In the Holiday Spirit

happily helping Massimo eat his gingerbread house
Jill and I went to get holiday pedicures and couldn't resist a little holiday spirit on our toes! Too bad it's cold and we can't show them off!

helping Mommy bake!

Leo helps too!

we came downstairs to find Sophia listening to Christmas carols and gazing at the lit tree...adorable!

a little holiday crafting

there may be painted surprises in somebody's future!

ho-ho hat!

delivering cookies to the neighbors

I did it, Mom!

We've been keeping ourselves busy with baking, tree trimming and various other holiday activities! This is just a collection of cute snaps to show how much fun we're having!

Train Time

I've had this toy train on Leo's dresser since before he was born. It is a really cute old wooden train that was my brother's. I was just planning on using it for decoration since it was so old and sort of keepsake-y, but once Leo really noticed it, he wants to play with it all the time! He even takes cars to bed with him because he doesn't want to be separated from it for too long! For now, he seems to be pretty gentle with it, but I'm not sure how long that will last! ;)

Swimming

the diving duo
and here they are in action!

Charlie says there aren't any pictures of me, so I let him take one, but it's blurry. Oh well, I figured I should at least post it since he tried! ;)

I love the indoor pool and I hate winter, so together they make a nice combination. We visited this weekend and it was nice to have Daddy with us for a change. It's a good way to get exercise during the colder months!

Our Little Angel

Here the Angel breaks the news to Mary, Joseph and their Donkey

about the baby Here she has just spread the word to the shepherds

overseeing the festivities

at the end they sang 3 cute Christmas songs. It was hard to get a picture of her, she was in the back

Both Grandmothers got to come watch

Sophia got to play the angel in her classroom's Nativity play this week. She was thrilled! They have been practicing different parts for a few weeks now and so they didn't know which part they would get until the day of the show. All the way to school Sophia kept telling me that she hoped she was the angel...and indeed she was! Afterwards I thanked her teacher and told her much she had hoped and she laughed and said that they had saved that part for Sophia because they knew she would talk! LOL! Indeed she did...and proudly too!

Christmas Tree Patch

It was so rainy on Saturday that we were afraid we wouldn't get a tree but luckily it let up enough in the evening to head on out! The kids loved running through the lot, or the Christmas Tree Patch as Sophia calls it, and we all decided this was the best tree. It always looks so much bigger when we get it home, but luckily this year Charlie didn't have to hack any of it off the top! ;) We decorated Sunday afternoon and it looks so happy and festive! Leo wanted to pose in front it!

Seeing Santa

She had to wear her pink Santa hat to show the real Santa

Well first I want...

Here Sophia and Cooper visit Santa together

playing games and winning prizes is fun!

Sophia started a face painting trend

Cooper also stuck with the Christmas theme and got an ornament

but Leo went with a train

Lara, Tom and Cooper invited us up north for a little holiday fun! A local high school puts on a winter wonderland event for kids and it was the perfect opportunity to see Santa without waiting in any long lines! I told the kids on Wednesday that we were heading to Santa this weekend and immediately Leo said, "Ho, Ho, NO!" Every mention of Santa elicited this exact response. Then in the car one day he said--I tell Ho Ho Choo Choo? Yes, we said you can tell him you want a choo choo, to which he responded, Sis Ho Ho Choo Choo! It was quite a comical conversation to say the least. In the end, Sophia did relay the message to the Big Man and I'm pretty sure they'll both be on the 'nice' list so we'll see what happens!

Staying Warm

So we bought this space heater that looks like a little wood burning stove for the living room and the kids love it! It's kind of funny actually. They will literally sit in front of it and stick out their toes to be warmed, it's way cute. Anyway this particular morning they were dancing in front of it and getting warm and they insisted I take their picture. It turned out kinda cute and they look so much alike in this photo too, no mistaking they're brother and sister!