Christmas Eve - 2011

Last years Christmas Day was a little too crazy and hectic.  We had people coming and going at such odd times that when it came down to exchanging gifts it felt rushed rather than enjoyed.  So this year we tried to make a few adjustments.  The biggest one was moving our big family meal to Christmas Eve instead of Christmas Day.  This actually worked out really really well.  We always head up to my parents on Christmas Eve for a sleep over. This year was no exception and the kids were really excited. 

The classic English tradition of Christmas Crackers

This time last year .. baby Oliver.

While we enjoyed our dinner on Christmas Eve, he was trapped upstairs in his bili box.

 This year .. albeit a little cranky .. at least he was able to join us in our festivities.

It was so much fun having Evan and Rachel join us for the sleepover.

Rachel's family was out of town for Christmas so we were lucky enough to have them ALL

to ourselves.  No complaints here!

I do believe my father is giving me the finger.

However, if my memory serves me correctly it was Jeramie taking the pictures.

So he was giving JERAMIE the finger.

Oh hey little kitty cat Zarley.

Wyland fell asleep on the couch which started out as good.

Then he woke up and didn't want to go back to sleep!  Stinker.

Jackson doesn't mind being the center of Aunt Rachel's attention.

Jeramie's favorite time of the year.  Watching our Christmas Eve movie.

Drinking Crown Royal on the rocks with my dad.

We were definitely off to a good start this year for sure!

Happy Birthday Mike!  That was one heck of a birthday dinner spread.

Pre Christmas

I swear we are such procrastinators when it comes to getting out our Christmas decorations.  It always feels like such hard work.  Then once they're out I always wish I'd done it sooner because then we could enjoy them for longer.  This year was no exception.  Our house lights went up the second weekend in December.  Mainly because I was in Vegas the first weekend.  It was this same weekend that while Jeramie was working late I decided to tackle the indoor decorations by myself with the kids.  The boys were really excited to set up the tree. 

Wyland especially liked Baylee's Pooh book ornaments.

She's been getting them since she was a baby.

While Wyland played with ornaments, Jackson actually helped to hang them.

I'll be so glad when Wyland moves out of this phase where he pulls a face in every picture.

And again with the face!

Not this kid though!  He was so happy!

He lasted all of five minutes before he broke his first ornament.

Now pretty much the whole bottom of our tree is bare.

It looks a little funny but what can you do?  He's 1.

The finished product.

Preschool Christmas - Take 3

It was Wyland's turn to be in the spotlight the week before Christmas.  When Baylee was little and in dance she used to get some terrible stage fright.  I was a little worried the first time Jackson had to take the stage, what if he was the same way?  But he wasn't, he seemed to enjoy it so much.  Next was Wyland's turn.  I wondered if he would take after Baylee or Jackson.  I should have known better than to worry because he did amazing.  I was so happy to see his lips moving with the words.  I knew he knew the songs, but wasn't sure if he'd actually "bring it" come go time.  I just love this kid so much!!

There's my guy, last one on the right.  In the big kid chair.  Feet not touching the ground.

Then there's little Xavier .. looking calm, cool and collected.

Love these guys.

I actually think the 3 year old program is cuter than the 4 year old one.

What a great way to start the holidays.

This time last year I was one day out of the hospital with Oliver.

Oliver's Birthday - Part 2

To wrap up birthday celebrations we headed up to my parents on Sunday to have a family party.  Unfortunately there were a few people that weren't able to join us so it was an intimate event.  But still lots of fun.  Oliver had absolutely no clue about what was all going on. But Baylee, Jackson and Wyland had enough enthusiasm to make up for it!

What a perfect little one year old cake.

I love the expression on his face.

It's a good thing we let him have a look at it before his presents, because

he ended up falling asleep. We sang to him anyway.

The big kids had no problem helping him open his presents.

I do believe he liked a lot of what he got.  So did Jackson and Wyland though.

I love this stage where they sit on their feet. It's just so cute.

And then he crashed.  We sang.  The boys blew out his candle.

I hope they made a good wish for him.



Until next year.  When I will be saying .. I can't believe he's TWO!

Thank you everyone for the birthday wishes and lovely presents!!

Oliver's Birthday Celebration - Part 1

Friday night was Oliver's actual birthday.  So as a small family of 6 (haha) we headed to Build a Bear.  We figured it would be a fun thing to do as a family to celebrate Oliver's special day.  The kids didn't know where we were going, other than to the mall. They thought we were going to see Santa.  None of the boys had actually every been here before, only Baylee had.  It's kind of funny in a way because Jackson and Wyland were so somber the whole time we were there.  They just didn't quite understand what all was going on. When it came time to pick outfits for their animals they got a little more enthusiastic.  It didn't help I'm sure that both of them fell asleep in the car on the way there.  Oliver wasn't impressed, but I'm still glad we did it. 

We didn't buy clothes for Oliver's bear.  I figured he would be more cuddly without them.

His name:  Ollie Bear

Wyland chose a puppy and picked a fireman outfit for him.

His name:  Puppy

Jackson of course chose the camo bear with army clothes.

His name:  Jackson (guess he wanted a name sake)

Baylee of course went with the pink Hello Kitty.

Her name:  Chantel (I think she has a friend as school with that name).

Mama and the birthday boy.

After Build a Bear the troops were livening up.

We headed to the food court for a birthday dinner.

I know .. we're crazy.

The boys all shared some Hot Dog on a stick and fries.

 The beauty of the food court is we ate at three different places.

Oliver dined on french fries and then went for some good ole milk.

Happy Birthday Oliver!

Seriously has it already been a year??

Yesterday my little Oliver Rhys turned one years old!

Born with all that dark hair.

It was a year ago that he was in this horrible box.

Last Christmas when at noon I had to take him in for a blood test that gave be the best present ever.

We got rid of the torture box.

And before long he was starting to look like Jackson.

The three musketeers.

My only Winter baby and he still got dragged everywhere, even in the cold.

It was nice when summer came because he wasn't tiny anymore when we started camping and boating.

I swear I say it with each child but I do think he was my cutest BABY!



Happy Birthday my sweet Oliver!!

Don't grow up too quick, k?  Because you're my last one.