Day 362

12.29.09 - I was featured on the Pioneer Woman's website again. So excited!!

Day 361

12.28.09 - We had several nerf sword battles tonight. Andrew can be pretty lethal with that sword. He gets so into and doesn't realize how hard he's hitting. Lord help us when he gets even bigger.

Day 360

12.27.09- We went to Alexis' one year birthday party today. They had a face painter and Andrew got all done up. This kid just loves spidey.

Day 359

12.26.09 - After being cooped up in the house all day on Christmas we had to get out and burn some energy. So we went sledding. I love to watch Andrew fly down the hill on his sled. This time others were there to take pictures so I joined in on the fun.

Day 358

12.25.09 - Christmas with Andrew just keeps getting better and better. He loved all of his presents and had a blast playing with them all day. He stayed in his pj's well into the afternoon. That is the best!

Day 357

12.24.09 - We had a wonderful Christmas Eve. Lots of baking, cooking, church, celebration with friends and family. Then we did our traditions with Andrew getting ready for Santa. This year he requested Santa only eat two cookies. LOL

Day 356

12.23.09 - Let it snow! Let it snow! Let it snow! It snowed all day today ensuring a white Christmas for us. Yeah!!

Day 355

12.22.09 - Andrew just loves his Bongo. I was playing with a new lighting trick with my camera and what better creature in our house to have hearts next to than Bongo. I think he may be the most loved monkey ever. (Andrew even has hearts on his eyes - this new trick is just way to cool!)

Day 354

12.21.09 - Nana is here! After quite the day of traveling Nana finally made it to Colorado. Andrew was beside himself and couldn't wait for her to arrive.

Day 353

12.20.09 - I picked up this little vacuum for $10 the day after Thanksgiving and Andrew has claimed it as his own. If I have it out to pick up any mess he says, "HEY!! That's my vacuum." Then he comes over and finishes the job. Fine with me!

Day 352

12.19.09 - 6 more days until Christmas! Andrew and I layed around the house today and rested because we are both sick. I'm hoping we'll be better in a few days so we can get out and enjoy this time a bit more. :-)

Day 351

12.18.09 - Tonight Andrew and I sat in front of the tree and read Christmas books. A few new ones that Nana sent along with a few favorites we've collected over the years.

Day 350

12.17.09 - Today was Andrew's Christmas program at school. It was so fun to watch him singing on the stage. He was the loudest (strongest) singer up there. He was just so into it and very animated. I love our little boy.

Day 349

12.16.09 - Today I spent the day making Blizzard Bites packages and the yummy stuff itself. I'm so glad most of it was used up for gifts. I could seriously eat a whole batch of this stuff myself.

Day 348

12.15.09 - We made chocolate dipped marshmallows today. Andrew's favorite treat right now!!

Day 347

12.15.09 - I got an early Christmas present today from my parents. Well a forced early present because I just couldn't wait. I LOVE this necklace and the saying is just perfect. When Blake said are you going to have Andrew start calling you mama again? I said "Okay I guess I should have put Mommy on there but I was Mama before I was Mommy." I didn't say this but pretty soon I'll be Mom. :( So, I'm sticking to my Mama!

Day 346

12.14.09 - Little Miss Kenleigh is having open heart surgery today. After I drop Andrew off I am taking her and her husband Starbucks (that hospital coffee is awful) while they wait for her surgery to be over. I'm at a loss as to what I can do to help out so this is all I could come up with. To just be there.

Day 345

12.13.09 - Presents are getting wrapped here and I love doing that as much as I love finding gifts for everyone. Of course Blake is the one who wraps and I just accessorize.

Day 344

12.12.09 - We headed out tonight to check out all the Christmas lights but stopped at Good Times first to have a treat while we oo'd and aw'd over the lights.

Day 343

12.11.09 - Today we went to see Princess and the Frog with a few of Andrew's friends. It was a really cute movie. Andrew's favorite character was the silly alligator.

Day 342

12.10.09 - Andrew saw Santa today! A bit overwhelmed with all of it and ended up being a little shy. (That is so NOT like Andrew.) He got on his lap and told him what he wanted and posed for the picture but as everyone kept asking him questions and he got more attention he started to shut down. :-) We were the ONLY ones there visiting Santa at the time. :-)

Day 341

12.09.09- I made some crafty Christmas goodies for Andrew's playgroup buddies today. I'm also going to make these for all the kids in his classroom. I love the holidays!!

Day 340

12.8.09 - This kid loves to play games. Especially connect 4 and you know what? He is really good at it this game! Another cold day today that left us homebound. Cabin fever is setting in that is for sure. Tomorrow is supposed to be a warm 20 degrees. Woo-hoo!

Day 339

12.7.09- This was how cold it was on the way to school this morning and 4 hours later it was 6 degrees. YIKES!! I'm used to the the cold but not *this* cold. This is like Alaska cold. LOL I can't even imagine how cold it gets up there. We are supposed to get back into the 40's in a few days. It's a heat wave!

Day 338

12.6.09

Day 337

12.5.09 - Today we made rice crispy houses and decorated them. Sorry gingerbread, you just aren't as tasty!

Day 336

12.4.09 -These may be the best Christmas jammies yet!I think they are the cutest at least. :)

Day 335

12.3.09 - I took Christmas card photos of Kenleigh and Rhegan today. This photo of Kenleigh just melts my heart. She is such a sweetheart and that hat is adorable!

