Fun Christmas

Christmas was so so much fun. The kids all had a ball and we had fun too. We ended up having a Christmas Dinner Party and played piano and let the kids put on performances with some friends and their kids.

Here are our funnies after they got all their Santa gifts. I think they were happy.....


Here is a smattering of pictures....

One Year Anniversary

I'm marking a year that I started posting to this blog. I can hardly believe it's been one year, I'm grateful for this forum. I've posted about 4 a month. The time it takes me to post and upload a picture is so little it has been the best decision I've made to capture all the silly things that go on around here. I know it's pretty boring for most people who visit, but it means so much to us as our family is changing. I plan to print all this off and keep it as a little scrap book. Hopefully I'll get to that one day. Thank you "Blogger" for giving this gift. Merry Christmas to allllllllll!

Doing stuff

I'm soo looking forward to the girls being out of school. No more carpool and missing children... Everyone home doing whatever it is we do. Here are some funny pictures.

We put together an "Art Studio" in the playroom and it has become, by far, the #1 activity in our house. Constant glitter, glue, drawing, cutting, feathering, etc. Here is Gracie cutting a feather for Mandy (playfriends Mom).


Here is "Lexer" setting up the train set, yelling across the house when Anders takes a piece.
Here is the little rat fink himself. He has discovered the joys of pretty shoes. :D Don't worry, I won't show his wife until their 10th anniversary or something like that....

A few more strikes

Strike 2 - Neighbors placed bow on our Front Door
Strike 3 - I put bow inside the window facing their house so they can look at it.
Strike 4 - They covered our window with a trash bag....



I'm still contemplating the next move. I'm debating tying it to the grill of their car or saving it for the summer and attaching it to a floaty and placing it in their pool....

Dance

I recorded a bit of the girl's dance class. Ainsley is taking Ballet/Tap. Alexandra is taking Musical Arts, she just did High School Musical 2 performance.
Sorry, no sound.... :-(

It's Hideous, Yall!

Our neighbor is an art director for a well known catalog. When he decorates for holidays it is well done! Their house looked incredible for Halloween. And Christmas, it's a beautiful scene. Seriously, here look...

At night they have beautiful blue lights under pretend snow that softly glows.
Anyway, so Stan was outside hanging our lights while our neighbors were decorating their house when he found out an important bit of information.

Apparently "Pre-tied Red Velvety Bows" are NOT acceptable! "They are hideous, y'all!" (The more I think about it, I couldn't agree more.) But, alas, Stan found one in OUR decoration collection! Gak!

He knew what to do with it.... He left Larry a present in the middle of the night.



I've been informed they are plotting a payback.....

Christmas Lists

Anderson's List (from Ainsley)
- Toy Shark
- A little teddy bear
- A toy house [we have one] That's okay.
- A balloon
- A toy yoyo waterballoon ball
- 3 cats, i know how to spell cat and i know how to make them
- A toy jump rope

Anderson's List (from Lexi)
- Some lovies
- A toy Rocket Ship
- A toy Bulldozer
- A toy frog that can actually hop
- You know that Kangaroo pen that can actually punch (gesture included), he'd like some more of those.

Anisley's List
- A toy frog that can actually hop
- A toy horsie. [Ainsley, you have many of these! ] NO, I have ponies!
- A wind-up car
- A kid jump rope that is not too long.
- A digit. [what is that?] A number that can move.
- A toy Matt, he's in Cyberchase
- A toy Cuckoo Clock
- A toy Vaccum Cleaner
- A ship
- A toy Rump Rope [a jump rope?] No! A RUMP rope, it doesn't move. Just the kids move. And the kids use it to make a trick.
- A toy airplane
- That's it!

Alexandra's List
- I don't know, I'm going to let him decide.

THANK GOODNESS the girls don't remember everything. By the time we get down to writing this down in The Letter, surely they will have forgotten about some of their original ideas....

*Ainsley's* Piano Lesson

Ainsley [after she woke up one morning]: So, do Larry and Jay (our neighbors) know I'm taking piano?
Ainsley [on the way home from school]: Does Dr. Clifford (pediatrician) know I'm taking piano?
Ainsley [at home]: Do Ms. Bolano & Ms. Akin (school teachers) know I'm going to take piano?
Ainsley[driving to violin lessons]: Does Ms. Kathy (violin teacher) know I'm taking piano?

For two weeks, she didn't think about anything else. Finally, our piano teacher arrives.

Mom: Hi Mr. Billy, come in. This is Ainsley.... I turn and look and she is hiding under the table. I go and pick her up and everything came out, she cried and cried and cried. I sat on the bench with her, she would not look at Mr. Billy or touch the piano, but she listened to every word he said and watched EVERYTHING while her head was nuzzled in my neck.

When he left, she looked at me right away and said, "Mommy, I really want to take piano, I was just scared." Ugh, I love her so much.

For the next week everyday after school (or in the car on the way home) she'd remind me we have to practice. She worked every day at her 4 songs and would play long after I got up.

