Happy Day Jesus!

We started celebrating Jesus's birthday this year a little early. With everyones schedule a little bit busier we celebrated with my moms side of the family a week early. We had a great time but I still really miss getting to see everyone on Christmas day. I am not good at breaking traditions! Usually we get a big group shot of all 28 or so of us but we just never got around to it this year? So in an effort to show everyone Ill just have to repost the one from last year :( We are missing baby Sophie and Anna Kayt who weren't quite born yet :)

This is the new barbie that Livi got from Nini. She LOVED it and has to take it everywhere with her. Including the swing!

We also decided to start a new tradition of baking a Happy Birthday Jesus cake. I have so many of my friends that do this and just think it is such a great way to help children (and myself) remember what Christmas is all about. I get so caught up in schedules, cooking, and present opening I usually forget all about why we are actually celebrating! I have also heard of doing a bible christmas tree where everyday in December your child opens a present that is a different ornament that represents a different bible story. You then read that story with your child and hang the ornament on their tree. What a great fun way to teach your children about Christ!

Mary Lee came over to help us with our cake. They were excellent bakers and the cake actually turned out pretty tasty!

You gotta love this face!!

We celebrated Christmas Eve with my dads side of the family. They came in from Atlanta and it was so nice for the girls to get to see their great grandmother who we call Gran. She also brought her little puppy that Olivia couldn't get enough of.

Livi and her Aunt Ashley

Gran (my dad's mom), her puppy, and the girls

Notice Livi's new kitchen in the background. She loves to make her Sisa and Grumps coffee and cookies!

And finally, it was Christmas morning!! JR and I took a picture before the girls got up of what all HoHo (as Livi calls him) brought them.

Olivia was so excited about her tent and wanted to spend most of the day in there. She also loved all of Anna Kayt's light up toys.....I should have known :)

For lunch we went to Sisa and Grumps house to spend some time with them.

Livi was so excited to get a new sleeping bag that will go perfectly in her tent!! Yay!! My parents were sweet enough to give us a beach trip for just the two of us while they watched the girls! As much as I will miss them I am so looking forward to having some much needed time away relaxing in the sun!! :)

For dinner we headed to the Millingtons! Miah won the gift giving of the night when he surprised Heather and Payton with a car seat!! We were all so impressed that Miah actually went shopping and came up with this on his own!! If you know Miah...... this is BIG!! :)

Sadly this is the only picture that I took at the Millingtons. I am going to have to get better about taking more pictures. It seems like after each child I get worse and worse at taking pictures! I loved this one of Anna Kayt laughing at Big John. :)

After a long day of celebrating, opening presents, and visiting family we decided to unwind and the girls got to play with all of their new bath toys! They were having a tea party!

Livi showing off her new Cinderella dress from B. And of course she has on her bright red shoes!!

From our Family to yours.....We hope that you had a Merry Christmas!!

Happy 9 months and 2 1/2 years!

9 months already!! Wow! My sweet cheecks is getting too big too fast! She is sitting up, trying to lean to one side and hold herself up, loves to roll over, play in the bath tub with Livi, loves her exersaucer and watching praise baby. She has started using her sippy cup and gets soo excited if you give her water out of your cup. Her face just lights up and she gets the biggest smile on her face. Even though I think that these girls do look a lot alike I think that Anna Kayt definitely has my mouth when she laughs and smiles. Melts my heart! She is eating about 4 - 5 bottles a day and eats 3 meals a day. We have just started cheese puffs and she has Loved these!! If we decide to go out to eat these are a must to have with us! She is sleeping pretty well but has started crying around 5 am for a bottle and then goes back down until 9 so I am trying to break this. She usually sleeps from about 8:30 until about 8 in the morning. She is taking about 2 naps a day but if they are short she still sneaks that short 3rd nap in. She is turning into such a sweet and happy little girl and her new talent is blowing bubbles with those cute lips! She is also rolling all the time and when she is one her tummy, she will spin around in circles and sometimes scoot backwards. Anna Kayt's favorite thing to do is sit in her exersaucer and watch Praise baby! Sometimes it is the only that that I can get her to do by herself so that I can get a few things done. This child loves being held all the time!! She is my little snuggle bug and I just can't get enough of kissing those cheeks!! I could just cuddle with this one all day and night!! Sometimes I actually find myself at night wanting to go get her out of her crib and just love on her a little more. :)

Happy 9 months sweet girl!!

Livi is already trying to dress up Anna Kayt. Poor baby :)

I don't even know where to begin with Miss Livi! She makes us crack up from all the funny things she says, smile when she imitates things we do, and second guess our parenting when she throws herself on the floor in tears. :) We love this little girl and could not imagine life without this spunky, sweet hearted, beautiful, and funny little girl. Since I mainly use this blog to journal things that my girls are doing so that they will have this to read when they get older, I wanted to write down a few thing that she is doing or has said lately that have just melted my heart!

Livi isms...

When telling Livi that she needs to put on her jacket she tells me ' I fine mommy, you just keep walking in those boots'

"hold you" means she wants to be held

"chick a fil a" her favorite place to eat

"sissy play with my toys" she wants ak to play with her

"drive two hands " always tells me drive with two hands... Don't know where she learned this from?

"cigrella" she loves anything Cinderella!

"jelly samich" pb and js are her favorite

She always calls Anna Kayt sweetie or sweet girl, melts my heart!

" happy day" happy birthday

"Livi get pretty dress and dance with daddy" This means that she wants to wear a smocked dress or her cinderella dress and dance with JR ....aka JR holds her hands and spins her around in circles really fast. ha She usually then asks me and sissy if we want to wear our pretty dresses too :)

"Thats not nice mommy" She tells me this anytime I tell her something she doesn't like

"I cain't (not can't but cain't) like that" This means that does not like something....food, clothes...

Fell asleep in the car with her Tiara on

Yummy cookies and sprinkles

Our "cigrella dress B gave you" with our red sparkle shoes that she HAS to wear!!

Silly girl drinking her bottle! Ha (please notice her shoes)

She loves to wear my sunglasses and say "ooooo Hollywood!"

New barbie just had to swing with her

Happy 2 1/2 years sweet girl!! We love you!!

Joy

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in Him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. Romans 15:13

Merry Christmas!