Here are a few Christmas highlights. We had a great Christmas Eve and Christmas Day! Anna sprinkled the glitter around the house that Santa had sent in the mail so he could find us on Christmas Eve. Sawyer enjoyed his first Christmas and made out with TONS of toys! Mommy and Daddy are exhausted....Anna got us up at 3:48 to open gifts. And no, we didn't give in but let her get in bed with us...for the FIRST time. Noone fell asleep again and finally threw in the towel at 7:00 and got up. Santa treated us well and we all had a great day. More pictures to come!

Snugglebug

Who could pass up a sweet snuggle from this little guy?  Certainly not me!  He's got his Mommy, his Daddy and even his big sister wrapped so tightly around his little finger.  He has a special place in each of our hearts!

Christmas Past

I found this looking at some old pictures today.  It was Anna's first Christmas.  It feels like it was yesterday.  We have  a photo screensaver on our computer and whenever I point out "Nonna" to Sawyer, he smiles.  Today he waved at her picture.  I am certain she met him before we did.

Anna and Sawyer had fun playing together this last Sunday.  Sawyer just LOVES watching Anna and always has a laugh or two for her.

Christmas Decorations

Ron had some trouble with the Christmas tree lights this year....

You Know How They Say Some People Look Like Their Pets?

This is my brother Ricky and his dog Bowie. Click on the picture to enlarge it. I really think they look alike!

Why We Won't Be Getting An Elf On The Shelf

Last week Anna came home from school and shared that all of her friends have an elf at home that watches their behavior and checks in with Santa regularly. If you haven't heard of "The Elf on the Shelf", it is a kit that comes with an elf doll and a book. The book explains that Santa has sent an elf to watch over the children and the elf reports back to Santa each night. The kids get to decide the name for the elf together. You read through the book with your child, it explains all the rules, then each night mom and dad move the elf to a new spot while the children are sleeping, hence making him appear "real". Well, last evening Anna was drawing in the family room after dinner. I went around as I usually do each night collecting pjs, underwear and towels for bathttime. I laid the towels on the toilet seat like I usually do and went to put some laundry away. I called for Anna to finish her drawing and use the bathroom as it was time to shower and get ready for bed. All of the sudden, Ron and I hear a blood curdling scream. Enough to crack windows. She comes flying out of the bathroom completely terrified and screaming so hard she can't even speak for several seconds. Ron and I ran over to see what was the matter and at this point Sawyer starts crying because she is scaring him. After several times of us yelling over her "What's the matter?" She finally gets out "elf" and "bathroom". Ron runs into the bathroom and finds nothing -like he really was going to find an elf in the bathroom huh. I calm her down as we walk to the bathroom and as she sheepishly peers into the bathroom, she shares that she wasn't expecting to see the bath towels sitting on the toilet seat and made the assumption they were an elf. You all know its very easy to confuse bath towels piled on the toilet as an elf right??? So, in case you were wondering, we won't be one of those families getting "The Elf on the Shelf".

Our Little Heartbreaker

Could this little man be any cuter? He just melts my heart. 11 months old tomorrow too!

Real Problems

So Sawyer has been a real crab since Friday night....teething I guess however I don't see any pearly whites making their appearance yet. When things aren't status quo, I have a very difficult time coping. I'm not sure why but my anxieties crop up and I struggle with things. His fussiness and neediness have been wearing on me and with Christmas shopping and all that has to be done this time of year, plus missing my mom a lot, let's just say I haven't had my rose-colored glasses on and I've been wallowing in a lot of self-pity.

Well, I guess the Lord had other plans for me today because this morning while shopping in Kohls for Anna's teachers' Christmas gifts, I walked by a young mom pushing her three/four year old in the cart. The mom was talking on her cell phone grumbling about one thing or another and I didn't take much notice. That is until she started yelling that she was the one who had been cheated on (obviously her husband was the one on the other end). She yelled at him for having countless affairs and how could he just think that now he was going to take the house away from her and the kids besides! She said she had seen receipts in his pockets that said he was in once place at a certain time when he promised her he had been somewhere else.

I immediately got nauseous thinking of myself being in that position. I then realized that the complaining I was doing (mainly in my own mind) was really trivial and quite ridiculous. Here was someone who truly had real problems. I contemplated if I should offer to push her daugther around in the cart so she could finish her conversation in private but I thought she might think I was some psycho kidnapper. Instead I made a speedial phonecall to Ron to tell him how much I loved him!

Christmas Tree Time!

