This and That

Addison is ready for a high chair! This also means that Chris has to put more things together...

No one, and I mean NO ONE can make Addison laugh the way that Sydney can!

Spa Day Gone Wrong

I received a paraffin spa for Christmas. The whole idea was that Syd and I could do at home spa days together. So we busted open the wax, did our hands and feet. We even took huge bubble baths with candles all around with masks on our faces. It was really fun, until.....

Syd apparently had an allergic reaction to the face mask. :(

Christmas Morning

Sydney could barely sleep Christmas Eve. She kept asking what time Santa would arrive and if she could see him. I love having her at an age now where she can barely stand the excitement. She woke up super early, as we expected and was bouncing around wanting to open her presents. But first, she had to see that Santa at the milk and cookies she left out for him!

Another cool thing about having a little sister that is too little to do much of anything for herself is that the big sister gets to open HER presents too!

Sydney wrote to Santa this year and I told her that she had to choose ONE present that she really wanted in her letter. Santa is very busy and has to make toys for all the children in the world and it's not fair to ask for several. But she can ask for one. One that she wanted more than anything. She chose a Bitty Baby Doll. Good thing she made it on the Nice list (it was touch and go for a while).

Lala and Papa came over for our Christmas breakfast and came in time to see everyone open a few presents...and to help feed the baby girl

Lala is hiding

Sydney set the table

While Addison jumped in her jumperoo like a crazy animal 

 

This face. I love this girl so much, it hurts. 

Christmas Eve

It's Christmas Eve, both kids were successfully bathed and dressed in their Christmas dresses. I'm also on time enough to snap a photo of them in front of the tree before we speed off to church. Granted this means that Mom has approximately 15 minutes to get showered, dressed and ready. Time is not something I have a lot of these days, and I'm perfectly ok with that! So very thankful this year to have two beautiful and healthy daughters to love on every day of my life. We are very blessed and thank God every day for these blessings.

 

How cute is Addison's little smile here?

  

All I needed was five more minutes and this would've been a family shot. But, instead, it's the girls! Thank you Dad!

I'm not too fond of our other tradition, which is to save all of the present wrapping until Christmas Eve. Life is busy, so we sometimes live in survival mode. I'm pretty proud that I was able to get all the shopping finished, so if that means that I have to wrap on Christmas Eve, so be it. I love seeing Sydney's reaction when she wakes in the morning to see what Santa brought her.

Santa Claus: Take 3

As I mentioned in a previous post, Sydney was too scared to sit on Santa's lap at the Murphy's holiday party. The tears that happened after that were insane. She was afraid that Santa would never know what she wanted for Christmas. First step, we wrote a letter just so Santa would know exactly what she wanted. Second step was trying to find Santa again. We headed to the mall before we went to my parents Christmas party and the line was ridiculous! Sadly, the girls were dressed all cute and ready for photos too. Boo! So we decided to give it a third shot and get there early! Granted, things never work out as planned with a baby because you're at the mercy of their schedule. The line wasn't terrible when we got there, so about 40 minutes later we got to see Mr. and Mrs. Claus.

Neighbor Christmas Gifts

This year we got a little crafty with our neighbor gifts. We used our dehydrator to make some potpourri. It was really fun and the whole family got involved. We cut up oranges and lemons and dehydrated them. Then we put them in baggies with cinnamon, allspice and cloves. Syd helped to decorate the labels with her markers and even helped cut them out with fancy scissors. She really enjoyed ringing all the neighbor's doorbells and wishing them a Merry Christmas as she handed the gifts out.

We made the Murphy's an extra special gift this year. We've gotten really close with them and wanted to make them a nice basket with all types of goodies. Assortments of coffees and hot cocoa. Two Starbucks coffee mugs and two fun hot cocoa mugs for the girls. Lots of chocolates and snacks as well. Chris has become quite the gift basket purchaser!

McKenna Christmas Party

We celebrated Christmas a little bit early this year with my family because my parents decided they were going to head up to Prescott on Christmas this year. It's been pretty hard going through the first holiday's without Gigi and we all tear up at random moments. I especially miss her when we head to church because she used to always save us a seat next to her. I never had to worry about how late we would get there, she would have us covered. She would always compliment Sydney's outfit, which Syd ate up! It's just sad not having her around anymore and we miss her terribly. The kids still had a blast opening gifts and it always takes an army to get the baby toys out of the packaging and batteries put in them.

Lala is always eager to hold the baby girl. 

 

Hey look, it's me!

Sydney ordering up a drink so that she doesn't dehydrate opening up her mountain of gifts

 Does she look happy, or does she look happy? 

 

 Mommy and Sydney Reese 

 

 Uncle Jason helping Seamy open his gifts 

 

 Papa was put on baby toy assembly duty 

 

Hello Kitty!!

 

He did it!!! A good boyscout always has his pocket knife on him.

 

 Merry Christmas, baby girl. May your star always shine this bright.

Neighborhood Christmas Party at the Murphy's

Emily had mentioned to me that every year, Santa makes a personal appearance at their house. Being as shy as I am, I asked if we could come by to say hi to the big guy as well. The Murphy's are seriously the crazy Christmas family in the neighborhood. Not only can their outdoor decorations be seen from outer space, but all of the pictures on her walls inside even change to Christmas themed ones. It's AWESOME! Makes me look like a chump for putting out my ten decorations each year and complaining about how much work that takes. Anyways, not only was Emily happy to have us come, but she invited the rest of the kids in the neighborhood too! It was seriously such an awesome party with more food (from Olive Garden....YUM!) than anyone could ever imagine. Santa arrived right on schedule as well. Sadly though, Syd was a little too freaked out to sit on his lap and tell him what she wanted for Christmas.

 

Santa arrived and all the kids were freaking out!!!!

 

All the kids had gone up to sit on his lap except Sydney. Megan tried to coax her into doing it by picking her up and carrying her to him. It didn't work and just freaked her out even more!

 

I think Santa is explaining to Emily why she's on the naughty list again this year.

Chilly Willy

Addison definitely has her Daddy's circulation. The poor baby gets the chilliest hands and feet! I purchased these bunny slippers back when I was pregnant with Sydney when we lived in Evanston. I found them at the most adorable baby store. Same store that I purchased her bunny blanket and letters in her name that are hung on her wall from. They seriously make me giddy when I see them on her feet though.

My perfect little baby girl. Don't you want to just smooch that face?

 

Big Sissy always wants to jump in the photos too

Gingerbread Trains

Sydney has fallen in love with our tradition of making a gingerbread house every year. Thankfully, this year Lala had one that she bought and never used with the kids. We were kind enough to take it off of her hands and make ourselves! Sydney actually used it for a school project. win win!

She's very serious about her decorating. She decorated this entire train and house by herself. Only once in a while she would ask for help to get a straight line of frosting out. My little artist!

Little sisters want to do EVERYTHING that their big sisters do.

 The finished train! Everything rainbow...in perfect color formation, of course

   

 She was ringing her jingle bells for the photo. You can hear them, right?

 

2012 Photo Session