Christmas has hit our house!

Well after weeks of Will begging us to put up the tree, we finally did! It took two nights. The first night we actually put it up and the second night we decorated it. This is the first year that we let the kids help with everything...so putting it up took a little bit longer than normal. They really got into it, and it ended up being really fun. The second night when we decorated, I got a little bit stressed because had Daddy not intervened, it would've become a free for all with the ornaments! Here is the finished product, now our challenge is keeping Caroline away from the ornaments.

The next morning, they came down and their stockings were hung, and Olivia wanted to know if Santa had been here and brought their stockings.


I really love this time of year, and love what it signifies to our family. Today at my MOPS group we made this cool craft. It's an advent candle to count down the days of Christmas. Each day there is a verse to read as well. If you want to make one, you need a pillar candle: use red, green & yellow paint to make dots to signify the days. (If you use the head of a pin, it is really easy to paint the dots on.) Make 12 green dots, and 12 red dots with the last dot being the yellow one. Each day, light it and burn it down to the next dot. I put it on our kitchen table, and we burned it during dinner. The kids loved it!

My sweetie

My sweet Caroline is 15 months old! She is such a joy in our house. She has always been so good, and just rolls with the punches. I'm not sure if that's because she's number 3, or if it's just her personality. She is really easy, and just super sweet. Up until now, she's been pretty quiet, but she is starting to become really chatty, and even talks with her hands! She can say Mama (the only one who said that first!), Dada, Olivia (O-wa-wa), Will (Wa), baby, puppy (puppa, and she thinks every animal is a puppa), and hi (she says it with a southern accent which adds to her cuteness!). Olivia likes to tell her secrets, and Caroline just laughs and laughs. It's like she really understands what Olivia is saying.



Will & Olivia can make her laugh like no one else. She loves to dance when any music comes on, and likes to sing in the tub. She's really smart, it only takes a couple of times for us to show her things before she starts doing it. She tries to be sneaky, but then comes right to me, and shows me what she's doing. She tries to make us laugh by making silly faces. She's usually pretty mild mannered, but she's quick to let us know when she doesn't like something or something (someone is more like it!) is bothering her. In true girl fashion, she tries to put things in her hair, and her big sister has shown her how to carry a purse, and she likes to "talk" on the phone. The time seems to be going by so much more quickly with Caroline than it did with the other two. I'm blessed that she's in my life! I'm thankful for her smiles, giggles, and cuddles.

Trick or Treat!

We took the kids trick or treating this year. This is the first year we did strictly trick or treating. In years past, we've gone to the mall, or a fall festival. But this year, we wanted them to experience trick or treating like we did when we were kids. They had a blast! We went to Grandma & Papa's house first, and started on their street. Caroline lasted about 6 houses, so we came home, and the big kids & Daddy went out. They came back with loads of candy. (which has been thoroughly enjoyed by mom & dad!)






Will as Mr. Incredible



Olivia as what else? A princess of course!



Caroline as my sweet Kitty




the crew