Gymnastics

Laney did gymnastics right after we moved here in March of this year.  At that point she was still 2 so parents participated with the kids.  She was so shy during class, definitely didn't fully participate.  The post on her last gymnastic session is here.

Fast forward several months and she completely changed!  Since she is 3 now, she went in on her own and participated.  Piper and I watched her from the glass window…Coop was at school.  She did so well, totally participated and had fun doing it!!  

 Many days I miraculousy got her to nap while we watched Laney.

LOVE her in costume!

The last day they invite parents in for the last half of class. Adam came with me to watch her and took lots of pics.

 She looked so cute each week thanks to Trish giving us Ava's old gymnastic/dance leotards.

 She was totally showing off…and then fell off 2 steps later.

 They had a little certificate ceremony.  At the end of each class they get a stamp and it's one of her favorite parts.

 Love her hand in this one.

 Baby sister wasn't feeling the hugs.

This girl always has us laughing!  Next month she starts dance…and if you have seen her dance moves, you know she needs some lesson on appropriate dancing for a 3 year old ;).

A random warm weather afternoon

On December 8th, it was 50 degrees and glorious.  Not going to lie, several times a week we talk about Texas winters.  I miss them. A lot.  Really a lot.  I mean, why is it so cold ALL the time and gloomy! :( Anyway…moving on.  When these rare semi-warm days come around, we soak them up!!!!!  This afternoon we walked up to the school playground.

 There is something about getting outside and fresh air that just makes the day a little better!

 My sweet baby loves to chew on the kids' swimming goggles.

We played lots of catch while Laney was on the swing and Piper chewed on goggles.  

Wrapping up November

It's the middle of December, probably time to wrap up the month of November, huh?

 Cozied up to the fire!

 LOVE it!

 A fun happy hour celebrating a promotion with Stella & Dot!  Cheers!!!

My cousin Olivia had the kids while we were at happy hour and sent me this.  It was a beautiful Saturday so she took them to the playground.  It was also a lazy Saturday in our house and Laney was still in her pjs…that are 2 sizes too small.

 Lunch at Jalapenos after church.  She kept pulling him in for kisses.

 Laney came over and said, "Mom, take our picture, we are wearing matching sweaters!"

Coop's Thanksgiving party at preschool…of course he sits at a table with all girls.

 On November 30th around 9:30pm, I thought of an idea I had seen and acted on it.  I rounded up all our Christmas books (thankfully we had enough!) and wrapped 24.  Each night the kids open the book for that day for us to read.  They LOVE it!

 Nineey the Elf is back!  He moves last minute around 12:30-1am…why is this so hard to remember!

 In case you are wondering, laundry does not fold itself.  I left this here for a week and nothing!  

 We went to Party City to shop for Pippi's party while Coop was at school.  This girl is Frozen obsessed.  "Take my picture Momma!"

 She wanted just about everything in this store.

 I found a bunch of Christmas stationary in my teaching bin.  It has kept the kids very busy!  Everyday they are coloring cards…that I throw away when they go to bed.

 Before I throw away, I take a picture of some of my faves.

Luminary Walk at the Arboretum

This is something I have always wanted to do but we usually aren't in town or busy with something else…not this year!  The arboretum is just minutes from us and so pretty!  When the weather is nice, we often go there to eat lunch and walk around the trails.  For this event, they light the trails with candles, have lots of Christmas lights, hot cider station, and Santa.

  We went to get our Christmas tree this morning and the arboretum at night…busy day!

 I hate that this is blurry!  Tara and her cute kids!

 We stopped for hot cider and to sit by the bonfire to warm up.

 Love this boy!

 These sweet babies were troopers!

We went on a short hayride where of course Laney was covered in it by the time we got off 10 minutes later.

 Open your eyes Henny!

 The arboretum was all lit up, so pretty!  Santa was even there but we skipped the long line.

 We came home (at least I think this was the same night) and had a dance party, pretty typical.

She was lovin' the music!

O Christmas Tree, O Christmas Tree!

We have had a fake tree the last several years - not many tree farms in Texas.  I knew I wanted a real tree this year but wasn't sure how Adam would react.  I mentioned it on Thanksgiving and he said, 'lets go tomorrow.'  That was easy!  We met the Nitschkes at the tree farm the next morning - so fun!

 The kids all crawled in bed with us in the morning and Coop wanted to hold Pippi.

 Not to miss a photo op, Laney hopped in.

The Griswolds were off to find their tree!

 Somehow he was put in charge of the saw.

 Out exploring the land for our perfect tree!

 We found one!

 It was cold!  The wind had just blown Piper's hood off - promise!

 Cooper was off running around with Emersyn so Laney helped Dad cut down the tree.

Pippi just watched from her stroller.

 These little legs were tired of walking and hitched a ride back to the car on the wagon.

It may have been sunny but it was cold!!!

 Not only did he cut down and put up a Christmas tree…he put lights on our street tree!  The neighborhood encourages everyone to do red on the trunk and white on the branches…it makes the neighborhood streets very festive!

 She chose to decorate me and 

 Henley instead of the tree.

 My mom brought ornaments and helped the kids decorate the trees in their rooms.

 My grandma came and did the ribbon on my tree as I was clueless.

Love it!  We ran out of the striped material so we opted for red on the bottom…works for me!