"Twas the Night Before Christmas!"

Our Christmas started with the candlelight service at church. We were VERY apprehensive as last year Carter did not make it through the first chord before he had a meltdown. But what a difference a year makes! Carter was very well-behaved and sang along to all the carols. He was excited to know each of them as we have been bellowing them out in the car for the past month thanks to a Christmas carol CD courtesy of Gramma. The other times, Carter sat quietly in the pew coloring and working in his activity book. Jon and I were thrilled with him! Carter was very impressed that everyone was there to celebrate "Jesus' birthday".

Moira was a good girl in the nursery and looked darling in her Christmas dress (of course!). In a couple of years she will be old enough to join us but for now I am glad she manages in the nursery just fine.

Later that evening, we came home to set out milk and cookies for Santa. Carter, Moira and I decorated them earlier that day. Carter picked his favorites for St. Nick and poured him a glass of milk. He also wrote him a note saying thank you for stopping by. This is the first year that Carter got really excited for Santa. He basically has been acting out scenes from Polar Express for the past few weeks. Jon read "Twas the Night Before Christmas", and Carter began to recite the poem before Jon could even get started (thanks again Christmas cd!). Finally, we were able to wrestle Carter into bed so Jon and I could get to work.

See our Christmas morning post!

All ready for Christmas Eve service!

 

Reading "Twas the Night before Christmas"

Snow Day of 0-9!

We had a crazy snow storm hit the mid-Atlantic this weekend and we got snowed in for about a day and a half. Carter was thrilled, waking us at 5:30 Saturday morning asking if he could go play in the snow. Jon was beside himself  as this Georgia boy had never seen so much snow hit at one time. And I, the seasoned veteran, was mildly impressed as well.

I was pleased as each member set about to perform their "Snow Day" duties. Moira napped right on cue. Carter played his heart out in the snow. Jon set about the ardent task of shoveling the walk and driveway...and eventually digging his car out of 4 feet of snow. And me? I finally lived out one of my favorite movie scenes of all time: Getting ready to go out in the snow from A Christmas Story. I could not stop laughing the whole time as I got Carter dressed in layer upon layer of clothes, playing tug of war with his boots, and wrestling with his mittens. The coup de gras was the wrapping of the scarf around his neck. Round and round and round. I think I broke out in tears at this point. Carter was such a good sport as he put on each layer of shirts and socks. He thought I was crazy, but he still did as he was told. Thankfully, I remembered to remind Carter to use the restroom before preparation for the Arctic expedition began.

Enjoy the photos below.

The boys before their adventures

Jon shoveling. Our driveway is that big area on the right.

 Carter happy the snow stayed overnight!

Accumulation on our back deck. 20 inches!

On our patio table. 17 inches!

Our back deck.

 Jon's car he will need to drive to work on Monday.

I can only assume this is Carter BEFORE Jon put him to work digging out the car.

After all Jon's hard work. THANK YOU!!!!!




















And now.....Carter sledding!!!!

 

 

"I had a great snow day adventure!"

Moira's Birthday!

Moira turned one on December 2nd and we celebrated our little Ladybug. I went crazy and decided to make invitations, decorations and the cupcakes all myself. But the most important thing was that we could celebrate the joy Moira brings to our family. She is healthy and bright and adds so much love to our lives. Thank Moira for the blessing you are and praise God for His gift of you to our lives!
Enjoy the photos from her party here with some of our dear friends here in NoVA.
Thank you to everyone who helped us celebrate. We were touched by all the cards and phone calls.

Ladybug cupcakes

The First Step is Admitting It

Okay. Admittedly, I am the worst blogger ever. Instead of trying to go back three months to catch everyone up I will just inform you that we are well and the kids are still nauseatingly adorable. Then I will continue from December.

Alright Alright. I can't help myself. I must tell you more than that.

I could not be more proud of my two babes. Carter continues to mature into such a gentleman. We have all survived the torturous threes and are living the fruits of our turmoil. Carter is learning consequences and rewards for the choices he makes and is walking a straight path. I am not so naive to think that he will be on this path forever. I am just basking in the joy for today. Tomorrow will take care of itself. Three was challenging but we have all seen a glimpse of what putting in those long hours of patience can bring forth. I am just exhaling and storing up these memories until the next hurdle comes our way.

As for Moira, what a difference a year makes! She just turned one and like light switch turning on, so did her sense of humor. She loves to play "Where is Moira" while we chase her around the kitchen.Her absolute favorite is to get in the mix when Jon and Carter "wrestle on the carpet". She is not content at all to sit on my lap on the sidelines and watch. She patiently waits her turn (for a second) then races in to climb all over those boys. I have to admit I am a little proud.

She is such a great little girl. She is a curious explorer (read: baby gates merely an obstacle to get around). She is content to play alone but prefers to take from Carter whatever he finds interesting at the moment. She is starting to communicate. She knows all our names and uses them. If you ask her who her brother is, she responds, "Car-ca". She understands simple commands and loves to please us by obeying (for now). Ask her where her blanket is and she crawls there speedily. She can point to her head, hands, and feet. We are all bursting with pride. Oh, did I mention she started walking? ;-)

I have taken to attempting to write down the crazy things that Carter and Moira do and say ("Mom, when was the last time YOU went potty?!"). It is just so funny. But what Jon and I have realized is that we are equally surprised by the things we find ourselves saying to the kids.

"Get your feet out of the dishwasher."
"Carter, put the purse down and go to time out. You can play with it when you are finished."
"Do not lasso your sister. Get the rope from around her neck."
"Monsters and bugs get out of Carter's room, it is time for him to go to bed."

So the quick update is that we are blessed and truly grateful.

May you all have Merry Christmas and blessed 2010!

10 Months Old!

It's true! Our little baby girl is ten months old already! Where did this time go??? She is SUCH a delight and a joy to each of us.

Moira is quite mobile now. She LOVES to crawl up the stairs any chance she gets so we have to be quick about getting the gates up first thing in the morning. Carter has completed several successful rescue missions getting Moira safely off the steps - much to my surprise. She loves to cruise the furniture and walk by pushing other furniture or toys around the room. However, I fear she does not have any real interest in walking on her own as she is an extremely efficient and speedy crawler. I blink your eyes and she is across the room, most likely into Carter's toys. Moira has no respect for age restrictions on toys.

We learn so much about Moira everyday. For one thing, she does not like her car seat and is not a big fan of running errands. She doesn't seem to mind going for walks so she and I are taking this hobby up while Carter is in school. Moira's favorite time of day is when her Daddy comes home. He is barely in the house and she goes scrambling across the floor to him or literally leaps from my arms to get to him. Traitor. ;-)

But not even Daddy can hold a candle to her Big Brother Carter. Moira won't smile in the morning until Carter comes into her room to welcome in the new day. Anything he has or is doing, she wants a part of it. Poor big brother. I know how he feels but now I can see it from the little siblings' perspective.

We don't have too many recent pictures of her (because we are awful parents AND she has been teething the past 3 weeks and not really "camera ready") but these are a few.

Much love to all!