Merry Christmas Everyone!

Festive Holiday Fun

Kim does a great job of packing in tons of Holiday fun during the month of December.  Many memories are in our own home and involve being cozy and goofing off.  There are special holiday ornaments, cooking and art projects, Christmas-themed pajamas, visits with Santa (both girls are still very afraid).  My favorite this year is Lucy's "Silent Night" advent book, where every night we read it and open another little window on the cover.  She is so excited to finish it and to welcome Christmas day and the birth of our Savior. The first picture below is of the girls Christmas ornaments that we got at the Christkindlmarket downtown. Every year we get them an ornament that has significance for that year. Lucy received ballet shoes since she recently developed a passion for this activity and Lila's was a bird as her nickname remains "Birdie."

Baby Daria

One of the real treats of our Thanksgiving weekend was seeing my new niece Daria Vander Griend.  Not only is she adorable and beautiful, but Lucy was enthralled and a big helper. We are so excited for my brother and his family for their new addition and honored they would brave the roads to come and spend Thanksgiving with us.

Still Not a Fan of Santa

We recently went on an excursion to downtown Chicago and timed our return trip to catch the special CTA Holiday Train.  I'm not sure what it is about Santa but both girls were terrified of him.  These pictures tell it all.  Thanks to Mary for the pictures. 

Happy Ho-Ho-Holidays!

Thanksgiving Day Parade

While the Turkey was in the oven, we took the train downtown to the Chicago Thanksgiving Day Parade.  This kids had fun with all the dancers, animals, firetrucks, and giant blow-up characters.  We then headed home to a wonderful feast with 10 adults and 6 kids.  It was a very memorable day. 

Ice Skating George

Last year Lucy expressed interest in learning how to ice skate.  Thus we did what most parents do and signed her up for lessons at our local park district.  It didn't quite go as planned - she was much more tentative on the ice than we anticipated.  However, we discovered that she was much more brave wearing her Curious George Halloween costume on the ice as it was padded and warm.  Now she goes as George to all her lessons, and she is loving it.  It's nice when solutions are this simple.      

When They're Quiet for Too Long

All parents of young kids know that feeling: "my kid has been too quiet for too long."  Here Kim caught Lucy playing doctor on her "sore" leg.