Emory's Birthday and more snow...























I'm starting to lose track of all the snows, but the day of Emory's party it snowed so we postponed to the next day.
We had a "sweetheart" party for her. She seemed to enjoy being the center of attention and definitely liked her first experience of cake. It was a fun time with family.




















Loved the "got Milk" picture. She's such a little diva already!









Then of course this week we found out there was a chance of more snow. I never count on anything until I see those flakes coming out of the sky but all the hype wasn't for nothing this time.

I think the first time it snowed my kids were glued to the windows watching it, this time I said something to the effect of "look at all the snow!" and Kaleigh was like "oh yeah" then turned back to the TV. We're hard to impress around here...

After being stuck inside for two days I wanted to accomplish something constructive so I figured it was as good a day as any to teach Kaleigh to read.
That went well, if you overlook the very large possibility that she will have to undergo counseling in the future and it will all center around reading the word "this".
We may need a few more snow days for that. To offset some of the guilt I was feeling for being such a terrible teacher, I read to her several chapters from a chapter book. To hopefully convince her again that reading really is fun.

And of course there was the snow. So we spent an hour bundling up everyone so we could go out & play then come inside 15 minutes later. But it's all worth it right? For the memories...

“A baby will make love stronger, days shorter, nights longer, bankroll smaller, home happier, clothes shabbier, the past forgotten, and the future worth living for”








Emory, You've done all this and so much more. You are one energetic, happy, emotional, firecracker of a baby. We've had so much fun getting to know you and seeing you grow. And you just seem so much easier coming after twins, we've really enjoyed you! Now that you're a year old, you will only eat foods that you feed yourself - no more baby food for this big girl *sigh*. You're not walking yet, just getting around too well on those hands & knees. I just get the feeling one day you will take off running across the room! You have a temper - you yell very loudly if something is taken away from you but recover quickly. You grin big at the sight of those sisters of yours, and you cry when mommy & daddy drop you off in the nursery. You started out as a surprise to us and you continue to surprise us every day.

Happy Birthday Little Sweetheart! We love you.

Just Playin

It's been a rough week around our house with some sick girls, but we're making the best of it. They're actually doing pretty well, considering. Some are not getting quite enough sleep. In their beds, that is...













Dressing up is always a popular activity...


















As is playing games on the iphone...

















Or playing in boxes, if all else fails.

SNOW DAYS!

Most of these are on facebook, but in case you missed them, here are some pics of us enjoying the 5-6 inches of snow we got this past week. It's just now almost gone, we've had fun with it. Not as much fun as we will in a few years, I'm sure.

As you may have noticed, our street is perfect for sledding (or boogeyboarding in our case). Since I had just given birth last year when it snowed I didn't get to participate in the fun so I jumped right in this time. I know you are all wondering about my adorable boots. Well, sorry to disappoint you but I got the last pair and you wouldn't be able to afford them anyway :) They are actually Nathan's and hideous on me but I couldn't find anything else to wear. Oh well.









The twins really got in on the action too. You can see the squeal on Alexis' face in this picture.









My sister got stranded with us and I know she was loving it! We were glad to have another person to help carry all our passengers who kept asking "again, again".








Kaleigh really wanted to make a snowman and I'd never made one before, but here's what we came up with. This is after many attempts and a few mishaps of collapsing and being put back together:
She's a beauty queen in the making - Miss Snow 2011. She has green eyes, a curvaceous figure and her platform is to end global warming. Her hobbies include being outdoors and birdwatching.












One funny story - we made snow cream and all enjoyed partaking of it, especially the twins. The next day Alexis looked out the window at all the snow and said "OOh, Avery, look at all the ice cream!" She said it again later in the week when we went to her Nana & Papa's house and saw the perfect smooth coating of snow on their roof. Sounds great to me - a world covered in ice cream!

Journey through December

This is my "why I haven't blogged in so long blog"! I've been having so much fun and honestly just haven't wanted to stop & blog. But here is a little overview of what we've been doing, starting with first of December.

Our Sunday school Christmas party








Decorating for Christmas








Baking with friends









Kaleigh's preschool Christmas party

More of Kaleigh's preschool Christmas party









Saturday before Christmas we went with some friends to eat & then to TransSiberian orchestra. That's a great show, even though I kinda fell asleep during part of it! :) I think the food had filled me up and made me so sleepy. . .

Sunday before Christmas we had a little party with some friends. They all went to Garvan Gardens but we decided not to go with all the little ones. After they were finished they came back here for food and some fun times. We had some little things to give away and Nathan planned a game thinking it would be more for the kids. Oh no - the grown ups went crazy playing this game. It was hilarious to watch some of the more laid back ones be extremely competitive. Then we turned on some dance music for the kids and laughed our heads off watching them dance. You could tell it wasn't the first time for most of them!

Christmas Week

My family came to stay with us the week of Christmas, including Lance & Kristin, my brother & sis in law who came from North Carolina. They got here late Tuesday night and we wanted to pack in as much family time as possible. The kids love them and vice-versa, although L&K did get to see them at their not so finest a few times. Overall, the kids were in great moods the whole time and it was lots of fun.

Wednesday the weather was gorgeous so we got to play outside.








That night we went to the Capital to enjoy the decorations inside. It was really crowded but we tried to make the best of it.








Nathan was trying out our Christmas gift to each other - a new camera lens. On that same note, one of my New Years Resolutions involves learning to use our camera better.

Christmas Eve

We spend Christmas Eve at Nathan's parents house with them and Laura, Timothy & Kayla. The twins really got into opening gifts this time around. They got a little too eager at times and started opening anything they could get their hands on!


Notice what Emory is playing with here...

She had gotten a little bored with the gift opening process and crawled into the other room to get herself something.

Christmas Day





We woke to a small mountain of gifts













No matter how many presents, these two still don't start the day without a sippy full of milk (it's their coffee)








Lance & Kristin got these sweatshirts from her parents. I love them! I think it's adorable.









One family picture before the gift opening fun!