Avery's Christmas program at school

I focused mainly on recording the program with the video camera, so I mainly have photos of the party after the program.

Avery and her teachers, Ms. Julie and Ms. Heather.

Finger ankle

Avery was telling us at dinner that she had hurt her 'finger ankle' while playing. We asked what she meant, so she pointed.

Finger ankle. Makes sense now.

Upward

I think she's excited.

God help me.

And of course a wrestling match begins.

Benjamin's School Picture

You gotta love the shiner. That was from when the liftgate on the car came down on his face.

I was feeling guilty about not getting the kids a tree last year, so I went to Wal-Mart and found a tree for not too much money. It's not the nicest tree, but I was feeling the holiday spirit and wanted to decorate the house this year. I don't have that many ornaments, but it worked out this year since the tree is small.


Benjamin was proud of this one. It's the one I bought for his first Christmas. I still need to get Avery's! (shame, shame, I know.)



Casey wasn't that into it, he just snuggles his blankie and ignores the chaos. He's wearing the sweater that Elijah's sister Julie gave him over Thanksgiving. I put it on him at her house to show her how much he loves wearing clothes because she didn't believe me. He jumped and flipped and got so excited when I showed it to him, and was equally as upset when I took it off. He pouted so much that she told me to keep the sweater for that 'poor baby'. We aren't too happy that it's a Georgia Bulldog sweater, but it probably cost her $20 or more, so he can wear it all he wants since I won't pay that for a dog sweater!

How cute are they??

Cotton pickin'

So I didn't get any pictures of actual Thanksgiving, but on the way home Sunday we saw a cotton field and Elijah had mentioned earlier in the weekend he would like to show the kids cotton on the plant and how to pick it. Benjamin was more interested than Avery, but once we told her she could take it to school for show and tell she got pretty excited about it.

Making Rice Krispy Treats

Blogger is giving me a really hard time about uploading pictures, but here are a couple from our walk the other night.

The kids are pretty creative. They are also pretty selfish. Benjamin had created this 'bus' that was a dining room chair with a lot of books and things stacked up on the sofa chair, then a giant preschool remote on top for the steering column and wheel. He was determined that he was going to be the bus driver and Avery could only be a passenger. In her frustration, she decided the only way to win was to annoy him to tears. She figured out very quickly, as little sisters do, that just being where he didn't want her to sit would suffice. She kept getting under the 'driver's seat' and laying there. This drove him crazy, which was the entire point. Here is the battle, and you can hear her satisfied giggle. My phone only takes 15 second videos, so there are two.

For some reason, Blogger isn't letting me rearrange the pictures, so we'll just go in backwards order of time. Starting with Trick-or-Treating Halloween night, at the end!

The kids and I went with my Sunday School class on a service project to a local nursing home where some members are residents. We walked the kids around and let them show off their costumes.

This was the Wednesday before Halloween at a friend of our's church during their Trunk or Treat. Avery had the most fun with a balloon.

Her first Snickers...

Clearly, Benjamin did not want his picture taken at all that day. He stayed annoyed with me. I guess Ninja's don't like to be photographed!