Well, today Mr. Billy came again and we tried to prepare, mentally. He arrived and she asked me to hold her, I did but then I sat her on the bench and walked away. He kept looking at me with big eyes (I was hiding behind the bookcase thingy). "Wow, Ainsley, I can tell you've been practicing!"

Later he told me during the lesson she read every note and was very very focused.

Sweet girl, she is so excited to have something just for herself. She informed Lexi if she wanted to borrow her piano book, she'd have to wait until she was done!

Halloween

Munger Place had 1,500 trick-or-treaters this year (yup, you read that correctly). We only give out 1 piece of candy per kid as they line up around the sidewalk. We wondered if we'd get as many at our new house and sure enough, we did.

The girls had fun. Alexandra was a 1/2 Devil 1/2 Angel. Ainsley was a Purple Witch. Anderson was a hot Monkey. We took the girls around and their bags got so heavy, they had me carry them. I insisted if your candy bag is too heavy to carry, it's time to go home! That's what we did...

Here they are at our neighborhood Pumpkin Carving. It was a lot of fun, it was cold and we carved 5 pumpkins, saved the seeds and roasted them.

Birthday Fun

Ainsley finally got her long awaited birthday party at Build-a-Bear. I was also under strict orders have a Care Bear cake! She built a kitten and loved playing with her friends. Although, when it was all said and done, she informed me she does not want to be 4; she wants to be 5....
I can't believe she is FOUR! :( She is still so so sweet and sensitive. She lives in her imagination, constantly taking trips in her mind and flying places. She is super ticklish and requests a daily tickle.




Sissy Love, Passing out the heart, "Beautiful" cake, Mall Watchers

---

Lexi finally got her long awaited birthday party at White Rock Skate. The whole reason she wanted a party there was because they have a "money machine" that the birthday person gets to climb into and grab money as it swirls around! After she saw that last year, she couldn't stop thinking about how much fun it would be. She LOVED her party, we all had a lot of fun. My mom friends have informed me we're having the next "Mom's Nite Out" at WR Skate! :)



Ready to skate, The Big Moment, Ooops, I can't get up, Money!!

Future Crime Scene Workers

The girls had so much fun playing with Gma & Gdaddy! They traced Grandaddy, Daddy, each other. They even drew Gdad's glasses on his head. Silly silly.

Blogger has been messed up lately... I'll be posting birthday party celebration stuff later....

Texas State Fair

Wow, the girls had sooooo much fun. They loved the kiddie rides. Lexi wanted to do scary rides and she loved them! Ainsley's favorite is the Teapot & Teapcup. Anders got shorted, no rides for him. But he charmed one of the ladies at the Hoop Game and threw the ball in the basket over and over! We hadn't paid, but she gave him a prize for doing a good job. Little charmer. We all had a great time at the fair this year....

Dare Devil on the big kid slide!

Here is Gracie loving her tea cup!

Here he is flirting....

She gave him a puppy. He huggled it the rest of the time we were there...

Da boys.

The Good Idea that keeps on giving

I had the bright idea 3 years ago during summer. Alexandra was 3 & Ainsley was 1 and they made "TV Tokens" out of foam paper. They decorated them with stickers. I drew a TV on it and wrote their names on them. They each had 2 and gave me a token when they wanted to watch a program. Ever since that time, they are in the habit of turning off the TV after each program. Whether its a 2 hour Disney movie or a 20 minute program. But, we haven't used the tokens since that summer.

When I need to turn off the TV, I usually use my toe versus bend down to push the button. Keep in mind, I'm usually holding a sack of bricks (Anderson) and bending over is too much effort when my foot can do the same trick.

So now Anderson (16 months now), observing all that goes on around him, likes to turn off the TV with his foot. It's hysterical, it takes him a minute to hike his leg high enough when he could simply touch it with his finger.

This morning I was on the computer and Anderson was watching his 5 minutes of Baby Einstien (the only thing I can convince him to watch for a breif moment). All of a sudden, I hear the program turn off and loud stumbley feet got louder as he ran into the office and jumped on my lap. He sat there with me for a few minutes, I guess he decided he was done with Mommy Time, got off my lap, made a loud stumbley foot noise back to the TV room and turned the TV back on.

It's pretty funny to have a little being who can't talk, who mainly grunts and points and waves, be so matter of fact about what he wants to do. I love that he copies the girls in turning off the TV when he is done, whether it's with his foot or finger! :)

Here he is hiding from me. He climbs in the car, but goes to Ainsley's booster seat instead of his carseat. I guess if he can't see me, I can't see him!

Princess Emma

We have a new girl cousin. Alexandra & Ainsley thought it important for her first gift to be a book on how to become a princess. A REAL princess...


Here is the little princess. Her head could hold a tiara beautifully.


Sweet cousins, sweet girls.


Here is the happy, healthy, blessed and sleepy family.


Welcome Bebe Emma.

Lexi & Anders Sittin in a Tree

Lexi loves Anderson. He will haul off and hit her (and me, anisley, the wall, bed, daddy, teddy) with his hand (or tinker toy, pen, sock, whatever is handy). She'll look at him and say, "ooooh, buddy, what are you doin, silly!" Or, "oh buddy, that hurts!! here, gimmie that... let's do this instead."

