It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year

One more Christmas post before the REAL festivities begin!

Does this scream Christmas joy or what?

 Decorating our gingerbread house

 Finished product!

 We can't wait until tomorrow!! Merry Christmas!

It's Beginning to Look A Lot Like Christmas

If you know me well at all you know how much I absolutely LOVE Christmas!  Well, it appears my partner in crime feels the exact same way.  Oh joy to the world!  We have kicked off this Christmas season with a bang.  First the decorating, then every Christmas movie known to man, Advent calendars, Christmas candy making, Christmas lights and of course the true story of Christmas every night before bed.  

Madie was SO excited when I got out her tree.  She took out each ornament and said "whoa!".  I made a promise to myself last year that if I was going to put a tree in her room she had to have total access to it.  It is not a "no, no".  It is hers.  So we rearrange ornaments everyday.  We have broken a couple but we love our tree!

Madie also loves our advent calendar.  I think she finally got the concept of it now but the first day I put it up she was being awfully quiet.  I found her this way and as soon as she saw me she said "uh oh". 

Watching Shrek the Halls

My little Santa baby

It has also finally gotten a little cold here.  Madie picked out this hat and gloves all by herself and she thinks they are fabulous!  I think I agree.  Ha!

The most precious gift from above

Madie loves looking at the Christmas lights on the way home in the evenings and we take our time past every house in our neighborhood.  She also talks about Santa  a lot and knows he says Ho!Ho!Ho!  Except when we went to see him she didn't want to sit on his lap.  When I asked her what Santa said after that she said "roar!".  I love this little girl so much!  She just cracks me up.  I do love the season so very much but hope she comes to love it for the same reason as me.  We were given the most amazing, selfless gift from our Father.  The birth and gift of Jesus is the reason we celebrate.  The gifts from Jesus are the reason my family is blessed to celebrate in the ways that we do. Now, I think we have a gingerbread house to decorate!  Merry Christmas!

Cousin Christmas

This weekend was the second year we did a Cousin Christmas with Chad, Kelly and Cooper.  We went to the Great Wolf Lodge this year and had SO much fun!  We can even mark it down as a huge success as both families lasted the whole night!  Last year we left the Gaylord at 3:00am! Ha!

Madie checking out the decor



 Loving the toddler area!

 She eventually even figured out how to do the jet ski by herself. 

 Our sweet little Cooper.  He had so much fun and is such a big slider!  He must have gone down them 100 times.  Madie loved watching him and clapping as he came down. 

 Wading around.

 After the first day in the water park we spent a little time in the arcade while Chad and Mike went to get dinner.  Cooper drove the ice cream truck and Madie drove the hot dog truck.  Ha!

 Waiting for story time.  Can you tell we were telling them to say cheese?  Ha!

 The next day we spent a little more time at the water park before heading out.  Madie loved the wave pool!

 We had lunch at Rainforest cafe.  Madie was not real keen on the animals moving every 5 minutes.  She spent lunch in my lap.  We then went to Bass Pro to see Santa.  We walked all the way up to him and said hi but that was it!  No sitting in Santa's lap this year.  We did ride his reindeer though!

 Coop and Madie checking out the fish. 

 Coloring a picture for Santa. I picked on with a little girl sitting on Santa's lap for Madie.  She didn't bite.  Ha!

We then headed back to our house for fun at home.  Madie loved having the company.  She LOVES trying to do everything her big cousin Cooper does!  Kelly and I even rented the Help Friday night.  It was a great weekend and we had so much fun spending it with our precious family.  To think at this time next year there will be two more little ones to join in the fun.  

Thanksgiving!

We went to Abilene for Thanksgiving this year.  Unfortunately, pregnancy brain has gotten the best of me and I forgot my camera.  Well, actually I remembered my camera but forgot the battery that I had specifically sat right next to the camera to charge so I wouldn't forget it.  Thankfully, Kelly sent me some pics.  We had a great few days at home and Madie enjoyed being with Cooper!  First thing on the agenda was to walk CoCo! I think CoCo got walked more times this weekend than she has in years.  Ha!

 This pictures cracks me up because it is so typical Madie right now!  Full of stories to tell. 

 This is Cooper showing Madie and the boys how to march like the Aggie band.  I am a little worried that there may have been some Aggie brainwashing going on this weekend.  (You will see more in pics to come) 

 LOVE this picture!  It reminds me of their first picture together, below.  They are still checking each other out saying "what do you want to try to get these people to do?"

 Cheese!  It's Turkey Day!

 This is our Thanksgiving family photo, I guess I took the saying "barefoot and pregnant" literally.  Ha!

 MiMi and the kids in the tent, or the barn depending on what they were playing at the time!

 More Aggie brainwashing.  Chad, Cooper and Case made special t-shirts for the (maybe) last aTm vs. TU game.  Madie's said BTHOTU and Cooper's had every Aggieism known to man!  I really, really love that Cooper has no pants! ha!

The next day Chad, Kelly and Cooper went to Kelly's house so no more pictures.  But that's a good thing because Ms. Priss was up all night with an ear infection and we spent most of the next evening waiting at Urgent Care.  Even with that, she was in great spirits and we had a great time.  We are so blessed and thankful!