We ended our Thanksgiving weekend by buying our Christmas tree. This will be Sawyer's first Christmas and we are all very excited!

Thanksgiving 2011

We had a lovely Thanksgiving and the best part was that Ron was home with us for the whole time! This was the first time ever that he didn't have practice for wrestling the morning of or the morning after! We enjoyed hikes, decorating for Christmas, buying a Christmas tree, shopping and eating much too much pumpking cheesecake. Anna and Sawyer enjoyed one another and we lit a miniature hot air balloon on Thanksgiving night. On to Christmas now!

Let the Holidays Begin...

Ron, Anna, Sawyer and I took a trip to the mall last Sunday to get the famous "picture with Santa Claus" before the rest of the world decided to do the same. We arrived before the crowds and got a pretty good picture. Sawyer was a real trooper and didn't shed a tear. Anna was thrilled beyond belief to chat with Santa and give him her list. Let the holidays begin!

Balloons!

Grandpa realized this weekend that Anna did not know how to blow up a balloon. Here are some pictures he took of her trying....to no avail!

Who Says My Hair Isn't Growing Yet?

Happy Birthday

Happy 10 month birthday sweet boy! Thank you for making our lives full of smiles and snuggles! We love you Sawyer!

Frost on the Pumpkin

We went to bed last night as the temperature dipped into the 30's and the rain had turned into snow. The deck was icy this morning and we couldn't get the car doors open because they had frozen shut. The weatherman is calling for six inches of snow tomorrow due to a Nor'easter -did I mention it is only October? I hope this is not what we are in for this winter as I still have not recovered from the last one. Sawyer was born on the evening of a 14 inch snowstorm and it never stopped snowing....really! Last year we felt like we lived in an igloo. I still have nightmares about the day I piled the carseat with Sawyer and then Anna into the sled and slid them down the frozen path to the driveway because I JUST HAD TO GET OUT OF THE HOUSE for a change of scenery. Ron had been working/coaching wrestling for three weeks without a day off....he didn't get home till 8:00 each night....hence no time for icemelt or sand. The path was a disaster and really, completely unsafe, but this Mom couldn't take it anymore.
So, as I said, I pray we're not facing that again!

In other news, Sawyer and I trecked over to Anna's first grade class this morning to help out her teacher with a pumpkin activity. We had a nice time and enjoyed seeing Anna in her new environment. Sawyer is now napping and Mommy is enjoying some free minutes after catching up with laundry and carrying the picnic table/chairs down to the garage....before the path freezes up again!

A Little Bit of This and A Little Bit of That

We've been enjoying fall walks, fall festivals, fires in our woodburning stove and cool temperatures -in fact, there is a chance of snow flurries this weekend! Here are some pictures of our last fall festival at Green Chimneys:





And this is Sawyer's expression when you ask him if he wants to eat:

Fun in the Tub

Make Your Green Pink!

So, so proud of our little girl! She walked four miles yesterday in the Making Strides in Breast Cancer walk at Manhattanville College. She walked in memory of her Nona who fought breast cancer for 21 years! Anna raised $685.00 as well! Great Job Anna!

Catch-up Day!

So sorry for the lag in blog updates....we've been busy here! Miss Anna has quite the social calendar with ballet, kids club at church, choir practice and now Daisies. Ron's been busy for the last three weeks working on the set for The Crucible and Sawyer and I are having fun keeping everyone well fed, in clean clothing and comfortable when they finally arrive home to our little nest!

Let's see what has been going on here. Oh yes, we had Sawyer's Baby Dedication at church last Sunday. The baptismal gown he is wearing is almost 100 years old! Sawyer's great, great grandmother Anna Rose made it (her birthday happens to be the same as mine!). Sawyer's great grandfather wore it, his grandfather wore it, his Mommy (me) wore it, as well as his Uncle Rick and big sister Anna! The cross he is wearing was his Nona's and she wore it on the day she was christened.





We've also been going on a lot of hikes lately enjoying the cooler temps and fall foliage! Here are some incredibly good looking people we met along the way.


The tooth fairy has been busy as well -in fact she needs to get another job as Anna has been losing teeth left and right as seen here.



Anna has also had two spelling tests and has gotten 105 ON BOTH OF THEM!

And to make you smile, here is a picture of our sweet boy. He may only be in the 5th percentile for weight but those skinny chicken legs are sure getting him around and he absolutely fills our hearts with joy!



Hope your Fall is going well!

