Christmas Morning

Christmas was so fun this year! The kids are so easy to shop for and love just about anything. In fact of all the toys Olivia got she loves the lipstick (with a wand) I got for her stocking the most. All day she would disappear for a minute and I would find her hiding somewhere putting on gobs of lipgloss :) I guess she figured at any moment I would feel like she has had enough and take it away so she needed to hide for an extra application, it was adorable. Chase got lots of great gifts, some tools of his own and a little guitar. William would have been happy with wrapping paper and bows but he got some fun new play toys too.

We also had a chance to see lots family for dinner or dessert. We had a great day!

Ryan always takes a long vacation too. So we have had time to play and relax together this week. I love not having the pressure to get to school in the morning or make dinner while managing my crew. I think this is my favorite week of the year.

You Better Watch Out!

Olivia's Ballerina Birthday

Olivia has been in love with the idea of being a ballerina, even though she was not yet old enough for lessons. I did some looking and found a studio that offered a ballerina party, complete with a ballet lesson, butterfly dancing, mini cheerleading lesson, and hoop jumping. It was super cute and all the girls seemed to enjoy it. Olivia was so adorable and loved every minute! She already has stated that she would like the same party next year :)

Olivia turned 3!

Sweet Angel

My sweet angel, Olivia, turns three tomorrow. I love birthdays because you have a chance to celebrate your amazing child and show them how special they are but a part of me is always sad too. I guess birthdays are a marker to show how much things have changed and how big my babies are getting. To think that just 3 short years ago I was pregnant with her, anxiously waiting for her arrival, wondering how on earth I was going to handle two babies, and now here I am with three. It seems that so much has happen, Olivia has grown up so much.

Olivia has always been an amazing child. She was the happiest baby and seemed to understand so much so early. She walked early and talked early, which made her infancy go by even faster. And now we are still in constant amazement of her. She is so loving and sweet but has a tough side too. She loves her Daddy fiercely but on occasions still demands a Mommy snuggle :) She is always watching the older kids and tries her best to keep up, and does a great job of it. I am often asked how old she is because her verbal skills far exceed her age. She makes the funniest faces and has perfected the pouty lip. Her favorite color is pink! and she makes sure everyone knows it. I have overheard on the playground many times say, "My name is Olivia, what is your name?" and when ever Ryan gets home from work she greets him with a, "How was your day, Dad?" I love that she mostly calls me "Mama". She says it with such warmth.

Our family is so lucky to have such a spunky, sweet little girl!

Pow Wow

The kids' school has a Thanksgiving Pow Wow with a feast included. Chase decorated his Indian costume and chose the name Prince Green. He choses green a lot for school projects because it is my favorite color, mama's boy ;) Olivia made a very sweet pilgrim girl. She was really getting into the music, it was adorable!

5 Months Old

William is now 5 months old. He is so busy. He is constantly grabbing for things and shoves everything in his mouth. I went to Michael's, the craft store, yesterday and carried him around in the front pack. Everything I picked up to look at he frantically grabbed for and shoved it straight into his mouth. My days of front packing are numbered as soon he will out reach me. He loves toys and playing. He is pretty good at sitting up. One day he does great and sits up by himself and the next day he tips right over, so we are working on it. He really is a super sweet little guy, always smiling. He loves watching the kids play and Chase can get him giggling with just a smile. He isn't sleeping through the night, or even close, but he will lay down and put himself to sleep (instead of needing to be nursed or rocked) which is very handy.

Playground Antics

We love our new princess scooter!
William loves watching all the goings on of his big brother and sister. I am sure he will be right in there in no time.
Fancy jumping :)

Meet Hettie

As if we didn't have enough going on, we recently decided to get a dog. We had been thinking of getting a dog but have been putting it off since we were adding a new baby to the family. We have been following a particular breeder and noticed they had some older puppies, who were already house broken and crate trained so jumped on it. We have had her about a month now and things are going well, not to say I haven't had a few days where I wanted to send her back ;)

She is very smart and has learned several commands and quickly picked up our routine. Having the play set out back is great, we all just run around and spend the afternoon playing together. It has been interesting watching the kids around the dog. They are generally very sweet but have tested the boundaries a bit. Thankfully, Hettie has a very laid back personality and has been very tolerant. It is amazing how quickly the novelty wears off. The first week everybody loved walking the dog, Chase can manage the leash himself, and was loving it. Then- Done. Nobody likes walking the dog anymore. Good thing I got Ryan to commit to being the official dog walker before we bought her ;)