Day 334

12.2.09 - I walked in the living room and caught Blake teaching Andrew how to tie a bow and I couldn't miss out on this photo op. :-)

Day 333

12.1.09 - Andrew was so proud of his "folded people" It's hard to read it all because the blue crayon is so light but it says Andrew, Daddy, Mommy. I love how we are all matching. :)

Day 332

11.30.09 - I just started putting together my daily december album. Yikes!! Super late but better than never.

Day 331

11.29.09- Blake and Andrew made these holiday paper chains and hung them outside of Andrew's door. He absolutely loves them and makes sure we duck before we go in his room.

Day 330

11.28.09 - I put the big tree up in the front room today. That thing sure does take a long time but I love looking at it. It's so bright and cheery. It does seem to go through the ceiling though!! maybe one year we'll by a new tree for the front room but it just never seems to be the right time. :)

Day 329

11.27.09 - Black Friday!! I met Jenny and Amy at Target early this morning and we shopped there for three hours!! We got lots of great deals and had a blast. I was so tired all day long though... I'm getting old. LOL

Day 328

11.26.09 - We had Thanksgiving at the Goodman's house this year. The kids had so much fun playing with each other and really enjoyed the day. I couldn't think of better friends to celebrate the holiday with.

Day 327

11.25.09 - Today Blake and Andrew put the lights up on the house. Yeah!!!

Day 326

11.24.09 - Andrew had his Thanksgiving feast at school today. Each kid brought something to make a fruit salad. It was fun to be in his class and see how he interacts with the other kids and teachers. He's getting so big!!

Day 325

11.23.09 - Today I finally got my bootie back into the gym. It felt so good to work out again. I just have to keep going now!! It's so hard during the holidays.

Day 324

11.22.09 - After going to the tree lighting ceremony yesterday I was definitely in the mood for Christmas and pulled out all of my Christmas decorations and the tree for the basement.

Day 323

11.21.09 - We attended the tree lighting ceremony and Santa visit at Southlands. This year was so organized and they had much more than usual. There was a DJ and marching band, float, dancers, entertainers and of course Santa himself came riding up on an old fashioned fire truck. Okay, I'm completely ready for Christmas now!

Day 322

11.20.09 - Andrew got a new Wii game today from Auntie for his birthday. She was a little late in getting it out to him, she thought she may see us at Disneyland but it didn't work out. :( He was very excited to get a birthday gift a few weeks late!! It's Toy Story Mania - and is just like the ride we rode at California Adventure that he loved so much.

Day 321

11.19.09 - It doesn't get much better than left over birthday cake! (ice cream cake is even better)

Day 320

11.18.09- I was browsing through Barnes and Nobles and came across these little books. I've heard they were a lot of fun so I thought I'd give them a try. Andrew loves work books and learning new things. These are a bit different and more interactive. He got home from school and tore into them and didn't want to stop answer questions to go to the park. Yep, these are going to come in handy this winter!

Day 319

11.17.09 - Today is Blake's 34th Birthday!! He got home today from a 3 day trip so we had his favorite dinner ready for him (lasagna), gifts and a yummy coldstone cake. I got him some new pajamas and shirts and Andrew drew him a picture of him and Daddy and I got a frame from Halmark that has "my little masterpiece" engraved on the front.

Day 318

11.16.09 - Today Miss Kenleigh had to have surgery to fix her heart. They were trying to do it via a catheter to avoid open heart surgery but we did find out she was just too small for the catheter. They were able to get a better look at her heart by going down her esophagus. The good news is that her pulmonary hyper tension isn't as bad as they had originally thought. She does have 4 holes in heart though. My friend will find out more this the next week but they are planning on doing the next surgery the early part of December. The one thing I do know is that Kenleigh is a strong little girl and a fighter.

Day 317

11.15.09 - We got about 8 inches of snow overnight!! Andrew was so excited he could finally try out his new sled Daddy got him. Let me just say this thing hauls it down the hill. Once he figured out how to balance himself he was good to go.

Day 316

11.14.09 - I was part of a vendor fair today and I really wasn't sure what to expect. I didn't book any sessions but I didn't really expect too since the weather is starting to get so bad and most people like outdoor photos. I did meet about three potential clients who seemed very interested and I got exposure. So, hey that is good for me!

Day 315

11.13.09 - We got new front tires for my car today. The treads were gone and I needed them badly!!

Day 314

11.12.09 - Andrew had his first dental appointment today! After he was calmed down by reassuring him he was not getting a shot he actually enjoyed it. We went to a pediatric dentist which makes all the difference in the world. He played video games while we waited to be called back and then after his cleaning he got to pick two toys for behaving so well. Then he played video games while we waited for the consult from the dentist. He doesn't have any cavities but has a couple areas with plaque so we need to brush with some fluoride at night and then start flossing each night as well.

Day 313

11.11.09 - We had Andrew's parent teacher conference today and we have never been so proud of him! Upon sitting down they describe him as"EXUBERANT! He is so enthusiastic in class and full of joy. He does however need to work on staying in his space and not be so touchy with his friends. Apparently, he hugged and kissed the most reserved boy in class one day and it didn't go over so well. So, we are now working on him keeping to himself more at school. :)

Academically he is one of the top students in the class. They do an assessment test with numbers, letters, etc. He was one of the only kids to do a few items and the only child in the class to do one item. Which was sounding out all letters in a word. So, he is right on the cusp of reading.

They also told us he stays on task. For example, other kids at the table may be getting distracted and playing but he continues to do and finish his work. He also is very proud of his work. Everyday they come in and practice writing their name 3 times. Most kids do that and then go off running to play. He makes sure he shows the teacher he is finished and then goes and plays. He also participates in class discussions and lessons.

Again, we are so proud of you Andrew!!