More Christmas Fun

On Christmas day we went over to see Ken's family. Thomas loves playing the kids and it's so fun to see them play with each other. We talked about how only a few years ago we all met on Christmas when we didn't have kids and look at us now!

Here's a picture of Thomas with a new set of dinosaurs and dragons.

On Saturday after Christmas we went to my mom and dad's house to celebrate Christmas. Before we made it over to their house we went to the Crib 4 Life store in Altamonte and ordered a crib and dresser for the new baby. We also picked out a swiveling, rocking, recliner. We just have to pick out the fabric to have it upholstered. The website doesn't have a picture of it in the stain we ordered, so I may go back there on Monday and take a picture of their floor model.

Once we got to Nana and Papa's we had a lot of fun. We ate a yummy lunch and opened more presents. It's nice that we can spread out the holiday!

Lastly, I think this is my favorite picture of the season. Here's the back of our front door covered in Thomas' holiday artwork from school. They are so beautiful and something we will save and treasure!

Merry Christmas!

We hope that everyone has a wonderful day. We've been busy and I have some photos to share. We are off to celebrate with Ken's family later this afternoon and we will celebrate with my family on Saturday, so there will be more photos since we are stretching out the holiday.

On Christmas Eve, Thomas put out reindeer food in the backyard. Here's the little poem that goes with it.

"Be sure to take this magic food and sprinkle it on the lawn.
On Christmas, Santa's reindeer travel miles before the dawn.

The smell of oaks and glitter path with guide them on their way. And you'll wake up to Santa's gifts next morn on Christmas Day!"

On Christmas Eve we went over to Nana and Papa's and went to their church. Uncle Mike, Aunt April and Chrisitan were there, too.

Thomas REALLY wanted a fish tank for Christmas. I bought a little beta fish and put it in the new tank, and low and behold....the fish was dead this morning. Luckily, I found it before Thomas did and tossed it. I told him that Santa brought the fish tank and that we get to go to the pet store and buy a fish. He was excited that Santa came to the house. We left a special key by the front door since we don't have a chimney. Santa brought a "Toy Story" christmas tree, train set, and all the gifts under the little tree were Toy Story. Thomas loved it. Then we opened the other gifts. He loved the HUGE bag of lollipops, the new workbench, and the game "Whac-a-Mole".

Thomas' Christmas Program

Today was Thomas' Christmas program. We battled a meltdown first thing in the morning because Thomas wanted to wear cowboy boots with his church clothes and I said no. So, we weren't able to get a photo of him being so handsome at home. I had to drop by work real quick this morning to deliver a pointsettia to a teacher and I asked Thomas if I could PLEASE take a picture. He agreed and thankfully it turned out cute.

I dropped him off at school and had an hour until the program started so I went to Target (of course!) I met up with Ken at the program. It was so cute. When Thomas' class came in the church I went over to take his picture. Bad idea....he cried when I told him I couldn't sit with him. Thomas was a ham during the show. I have NEVER seen him to wiggly, talkative, and touchy-feely. He couldn't sit still to save his life. I thought for sure he would have stage fright since this was his first program. Here are some pictures of him goofing around when he was supposed to be listening. We weren't allowed to have flash photography, so these are the best ones.

Thomas and his best buddy, Luke.

Thomas playing with Bennett's shoe. Why? I have no idea!

Preparing for Christmas

About two weeks ago we started decorating and getting ready for the holiday. Thomas had so much fun placing his special ornaments on the tree. It's funny that most of them are towards the bottom of the tree....which is arm length. I left it the way he decorated it. It kind of captures his age. It was so sad when he told me he didn't want to visit Santa at the mall. He said that he was too scary. So, this year I will not have a photo like the other years. Good thing we saw him at SeaWorld.
I am enjoying watching him be excited about Santa. He totally gets the concept. We were having some issues with "potty talk" (imagine that....) and all I had to say was "Do I need to call Santa?" Ever since then we no longer have potty talk. I asked my mom if it works like that with the Easter Bunny and she said no. Oh well, at least my ears have had some relieve for the past few weeks.
Here are some pictures of the boys putting up the tree. Placing the star on the top is Thomas' favorite part!

Thanksgiving Day!

We had such a wonderful Thanksgiving Day. I got up super early and went to Kmart to get a few things they had on sale. By the time I got home, the boys were still sound asleep! Thomas and I had fun watching the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade. It was neat that they had a Buzz Lightyear balloon. We ate near 2 o'clock and we had most of Ken's family over. They brought lots of food and we got to chat while the kids played. The kids had fun at the "kiddie table". After we ate, they played outside. They were on the swingset, they played with the fishing poles, the sand table and then Ken got out the PowerWheels Jeep. They all had fun driving it and being the passenger. We are going to drag out the holiday by particpating in Blak Friday (well, I am at least!) and then we are having round 2 on Saturday with my family. This is a yummy holiday to drag out for three days. Here are some pictures from our fun holiday.












{Grace, Thomas, Bryce and Spencer}













{Spencer and Thomas}













{Bryce and Spencer}

Christmas at SeaWorld

On Saturday we went to SeaWorld. We decided to go in the afternoon so we could stay for the night Shamu show. The whole park was decorated for Christmas. It was so pretty. We went to a few shows and then went on the Polar Express ride. We had a 45 minute wait. We weren't able to go on the simulator part but the ride was still good. After the ride, we walked through decorated hallways just like in the movie and then there was Santa Claus. We got a picture with him and then quickly made it over to the Shamu stadium. The first 40 minutes of the show was just Christmas carols. As it was getting dark , the show began. It was to Christmas music and was done so well. After the show, we walked across the main boardwalk and in the water there was a water/light show to Christmas music. And then when we were on the sidewalk walking out of the park, it began to "snow". They thought of everything!! It was so well done and I am so glad that we decided to go and stay for the special show. Here are some pictures that captured the day.

