keeping it simple

I am hoping for a simple Christmas. I want to enjoy these precious days of celebration with my sweet kids and family. I want to say yes to friends and family and enjoying the simple things in the holiday. Yes to long evenings of hot chocolate, good company, and imperfection.

But, can you feel it?

The ads, the craziness, the shopping frenzy, the frantic cookie making, the wrapping, the lines, the cursing (or is that just me?). It tries to suck me. It tempts me with alluring deals and superficial holiday merriment in the form of gaudy Christmas decorations.

The truth is this.

I don't need another thing.
My kids don't need another toy.
My husband doesn't need another gadget.

It was simple. One baby. One starry night. One stable. One promise fulfilled.

That is what I want my kids to learn about Christmas.

So, we will be keeping it simple.

happy birthday auntie m!

What???? My aunt is how old? Wow! That's shocking! Happy Birthday Auntie M! We hope you have a great turkey day.

before I forget....

Eh, this might be of some interest to the grandmothers. My apologies to everyone else.

Ella Bella's latest stats @ 6 months old.
19lbs 7oz and 27.5 inches long.
95% height, 95% weight, and 60% head.

Also, what would you do in this predicament. You feed your child with plans of giving her and her brother a bath afterwords. You burp her and she proceeds to "toss" the "whole load" directly down your shirt. She has a little bit of mess on her, but not nearly the half gallon (slight exaggeration) that you are covered in, mostly in your hair.

What would you do?

If you are me, you say see ya kids.... pop in the wiggles, warn your 2 -year old of the perils of hurting little sis and go take a nice long shower yourself. And wash your hair several times... Eh, probably not the BEST choice... but it sure was refreshing!

budding bibliophile

Moo's book stash, I sorted through them the other night and got them down to a more manageable number of books for a preschooler. It must have worked because we have been reading ever since!

Most of the books are from my parents. They are bibliophiles themselves. When we moved from my childhood home I got the lucky task of packing up books. I lost count well into the thousands. I am so very thankful they are passing on their love of books to my kids, but seriously... I need a bigger house!

crafting from the stash: baby leg warmers

I am determined not to buy anymore crafting goodies until I use up some of my craft stash. So, here is the first project. I love the idea of Babylegs, but not the price. I found this great tutorial on how to make your own baby leg warmers and knocked out a dozen pairs for little miss.

Funny thing, I overestimated the length of Miss things legs and underestimated the girth (fattiness) of them, so i have a few too long, too skinny pairs. I bet they will fit Moo perfectly....

Happy crafting!

halfy birthday ella bella chunka monka!

I can't believe this precious little girl has been here for only six months, it's hard to remember not having her in our family. She is such a happy, easy baby. She squeals with delight when I dress her in fluffy dresses and waves her chunky little arms excitedly at the site of her brother. She is obsessed with our cat and tries to eat her. She growls like a possessed baby and squeals like a dentists drill. She rolls over and sits up, and rocks her jumparoo. She doesn't care for baby cereal, I know she is holding out for the good stuff. She grabs food off of peoples plates and will fuss if we are eating and she is not.

She is divine. And a keeper. And huge!

Photos @ 1 week, 3 months, and 6 months.

Boo!