Friday, December 31, 2010

Christmas Part II (In Pictures)

Here are some fabulous cookies that will most likely become an annual tradition! They were so cute that Z decided he wanted to make one, too. See bottom right:)

 A close-up of the buttery goodness:)
 Christmas Eve Christmas with Ben's mom.
 Christmas Day at Muggas. Lots of presents!
 My beautiful sister and her hubby!
 Z was actually quiet for at least a half an hour while playing with his new engine toy from mommy and daddy. My future mechanic!
 Samuel putting together his new Toy Story legos with his favorite Uncle Tim!
 Mugga grabbing some snuggle time with Miss E.
 Mugga, what did you do to my hair?!
 Mommy, I need a bow or something!
 The boys loving their new robes made by Mugga!
 Some of the games and puzzles the boys recieved for Christmas!

And do you think the boys have been happily playing with all of their new toys since we've been home?

No. They have only been interested in playing wii and playing with old random toys that they've never really cared about before!

Boys.

Wednesday, December 29, 2010

Christmas 2010

It was with some guilt that I totally ignored my blog for the past week! But, hey, who has time to blog when they are traveling 7 hours, spending their first day of vaca sick, going to FIVE Christmas parties/events and going back home again? Not me!

Our Christmas break in a nutshell:

~Had a hard time shaking the leftovers of my flu and spent last Thursday feeling really crummy:( But thankfully felt great the rest of the trip!

~Thankful that no one else in my family got the flu esp after being exposed a second time by my sister's family (who, very sadly, ALL came down with the flu on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day)

~Had Christmas parties on Friday, 2 on Saturday, 1 on Sunday and 1 on Monday! Whew!

~Eliana started sleeping FANTASTICALLY after a crappy day on Thursday. She slept between 6-7 hours a night the last 4 nights! Andmayormaynothavedonethatinhercarseat3times....ahem. I'm hoping she'll keep going with this!

~Ate lots of yummy food. Lots. Yummy.

~Made snowman cookies with my mom that were not only cute but very good!

~Had a girls' day out on Monday that consisted of a trip to my very favorite accessories store, Charming Charlie's, and lunch at the Cheesecake Factory (minus the cheesecake) and a quick run to Auntie Ann's with my sis. It was Eliana's first girl's day:)

~Enjoyed 2 days meeting my mom's new Basset Hound Puppy, Winston Oliver Stanley DeLeon I:) Almost makes me want a puppy! (until I remember that I have 3 puppies of my very own...)

~Was blessed with 4 brand new tires for our van, plus a car wash and a full tank of gas!! Many, many heartfelt thank you's to my MIL and Ben's grandma!! Our van is very happy.

~Did not take nearly as many pictures as I wanted to because I was too busy to remember to pull out my camera!

~I am now the proud new owner of a very pink and very girly wii controller:) haha. Ben surprised me with the remote and a new wii game for Christmas!

~Left yesterday and had a very uneventful trip home (yea!) and am now surrounded by tons and tons of stuff to unpack and organize. Better get busy!! Pictures to come soon!

Wednesday, December 22, 2010

O-H

I-O!

It only took 7 hours of traveling this time but we are here in Ohio for Christmas safely! The boys are SOOOO excited to be here and are already begging to open presents. How they are going to make it 2 more days seeing all the presents piled under the tree, I'll never know.

To be a child and experience that excitement again....:)

Tuesday, December 21, 2010

2 Months

Our sweet girl was 2 months yesterday but since I was sick, I couldn't celebrate. I am feeling SOOO much better, by the way. Except for a bum hip from being in bed all day? Or getting old? Which Samuel told me I was the other day. We were playing a game and he said, "Zakkai goes first, then me, then you because you are old." I said, "Old?!! You think I'm old?!" To which he replied, "Well... just a little old." So there you have it.

Ahem.

Ms Eliana has wrapped her sweet, chubby self around each and every one of our fingers in her 2 months here!
(See, Emily? She and Alaina can match! One of my very favorite outfits!)
 She wasn't feelin' me taking her picture today as we tortured her with shots and she wasn't feeling so hot. As in, all of the sudden this afternoon, several hours after shots, she woke up and cried inconsolably for 45 minutes before tylenol kicked in and she fell asleep on my chest :(
 Anyways, Ms Chub-chub weighs 10lbs 15.5oz and grew an inch and a half in the past month and is now 22 1/2 inches long! The boys weight over 11 lbs at their ONE month check-ups:)

How she is changing:
 She is starting to hold onto our hands and her own hands a lot!
 She is cross-eyed less than last month but still makes some pretty cute cross-eyed baby faces!

Her hair is turning blonder all the time!

Her eyes are still a deep blue and I don't expect them to change.

