Relaxing

I'm enjoying this week very much. No shopping, no wrapping, no excessive cleaning, no party menus to plan and cook. As a kid, I never understood why grown ups always seemed so relieved when the holidays were over. I get it now! It is the most wonderful and certainly my favorite time of the year, but...throw in two small kids and can be a bit chaotic at times. So this week are RELAXING Florida style! Chilly mornings that keep us under blankets on the couch and warmer afternoons that are perfect for park play dates. It's been a great week!

She is loving her lady bug pillow pet from Caroline!

Tuesday morning we had frost on the car!

Just clapping away on an afternoon walk

He loves the sidewalk chalk and only occasionally will he take a big bite of it!

His shirt says, "I Still Live at Home" :)

Bridget was in heaven when these big girls were practically fighting each other to play with her. They were so sweet and Bridget has been talking about them ever since!

No, you're not seeing things. He really IS that cute!

New big sister, Sammy, teaching Katherine and Ross the ropes about the playground!

Lately, when Ross gets fussy in the car Bridget will reach her hand out for him. It's the sweetest thing ever and he always stops fussing!

Happy New Year from Florida!

Exactly What we Hoped For

Christmas weekend is just about over, but there is plenty of Christmas still left in the house. Opened and unopened gifts are scattered in just about every room of the house; the trees are still lit; the stockings were emptied and are now rehung on the staircase; and there are plenty of leftovers piled up in the fridge and on the countertops. And there are four very happy people in the house. All the little things finally added up to one amazing morning.

We got all dressed up for church on Christmas Eve and attempted a picture...

Since Todd and I moved into this house 4 years ago, we've hosted Christmas Eve here for our family and a few friends. It's fun and casual and a tradition we intend on keeping for a long time.

Bridget's 1st gift! A tea party table and new tea set from Grandma and Grandpa Johnston!

The obligatory picture in front of the tree...maybe by the time the kids are 10 and 8 years old they'll want to smile and look at the camera!

The reindeer food wasn't exactly "sprinkled" on the lawn. She pretty much dumped it out in one big heap, but I think the reindeer found us anyway!

We put the kids to bed and lugged the train table into the house. Todd thought maybe it'd be as simple as popping the legs onto the table, piecing together a few tracks, and we'd be done.

No.

I'll spare you the details, but we were up very, very late and learned a valuable lesson for the future.

We woke up together-not too terribly early-and Bridget ran out our room and peeked downstairs and saw the tree. It was the exact reaction we've been waiting for. Todd and I acted all bewildered and surprised when she told us there were presents under the tree. We flew downstairs and lived out our Christmas morning visions!

The train table was nestled in the corner of the dining room because I didn't want her to see it from upstairs. I wanted her to find it when she walked in the room.

And you probably know what happened next. She ripped through every present and gave a big gasp with a "Oh my goodness!" for each one.

Ross enjoyed all the commotion and was happy to see some new toys to play with. Bridget kindly opened all of his presents for him, which I'm sure will be a first and a last!

Here's a Christmas morning first...little boy toys!

Other than dinner last night at my parents, we've been at home all weekend enjoying each other and some fun new things. Oh-and a few rounds of the 24 hour marathon of A Christmas Story!

No reason to be sad about Christmas coming to an end. We have something else exciting coming up...

Rossy Boy is turning 1 very, very soon!

Finishing Touches

We're almost there...

This week we managed to check every last thing off of our Christmas To-Do List. Starting with building a gingerbread house. Our BFF, Courtney, came over with donuts and presents and to give us a hand. Courtney is due with her first baby this March and we can't wait for Baby Huling to join us in all of our fun! I'm fully prepared to spoil and love her baby as much as she does my kids!

Gumdrops and Sprinkles

Bridget had cameras coming at her from every angle!

All done and ready to display at our Christmas Eve party!

Love him or hate him, the kids have to see Santa! I'll let you figure out who loved him and who didn't love him so much...

While visiting Santa's Wonderland, Bridget kept close to the train table. A train table is at the very top of her list this year and she is quite certain Santa will come through for her.

I only taught 1st grade for a year and a half, but I brought with me many, many Christmas traditions that will live in our house for a long time. Reindeer food is a special treat for Santa's crew. It's fun to make, but will even more fun to sprinkle on the lawn tomorrow night before bed.

Sprinkle this reindeer food outside tonight.

The moonlight will make it sparkle bright.

As the reindeer fly and roam.

This will guide them to your home.

Tonight we roasted marshmallows and made s'mores in our driveway with our new fire pit...or as Bridget called it, a "campout". Much like crafting, Ross and fire do not mix. He was put to bed early!

One thing that is not checked off the list, is the wrapping.

Time to get back to work! Merry Christmas friends and family, can't wait to share our special day with you soon!