Merry Christmas!

(scanner wasn't working, had to take pictures of it, not very good, sorry!)

Front:

Inside:

Happy Holidays from our family to you and yours!

Holiday Crafty-ness :)

I got chosen to be a host of a BIC sponsored holiday craft party. They sent me 72 markers in wonderful colors. So far every project I've tried them, has been perfect. Here are my goodies:

This scarf is finally finished! I started it two years ago for a gift for my brother's GF, but when Christmas was upon us, and it still wasn't done, I rushed to Bath & Body Works and picked up some yummy goodness in her favorite scent (which happens to my favorite too!). Now, I'm attempting a make-it-up-as-I-go hat for myself to match. (I'm keeping the scarf!):

And this lovely fabric was my goodwill find. $3.99 for both! Love the print on them. I'm thinking Mommy-and-Me reversible aprons for Charlotte and I.

Christmas Countdown: 33 days!

I'm trying to not procrastinate this year. :) I've got my black friday list/route all mapped out and am ready to go!

But before that I'm working on the Christmas cards. My little family will be all dressed up on Thursday for Thanksgiving, so why not pose for the Christmas card photo?

In the past I've made all my Christmas cards, but honestly it's A LOT of work. And it doesn't save me any money, either. All those supplies add up. My friends all send of the photo cards they order from Shutterfly, Costco, etc. I'm looking in Shutterfly this year.

When someone mentioned the folded cards, I thought, I don't want to write a message in 50+ Christmas cards! I hate my handwriting and can not think of 50 original heartfelt messages. :) But Shutterfly has the answer! On their folded cards you can insert pictures and text! YAY! So I get to send a Christmas CARD not just a enchanced image, and I don't have to cramp up my hand to do so.

Here's the some of the ones I'm thinking of:

Photos in sepia, just perfect.

Just look at the inside of this one! All the insides are customizable based on what you want. This would be perfect for showing off pictures of the year's highlights!

This card is great because the inside looks like a timeline of your year. Love it!

So now the hard part...choosing ONE card and then narrowing down the pictures to use. :)

Here's the link to shutterfly if you all want to get a headstart on your own cards: http://www.shutterfly.com/cards-stationery and while you are there, how about a calendar for next year? http://www.shutterfly.com/calendars

They make great gifts for grandparents...I think that is what I'm doing for my parents this year.

Oh! They also have desk calendars, perfect for my Husband's new office!

Andrew's Doodle

I have SO much to catch up on, but in the meantime, here's Andrew's latest masterpiece. :)

Andrew's 1st Day of Preschool!

So, today's post should be wordless...but I just CAN'T. I have to gush and brag about my baby boy!

Photographic evidence that even though my little boy started school today, he's still my baby! (Sleeping in my bed! You can see Charlotte's pillow in the top right, she ended up in our bed too!)

Today was the first day of preschool for Andrew. He started at a cooperative preschool here in Battle Ground.

"More pictures? Can't we go in yet???"

"(Charlotte) Look mom, there's all the other kids going in..."

Finally, getting his first peek into his new classroom...

His jacket and backpack on his hook. :) I forgot a picture of his cubby! :( I'll have to snap a picture on Monday. :D

One last glimpse of Andrew before we head home for a couple hours.

He doesn't even notice that we left. :(

She really missed Andrew. She followed me around like a duckling ALL morning.

Kiss, kiss, moo moo! (So sweet!)

Charlotte joins in on the fun.

"Where do you think you're going with MY car???"

Going home!

Andrew telling us all about his first day...including his snack of crackers and napkins. lol

We took Andrew (and Charlotte) out to lunch and to a movie to celebrate his first day of school...Charlotte got bored (I did too!) with Iron Man 2, so we waited in the lobby for the boys. We got 2 $0.25 bouncy balls, a $0.25 bracelet (blue on her R arm) and some photos done to pass the time. The trucks were dug out of my diaper bag. :)

Wordless Wednesday

Birthdays!

Sorry it's been one whole month since my last post. :) Nothing exciting is going on...

Did you know that there are more August birthdays than any other month? 9% of babies are born this month. In my family, we have only two (3 in Jan., 2 in Feb., 2 in Mar., 1 in April, 4 in May, 3 in June, 1 in July, 0 in Sept., 3 in Oct., 0 in November, and 3 in Dec.), but that's not the point. Anyway...my cousin Bobby turned 12 (!) on the 5th and my baby brother turned 21 on 8/9/10. :) Speaking of which, on the news there was a baby girl (Ella Rose) born on 8/9/10 @ 11:12 pm. The pointed out that her weight was 2 ounces higher than needed to be 6# 7 oz on 8/9/10 @ 11:12 pm. Way off track...

Okay, so August birth's = highest month, why? 9 months after winter. It's cold and people have nothing better to do. :D

We've been invited to a lot of birthday parties lately. We were just at one yesterday, it was at a cool pizza place in Beaverton. The little girl had a Barbie-themed party and was turning...6, I believe. :) My husband and I are firm believers that children (ours included) have too many toys, so we try to find alternative gifts. Usually we opt for books or clothes, but kids can even have too many clothes (never too many books). I stopped at Target on our way and got a Hello Kitty backpack, binder, folder, and notepad, as well as a pack of Crayola markers and colored pencils. I threw it all and some tissue paper into a reusable shopping bag (cheaper and more practical than a gift bag) and hoped she was in school or starting school this year. :)

I've already started thinking about Christmas gifts...I have 4 nephews and 1 niece, I would like to make their gifts, but what to make? My oldest nephew is going to be 9 soon, and the youngest is 4 months. I think I'll be making this (http://skiptomylou.wordpress.com/2007/11/29/hooded-towel-tutorial/) for the younger ones (my almost 5 year old niece and all the "babies").

Man this post is all over the place. Here are some pictures from yesterday.

Getting ready to go have some fun: :)

Cute little carousel that was free to ride as much as you wanted:

Mini Ferris Wheel set up in the corner (also free of charge):

Andrew is in this yellow one with three other little ones from the party:

Being made to finally exit, they'd been in there for a long time. Andrew would have stayed if there were not other children waiting for a ride.
Giant ball pit: (There were two hoops in here, but they were so high that even I had trouble making the shot, I don't know how they expected the children to do it...)

Finally going home...:

Lil' Miss Charlotte is 18 months!

Lil' Miss Charlotte Renee, aka Moo-moo, was born 18 months ago, today. :( She's growing up so FAST!

Okay, so doctor appointment today: Weight: 26 lbs 12 oz 82%
Height: 33.3 inches 91%
Head: 19.4 inches 98%

She got 3 vaccines: DTAP, Hep A and PCV13.


We talked about a dimple on her tush (at base of spine) and her broken toe nail. She told me that because the dimple (hole) is closed, there are no worries. And I should super glue her toe nail on until it can grow out a little. LOL
We also talked about the AAP recommendations to keep children rear-facing until 2 yrs. I switched her back around, because a broken leg is better than a broken spine.

So, question for all of you...my pediatrician said that at 18 months they should know about 6 words...Charlotte knows at least 20 (I have a list)...what's your tots vocabulary like?
Pictures of today's adventures (she looks like a grape! LOL):