Sometimes, he'll be getting into something he shouldn't and she'll try to stop him without asking for help. Anderson is very strong and wiggly so sometimes he is too much for her to handle and she yelps help. They are sooooo sweet together though and she is the kindest person to him.

Here they are, having her after school snack "on top of the deep freezer?? Please can I, Mommy?" Okay, if you want to, sure.... Then, a few minutes later. "Mommy, Buddy wants to snack up here with me." Okay...

They are sweet together, fun to watch and so in love....

Snip

Soooo, I always wondered if this would happen...

Stan walks into the girls room and Ainsley said smiling, "Daddy, do you like my hair?" Daddy said, yes. She asked, "does it look shorter?" Daddy said, maybe. Ainsley said, come look, I'm saving my hair in my boot." They proceeded to the closet to find the boot, put away in it's proper place. There was a little trail of hair snips from our bedroom down the hall to the girls room.

My surprise reaction made her cry and then I felt bad. I told her it was no big deal, I know she was just experimenting, "it cuts really easy, doesn't it?" She nodded... I said, "maybe you can cut hair when you grow up." Then she smiled and said, "I want to be a Princess Hair Cutter!" At that, she promised to get my help cutting until she is "grown up."

Btw, it looks like a long layer in the front. At least it's not the super short, sticking straight up into the air, kid cut... this time...

Ainsley Knows, I mean Nose

The whole litter climbed into our bed last night while we were reading a book. Anders fell asleep hard and the girls started to drift when Ainsley said, Mommy, Buddy smells like cheese. Does he have a poopy?

Mom: No... shhh... You smell like flowers, though. :)
Ainsley: Yeah, I smell like Roses.
Sister smells like, umm a Dandelion.
Mom: Ahh, that is sweet.
Ainsley: You smell like, umm, umm, umm.... a Sunflower!
Mom: Thanks sweetie.
Ainsley: Buddy smells like a Rat.

We all couldn't stop giggling at that point and they had to go into their own beds before they woke up our little rodent.

For the record, Anders does not smell like cheese or a rat. More like a little sweat head, mixed with dirt and sweet babys's breath.

School Begins

School started on Monday. Lexi in Kinder & Ainsley's 2nd year of Preschool. They each get another year with their wonderful master teachers. We are all so lucky to have them.

Here is our Kindergartener. First day before school started, she didn't want to go back because she didn't want to leave me. 2nd day she was mad that she didn't get to stay the whole day (half day first week) and wants to know when she will!
Ainsley has made a great friend at school and doesn't hesitate for a minute in the mornings. She seems really happy so far. She read two Bob Books last year before school was out. She is still just 3. She seems to be in a good place, they let her do what SHE is interested in.

Anders cried when they left with their daddy. Here he is hogging in on the picture. ;-) He darted over there when he saw the camera and turned around.

Soo Cuuuute

So, the girls have started to think it's fun to dress Anderson up(we were wondering when it would happen). I would provide pictures if my camera was not on the blink. Instead, I'll just do a quick breakdown of his adventures...

- Turns the corner down the hall wearing a Tinkerbell Headband.
- Lexi escorts him to my room, "Mommy, look how cute Buddy is!" He had 4 flower and fruit barrettes dangling from his thin hair.
- I walk in the room and see him wearing a tight pink headband that says, "It's a girl thing" while he is destroying a put together puzzle.

That'll do it for now, I think I hear him destroying the tea party set.

Dancing, Dogs & the DMA

We've been having a wonderful time our last few weeks of summer. The girls had a "Dancing Angels" camp and they had a ball. Lexi did HipHop and Ainlsey did Ballet. Here they are before and during the recital...(My camera's on the blink, so some pics are a little fuzzy... )

Mumsie and Granddaddy came in town and brought the girls my old bedroom furniture and helped watch the girls while we had a garage sale. Lexi has been, well... furiuos at the thought of us having a garage sale. So, we had to do it all covertly... Anyway, they loooooooooved playing with Sugar, too. We are all itching for a new doggie... Well, most of us anyway. ;-)

We went to the Dallas Museum of Art yesterday. Here are the girls "scupltures" and Lexi's self-portrait.

All Things Girlie

The first thing the girls do when they wake up, 90% of the time, is run to our room, look deep into my eyes and ask with all seriousness, "Mommy... Can we go dress up?"

When we have a playdate, the first thing girls do when they arrive at our house, is ask, "where are the dressup clothes??"

All summer, their dressup things have been washed more than their regular clothes. We are about to have a new girl cousin. The girls can't wait to teach her about all things girlie. Here is their summation:

1. Own Fancy Nancy and A Princess Primer

2. Must have an assortment of Dressup clothes

3. Own the movie 12 Dancing Princesses

4. Have an American Girl Doll.

5. Have beads to put in your hair.

6. Have a lot of stickers.

There are more things. Well, a litany of things... They are all very funny. But, you get the gist.

I am enjoying having the girls home so much this summer. They play and play and play. I dread school starting again, but they are really looking forward to a new year. I have them home for 3 more weeks at least.