Thomas' First Surgery

Thomas was scheduled for his first surgery this morning. He has been having nosebleeds for a while and we can't seem to get any relief from them. His Ear, Nose and Throat docotor recommended that he have his nose cauterized. It is a simple procedure although it is more effective if they put the children to sleep. The facility that the doctor owns allows children to have their surgeries only on Tuesdays so that made it more comforting for Thomas. Thomas was very brave. He was the third patient to have surgery this morning. They went in order of the children's age. His procedure took about 15 minutes. When I walked in the recovery room, he was sitting in recliner having a popsicle. He was a little cranky and eager to go home. He slept a little in the car, but is now doing puzzles and watching a movie. Here is a picture of Thomas in our waiting area. We had a private room rather than a curtained area. The nurses brought him toys and coloring books, which was so nice. They were impressed by his good language skills and couldn't believe he was only 3. The other picture is from the recovery area. He didn't want his picture taken at all, so sorry there are no smiles.

Our BUSY,BUSY Halloween

Our Halloween was a very busy day and quickly became a blurr.

8:30 I took Thomas to his Fall Festival at school. It was nice to spend the day with him. It was a farmer/cowboy theme. There were lots of stations that we rotated through including pumpkin decorating, a hay ride, cow painting, and bounce houses. Thomas looked so cute in his overalls....and he never asked to go potty!

whew!

1:30 Ken met us at the festival and got to do some of the stations with us. We weren't able to stay for their lunch. We picked up lunch on the way to Thomas' doctors appointment. On Tuesday, the 4th, he has to have his nose cauterized due to his nosebleeds. Only children are treated on Tuesday's, so there won't be any scary Grandpa's in the waiting room. He has to be put to sleep, so that makes it extra scary for me.

4:00 We went home for about 30 minutes before I had to go to my doctors appointment. It was just enough time to fill up on water and give Thomas a snack. The appointment went well as you can see. We got to hear the heartbeat, too. It is still my favorite sound in the whole world!

5:00 We came home after the appointment and Thomas couldn't stand it! He fell asleep and didn't want to eat dinner or get into his costume. Somehow I persuaded him and he finally got dressed.

6:00 We went to Mr.Bill and Mary's house, like every year. He makes out good on candy at their house.

6:30 We then went to Emily's house to Trick-or-Treat. Her family was there and they had so much fun watching Thomas in his costume. He was scared of the kids that had on scary masks. And he wasn't really interested in going door-to-door for candy since some houses had out scary decorations. It was more fun to play in Emmy's driveway.

10:00 We finally got home from out long day. We awoke to Thomas at 6:45am wanting to know where his Buzz Lightyear wings were. He was ready to do the day all over again!!!

"To infinity and beyond!"

Tonight we carved our pumpkin. Lately Thomas has become a Buzz Lightyear Fanatic!! So, to match his Halloween costume, Ken carved a Buzz Lightyear face on the pumpkin. Thomas had fun taking out all the seeds and goo. In years past he hated that part. Here are a few pictures of our carving fun.

Our Pumpkin Patch

We visited the neighborhood Pumpkin Patch tonight. Thomas picked out a big one that is kind of tall, too. We are going to carve Buzz Lightyear's face!! It should turn out cool. (I'll post pictures of that when we do it!) Here are some of him at the patch.

2nd Annual Trip to Green Meadows Farm

We just got back from our trip to Green Meadows Farm in Kissimmee. We all had a great time and I think the kids really enjoyed seeing the animals. The kids got to ride ponies, go on a train ride, and a hay ride. Then at the end we went through their pumpkin patch. The weather was great considering it was supposed to rain so that was a plus! Here are some pictures of our fun Fall Trip!

Catching Up....

I just posted about our weekend and I realized that there are some other things to catch you all up on!
Last weekend, Thomas was my garage sale buddy. He was so excited to go shopping! W got up early and went to McDonald's and got pancakes. There was a community garage sale in the Huntington subdivison and I have taught many of the children there and enjoy visiting with the families. Thomas got ALL this for only $22.75!!!!












The Power Wheels Jeep was only $2 (although we ended up having to buy a $70 battery for it!) We also got this Pottery Barn Kids Table and Chairs for a great bargain. It's a great addition to our playroom.
















Once the battery in the Jeep was charged Thomas LOVED learning to ride it. It has two different speeds and also goes in reverse.



























(Born to be wild! ...sunglasses and a tattoo on his left arm. I think have trouble on my hands!)

Also, last week (September 30th) there was a family night at Thomas' pre-school. He got to paint a plate and it will be put in a kiln by a ceramic company. Ken, Thomas and I each painted a portion of the plate and it will be something special for us to use. While we were there he got to see some of his friends and teachers. It was cute to see the kids interact with one another.











(I tried to fix Colin, Thomas' friends eyes, and over corrected the red eye. His eyes don't look like this. I have to get Emily to help me!!)













(Ms. Hill, the assitant in Thomas' class. He just loves her!)














We have lots of things planned for October and will have more pictures to post soon. :)