Lots and Lots to share!

First, and most importantly, my two favorite people participated in their first ever Christmas concert. Their class sang two songs, and they were great! All of the children in the school learned all of the songs, and I was suprised at which two belonged to Laney and Alie's class. My girls seem to prefer "It must be Santa", which they sing constantly around the house. Although it was only a preschool concert, I had such a strong feeling of pride for my two little girls...watching them on stage singing with their friends was SUCH a great moment. And, for those of you who spend any time with me, don't think I won't force you to relive those moments with me by making you watch the dvd I purchased of the performance!

Then, the day after the wonderful Christmas concert, came the snow. Lots and lots of it. Feet of it. Coming up to my little ladies waists. My dog loves the snow, but hates going to the bathroom in it. My daughters adore the snow. Alie woke up on Saturday morning at 6:30 just to inform me that she saw snow outside and that she's ready to put on her snow pants. The girls and I spent the weekend watching Christmas movies, drinking hot chocolate and playing in the snow. Carl spent the weekend digging us out ;)

Finally, Cirucci has me hooked on these teen smut books. There are four of them. I have read one and a little more than half of the second one. I think that will be what I will be up to for part of my Christmas break.

My babies are 4!

This was one crazy weekend....

It all started with Santa. My neighborhood is awesome! Santa still rides through on a fire truck, making stops to meet with the children. Santa stopped right in front of our house on Friday evening, and the girlies LOVED it! Carl explained that he was verifying that they still lived in the same house so that he could deliver the presents on Christmas eve.

Then Wen, Ciruc and I headed to Katie's for bookclub. We had a cookie exchange...woohoo! The soup was delish and as always, the company was wonderful. We did miss Ky this month though.

Then, we headed to Philly on Saturday to go bridesmaid dress shopping. It was a blast and we found a gorgeous dress! When we arrived back in Balti, we rounded the day out with some pizza and wine drinking...

Sunday, we celebrated Laney and Alie's 4th birthday (i can't believe it!). Six of their friends came over for some games, crafts and cake. The girls had a blast and their friends were so generous! It was really a great time.

Afterwards, Wen, Ciruc and I went shopping at DSW and Old Navy. Ciruc made enchilladas and we had a big crowd over for dinner.

I took Monday off because Wen was still in town, and I needed to sleep in after the busy busy weekend. We headed to the mall and had some lunch. Auntie Wen needed to go to Barnes and Noble, and I purchased the new book club book (actually I purchased most of the series). I started the first one and I'm already addicted. Then, we headed to my parents house for dinner.

I clearly need a nap from my break.

Letters to Santa

Tonight, Carl and I will sit down with our girlies and help them write their very first letters to Santa. Tomorrow at school, Laney and Alie will be participating in breakfast with Santa. They are sooo excited to see Santa and to sit on his lap. This year, their preschool has adopted both a local school which is less fortunate and a national organization to give back to. When each child meets with Santa, they will give Santa a gift to give to a child staying at the Ronald McDonald house. I LOVE this idea because the girls are learning to give to other children who may not be getting as many gifts as they will be during this holiday season.

The girls have been really involved in giving back. They have been collecting tabs and box clippings in their collection boxes to pass on to the other organizations as well. They saw some tabs at Mommom and Pop pops yesterday, and were excited to add them to their collection to take back to school...they have really been on the lookout!

I have to admit, I really am enjoying their participation in pre-school. It really adds an extra dimension to our holiday this year. I love when the girls come home to tell me about baby Jesus and how he was born in a manger. They have been working on some great holiday crafts and pictures at school too! I especially loved being the classroom reader yesterday. The girls each chose their favorite book for me to read, and I brought an extra one with a holiday theme. The kids seemed to really enjoy them.

Morning Helper!

This morning, I was the morning helper at Laney and Alie's school...and it was great!

The girls and I woke up early...although not too much earlier than a normal morning for me since i've been on my weight loss kick (another story for another day). Alie was not all that pleased to be up at 6:30, but Laney got dressed right away. The best part was getting to play with the girls and their friends. We played Mr. Potato Head, colored, played with letters and round blocks. All of their friends were so nice, and allowed me to play right along with them (something my girls don't always let me do).

I can't wait to be morning helper again!

Thanksgiving recap

Our Thanksgiving was very nice this year. We spent it at my parents house, just them, the kiddos and us. My mom made turkey, carrots, mashed potatoes and pie. I made stuffing, cranberries and pie. Everything was delicious. It was quiet. We even said the superman prayer (a prayer from school that we generally say before dinner at our home. it involves holding your hands up in the air, like superman, instead of folding them in front of you and bowing your head).

We were able to clean the house, like we hoped. We took care of Cici's cats. We ended up decorating together on Sunday, although the girls did suprise Carl with a newly decorated wreath for the back door and some small, holiday themed puppets. I was also able to use some scrap fabric to make a runner for the family room coffee table. Its not great, but it works. Carl and the girls decorated the house with lights on Sunday afternoon. Somehow, Alie took a tumble down the front steps while helping her father...she thinks a ghost pushed her. Clearly she is my child.

I just want to take one moment to brag. As of last night, I finished my Christmas shopping with the exception of one non-mall related gift. I now have the next couple of weeks to relax. I finished all of this shopping without ever stepping foot in a mall, or hunting out sales on "black friday/weekend". Instead, I have been a year-long shopper, snatching up great deals as I see them. I did the majority of my shopping this fall, as Carl and I decided what we wanted to give each of our family members. We put A LOT of thought into everyone's gift and we are so excited to give them. This is the part that I have trouble with...I get so excited about what I have for people, I can't wait to give it to them.