Christmas in Orlando

Santa dropped off gifts on the 23rd at our house because he knew we were going to be away at my parents' house.  Excited, Brian and I got up early that morning and waited for the kiddos to get up and see their gifts. We usually hope that they sleep in but that morning we could hardly wait for them to get up. Maddie woke up first. Oliver came into our room a few minutes later. We told him about the presents and he ran straight to the tree. Maddie was still in her room, and so he brought her a gift.  I ran  for the camera. They played with their toys most of the day and we left for my parents' house the next day.

Oliver's got major bed-head!

 One of his favorite gifts was his workbench. He loves playing with tools.

Maddie got a baby doll and a little stroller/walker.

Grandma Hayden sent gifts from Connecticut.  A Thomas the Train book for Oli and a Princess book for Maddie.  Oli has been taking the princess book everywhere we go because he loves all the songs it plays. ha!  Thanks Grandma !

In Orlando we met up with our dear friends Marshall, Melissa and baby Charlotte who were visiting from Naples.  It was so good to see them! 

I really wanted a picture of the whole group so Brian set up the camera on top of a garbage can and this is what we got.  For the record, that is Charlotte in the other stroller.

 We had a good time at my parents' house. Yummy food as usual :)

It was a very special Christmas!

Christmas show at Preschool

Now I know how it feels to be proud of your child when they're in a school show, no matter how small the part is.  Oli is in the first row in the aqua blue shirt. I think he did a great job! 

After the show all the kids got to sit on Santa's lap.

   

And we enjoyed goodies in the classroom party.

Maddie - 7 months old

Madelyn is 7 months old! Here she is modeling a beautiful crochet outfit that Grandma Funes made for her. I went crazy taking pictures and had a REALLY hard time choosing a few to post.  

A quick update: She sleeps about 12 hours at night, yey! She loves butternut squash, peas, blueberries and sweet potatoes.  She does not like bananas.  She loves staring at Oliver and laughing at all the silly things he does.  She gets excited when she sees Brian come home from work.  She loves to cuddle and if she could have it her way, she would be held 24 hours a day. 

She's a happy girl!

   

Elf Night at Dorothy B. Oven Park

Dorothy B. Oven Park is a fun place to visit during the holidays. It is decorated with lots of pretty lights and cool things to look at. On Elf Night many young families wander around the park and enjoy the lights, eat cookies, and drink hot chocolate. Oliver and Madelyn were content seeing Santa from a distance. Maybe next year we'll be one of those families lined up for hours waiting to sit on Santa's lap.

Madelyn was really into the reindeer.

Christmas cookies

A few days ago Oliver and I had fun baking Christmas cookies and making a mess. I was juggling a few batches in and out of the oven, decorating with Oliver and acting silly to distract Madelyn while she waited in her exersaucer. She eventually started crying so I turned around to switch batches and pick her up. In those 2 minutes Oli had "decorated" a batch of cookies and taken a bite off about 7 of them! It was funny to see him concentrate as he decorated. Brian didn't seem to mind what the cookies looked like. They were all gone in 2 days! 

What an adorable little baker! 

Notice all the flour on his shirt.

The lovely cookies decorated by Oli. 

Some of these gingerbread men are missing heads or legs.

These are the cookies that I decorated :)

Oli preferred his cookies.

Ready for Christmas!

This past Saturday we played Christmas music all morning, put up the tree and enjoyed drinking hot apple cider. This year Christmas is more fun because Oliver talks and understand so much more than last year. We've been talking about baby Jesus and reading a bunch of Christmas books. Every afternoon we play Christmas music and dance around the house. His favorite song is "Santa Claus is coming to town." Madelyn gets excited when she sees Oliver dance. If only she knew how magical she and Oliver make the holidays!!! We're sooooo grateful for our two little gifts from above; we love seeing life through their eyes.   

Little helper #1

Little helper #2

"Relaxing" on the couch.

These are a few pics from Thanksgiving Day at our house.  

My mom cooked the turkey and it was yummy as usual!

This is the only photo that Oliver cooperated for.

Madelyn- 6 Months old

Unlike her brother, Madelyn is lucky if she gets an update on the blog every few months. Sometimes she has been doing something new for a few weeks before I get a photo. She is 6 months old and is rolling over. She often gets stuck and upset when she's not able to roll back. She reaches for anything in sight and puts everything in her mouth. So far she's eaten rice cereal, butternut squash, carrots and sweet potatoes. 

 Sweet potato mess 

Happy Halloween

Happy Halloween! We went to a Trunk or Treat and had fun collecting candy.  

This is the ugliest pumpkin I've ever seen.

 Firefighter and Little Frog

  

Eating junk.