2009 A Year in Review

Make a Smilebox slideshow

A Christmas to Remember or to Forget

I hope that you all had a wonderful Christmas! We are very thankful for all the blessings of 2009. However, we are ready to start a fresh and healthy 2010. The good pictures from Christmas are few and far between. Everyone but me was sick for the week leading up to Christmas. Colds, stomach flu, ear infections, and croup were our most memorable gifts! We have not left the house in two days trying to rest up! The coughing and runny noses are just not going away! As usual, the girls were flooded with gifts. Some of the favorites were the rollercoaster, new bikes, and leapster!

Cookie Baking

This year we decided to continue the tradition of cookie baking.





We didn't know just how big a tradition baking cookies with Grandma was until Ava mentioned it to her teachers. The girls had so much fun this year and it was fun to watch them! They really go into the decorating. Eating the icing was the best part. They couldn't resist!!

Holiday Celebration

Have I mentioned how much we love our new neighborhood? Last night we had a holiday celebration at the clubhouse. The girls had a wonderful time! It was great to see neighbors we haven't seen since the weather has gotten colder. We ate yummy food, got a present from Santa and went on a sleigh ride! Ava was so excited to hang out with her friend Brooke!

Molly's Christmas "Peformance"

This afternoon we got to watch Molly and her class perform some Christmas carols. It was so cute! I think all the kids were a little overwhelmed walking into the classroom that was filled with parents. They did a wonderful job! The girls are all done with school until the 11th now! Will I survive??

Gingerbread House

We had a very low key weekend. It was very welcome. Things are really starting to get crazy now! We put a few more Christmas decorations up. Having a new house to decorate makes it really hard. I keep finding things and needing new things. Next year will be a lot easier knowing where things go! Last night we added to our decorations by making a gingerbread house. I think it turned out very cute! The girls had a lot of fun doing it!

Tis the Season

On Thursday, Ava had her Christmas program at school. It was perfect in every way. It started at 6:30 and was over by 7. We were home by 7:30 and in bed by 8. It was only her preschool class so there were no crowds to fight!! A perfect evening in my opinion!! This year we were prepared and practice a lot! Ava even smiled and did some singing. A huge difference from last year!!

Preschool and Ballet

Today I finally got the chance to volunteer in Molly's classroom. I have been in Ava's several times this year but this is the first opportunity to visit Molly's room. I had a great time. It was fun to be with 2 and 3 year olds all morning long. Molly was a little jealous anytime I talked, played with or god forbid one of her friends sat in my lap. I have been talking this day up for a while now and I think she thought that I was going to be giving all my attention to her. I did get to spend a lot of quality one on one time with her which we BOTH needed. She has been quite the handful lately so it was the perfect time to spend that time together.







Wednesdays are a big day for Molly. Unfortunately, a long day for Mom. Since she has school and ballet, she is usually way to excited to take a nap. Since Ava doesn't nap at all anymore, it's hard to get Ava up after her "rest" time and leave Molly in bed. Needless to say, Molly is exhausted and ready for an early bedtime!! She lives to dance and here are some pictures from her ballet class. She closes her eyes most of the time while she dances! So funny! And she even pouts when someone is standing on "her" tape on the floor!! I just got a few before my camera ran out of batteries!!

Shots and Stats

Today Rachel had her 6 month well check. The doctor said that she is "perfect". But of course we didn't need the doctor to tell us that! :) She is eating solids great-actually twice as much as she should be! And the doctor told us to start giving her chicken and turkey. Guess that means more baby food making for me this weekend! Can't wait! She weighed in at 15lbs. 5 oz which is in the 40th percentile and is 26 3/4 inches long which is in the 80%!! Right now she is on the path to having a built just like her big sister Ava. Tall and skinny. She is doing great with the 3 shots she got. Believe it or not her big sisters had her laughing this afternoon!