappy. The quality of our life depends on what seeds we water in our consciousness…”Every time we walk with calm and ease, or we smile and release the tension in us, we are planting seeds that will strengthen our happiness. With each happy step, we plant a happy seed."
- Thich Nhat Hanh -

I'm so grateful for my sweet little girl, who reminds me to slow down, smile, and laugh....to be a seed of happiness.