A Little "Winter" Cleaning...

Today Laela and I made sugar cookies while Ro was out watching football! We had a super fun time together and I thought I would share the experience with you. This actually took us several hours to complete, as we were busy doing other things on our to-do list; however, Laela still finished what she started!

Mixing up the dough and patting it flat was one of Laela's favorite parts.We got out the cookie cutters to create star and gingerbread shaped cookies. Also, we tossed on a little cinnamon and sugar for yumminess!Laela was VERY serious about frosting. Then I realized that she was spending about 2-3 minutes on each cookie because she was taking a lick off of her finger every few seconds. Oh my! That girl is one crazy shaker! She especially loved the rainbow dot sprinkles. She was shaking and the container hit the frosting. Of course you just lick off the frosting and keep on shakin'. :) Here is the finished product! And Ms. Thang with her serious cookie face... Oh...so nice...Laela and daddy were sharing the yummy cookies! Now that was good stuff! Cookie making took awhile, but we had a great time together. Overall, not bad for a two-year old chef!

Thursday is GYM day!

This past Thursday, Ro and I picked up Laela together. Once we got into her classroom, I reminded her that it was Thursday and asked her what we would be doing that night. She was so funny because she put her hands together and started shaking as she said "we will go to Laela's gym tonight!" Seriously! She loves going to gym on Thursday night. :)

Here are a few pictures of her on the tampolines.... and the wonder continues...Walking with her hands behind her back and following Coach...There is a long, running trampoline and when you get to the end, the kids can jump in a foam cube pit. Well, Laela does not jump, but she did run...about 25 times!Then, when they are all finished, they stand right in front of the audience, pound on the little blue wall and say "ta-dah!" I love that Laela has so much fun at gym and I hope that her excitement continues!

An Elf and a Tree!

This year is going to be so much fun with Laela! Don't get me wrong, we had fun last year, but this year...she is the perfect age! We are already having so much fun with the season. As I promised in an earlier post, here is a picture of Laela's "small tree". I unwrapped the goodies, but Laela put them on and she picked out the perfect spot on the dresser in her room. As part of our Christmas fun, we ordered The Elf on the Shelf. This is a set that comes with a book and a one of a kind elf. Our elf has light skin, brown hair and blue eyes. (Very handsome little guy.) Well, we talked about the elf for a few days before introducing it to Laela. Then Nanna was talking to Laela about the elf's name and she decide to call him "Georgie." How wonderful! So...Georgie is Santa's little helper. Each night he goes to the North Pole and lets Santa know if Laela has been good or bad. He helps prepare the toys for Christmas and then he comes back to a new spot around the house. Each morning, Laela is sure to check for him and locate his new spot! Here is the deal...Laela CANNOT touch Georgie. Well...it was hysterical because the third day he was out, somehow he fell off of the cabinet. Laela ran to tell Nanna that she needed helped. HA! Laela knew that we were not supposed to touch him! :) Too funny!

Btw...I had a little bit of shopping time this week while I was off, so I have been Christmas shopping and such. Well...I have been wanting to change out the piece above the tv because it was just never right. So...I was at Hobby Lobby and I found a few things on sale! YEA! Here is what I ended up with...one open backed frame, one piece of canvas, 1/2 yard of red burlap, and one "M" already sitting on my mantel at home. This is what it made! I love it! Ro even said that he loves it. YEA! Everyone is welcome over to the house to tell me that you love it too! :) Happy almost December!

A Real Train Ride!

