Wednesday, December 30, 2009

Tuesday, December 29, 2009

Out of the Mouths of Babes...

The other day I wanted to go take a shower but Steve was busy in the basement. One of the kids suggested, "Why don’t you have dad put the thermometer on so he can listen to what we’re doing?" Umm, do you mean room monitor by chance?
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On a different occasion Sarah noted "Funny things come out of Emily's mouth."
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Monday, December 28, 2009

Not Me! Monday!


Welcome to Not Me! Monday! This blog carnival was created by MckMama. You can head over to her blog to read what she and everyone else have not been doing this week.


This was NOT the year of falling behind in most areas of Christmas celebrations/traditions.


We are NOT in the process of writing the Christmas letter and sending out our cards 3 days after Christmas.


I am NOT one of those parents who not only allow their children to stay up past their bedtime but also take them out late at night. That is why you would NOT have found us visiting Santa Claus at 10:00 pm on the day before Christmas Eve. We certainly did NOT then proceed to the train for a quick ride. Our children are religiously in bed each and every night at 8:00 pm sharp! NO exceptions!

Sunday, December 27, 2009

Brusha Brusha

Emily came to me crying the other morning because Daddy had sent her out of the bathroom so he could take a shower. She had been brushing her teeth, for quite awhile, and I guess he assumed she was done. When I asked her what was wrong she said, "I only did the down-lows(bottom teeth). I still needed to do the up-lows (top teeth)."

a Bit of a Blogging Break But now i'm Back!

One of our annual traditions is to attend Country Lights at Lake Farmpark. As we pulled into the farm we saw this beautiful sunset.

Our first stop is always Santa's Workshop where the kids get to choose a wooden toy to build with the elves. With safety goggles in place, they get to hammer, drill and chat with the very friendly elves.


Look at that brave elf holding Sarah's wood while she's armed pounding with a hammer!
Every 20 minutes or so the music gets cranked and all the elves and the kids stand on the tables and dance. Presents are tossed about (Rachel got hit in the head this year) as well as the Grinch (Grouch as Sarah calls him) and it all ends with a huge snowstorm!


After the toys are constructed we move to the painting area of the workshop. All four of the kids really took their painting seriously this year. In fact, we were in there so long we saw the elves do their dance twice.



We can't forget the glitter!
Benjamin's finished toy soldier.
Sarah's finished teddy bear.
Emily's finished penguin.
Rachel's finished angel.
After we completed our toys, we bundled up and went on the horse-drawn wagon ride to see the lights. Many nursery rhymes are represented and it's sweet to hear the kids reciting them as they recognize the displays. The Twelve Days of Christmas are hidden throughout the farm so it's a challenge to find all twelve days. We have yet to find that partridge in a pear tree!

Nothing makes Emily happier than riding on a pony. Of course, once she saw the 'big horsies' she was determined to ride on one of them... maybe someday Em.
Sarah enjoyed her pony ride too, even though she would have rather rode on the tall kids pony that Benjamin and Rachel got to ride on.
Rachel made sure to bundle up (it was coooooooold, like 16 degrees!).
Gotta love the boots!
These horse rides were free, too bad we didn't see them first!

We visited with the other animals: there were several piglets, including an adorable runt, a turkey whom we had a previous encounter with earlier in the fall, bunnies, chickens, sheep, etc. We ended the evening by helping to milk a cow. All six of us had success. I think we might be farmers at heart.
Fun family times