Apple Orchard Fun

We took a quick trip to the apple orchard on Sunday when Ron got home from work. He is the set designer in his district for the drama team and this year they are putting on the show The Crucible. After he got home, we loaded up the car and headed over to Harvest Orchards. Unfortunately they were mobbed....citygoers often come there on weekends in the fall. We enjoyed some fried dough however, played in the pumpkin patch and watched them make do-nuts. We'll head back in a few weeks when the crowd dies down.

Grammy, These Are For You!

Anna began taking ballet lessons three weeks ago at a dance school near us. She LOVES going and has even inspired Mommy to look into some adult classes. Here she is on her first day!

Are You Ready for Some Football???

Sawyer is!!!

Fall Fun

We had a busy weekend but enjoyed our time together as a family. Friday afternoon we went to Ron's OTA Picnic at Ryder Park. Anna and Sawyer had fun meeting all of Ron's friends at work and we enjoyed some good food that Ron and his friends spent the day preparing (who knew Ron could cook??). Saturday we enjoyed a nice hike at Mountain Lakes Preserve. Uncle Ricky came along and we bundled up as we crossed waterfalls and ponds. Sunday we went to church and then went grocery shopping for the week ahea. Ron stacked wood for our stove and he also realigned our path with our new steps. Now everyone is back at work and school. Meatloaf on tap for tonight!

Sweater Weather!

So the weatherman says that Fall temperatures will be arriving this evening. I cannot wait! Ever since Sawyer was born, I have not stopped sweating. I'm sure it's due to nursing but I am really looking forward to some cooler temperatures. I'm anxious to turn on the oven again and cook my mom's famous potroast -which is delicious (did I say that nursing makes me hungry too?) and have a nice fire in our woodburning stove. I'm looking forward to Fall hikes, trips to the apple orchard and a pumpkin on our new front steps....

Happy Monday!

Today I took Sawyer to Baby Story Hour -something Anna and I did every week when she was home with me as a baby. This was his first time going and he LOVED it. He loved watching all of the other babies toddling around and crawling by while he happily sat in my lap. We sang songs together, did fingerplays and listened to two stories. I think he was studying some of the babies moves and is anxious to crawl after them.

Afterwards we came home and had lunch and started making dinner. Things get hectic here once Anna gets home from school so I try to get a jump on things early. Tonight we are trying one of Rachael Ray's recipes. I got some laundry done, washed the wood floors and made lunches for Ronnie and Anna to have at work/school tomorrow. Busy day!

Best Friends

Sawyer is really missing Anna while she's gone at school all day. His buddy is gone and tummy time just isn't the same without her!

First Day of First Grade!

We'll she's on her way! Here are some pictures of the special morning!

End of Summer

Well, today is Anna's last day of summer vacation. Tomorrow she begins first grade -where has the time gone??? And why can't the WINTER go by this fast? We've had a great summer with trips to the carnival, movies, visits from grandparents near and far, dips in the lake, sparklers with grandpa, fishing expeditions and lots of time spent on our deck eating smores and homeade ice-cream. I'm glad she had this time to spend with her brother who just ADORES her. Today he spent an hour laying on the floor next to her while she talked to him and kissed him. I know he will miss her but I know I will miss her more. I love how I come out of the shower in the morning and find she's made her bed and mine -the covers are crooked somewhat but who's complaining. I love how she empties the dryer and puts the clothes away without being asked while I'm nursing Sawyer. I love how she entertains Sawyer while I make lunch. She's a big help and I'll miss that, but more importantly, I'll miss her company. She makes me laugh and always listens -she's a good friend. Love you Anna!

Irene

We survived Irene this weekend with no problems (Thank you Lord). We lost power for about 10 hours and were one of the first ones to get it back. My dad and brother are good too but unfortunately do not have power and are thinking they'll both be without it for the week. This is a picture taken after the storm of a dam down the road from us. Please excuse the lack of make-up and shower...we were still without electricity at this point.

Birthday Weekend Highlights

We celebrated Anna's birthday with family this past weekend and had a great time. Ron's family came up from Maryland and brought their cute puppy Bella along for the trip. Anna received TONS of presents, her favorite being her very own, American Girl Doll. She also received an aquarium for tropical fish which we set up in our kitchen for the whole family to enjoy. With Labor Day around the corner, our focus now turns to first grade and the beginning of school for Ron and Anna. I'm looking forward to some cooler weather and trying out some new recipes. We also are working on our curb appeal. Ron landscaped the front yard along the driveway and we are having our front steps and entry redone with flagstone and cobblestones. Pictures of that to follow!