Christmas

Christmas has come and gone again (sort of...lasts 12 days you know). Hard to believe. This was the girls' third Christmas and I can now say that each Christmas has been better than the one before (a trend I am hoping to keep up for the next umpteen years).

We began the season by taking our last pre-Hannah Kate trip. We headed to Chattanooga the week before Christmas which was particularly exciting with a new niece to see. Mark and Teela's daughter Lily was born on November 1 and this was the first time we got to see her. The girls were excited by the new baby but getting her confused with this "baby sissy" person they've been hearing a lot about. All in all it was a fun trip.

We came home on Christmas Eve and met my parents here in St. Louis. They had been up in Wisconsin visiting my sister (who also just had a baby --October 31) and then came down to spend this week with us. Again, a good time was had by all.

Mary Jane even worked up the courage to make cookies with the girls

To say they loved it would be the understatement of a lifetime. I think it's safe to say "decorating" was their favorite part. I use the term "decorating" somewhat loosely here. What I mean is that Mary Jane put frosting on all the cookies and the girls licked all the cookies while they put equal amounts of sprinkles on the floor, and themselves, somehow magically missing the cookies.....messy yes, fun yes, edible?...ehhh

Saying "cheese"

Here's a picture of the girls with their baby cousin. They took to her really fast which gives us hope for the upcoming arrival this March.

It took the girls a while to get into the whole unwrapping thing but this is the first year where they clearly got it. Emma Jane in particular really took off. She got to the point where she just started tearing into gifts regardless of where they were or who they were for.

The girls also got their first tricycles...they loooooooove them

They also really love ornaments...especially when they are hung on low branches...and can be gotten off. We eventually gave up on trying to stop them from taking ornaments off the tree and just got out the hot glue gun and glued all our ornaments to the tree. No really. Do you have any idea how bad melting fake tree limbs smell? Pretty bad. We aren't going to get that stink out of our house till next Christmas. Oh well...good excuse to buy new ornaments.

(you do know I'm joking right....Mary Jane thinks you might not...but I think you're smarter than that)

P: Yes, I need sleep...but this book is just too good to put down

P: They may be magnets...but they sure look like cookies....I wonder....

So...huh.....the words are blue down here. Guess they are just sad all the fun is over. Don't worry words...there is more fun coming, 2011 is just days away and we have all sorts of crazy good times planned for you...you will get to talk about a whole other child...a girl by the way...I'll let you guess the name.

Merry Christmas