Christmas Party

Tonight was our church Christmas social.  Ellie wore a cute little off the shoulder number that her grandma got for her.  I think I put the sweater back on her shoulders at least a dozen times, so she must have taken it off at least thirteen.

 

 

One of Santa's elves caught Ellie and twirled her around and around until they were both dizzy.  I'm pretty sure that was how she got all wound up for her evening.  She stayed on the move most of the evening.

 

 

Except when I tied them into chairs to eat.  At dinner the kiddos wore their Christmas bibs from last year.  Tommy just barely squeezed into his.  I cannot believe how big they are now!

I guess I didn't feed them quite enough, because after I let them down, Tommy found a refill somewhere.  I'm not sure whether he stole it from the serving table or from someone's plate, but he nibbled on this roll for the rest of the night.  He had a piece of it in his hand still when I changed him into his pajamas at home.

I am Thankful for Merry Maids

Visitors

We've had a few visitors recently, and I've been kind of slow about posting.  Since the idea of the blog was to capture life's little details, here goes...

It is so nice to have Visiting Teachers that actually VISIT!  Who'd of thunk it?  It's been years since I've had regular contact (and even longer since I've been good about doing my own) but here is photo evidence that mine made it over again this month...

 

And Aunt Sandy made it up to see us again this week. 

I think Sandy must have been quoting the "Bubbles, Bubbles"

book, so Ellie was pointing to her nose.

And my son is providing access to the Tommy Tummy for tickling.

We made it out for a walk around the block.

Tommy shows off his new climbing skills.

The candy bucket from Halloween has become a favorite toy. 

Tommy loves to wear it on his head.

 

One day he thought it was great fun to play "Little Drummer Boy" and drum the bucket while he was wearing it.  As you can see, Ellie was happy to help him with that idea.

 

Here are a few pictures from a recent visit from Grandma and Grandpa Selvage...

 

And going even further back, Uncle Doug was here in mid-October.

 

 

I hope I'm all caught up now. :)

 



16 Month Photos

We had these pictures taken on October 11th, the kiddos 16 month mark. 

Why is it that when you try hardest to make something happen, it just doesn't work.  As in naps.  I tried so hard that day to get Tommy and Ellie to take naps, and it just didn't happen.  Our appointment was at 3 p.m., so they were a bit tired and cranky when we got there.  Stephanie did a great job with what she had to work with. 

The challenge is always to get a picture of the two of them together, and this time was no exception.  Whether it was wearing short sleeves in forty degree weather, being out in the middle of nature, or the lack of sleep, Tommy largely just stood still and somber.  Ellie on the other hand was strangely energized, and it was hard to get her to stand still.  The pictures that did get captured were the result of repeatedly picking up Ellie and putting her down a few feet behind Tommy and then trying to step out of the frame while she was moving forward.  The photographer did a great job of snapping just as Ellie came even with Tommy.   See if you can tell in the photos below...

This one is my favorite

see those feet on the move?

 

and she's a little bit past him here... 

(this one wasn't supposed to be in our selection, but accidentely got included on the CD)

Here we are catching the end of a "peek-a-boo" on Tommy. 

Did you notice that his feet are still in exactly the same position?

 

And finally, to try to stop Eliana, we put her in a wagon. 

such a beautiful girl...

 

I am so blessed to be her mama...

 

She's on the move... she's supposed to be sitting on the block!

 

I think he looks like his Uncle Doug in this shot.

 

What a cutie.

 

Do eyes come any bluer than these?

 

One of our favorite shots was of them playing peek-a-boo.  We only got to pick 10 digital images in the package that we bought, and after much discussion and even a change in my order I decided to replace it with the second one here because it showed their faces.  I did get an 8x10 print of the other one for our wall though, so to see it you'll have to visit us at home.

 

I have to say I am very, very happy with the work that the photographer, Stephanie McFrederick, did.  If you are in the market for pictures for your family, check out some of her work here.

Trick or Treat

It may seem a little early to the rest of the nation, but Ashland always holds Trick-or-Treat on the Thursday before Halloween. Kinda reminds me of Madeira holding 4th of July celebrations on the 3rd every year.  I guess I live in weird places.

 

Last year Tommy and Ellie were sick (and for the first time) on Beggar's Night, so they missed it.  This year, they decided to get in on the action.

 

I decided I would just take them to see a few families that we know on our block, so I loaded them up in the stroller.

 

Once we got back home, I let them out so they could greet our visitors.

 

But having seen what the evening was about, Eliana was quick to head back out on foot.

 

Tom caught our dragon by the tail and  held onto him.

 

Tommy's first taste of Skittles...

 

And Ellie with the now empty bag...

 

We had a fun, family evening. 



First Haircut

Brains, good looks, winning personalities, my kiddos have in spades.  Hair, not so much.  But fine and thin though it may be, Tommy's hair has been looking a little too long lately.  His papa calls it "professor hair" when he first gets up from sleeping.

So we took him this evening to Famous Hair for his first haircut.  They have a special tractor seat and set him up with a Blues Clues video to watch.

 

Mama was not brave enough to get his hair buzzed all over.  We decided to only cut the back.  Here is his "before" shot.

The video thing is working.  He was pretty distracted.

Oops, I forgot to take an "after" shot at the salon.  Here it is later, at home...

We went home with an envelope holding his hair and a special certificate.  He was far more interested in his reward sucker.  Ellie too; she got one just for watching.

A Visit with Grandma Lux

Tommy and Ellie and I took a quick trip south to catch a visit with Grandma Lux and my sister Sandy.

 

 The kiddos previewed their Halloween costumes for Grandma...

 

 Watch out for fireballs...

 

My sweet chickybaby...

  

We played outside and the kids enjoyed puppy time...

 

 

 Grandma got puppy time too...

 

Whether she enjoyed it or not is up for debate...

 

 When did my little babies get all grown up?