The Puddles

My final picture for 2012.  I have a ton of pictures to catch up on from December, but it is time to go hang with the kids and bring in the new year.  If 2013 can be anything like 2012,  we have nothing but awesomeness coming our way!!!

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The girls enjoyed a Christmas Party together.  The moms did a great job of bringing a lot of great things for the girls to do.  Ainsley is playing the game “Stuff the Santa”. The girls see how many balloons that they can stuff in Santa’s shirt!  Ainsley’s group won!!

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Ainsley was a cow with her BFF.  Ben was the innkeeper and Madie was the Arc Angel.  Again it was adorable.

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We had a wonderful Girl Scout field trip to the Nutcracker.  It ended up being a Mother/Daughter event.  All of the girls look so pretty with their dresses.  We had so much fun.  Ainsley loved the ballet and Madie loves anything at a theatre.  I started planning this field trip in August.  Since the tickets are expensive for most of my troop we opened the field trip to all three troops that meet on Thursday at TOL. Doing that allowed us to get a really good group rate and about the only way we could do it (and get really good seats)!  But it was so worth it!  I loved all of it!!  I really enjoyed taking my girls. It was a very special Saturday!

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Madie played beautifully this year.  She is having a harder time connecting personally with her new teacher, but her teacher is doing a good job of making her a better player.  She played a duet with her teacher and she did great!  I love seeing her getting better each recital!  She loves the violin!

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Look at that bow tie on Ben! Snazzy! I recorded his concert.  I need to work on posted some of it to YouTube.  Bad mommy!

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Santa came to the neighborhood to hear all of our wishes for Christmas.  Ainsley wanted an American Girl Doll, Madie wanted an iPad, and Ben wanted a Razor 360 and a gun.  All of the kids love getting to tell Santa what they want.  Ainsley was worried that she wasn’t good enough to get a Santa present.  She told Santa that she was working on being good!

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I always love this time of year. Decorating the tree is a magical, majestic, and scary (especially when they climb the really tall ladder) event. The christmons are laid out on the altar and the children have the freedom to pick up and hang where the ornaments any where on the tree.  A couple of the men “man” the ladders to help the kids get to the higher points, but the moment is lead by the kids.  Each child picking out the ornament that the think is the prettiest or means something to them or is easy (has a hook on it already) or like their best friend’s etc.  The parents hang out in the pews talking amongst themselves while the kids work.  This tree is really for the children anyways.   When I took Ben’s picture with his friend Cason, I so wanted to know what they are whispering to each other!  I am also grateful for the strong hands holding the ladders making sure that the children are safe.  I am grateful for Ms. Mary who lays out all of the ornaments and doesn’t bat an eye when one gets dropped and breaks (she is very patient).  I am thankful for a church who lets the children decorate the Christmas tree that sits front and center.  What a wonderful and beautiful tradition!

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Background story: Chris and the kids bought me a surprise Christmas present. He told the kids that if I ask about the present that they had to tell me it was a Llama named Larry.

“Mommy, you know that the Llama is dead, right?” says Ainsley with all seriousness.

“No, why is it dead?”

“Because there are no holes in the box. And Ben and I talked and decided that the Llama named Larry couldn’t have survived inside the box without air for this long. So the Llama is dead. I hope that’s ok.”

“I’m sure that it is all going to be alright and that I will love whatever is inside that box.”

“Ok. But I just thought you should know.”

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