Visiting with Grandpa Bill and Tamara, Christmas 2012

(I know this post is so late, but I wanted to record our visit!) The day after Christmas, we let Leo recover for one more day from being sick and Olivia and Nicholas took some time to ride her new bike around the halls of Shelby Hall on campus and have a picnic in Nicholas's office. We packed up that night and set off for Grandpa Bill and Tamara's house the next day. That evening we had Christmas again at their house. Olivia opened all the presents, and there were a lot! Olivia always loves Grandpa Bill and Tamara, and our visit was really fun! Here are some pictures of the present openings:

Olivia trying on her zoo visor.

Tamara and Bill get the cutest clothes for the kids!

Olivia opened everyone's presents: Leo's, her's, Nicholas's, and mine!

Grandpa and Leo playing around.

Olivia trying on her fuzzy boots that went with her pink robe, which I have pictures of now to post later.

Our day delay made our visit too short, but we had a great time visiting while we were there! We got to see their new house currently under construction, and are super excited to visit them when they move in soon. We also got to see Tamara's office, which is impressive with her numerous staff! Olivia especially liked coloring and playing at Tamara's big desk while Grandpa and Daddy did some computer work.

Christmas 2012 -- Just the four of us!

It was so fun to see Olivia's reaction to Santa's visit! She was so excited in the morning...so excited that she woke up every hour from three AM to six AM asking if Santa ate his cookies. Leo didn't sleep well either because he was sick. Despite an early start, we were all pretty stoked!

Olivia was up early and ready for presents! She found her rainbow ribbon and glide bike right away!

Each time we opened a gift, we played with it for a while. She wanted to read each book, too!

Of course we had to put on all her princess pads and helmet and try out the bike! (Good thing weather delayed us from leaving for the northern relatives the next day. Instead, Daddy took Olivia to his office and they rode bikes in the halls!)

Thank you, Nicholas, for this camera and the beautiful pictures it takes of our children! I promise to learn more about it so that I can take even better pictures!

I'm always a second off of getting Leo's sweet grin. I will get it one of these days!

Taking some steps!

But it is easier when Mommy helps!

And after presents, homemade (mostly) carmel rolls! Heidi, the smaller pan worked better!

Another pose later that day!

Christmas Eve 2012 (At home with the kids!)

Christmas really snuck up on us this year. Work lingered for Nicholas, and the kids didn't get out of "school" until the Friday before. Then we all got sick. Leo and Olivia were very sick with coughing and fever, and I got it, too. Despite all the yuckiness of that, it was good to have an excuse to relax, watch more TV than usual, and kick around the house. We watched White Christmas one evening that I wasn't feeling well, and Olivia LOVED it. She really liked all the dancing and singing parts, so we made it through the two hour movie in about 25 minutes because we mostly skipped to just those. Here is a sweet video of her dancing to one clip. It's now a favorite!



Christmas Eve was a relaxed day around the house. We made an apple pie for us and oatmeal cookies for Santa and had a "fancy" dinner in the dining room. Leo amazed us by taking about eight unassisted steps out of nowhere! He had been taking a step or two or three and walking with strollers or walkers, but we had a little moment with him doing so much on his own.

Here he is walking Olivia's baby stroller. He isn't picky. He'll use anything with wheels, and he is good about turning it around and getting it unstuck!

Leo's favorite spot in the house continues to be the dishwasher!

Olivia helping with the pie crust.

Opening Grandma and Grandpa's present on Christmas Eve.

Starting our tradition of reading "The Night Before Christmas" on Christmas Eve.

After our "fancy" dinner, Olivia wanted to use the good plates to leave Santa's cookies. And she wanted to leave him some hot tea, too, in case he was cold! Totally her idea!

The view during the night after Santa came!

The Christmas Program, 2012 (Videos)

The entire program: It's over 8 minutes long. Olivia comes out at 4:30:

Leo's debut: This one is 15 seconds, and he is so cute!

Olivia's Meltdown: It's a little sad...

My new year's resolution

My new year's resolution is simply to be more grateful. Yes, I hope I make more time for yoga, lose the last of my baby weight, get our house more organized, and treasure all the little moments with Nicholas, Leo, and Olivia, but if I start with a grateful heart, I think the important things will rise to the top, and I will be able to let other things go.

I'll do some catch-up blog posts about Christmas and our travels when we get back and unpacked. We were delayed leaving Alabama due to weather, and then delayed leaving Indiana due to car troubles, so our schedule is late. But, we had a great visit with all the relatives, and the extra time with them was especially welcome since my parents are moving to ND this month.

To start out my resolution right, here is what I am grateful for right now: my husband for being the best packer and unpacker--doing it all without complaints--and driving us all back to Alabama, my sweet Leo sleeping for the first leg of the trip, and for clever Olivia "reading" the books Aunt Vicky bought her for Christmas! I have had tens of minutes of a break in the car to read about my new camera, check my email, and blog!

Christmas program, 2012

Olivia and Leo's first Christmas program was super sweet. Nicholas and I got there at about 9:45, and while we waited for the program to begin, they showed pictures of the children rehearsing on the projectors. I teared up. It was so cute to see the kids doing things without us. Just adorable. Nicholas videoed the whole program and did a great job, but I cannot seem to get it uploaded. Our video camera is AWESOME (thank you, Bill and Tamara!), but I am too ignorant to work well with it. Soon! The videos are really, really cute! In the mean time, here are some pictures from the new camera!

The older kids came on stage first and did a couple of songs. Then Olivia's class came out. There were angels and animals in her class. Olivia's halo immediately came off her head, and she handed it to her teacher. Then she saw me and waved and smiled.

And sang the first song: Silent Night. About half way through, she couldn't see me, I think, and began to look for me...

And got a little upset.

Then Leo came in with the shepherds, as cute as can be. And Olivia started to cry, so I went and got her off stage. That was the end of the program anyway. I asked her why she was upset, and she said that I wasn't talking. I said that I was in the audience and the audience was supposed to stay quiet. She said she just wanted me to talk. Sweet girl!

I definitely think Leo was the cutest and snuggliest lamb!

And after the program each class, except Leo's, had a birthday party for Jesus. So, off came the costumes...

And here comes the fun! Olivia loved having Mommy and Daddy in the room with her. (Sorry, Nicholas took photos of me with the kids, but I forgot to return the favor, and he didn't ask! Whoops!)

I brought Leo from his room to the party!

And everyone had cake!

Leo liked being in the big kids' room.

But was glad to have Mommy, too.

Olivia enjoyed showing off her "baby brother, Leo."

And Leo enjoyed showing off his almost walking skills.

Leo wanted cake, too.

Olivia got a case of the sillies.

And we all had a good time. Both kids were excited to come home early, too!

The Pennas came to town! Hooray!

Dear Diary,

It is happening! The Pennas came to town, and the kids played together enough so that we actually could have a little visit! It was awesome! They stopped by on their way to see their family for the holidays in Dallas. We had dinner together and the kids played while the adults got some visiting time! Olivia and Christopher are just six months apart, and Olivia was pretty ready to play with both boys, which I attest to this year at school. The boys were super well behaved for just having spent five and a half hours in a car. I see lots of visiting time in our future! We love the Pennas! Thanks for stopping, Juliet and Tony!