Chasing the Cold Away with Christmas Cookies!

Brrr....is it cold outside! This year has been crazy in terms of weather. This past week it hasn't been above freezing and it isn't even winter yet! All this cold brings on lots of extra chores. Jason's been having to chop ice multiple times a day for the calves, in addition to putting out extra hay for the new baby calves to bed down on. By the end of the day, everyone's worn out from the extra efforts of working in the cold. So this mama decided it was time for a little fun! To help warm us up, I made some hot Wassail for us to sip on while we decorated some Christmas sugar cookies. We all had so much fun decorating the cookies and eating the extra icing! We all voted and agreed that Daddy decorated the most beautiful cookie!

Here some other great photo's of our family fun night. Let's just say, bedtime was interesting after all that frosting!

Mommy Affirmation

Tonight a couple of kids came over to play so that their dad could help Jason with some manual labor stuff. The kids had a blast playing play-doh, having pillow fights, running the circle in the house, and listening to a story I read them called, "Charlie and the Christmas Kitten." The greatest part of the evening for me was just after I had read them the story and Allison came up to me and softly said, "Mom, you were really great tonight!" Then, she gave me a quick hug with a loving smile and proceeded to chase after her friend. Her affirmation felt so good and unexpected! I'm still on cloud 9! Looking in her eyes, I could literally see how proud she was of me and how thankful she was that I was chilled about the messes and into having fun with the kids. I'm so thankful that I get to be Allison and Reid's mommy!

Little Things That Make Me Laugh

Jason and Reid were wrestling this morning in the dining room. Jason was trying to get Reid's shoes and socks on but Reid wanted no part of that. Reid managed to wiggle away from his daddy and I could see the look of triumph on his face as he was running for his room. He had to be thinking, "Ha, I got by you daddy!"But the look quickly was wiped off by Jason when he reached out and grabbed Reid around the waist, effectively sitting Reid between his legs to finish putting his socks and shoes on.  To this Reid said, "Oh man! You sorry dog!" Allison and I burst out laughing and poor Jason just sat there with a "did he really just say that" kind of look!

Summer Adventures 2013

Here's the digital scrapbook that I created using Shutterfly. I tried my best this summer to take lots of pics of all our adventures. Our family really connected this summer and had a fabulous time. The kids are growing up so fast! I can't believe Allison learned how to ride her bicycle without training wheels or that Reid learned how to potty train! I feel very blessed to kiss their sweet faces everyday and listen to their wonderful laughter. Jason, Allison, and Reid are the best family God could ever give me. I'm truly blessed!

Click here to view this photo book larger

     My little boy turned 1 years old! Where has the time gone? I always ask that but seriously where does it go? It seems like I wake up and months have passed instead of hours. Enough of that...we had friends and family over to the house and celebrate Reid's monster party in the barn. We decided on a cook out with hamburgers, hotdogs, veggie trays, chips, beans, coleslaw, fruit, and of course yummy monster cake. I'm so thankful that I have a mother in law that I can tell what I want and she is so good at being able to create just that in her cakes!

     Reid was such a big boy today too! His manners were spot on and boy howdy did he dig into his smasher cake! It was so funny watching him because he kept looking at Jason and I like, "Are you sure I can use my hands? I'm not going to get into trouble for the mess, right?" I love my beautiful boy who keeps me on my toes! My heart is full!

   

Allison's 6th Birthday

First of all, say WHAT?! I cannot believe my baby girl is already 6 years old and in Kindergarten to boot! I spent several months pinning tons of girly party ideas on Pinterest for her to choose from. I had envisioned lots of pink tulle, dainty cupcakes, girls in cute little party dresses, etc. Needless to say, she dismissed all my ideas in lieu of a Halloween themed birthday party. Sometimes she surprises the heck out of me! The party turned out really great. We started with a fun craft that had kids making green monsters.

The kids then played several games. One was called Mummy Wrap where the kids worked in teams to wrap a friend in an entire roll of toilet paper. The quickest team won. They also played Fake Out where all the kids sat down and tried their absolute best not to smile while 1 person had to do their best to make them smile either by singing, making goofy faces, etc.

Then it was on to cake! Grandma Schneeberger made Allison's cake this year. The writing says, "Our little Witch is 6!" We ended the party with presents and of course outdoor play time!