She is a VERY happy baby when she gets good sleep.

And speaking of sleep, she is so not consistent and it drives.me.nuts. She was in a great groove for a good week or so of sleeping 7:30pmish to 12:30amis after she got over her "crazy spell." And I fully expected it to keep on going but she rebelled on Friday, waking up every 2 hours. Sigh. She has good days and bad days and we can't figure out why. At least she puts herself to sleep much, much better after much hard work on our part! Maybe she'll kick back into groove tonight...

She loves to smile and show off her gorgeous dimple (LOVE it!) and she almost laughed one day.

She is starting to talk more and more and tell us many stories.

Sometimes she smiles and then all of the sudden it turns into a little fuss and her bottom lip sticks out. It is totally endearing:)

She is definitely more of a fusser/whiner/squawker than a screamer. When she screams, which is rare, I know something is definitely up like overtiredness...or shots:(

She is beautified daily by her brothers who love to pick out hairbows and clothes:)

She is loved.

Monday, December 20, 2010

Sick

The Mama-Shop is closed for the day. Sick, sick and more sick! I was attacked by a random flu in the middle of the night while feeding the baby. All of the sudden the room started spinning around like crazy and before I knew it I was nauseous and throwing up. Ugh.  I suppose I should be glad it's happening today and not on Christmas (which happened to me once as a little girl) but who wants to be sick ever? And when you have kids to care for?

E and I have spent pretty much the whole day in bed:( Here's to hoping I feel better tomorrow!

Sunday, December 19, 2010

My Spunkmeister

I can't believe how much Zakkai has grown up lately. Not only does he look more and more like and older boy (skinny and taller) but he is maturing in his thinking, too. But there is just enough of my baby in there that still wants to sit in my lap and have me read him stories or cuddle. He still falls asleep in the car at nap time and still adores his "rays" and sucks his first finger:) He tucks his hand in mine when we walk.  He's still my baby, even if he's almost 4!

This spunky child of mine has enough spark to bring life to any household! He is currently very much enjoying all of the benefits of Christmas: presents, lights, Christmas trees, snow... He reminds us everyday to turn the tree lights on. I wonder where this 2+ year light obsession will take him in life. An electrician? Something mechanical since he loves to push buttons so much? A professional tree decorator? ha! 

This afternoon while the baby was sleeping and the boys were engrossed in a movie, I decided to sneak into their room to wrap presents. Zakkai got curious after awhile and just happened to pop into the bedroom just as I was finishing wrapping his present! And once he saw the great fun he was missing out on, he stuck to me like glue tape. He insisted on tearing off pieces of tape for me and "helping" me, talking non-stop all the while. Sometimes my head is full of his voice! I ended up giving him scraps of wrapping paper to practice wrapping on.

He decided to wrap up toys that he claims he doesn't want anymore. After several minutes, Samuel, who must've sensed fun going on without him, burst through the door and Zakkai flipped out and started shrieking, "No, no, Samuel! You can't look! I am wrapping up old toys that I don't want anymore! You can't see!" :)

And so Samuel had to get in on the action and now our tree skirt is "decorated" with boy-wrapped books and toys:) And I am minus much tape!
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The boys haven't asked for much for Christmas, thankfully. They love presents like any other spoiled American child, but aren't in the age of begging for every toy they've seen on tv or in the store. (Again: Thankfully!) We have tried to talk to them a lot about the meaning of Christmas and that is isn't all about presents. But when Zakkai realized he was getting a present from us, he would not stop asking me about it. "Can I see it? Where is it? Can I just see it? Why not? But it IS Christmas now! But can I see it? Plleeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeaaaaaaaaaassssssssseeeeeeeeeee?" Until I thought I would go nuts! I gotta say this child is persistent!

And sweet.

And spunky.

And I wouldn't have him any other way:)

Friday, December 17, 2010

Family Pictures

A few of my favorite family pictures:)






Thursday, December 16, 2010

The Nativity Story 2010

For your enjoyment:
 
 
Until tomorrow....:)

Merry Christmas!

To add to the festive Christmas spirit, I thought I'd give my blog a little "makeover" for a couple of weeks;)

Hopefully my Christmas family pics will arrive tomorrow and I can share a few "sneak peeks." Hope you're having a great Thursday!

Tuesday, December 14, 2010

Past Decembers

A Walk down Memory Lane....
 December 2005~ Samuel age 5 1/2 mos
December 2006~ Samuel age 17 1/2 mos. Zakkai age -2mos:)


 
December 2007~ Samuel age 2 1/2, Zakkai age 10 months

 December 2008~ Samuel (3rd from R) age 3 1/2, Zakkai (on L) age 22 mos

 More favorites from 2008:)


December 2009~ Samuel age 4 1/2, Zakkai age almost 3

Amazing how much they change! Stay tuned soon for December 2010!

