The Gaylord

This week we visited the Gaylord hotel with my mom, Jessica, and the kids. It is filled with all sorts of holiday decorations and there is a big ice exhibit. The first few pictures are all in the ice area - it was only 9 degrees in there! We wimpy Texans aren't used to it being that cold! The kids didn't mind it at all. Here they are on Santa.
Ice candy, Ben even licked it! We're lucky his tongue didn't get stuck :)

Ice ornaments...

and an ice bridge. I'm so glad they have something like this here in Texas. The kids have never really seen snow or ice before, except for the rare day it snows a half an inch here. This was definately a once in a life time opportunity for us. After seeing how much they enjoyed the snow I think we need to make a trip up to Minnesota some winter!

Here are the decorations around the hotel....a train,

a gingerbread house (a real one! They used something like 500 lbs of flour!),

in front of a western saloon,

Elizabeth with frosty,

and last but not least the Western Santa. It was so beautiful around the hotel. We'll have to come here next year for our Christmas card picture!

Big, Crazy Boy

I had to put these pictures on because I think it shows how big - and crazy - Ben is becoming. The above picture is Ben standing on a big chair, making a tower. He crawled up there and did it all by himself. He is so good at stacking things so carefully, and then he smashes them down.
Here is the crazy picture. For some reason the kids current favorite thing to do is play in Cooper's port-a-crib. This is how Ben gets into the crib - a free fall. I thought it was a great action shot. I can't believe my little baby boy is almost 2!

Santa...did Ben Do It?

I know you are wondering, what the heck do these giant fish have to do with Santa?

Well, I'll tell you! Any of you who know my children know that they are very attached to us (me and Tom). They don't go to the gym daycare, Ben refuses doesn't go to the church nursery, things of that nature. So when it came to sitting on Santa's lap, I wasn't sure what the result would be. We went to see Santa at Cabelas (thus the giant fish) I can't believe that fish is bigger than me!

Ok - here are the 2 pictures Tom took of the kids with Santa - make a guess - is Ben SCREAMING or not??

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NOT! He did great! He didn't smile, but he seemed honestly excited to be sitting on Santa's lap, and even mumbled something about wanting a balloon for Christmas (easy enough :) For the record, Elizabeth wants a kite and fishing pole from Santa. And she added a doll house while we were waiting in line for Santa. (That was news to us!) So, all in all it was a success. Whew!

Last Day of Gymnastics

Ben and Cooper had their last day of gymnastics and they had so much fun! We had to get a picture of the two of them crammed into this donut thing. I think we'll have to sign them up for another session!
Bye!

The Elf

I realized I never posted about one of mine (and the kids) favorite holiday tradition. We have a holiday elf that visits starting December 1st. He leaves special notes, candy, or little items for the kids in this elf house. I made the house this year after seeing it on someone else's blog. (I'm such a copy cat!) The elf hides in various spots around the house so the first thing Elizabeth does is search for the elf. It makes it really fun in the month of December. He also reports back to Santa so we get a little better behavior, too :)
There is he, hanging out on the mantel.

Showing off one of their presents ...Elizabeth got headbands and Ben a giant cricket. I wonder what they'll get tomorrow...

How We Play a Game

Elizabeth and I were playing dominos, having such a nice game.... when here comes destructor Ben!! Kicking and wrecking his sister's game! Ahh, we were done anyway :)
(are those some teething cheeks or what??)

Tea with Grandma and Friends

Grandma B and Elizabeth decided it would be fun to have a Christmas tea at Grandma's house. Elizabeth picked 3 friends, cousins Drew and Josh, and friend Elliott to have the tea with her. (Cooper and Ben were also invited, and Grandma H.) It was a very special day for all of the kids, I think they felt very grown-up! Here are all the kids - minus Cooper. He wasn't really interested in a picture right at that moment :) The kids were all invited to bring a doll or furry friend. My mom had a kids tea table set up for the dolls. Cute, huh?!
Part of the fun was feeding the ducks by Grandma's house. I think all the kids loved that part!

Elizabeth and Grandma making "tea". (It's really snowman punch)

The adorable table. It's filled with candy - even the napkin rings were candy bracelets. My mom made those gumdrop trees and hung all types of candy on the light fixture. Isn't it the cutest ever!?! Thanks, mom, for the great time!

Valerie's Wedding

A good friend of Jessica's and mine from high school got married this past weekend. It was great to see her and some of our high school friends - some of which we haven't seen since high school!High school friends

Elizabeth and Katie - Katie is one of Valerie's daughters and she is 3 days older than Elizabeth. Valerie and I were in the hospital for one day at the same time delivering our girls.

Group picture! We all had husbands there, and yet they didn't make it into one photo! Strange, huh?!

The beautiful bride, Valerie. We had a great time at the wedding. Thanks for having us, Valerie!

Thanksgiving Day

We had a great Thanksgiving at my parent's house with all of our out of town family. They had lots of leaves on the ground, so the kids had so much fun rolling around in them, throwing them in the air. Doesn't Cooper look so cute in his sweater vest?
Here is my Grandma, Uncle Scott, Uncle Ross, and Grandpa. They are waiting for Thanksgiving dinner.

I thought this was so funny. It's my uncle Todd, Ross, and Jim and my dad. This is BEFORE dinner! The dinner is hot in the next room and the guys are in here digging away at the leftover turkey. That's men for you!
My Aunt Amy and her family. What a cute family!

Everybody outside enjoying the warm weather. A few crazys even went swimming! It is November! (I guess it was in the 60s which is pretty warm for them)

Our families...trying to get a Christmas card picture for my mom.

We had an early Christmas with the out of town family. This was Ben's favorite present - his umbrella. He had to walk around with it the rest of the evening. We all spent the day ducking out of the way of the umbrella.

Grandpa and Ben, what cute reindeer!

Elizabeth taking a turn as a reindeer.

Elizabeth and her daddy on "Christmas" day. We had so much fun with our family. We don't get to see them very often, so it was great to spend so much time with them. I'm glad the kids got to see their great-aunt and great-uncles, and their great-grandparents. I think they enjoyed it too!

Hanging at Grandma's House

We had a great Thanksgiving weekend with my side of the family - all the extended family came and stayed at my mom's house. This was the first day the family got to TX. The kids just played, played, played. Our family is from Minnesota, so they were loving the warm weather.
This is my cousin, Evan. Isn't he adorable?? He is about 9 months old.

This is his sister, Emma. She just turned 3, such a cutie too!


Ben, Emma, and Cooper were "thick as thieves" the whole weekend. If one would scream, they all would scream. If one threw a toy, they would all throw a toy. It was pretty funny.

These are the ducks at the pond next to Grandma's house. Ben was loving the ducks! We had a busy first day with our company!