Happy birthday to Brandt! This boy LOVES trains, so instead of your typical "train-theme birthday bash", the Hodges planned for a real train ride! We were very lucky to join their family for journey on the Polar Express.We drove about 2 1/2 hours to Jacksonville, TX for lunch and birthday cake with Hodges family! Yes, we were the only non-family, but we were so thankful to be part of the celebration! Check out this cake Jana made. WOW! What an awesome train cake!Of course our friend did not want to nap the entire way, so when we got there she was a little fiesty. Hmmmm...I have no idea where she gets that! Anyway, we saw more trees and winding roads today then we have in our entire lives! Thank goodness they put out balloons or we may have never seen our turn off to head up the lane, just past the tall trees, and dead end at grandma's house. HA! Seriously. That was part of our directions and we made it there. Perfect! Anyway, the kids had a little energy to get out, so they went exploring in the woods (grandma's backyard).AH! We could never live somewhere like this because we saw this...Okay! Off to the train. It was about 30 minutes from grandma's house. Thank goodness because our friend needed a nap, big or little. Finally! Brandt has been waiting for this day. He was so stinkin' excited he could hardly contain himself. He did not want to take his eye off of the train, in fear that it would leave without him! Laela was excited too! She did not know why she was so excited, but she was just thrilled to be there. Here are the Hodges watching and waiting for the train to enter the station and pick up all of the passengers. This was an awesome spot to be standing in, until they blew the whistle. WOW...that was loud! YEA! The train is here. We are on and ready to go to the North Pole! They even served hot cocoa and rice krispie bars. YUM!
Brandt was so serious while he patiently waited to travel on the Polar Express. What an awesome birthday gift! Oh! While we were on the train, the conductor even came by to punch our ticket. Laela thought that was very cool and she gave him a high five! Finally! We made it to the North Pole. Apparently, Santa must have been cold at the North Pole, so he hopped on and rode back with us. Laela was beside herself when she saw Santa in our train car. She stood up and she was waving to him with both hands, yelling "Santa is here, Santa is here!" Well, it turned out to be a different story when that big jolly man got closer. He was giving all of the kids bells, so Laela took hers and quickly turned around. Then Santa sat next to her for a picture and she WAS NOT HAPPY! Yikes! We may not have any Santa pictures this year. We sang Christmas carols, saw Santa and truly enjoyed our train ride. Once we got back to the station, the kids ran and played for a few minutes and we were off! Back on the road again. Our 12 hour day was very long and very eventful. Oh! A first for Laela...she had to pop-a-squat on the side of a dark country road. She had to go really bad, so what else do you do? :) Oh well...it was bound to happen sometime in her life!

Overall...this was another wonderful Saturday. We are truly blessed to have wonderful friends to share special times. Thank you to the Hodges for letting us join your family today. Ro, Laela, and I will always remember this special day!

Decorating and a Home Run!

Today we started decorating the house for Christmas. It has been such a fun time this year because Laela is actively involved in what we are doing. She wants to know about everything and help with it too! Laela was an awesome "big Christmas tree" helper. She calls it that because we decorated a small tree for her room (I will take a picture of that later). We seperated all of the branches and turned on the lights! Laela said it was beautiful! After working so hard on the tree, we went out to visit Granna and Gramps. Laela felt the need to dress up, so here she is! Part Laela and part cat. :)After getting home, Laela still had a ton of energy, so Ro started up the Wii. Him and Laela went at it! She tried a little tennis, but she was not too successful. Then...baseball! Oh man! Laela missed the first few hits and even said "oh geez!" It was hysterical!Our little slugger even hit a home run! Too funny! She was so proud of herself. What a wonderful day after Thanksgiving. I love that little turkey and I am so thankful to have her in my life.

Two of Laela's favorites...

Right now, two of Laela's favorite things include:

Number One:
BOOTS! Literally, she would wear them to bed if we let her. Since we don't, she asks to put them on first thing in the morning. So...this morning she was wearing them with her night-night clothes! What a dork!

Number Two:
GYM! We started Laaela at a new gym class last week and she absolutely loves it! Everyday she will ask where is gym and if they are open. She can not wait for Thursday night so she can jump on the trampolines, sing/dance, swing like a monkey, complete an obstacle course, and even ring the big bell for a job well done! These pictures are with Ro's cell phone so they are not great, but you get the point. We hope to capture some great shots during our many visits to come!