Monday, December 13, 2010

Monday Cuteness

How's this for cuteness?!
 Pretty good, if I don't say so myself;)
 In the arms of the Master Burper, as I call him!
 The Dreaded Tummy Time: I think, I think I can...
 I did!!
More sweet daddy love:) One blessed little girl!!
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*It's been a busy life these past 7+ weeks (how can it be that long already?!) with 3 kiddos. I have had some very overwhelmed moments, feeling like I am failing all 3 of them and they'll be ruined for life! Like the moments where dinner is bubbling on the stove or half chopped on the cutting board, the baby is crying and pitifully tired or hungry, Samuel is claiming he is bored and driving me nuts and I am trying to stop Zakkai from plugging things in outlets (a newfound joy of his)...and ALL at the same time! Those times, I feel like I could scream and I am just positive that every other mother out there knows how to handle those moments with grace and ease and I am lacking some vital mothering element that God forgot to give me. But in my sane moments, I know that isn't true:) I am doing the best I can.

*In these past weeks I have been stretched many different ways with not enough of me to go around! But I have been praying for patience and grace, especially towards the boys and I do feel much more peaceful! I have had some good times with them lately, playing games and trains, coloring and building lego houses. I was becoming a "No Mom" it seemed but I am really trying to stop and spend time with them, even if only for a few minutes here and there. I want to fill up my boys' hearts with mommy-love as much as I can! I want to say "Yes!" much more often and fill this home with a positive, joyful spirit. (remind me of this next week, please!)

*This week is a busy week, being the last week of school before Christmas break. I have to make small gifts for all the teachers (there are 5!), mail out Christmas packages, pray for a million dollar check to come in the mail...you know, that sort of thing! Tomorrow, Z has a field trip and will be gone all day (til S gets out of school) so I have almost 6 hours with one child (how easy that will seem!!) to run errands and maybe sneak in a nap:)

*Speaking of sleeping, the poor baby is getting the shaft with her afternoon napping due to 2 certain unmentionable little children who keep waking her up. She can sleep through normal noise...it's the thundering of their feet as they race past her door like a herd of elephants or the shrieking of Zakkai when Samuel pesters him (which happens often) or the slamming of their bedroom door as they play a silly game. She had had enough this evening and cried like I have never heard her before:( It took me a good hour and a half to get her calmed down and settled into a deep enough sleep so she could stay asleep. Funny how overtired babies sleep worse than well-rested ones! Must think of a solution to the afternoon napping problem that doesn't involve muzzles....:)

Well, that's the story for today! I should probably go get ready for the morning. It comes all too quickly...

Sunday, December 12, 2010

Snowy Day

Today I woke up to

 And since the roads were
We decided not to go to

So we had peach

for breakfast! And while those were cooking, I put a

in the oven! My very first one:) It looked just like this and I followed the instructions exactly but it got ruined. Mostly because I think something is wrong with our

.
We did end up having yummy mashed potatoes and gravy, fresh greenbeans and homemade bread so that was good! Then the boys and I spent some time playing

while we listened to Christmas music on the

I was able to finish buying a few more

online (I did the rest yesterday with all the other crazy people at the store!) and am desperately trying to buy one of these
on ebay and keep getting outbid! But I relaxed after getting all the kids into bed with a little

And now my day is done. Good night!

Friday, December 10, 2010

Today

Today I:
*Am half-crippled. Last night I fell down the stairs at someone else's house, got my foot slammed in the door by a young child (not mine), slipped on the ice and fell in the snow while carrying the baby (in her carseat). She is completely fine. I am not. Hence the crippling.

 *Ate Peppermint Oreos. Whoever invented them had a stroke of genius. They are pretty and very yummy. Note to self: Do not have pretty and yummy oreos in the house when trying to lose the last 5lbs of baby weight. You will not win.
*Got extra playtime with Zakkai. We forgot to check the calendar (again.) and didn't realize until we got to school that preschool was off for the day! Zakkai was very happy to have some mommy time:)

*Am very proud of my little girl! She is becoming a champ at putting herself to sleep and taking great naps and longer stretches of night sleep. Woo!
 *Realized (at 2am) that I probably should work on getting Christmas gifts. Because it is 2 weeks away. It's not like I've had anything else to distract me from thinking about this!
*Am excited about getting our family picture taken tomorrow AND getting a date with the hubby for the first time since our anniversary in March. Eliana gets to come with us:)

*Listened to Samuel read the very first book that I ever read by myself; "The Town Mouse and the Country Mouse." And he read from my copy of it, too! Proud moment:)

Any guesses on what we were doing in these pictures?

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