Christmiscellaney

We had a wonderfully whirlwind Christmas, starting at B’s parents’ house and ending at my parents’ house.  The girls hung in there well (I suppose the double dose of gifts didn’t hurt either).They had a fun morning of gifts at Grandma and Grandpa A’s house and a delicious breakfast cooked by Grandpa.Then we piled into the car and headed on our merry way.  K. had removed her shoes at this point—she pretty much takes them off at any opportunity.And N. in the car.  She rear-faces for safety, and will for quite a while longer.  Her fun view is mostly of herself in the mirror, though if you look closely you can see her giraffe that keeps her company.  K. makes her laugh often, too.Then we landed at Grandma and Grandpa L’s house.  There was time for much playing with Grandma, and more gifts to be opened.

The next morning, we got dressed up and went to church with Grandma and Grandpa.  After church, the girls played with a toy that K. had gotten the evening prior—a set of ice cream that is wooden and magnetized and scoopable.  It’s pretty cool!

The next morning, it was sadly time to head home.  I really miss our families, but I think the girls were ready to get back into their routine.

I hope your Christmas was very merry!

The Eve Before Christmas

As we did last year, we spent Christmas eve with the girls’ cousins.  We lined them up on the steps again for a picture, and this year, N. was old enough to sit on the steps.  Don’t worry—Dad was right nearby spotting her.

This was the best photo.  Next year, we’ll have to remember to do it earlier in the day, or bribe them.

This outtake was kinda cute, though.

And the sweet big sisters of the bunch:

Merry Christmas Eve!

Beauties (and a Beast)

Hurrah! K. is finally having a small amount of interest in looking at the camera and cooperating! I knew she could do it!

And really, could this kid be any more beautiful? I know, I’m a biased mother, but I’ll say it anyway.

And her sister was more interested in looking outside, but there were lots of interesting things out there. Quite a bit of snow, for one. She likes looking at the snow but is sad whenever she touches it—she doesn’t realize it is going to be quite so cold.

“D’ya think you can let the dog inside? I’d like to play with her.”

Sisters on the Move

The girls are pretty hard to keep up with these days.  When in the right moods, they play together so sweetly.  They mostly run and play, and don’t need a lot of toys (but I think as N. gets older and capable of different styles of play that will change).

Sorry the pictures are mostly blurry and off-center.  They capture the moments anyway.

N’s excited running with tongue and hands out:And a tuckered-out N. after playing:

Early Christmas

The girls got their first Christmas present—a gift from our friend J.—and opened it together.  I am optimistic of K’s ability to share with her sister.

N. was able to help K. tear into the gift, and I wish I had a better view of her smile in this picture, because it was darling!

Posing.  K. has become ever so slightly more cooperative in the last month or so when the camera is involved.  I am optimistic.

There is a lot of optimism in this post.

And the gift?  A huge princess puzzle!  K. started putting it together right away and Dad and N. helped.

Thank you, J., and Merry early Christmas to everyone!

Nativity

^“And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night.”

“An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified.”

“But the angel said to them, ‘Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord.’”

“This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”

We All Exist

Sorry for the delay in posting recently—I have several drafts and pictures piled up but have been spending my time crafting instead of typing.  Here’s an attempt to take our picture together.  It was after church so the littlest one was ready to take a nap, but we tried anyway.And here’s my beautiful girl, who was amazingly cooperative!

Shapes of all Sorts

This Thanksgiving, N. taught Grandpa how to use the shape sorter.“Gaaaaaaahhhhh!”

Terrific Turkey

The Piano N

After trick-or-treating (clearly, by the girls’ outfits), we hung out in the music room and waited for more trick-or-treaters to come to our door.  We let the girls have a turn playing the piano.  N. was too funny—she was gentle and cautious at first.

And she really got into playing.  I have some cute video but am having trouble uploading it (thus the lateness of this post).  I’ll keep trying—it’s cute to watch.And I can use these pictures if she turns out to be a famous concert pianist someday.