A smile costs nothing, but gives much.
After our Knights of Columbus pancake feed on Sunday, we were able to meet Mr. & Mrs. Claus for a little visit. :) Teresa LOVED it & kept running back to his lap after our turn was over! Each child then received a baby Jesus holy card & candy cane. So cute!
To keep our busy weekend moving we celebrated "Thanksmas" with Green Grandpa's side of the family on Saturday night. (It's their combo Thanksgiving & Christmas if you hadn't guessed.) We had lots of food, fun, & family. Teresa received this sweet doll as a belated birthday present from Aunt Katie & Uncle Brad. It came at the PERFECT time to keep her from scaling the walls, so double thanks to you Wilkens!
Andrew & Rebecca enjoyed way too many sweets, some serious running around, Simon Says, cars, & general goofiness with their cousins. 
Yes, Andrew is still in his Halloween skeleton shirt...why not make it three holidays in one?
Happy 1st Birthday, Nicholas!
Your Mommy is cake baker extraordinnaire! 
Teresa started us off with a little simple music.
Your other cousins the enthusiastic entertainment.
She learns quickly.
Then it was on to wearing party hats in unique style. This is called "The Rhino".
And here's "The Pteranodon".
You liked your cake!
Cousins & big brother were very helpful with opening your presents...
& playing with your toys.
Glad we could celebrate with you!
After multiple years of wanting to go, we finally made it to "Bless the Baby Jesus" last weekend. It was a relatively small gathering of families & so nice! There was a simple Liturgy of the Word followed by each family going up to receive a special blessing on the Jesus statue from their home Nativity scene. We brought 3 different ones...since we have more than one set...& each of the kids were able to carry one up.
Afterwards we enjoyed a proliferation of cookies & punch while chatting with friends. It was great! Hope we can make it again next year...we still have several more Nativities after all. ;)
The time had come. Rebecca's hair was getting caught in her coat, her carseat, her food, her toothpaste... all good signs that it was finally long enough to donate to Locks of Love. Locks of Love makes wigs for financially disadvantaged children who lose their hair due to different ailments & illnesses.
I cut off 11 inches! To make it a little more even, I put it in three ponytails to start instead of one. After I chopped the first, I showed it to her & she said, "Wow! Cool!" (I looked at it & thought, "What have I done?!?" I loved her beautiful long hair. ) Then after the second, she said, "No, Mommy. That's too much. Put it back on." After I explained that wasn't an option, she practically insisted on keeping the third tail! 
It took a little convincing, but now she is so glad to have it cut. "I want to give my hair to a little girl who doesn't have any so she has a Merry Christmas, too." Cuteness.
They were having a blast. Everytime Teresa would slide down the hill she would yell, "Woooohoooo!"
Love those chills & thrills!
I've always loved the feast of St. Nicholas. My mom has always made it an extra special day for us. So, we got out our stockings & Santa hats, St. Nicholas statues, books, & video, gifts to unwrap from my parents, & hit the hay. We awoke to a jubilant table full of celebrating.
After school we celebrated with some neighborhood friends, too. 
Teresa FINALLY let Alison hold her...a gift!
Pin the cross on the miter
Hmm... I'll take this one.
Christmas cookie decorating
Then we celebrated Mass at our home that evening for Bible Study. My brother came over & let the kids help him set up.
We were able to sing some old Newman Center tunes, Andrew rang the bells (huge thrill!), & appreciate the Mass even more after our study of it's Biblical origins.
Rebecca helped me earlier in the day to make these chocolate peanut butter balls & Christmas veggie tree. What a fabulous day!
We took advantage of Darren being home from work last week & caught a matinee of Arthur Christmas with the kiddos. Andrew had been to 2 movies at the theater before, but the girls had never gone before. We celebrated his feast day a little early with a fun night out. They did amazingly well! Teresa just sat on my lap the whole time & ate about half a tub of popcorn. Rebecca was particularly amused when at one point they dropped "magic dust" on animals of the Serengeti, so that zebras, elephants, & lions were floating everywhere. I just LOVE to hear her giggle like that! Maybe we'll make this a fun feast day tradition. :)
cousin wrestling,
curtain peek-a-booing,
happy coupling,
auntie hugging,
meal sharing with Grandma & Great Aunt Sr. Alma,
Great Grandma snuggling,
bucket hiding,
beautiful day swinging,
enthusiastic Grandpa playing,
