Baby, it's cold outside!

I had to pick up some last minute groceries earlier, and it's cold outside. The wind was blowing, and my hands and face were very cold by the time I got in the store. The girls and I actually got in and out pretty quickly, but I have no desire to go out again today! Some lady almost backed into me, then glared at me as though it were my fault.

Because of the cold, it finally feels like winter, and hopefully it'll feel like Christmas tonight when the girls open their stockings.

I won't be posting again before tomorrow, so I hope you all have a wonderful and merry Christmas!!

How is Christmas only two days away? This December has flown past! Jon's brother, Evan, is coming down from NH tomorrow, and I'm actually mostly prepared! I have to sweep and mop, clean the bathrooms, and clean the bathrooms, but then I'll be done. I'd like to be able to mostly relax tomorrow, and I think I'll be able to!

I'm also hoping to get outside later. Yesterday was a gorgeous day, and I hope that today is nice as well. I love taking the girls on walks, and even though the weather's nice now, it won't be for too much longer.

Merry Christmas, everyone!

When we joined our church, Jon was excited about jumping in the music program. The choir director didn't do a very good job because he had no training, which was fine, but as Jon majored in music and took a choir directing class back in college, he was happy to be able to take over the choir. It has grown by leaps and bounds (and our pastor had Mac Lynch come earlier this year which was a great learning experience for Jon and for us as a choir), and this year, we did a cantata.

We practiced long and hard (and Jill did a solo--so sweet!), and I feel we did a really good job. The church was packed (I didn't expect that--it was a nice surprise!), and I feel the message came across clearly. I don't know if anyone got saved, but I hope we planted a seed in many peoples' hearts.

Jill in her dress. I loved her in it, because she looked like a little girl (I was kind of shocked by some of the fancy dresses out this year).



Beth had cute hair, but it doesn't translate very well to this picture. It was a sideways french braid and I thought it was adorable. :)



Poor Kate. She slept until half an hour before we left, so she wasn't exactly willing to get dressed. I left her hair for the church since I'd have time to french braid it there.



Unrelated, a friend of Ginny's gave her a bunch of stuff (which she in turn gave to me). One of the things in the boxes was a 3D corkboard gingerbread house puzzle, and we had fun putting it together.

Jill and Beth have each been to Build-a-Bear a few times, but Kate's never been, so we decided that'd be our present to her. She hadn't taken a nap the day before, and would be skipping her nap that day as well, so she wasn't as enthusiastic as we thought she'd be, but she still loved going.

stuffing the bear and putting the heart in the bear





putting a sticker on the wall, cleaning her bear, and entering the bear's info







She named her bear Star. :)

Kate's birthday, part 2.

Kate told me for weeks on end that she wanted a pink monkey cake. Here's what I came up with.





Yummy frosting!

Kate's birthday.

I meant to do a birthday update when Kate turned 3 (a month ago) and never got around to it. So I'll split it into three since it's mostly pictures.

Kate came in time for Christmas pictures, yay! ;)



a one-year-old Kate (with socks on her hands because I forgot her gloves)



I loved the little curls Kate had when she was two.



And here's my big three-year-old. These years have flown.

Now that winter is only a day away, it's starting to be cold. But we've had a long and warm fall, even into November. So we've had lots of chances to be outside, but we also had a freak snowstorm in late October. The day it struck, I had planned to take the girls with me to a tea at the church, but the snow kept me home. So when Kate had her birthday, Ginny planned a tea for her.

Kate always dresses up in as much as she possibly can; here, she has a leotard and two tutus on.



Jill picked out slippers for me, and the girls love to wear them.



enjoying a beautiful day at the park





throwing leaves on Daddy



the tea party



You know the phrase "less is more"? For Kate, it's "more is more."



resting during our walk on a lovely fall day



If one spoon doesn't work, grab another!

I realize it's been quite a while since my last post, but I've been busy! Plus, I sometimes forget about this blog. So I'm going to play a little catch-up today.

Back in November, we had to drive over to Farmington. Jon kept Jill, but I had the other two for about an hour, and let me tell you, we walked a lot. We also went in the Disney store several times, and a toy store once. But what got us through all the walking (and boredom for the girls) was the promise of The Rainforest Cafe. The food was yummy, and the thunderstorms and animals really made it an exciting experience.

















One other thing from this day: Jon at one point left me with Kate to try on some clothes, and he took the older two. Since this was after Halloween, he found this hat for the girls to try on:

Days of thankfulness, days 29 and 30.

I totally forgot about this!

29. My town. Don't laugh, but we have very mild weather here. We don't always get the rain or snow that neighboring towns get, and we're often warmer. I love any time it's sunny and warm, so I'm glad we live in this weird bubble. ;)

30. Storytime. My girls all love interacting with kids their ages, and learning more about books. For Jill, there are book discussions, and for Beth and Kate, reading and painting and dancing. I want my girls to love reading, so I love the chance to introduce them to books I may not otherwise know of.