Santa was HERE!

This morning we actually had to wake up Laela since we need her to take an early nap to get to the airport. Immediately, she said "Santa was here!" and she was happy to get out of bed to check things out! (Oh, she also told us that she heard Santa's bells last night...Ro shook some jingle bells outside of her room last night and she went right to sleep. CRAZY!)First thing Laela checked out was Santa's plate. She noticed that Santa and his reindeers had some of their bites, but not all of them. So, she helped finish them! Laela was also worried about Georgie and she had to find him before opening her gifts. She said "Georgie is crazy. He is hanging on a hook."Then on to the gifts! First up...the hammer that she asked for! Now Laela can help daddy around the house.and the Toy Story Woody doll...and her trampoline! Seriously...that would have been enough, but she did have a blast getting little stuff in her stocking too! Every time she pulled out something she was so excited...band-aids, socks, lotion, pen, ice pack, etc. Laela was also a great helper with our gifts too. She opened Allie's gift and gave her the bone to chew on while we finished up. And a little help for mommy too. Laela was so surprised that I got new park shoes! The morning went on and we finished up gifts, ate breakfast and started to get our stuff ready to pack for Omaha. While we were doing all of that, Laela was still jumping! (Notice: her bag hanging on her trampoline! At one point, there were two bags hanging! HYSTERICAL!) Overall, it was a fantastic third Christmas as a family. Laela really is a blessing in our life and we are so thankful for her! Now off to a nap and then the airport! Merry Christmas to everyone! We love you all!

Preparing for Santa...

Well...the plate is out and we are ready for Santa Claus to visit our house! Laela decided that Santa needed 3 cookies and a glass of milk. Also, the reindeers might be hungry too, so Laela left them 2 Cheetos! HA! HA! HA! Very funny. Oh! Notice the note to Santa. It reads...
Dear Santa,
Here are cookies and milk and cheetos for reindeer.
Love,
Laela
Then, as we were doing a few things right before bed, and we noticed that our furry friend, Allie Mae, might get to Santa's snacks before he does. Laela, Daddy, and I all decided that the mantle was a much better spot and Santa would still be able to find them.

HO! HO! HO!
Be safe tonight, Santa Claus!

Happy 2.5 birthday!

Dear Laela Grace,

Today you are 2 1/2 years old. You look and act about 4 or 5, but we are thankful that you are not yet. Time is going by so quickly with you. Everyday day you amaze us! One funny thing you said the other day...

Daddy was driving and you were talking to him but he was not listening. You said "hey daddy, are you listening? turn on your listening ears!" Oh my. Maybe you have heard that from me a few times recently! :)

Things you love right now: babies, school, mommy, daddy, the park, your scarf, pretend shopping, identifying triangles, helping anyone, m and m's, rubbing mom or dad's back, brushing your teeth, taking a vitamin, ponytails, christmas lights, milk, coloring in journal, telling Allie Mae what to do, and last but not least...your BLACK BOOTS!
By the way, you are completely potty trained and have been for many months now. Also, you just gave your pacis to a baby and you have not even asked for them once! We are soooo proud of you beautiful girl! Happy birthday!

Love,
Mommy and Daddy

6th Day of Christmas!

Here it is folks! This our last fun hoopla for Christmas presents. Laela has been having so much fun opening a present each night and I am going to miss the excitement on her face; however, she will have a ton of new items to play, explore, and learn! Couldn't you just squeeze those cheeks? :)

3 Christmas Eve Celebrations!

This morning we started out our Christmas Eve by meeting the Fatheree's at McDonald's. We all enjoyed a little breakfast and some good conversation! The girls did great and they loved giving each other presents.Laela carried around her new baby doll and dog set everywhere today (and it ended up in a few of our pictures, too.)After breakfast, we headed over to Mamaw's. We visited for a bit, swapped gifts and snapped a few much needed pictures!ALL of the girls!This Christmas tree played music and danced. Laela just could not resist. She continued to turn it on, over and over again! Laela thought her Aunt Karri was very cool today!Oh! Mamaw was also mentioning this church that Papaw used to love. She was sad because it had not been put out yet, so Karri dug it out of the closet and set it up for her. Very pretty and what an unusual purchase for my Papaw. Oh well. We love it and it is important to Mamaw. Merry Christmas, Papaw. We miss you!Our next, and final stop for the morning...Granna and Gramps' house! Again, we talked and swapped gifts. G and G loved their new Laela 2011 calendar! And Laela even got to be up close and personal with Santa. She thought his glasses and beard were very interesting. Well, that was our eventful Christmas Eve morning. Check out the next post for the rest of our day!

Elf Dance 2010...

Click here to see our Elf Hip Hop Dance!

5th Day of Christmas!

Today has been SUBERB and we all continue to enjoy the holiday season. This Christmas has brought a ton of joy. Laela's face lights up when she sees snowmen, christmas lights, or even Santa walking into Texas Roadhouse tonight when we were leaving! Seriously...her smile is worth everything in the world!She is still looking for her letter "L" on each gift and very excited when she finds it! Tonight when she opened her gift she yelled out "a train for Laela!" Too funny!

Pajama Day!

Today was pajama day at school and Laela was very excited to wear her Santa monkey night-night clothes! She was also super-thrilled about her accessories as well...her scarf, TWO ponytails, and her brown boots! Laela thought she was such a big girl.To celebrate the holidays, her class made cupcakes today and she brought it home to eat for a snack. YUM!Today was also Laela's last day at school this year and her last day in her current class. When we return after the new year, she will start in a new, "older" classroom and we are VERY hopeful that Laela will have a blast. We feel positive that the new classroom will challenge her more and continue her love for learning!

4th Day of Christmas...

Tonight, we celebrated our 4th day of Christmas. Laela was thrilled to open another gift and her pictures say it all!She opened the box, looked at her Daddy, and said "NEW PARK SHOES!" She was THRILLED! (Oh...Laela and her daddy call tennis shoes "park shoes" because they are the best shoes to wear to the park!)By the way, Laela is getting much faster at unwrapping presents! :)

3rd Day of Christmas!

Tonight we opened a "present" as Laela calls them. She was very particular on her choice of seat (same spot as the last time she opened a gift). I know, she is just weird like that! Anyway, she got a memory game. We played a little tonight and she was able to match all of the cards that I gave to her. YEA! I think she will like playing this game and it will help work on her focus. :) Funny side story: Remember our elf, Georgie? Well, the other night we caught her telling Georgie, "hey! i want some presents!" I thought it was hysterical, but in all seriousness...Laela LOVES Georgie. She looks for him each morning and talks to him. In most cases, we just remind her that he is watching and she makes a good choice. Does anyone know if elves can be hired for year-round work? :)