The ups and downs of Christmas Break...

The Poinsettia Tree at the Lauritzen Gardens.

Let’s start it off with the ups, shall we…

1. Daddy’s home.
2. Getting a lot of house projects done and a lot of organizing.

3. I’ve been spoiled with husband time/family time/me time/sleep time!
4. Kids on Christmas Day!
5. Good Food and lots of movies!

The downs of Christmas break...

1. Trying once again to transition Ethan and Autumn into the same room.
2. Once Christmas day was over, we were ready to see family.
3. Between three kids we have been to the doctor 6 times this month, and myself twice. That's a lot of doctor time.
4. Freezing rain and sub-zero temperatures.
5. Vehicle Dramas. Flat tires on the jeep, and a broken drivers side window on the car. FUN!

But the pictures are priceless.


This was the kids "Santa Claus Tree". This is the one they wanted Santa to visit. They made most of the decorations themselves, and the beauty of this tree is that I didn't have to care too much about the decorations on it being ruined or moved. I love that all the balls are clumped together, right in the front where Autumn hung them. Ethan was a little bit more particular about where he put his. Plus it was a real tree and it smelled so good. There favorite thing to do was to take the laundry (that I had just cleaned that was waiting to be folded on the couch) and hide it from me behind the tree, and sometimes in the water under the tree. Infact, it was there favorite hidding place.

So proud of her Christmas Tree.
Autumn is such a cute little Mommy. "Monkey see, Monkey do," is what comes to mind. She has done everything with this baby that Mommy does with "Carger." She loves her g's.

Transitioning into Ethan's room has really started to take it's toll on our little girl. We came up to check on them, and Ethan had somehow managed to squeeze his 4 year old body into Autumn's size 12 month dress, and this was the last layer of underwear Autumn had on when I got home. Dad forgot the camera in his frustration.

Camping out in the basement. Ethan had been wanting to camp out with his Dad for the longest time, and Corey promised him that over the Christmas break they would do it. Let's just say Corey's had better sleep than he did that night with Ethan being his second pair of skin and farting in his face, and "slash lights" in the eyes, but all in all it was a good father-son bonding night.
Just the boys.

Christmas Day. She was thrilled with all her girly garb! Talk about a shoe fest. She loves shoes.

Usually kids are so excited to open presents that they run downstairs in their PJ's, but not ours. When they woke up, we went into their room and I asked Ethan to guess who came last night, and he said, "Grammy and Grandpa?" I was a little shocked to hear him say that, but he had just woken up, so I gave him another shot. Then he said, "Nanny and Grandpa?" So I gave him the hint of the big guy in the red suit, and he said, "Okay. Let me get dressed first."

And getting dressed was his favorite thing to do. All Ethan wanted for Christmas was BATMAN! Everything Batman. I quit counting how many different times he changed that day. Just too many options. This kid has got such an imagination and the facial expressions to boot. Good thing Santa caught the day after Halloween specials.

And Iron Man as well. AKA "Iron E"
And last but not least, our Fairy Princess.

This feels like it should've been a Halloween post! Hope you all have a Happy New Year! Looking forward to it.

Gobble, Gobble, Gobble... Blog, Blog, Blog...

Each taking there turn with the Santa hat.

A face that melts her Daddy's heart. Good thing Mom can see through it, sometimes.

What would the world be like without Nanny? THANK YOU, MOM!

Welcome to the family little guy.

Oh, so sweet.

On Santa's Nice List...

They had a blast having Grammy and Grandpa to themselves!

Now what would give you the idea that Autumn wants to be like Ethan?

My dear friend Carissa took these pictures for us, and they just turned out so cute, I had to post them.

Ethan is such a sweet brother.

Ahh, and finally the entire brood. Kinda takes my breath away.

We'll just get right down to it. The pictures are the funnest part of the blog anyway, right? Life is only getting better. We had a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday. We had Larry and Shaun out for the weekend, and what a relief! IT WAS AWESOME! We ate, and ate, and ate, and ate... and slept... YOu get the idea. Gained a few pounds for sure, but enjoyed every minute of it. Ethan loved having Grandpa around to throw him around a little bit. Autumn didn't really care who they were, as long as they'd read her a book. She was a little shy of Grandpa for some reason though. And Carter kept there laps warm for sure. It was really nice to have some company.

November has been a lot of fun. Lots of transitioning, lots of growing. Carter is now a month old. 5 weeks to be exact. He's finally starting to fill our a little bit. He weighs a little over 11 pounds now. He's starting to smile a lot now, and not just because he passed gas. He's as cute as ever. Ethan and Autumn still adore him. Autumn is right on top of the diaper changing time. She gets all the equipment out we need and then some. And Ethan is the pro burper. That's his contribution to the Carter tasks of the day.

Corey is another year older, and hopefully another year wiser. He is neck deep in Dental School and Halo parties. Can't wait for Christmas break! We might actually get to see him for a bit. Looking forward to it.

With all the rush of getting food prepared and juggling kids, I missed the spirit of the Thanksgiving Holiday. You know, that being thankful part, and I didn't get a chance to tell anyone! So now you have to bare with me. Don't worry, I'll keep it simple. The first thing that came to mind was parents. WOW! So happy to be alive. Don't know how they did it, and how they did it so well. My husband, of course, who keeps me grounded. Trials, that keep me alive and living, and of course my three adorable children.

Life just doesn't get any better than this... Unless it involves more sleep.