Monday, December 12, 2011

Party Weekend!

This past weekend we celebrated Ethan and Ava's 5th Birthday. EThan has been talking about his party for some time now and has been absolutely thrilled that he will be turning 5 very soon. He is so excited to be 5 that he insists on checking all of his clothes to make sure that they read 5t. Unfortunaely I have had to explain to him that I will have to do a little shopping to fill his drawers with 5t clothing and I am trying to reassure him that th 4t clothes still work, despite the fact that he isn't 4 any longer...difficult concept, yes, I know :) It's pretty m..l,;k.huhjhnnknmkm

Tuesday, December 6, 2011




25 days and counting! It's hard to believe Christmas has snuck up on us so quickly and yet, December is here and my list of things to do is getting longer and longer. We have checked a few things off the list already...

Christmas tree...check!

Christmas Cards sent...check!

Christmas shopping...almost!

This year I did most of our shopping online and it was great! The cyber Monday deals seemed ok and not having to wait in lines was well worth it. I do however love to be apart of all the hustle and bustle of Holiday shopping but when we go, it's nice to not have an agenda of gifts that I need to have bought. So, at some point we will all head down to the mall in DesMoines and take part in the Holiday cheer, walk around, maybe buy a thing or two, and enjoy all the Christmas decorations and Holiday music playing!

This is our tree that we picked up from Lowe's. Can't beat Lowe's $30 tree and service! The boys thought it looked pretty good when THomas pulled it out. They were, however, a bit distracted when THomas told them to help hold it by the some 50' Santa Clause standing nearby. We had to get a picture!

So, with only 25 days left until Christmas, I actually think we're doing pretty well. The shopping is almost complete, gifts will need to get wrapped, Holiday cookies to friends and neighbors will get decorated and baked, we'll make one stop to the nursing home to drop off some Holiday cards we made, we'll visit Santa and finish with a trip to Grandma and Grandpa's House. Our tradition is to go to West Branch for a few days prior to Christmas, drive back on Christmas Eve and spend Christmas morning in our home, followed by brunch at my mom and dads. It's a fun tradition that I think everyone will grow to love more and more. And we can't forget that in the midst of everything going on...we have one special Birthday coming up very soon! Ethan is pretty excited to be turning 5 in a few days! December is a crazy month!



Monday, December 5, 2011

Check out this basement!



These final months of finishing up the basement have seemed to drag on however with some help from Thomas's Dad and my brother, Jon, the final touches have come together quickly. The basement is livable and quite comfortable. We have already enjoyed hosting quite a few suppers down there while all the International guests were here for the Summit Conference that our church hosts. We had some men over from Nigeria along with some others from the states. We set up a long table and brought all the chairs that we own down into the basement so that we could fit everyone in. It was wonderful to finally be able to fit everyone at the same table and I also liked that after the meal, everyone got up and sat on our sectional for a more confotable spot to chat and hang out. It was great and I think the kids really enjoyed having so many people in their home. Thomas and I were so glad to have a space where we could enterntain comfortably. The lighting, the sectional, the flooring...everything looks great. Thomas did a fantastic job. Even though everything looks great, Thomas and I still know there is a lot of work to do. The trim needs painting and Thomas needs to do some wiring for the new 50"tv that we bought on black friday. He managed to get a fantastic deal on a television and even though we had no idea we would end up with a televesion that large, it actually fits nicely down there. It seems like we are going to the movies when we all sit together on the couch with the lights turned low. THe boys are pretty excited to have our first movie night with popcorn and hot cocoa! It hasn't happenned yet but I'm sure we'll get there soon. We also had a dance party with the boys and we would never have guessed that our boys love to dance as much as they do! They had us going strong for almost an hour...dancing to all types of music! It makes us quiestion whether or not we should even look for carpet to put down (our intentions were to cover the floor with almost wall to wall carpet). We may have to reconsider...maybe even invest in some wall mirrors for practicing good technique :)

The boys enjoying the couch and ready for MOVIE NIGHT!




Friday, December 2, 2011

Halloween 2011



So, once again, I'm behind...It's almost Christmas and I haven't even posted any of our Halloween pictures yet! Yikes...I have a good reason to be behind...right?!? This Halloween was a blast! I kept saying to Thomas when Samuel was first born that Halloween this year would be great! The kids would be so much fun in there costumes and by then Samuel would be sleeping through the night (as any 3 month baby should be). Well, the boys did have a blast, trick-or-treating on Main Street and again later that evening in our neighborhood and well, Samuel, let's just say he looked cute too...we're still working on sleeping ALL the way through the night for mommy and daddy :)

This year Ethan wanted to be Buzz Light Year and we went on a search to find the perfect costume. Aunt Lauren let us borrow an old costume that was the suit and yet Thomas felt as if something was still missing. So Thomas, being the amazing father that he is, took the time laboring into the late night hours (the night before Halloween and after a few trips to Lowes) constructing some way cool wings for Ethan's costume. They turned out absolutely amazing...better than anything you could buy in the store. I don't know all the technical terms, but Thomas used all sorts of gadgets to get these things to open and close with a simple pull on the string! Amazing...YES!




Simon wanted to try them on as well.



This year Simon wanted to be a DINOSAUR and was able to comfortably fit into Ethan's costume from last year...with a little extra room :) He was probably the cutest dinosaur walking our block! I was concerned that he might not want to wear the hood but he was all about it this year!



We started the day at the library with some friends and from there met up with Thomas and went trick-or-treating at all the shops on Main Street! Such a beautiful day and so much fun. It was a bonus to have THomas there with us! Then we went home for a quick nap and rested up for the evening festivities. After dinner we headed to the neighbors and stopped for an extended stay at Dennis' house (our neighbor who has the model train in his yard) The kids love his train and he tries to have it running any time he knows kids might be walking by. It's great and I think every year, he adds more! Thanks Dennis for some great train viewing!



Here's a good shot of the back of the kids costumes, and the train!



After we did some hard core trick-or-treating, we head back to the house and Thomas ended the day with his now, going on two year tradition, of letting the kids play in some dry ice! They love this new tradition and I think Thomas loves it just as much.

All in all, I would say Halloween 2011 was a success! New traditions were formed and we all had a blast!