We Wish You A Merry Christmas

It's that time of year again...

IT'S CHRISTMAS TIME!!

And we love it. 

We love the smell of pine trees as we pull out our Christmas decorations.

We love having a reason to bake cookies on a weekly basis.

We love buttoning up jackets to go outside and the need for a cup of hot cocoa in our hands.

We love silly hats and Santa Claus.

But most of all we love that Christmas somehow unites us as a family and brings Christ back into the center of our lives.  Unfortunately throughout the year, it's easy for us to only think of Christ at prayer time, scripture time, and on Sundays... at least that's how it is for me.  But when the month of December hits and we being reading "The Life of Our Lord" by Charles Dickens, my thoughts are constantly on the birth of our Savior.

It's a beautiful thing... Christmas time.

And I am wishing you a very Merry Christmas my darling!

Christmas Parade... Brrr!!

Making Tamales at Mimi and Papa's-- Christmas tradition!

Every couple of years, Mimi rounds up the entire family and takes us to see the Nutcracker.  This year we went to the Kimo theater to see it performed by local ballerinas.  I much prefer this version over the Russian Ballet which is kind of boring to me- sorry if that offends anyone.

We all got dressed up.  You put on your new Christmas dress and got your hair curled.  You were completely delighted to dress up, as always.

At Grandma and Grandpa Smith's house after the nutcracker.
You love Aunt Jen and Uncle Josh's pets: Snow and Charming.

On Christmas morning, we all woke up in our matching pajamas as we do every year.  We hurried downstairs to open presents.  You had a ball!!

Sophia wasn't sure what to think of this Christmas business.

Our Christmas Elf spied on us all December long and did some pretty funny stuff this year.

She made herself a skirt using my sewing maching.

And she stole a cookie too!  She apparently loves cookies!

After we opened our gifts and threw back some homemade cinnamon rolls, Mimi and Papa stopped by to deliver gifts.  It was such a pleasant surprise!

We love Christmas time!  It is so fun and FULL of family.  I'd be lying if I said that I didn't get totally stressed out at the same time.  But I love to see you light up because of such a sweet holiday.  I hope that you will always remember the true meaning of Christmas.

Merry Christmas!

I love you!

Mom

Recital Time

My little ballerina,

It's time for your first recital.

Miss Jan has prepared a rendition of the Sugar Plum Fairies from the Nutcracker for you girls to dance to.

You are completely thrilled to dress up in a purple tutu with a crown and wear makeup.

It's a real treat for you.

You're such a ham too!

Although, through half of the performance you stood there chewing on the necklace I gave you before your performance.  I got it for you to make it "special" but it ended up being a horrible distraction.  Gifts should wait until the end of the show.  Haha!

I'm so proud of you deary!

You're so beautiful and talented!

Love,

Mom

Recital Time

In the car, going to the recital

Snow Day!

Unfortunately for Daddy, since he works from home he really doesn't get snow days.

But he was able to take a long lunch on this particular day.

We headed off to Mimi and Papa's to play in the snow.  They have the best yard for making a snowman. And after all, when do we ever get enough snow to build a snowman like this?

It was a great day!  We had a snowball fight, built the snowman, ate Dion's pizza, and thoroughly enjoyed each other's company.  In a way, I'm grateful that these snow days are rare.  Otherwise, I don't think we'd try to make them so special.

Love you babe,

Mom



I'm Thankful For...

YOU!!!

.... And Sophia, of course.

You girls are precious.

You bring so much joy into my life.  I'm a constant student in your presence and you two are excellent teachers!  You're my challenge and my reward.

I love you so much!

Mom

Happy Halloween 2013

For Halloween this year, you were the PERFECT Strawberry Shortcake.

We ended up buying most of the pieces for your costume as opposed to me making it.  I was a little disappointed because I love making your costumes.  But I could not have done a better job if I tried.  The only thing that I "made" was your shirt.  And really, I just sewed the strawberry patch onto the front of a white shirt.  The best part of your costume was your wig!  It was awesome!!

You even earned an award for best costume at a Halloween party.

Sophia was "Custard." Really she just wore a random cat costume but we called her Custard.

You girls looked great!

I love you baby girl!

Mom

It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year

I'm not sure if I've mentioned this before but as September/October approaches, I fill with complete excitement.  It is my FAVORITE time of year.  I love fall!  And I love, loVE, LOVE the state fair and balloon fiesta.  We had the pleasure of attending both this year.  But I can't find my pictures of the balloon fiesta :(.

Here are a few from the state fair though:

You had so much fun and wanted to ride the rides over and over again.  Daddy was such a great sport and did some with you!

My favorite things at the state fair:

Deep fried cookie dough

The petting zoo

Rodeos & Concerts

Old Fashioned Photos 

Did I mention deep fried cookie dough?  Yum!!

Next year I'll get more pictures.  

I love you!

Mom

Family Pictures

Hey Sweetie Pie!

We got our family pictures done again.  This was the first time we had them taken on location rather than in a studio.

Melanie Knott took out pictures at the UNM duck pond and they turned out gorgeous.  You were the most difficult thing though!

You did not want to have your picture taken.

You cried and complained.

You would even flat out refuse to have your picture taken.

We know for next time to take candy to bribe and reward you ;)

But Melanie luckily captured some great moments in between whines.

I love you pretty girl!

Mom

Chloe is a Ballerina

One of the things that Daddy and I did for your birthday was enrolling you in ballet dance class.  So for your birthday you got lots of dance clothes.  And that week after your birthday, you went to your very first dance class.  Your cousin Hallie also started going.  You really like your teacher, Miss Jan.

And you're the cutest little ballerina.

However, your attention span is short and you seem to get distracted easily.  But I imagine that's normal for a girl your age.

You're getting so big!

I love you,

Mom

Happy Third Birthday!

Happy, Happy Birthday Chloe Dear!

You are THREE. 

My goodness, how time flies!

We got to spend some time with Mimi in Old Town a few days before your birthday.  You love spending time with Mimi so this was a great way to celebrate birthday #3.  She took us all out to lunch and we did some shopping. Your dad was the entertainment... as always!

Daddy is always so silly!

On the morning of the eighth, I tried to make your birthday special.  When I heard you waking up I ran downstairs to turn on a bubble machine.  We had blown up balloons all around the living room.  As you descended down the stairs I had a chocolate covered doughnut with sprinkles in my hands and a candle placed on top.  At your new age of 3, doughnuts are something you ask for OFTEN.

Your birthday fell on a Sunday, so we had a new birthday dress for you to wear and, of course, a crown!

When we got home from church me, you and daddy hit a pinata around then you got to open presents.  But still, I was feeling like we needed to do more.

So we made an exception and decided to go to McDonald's where you got to play with some of your cousins, visit with your Mimi again, and we all got ice cream.  It ended up being a great day!

The week before your birthday, I decided to take you out on a mommy/daughter date.  I hope to make this a tradition because it was so good for us to get out ALONE.

We dressed up... you even got to wear some of mommy's makeup (you should have seen the mean, judgmental looks I got).  But you loved it!

We went to build-a-bear and you got Tallerina... she sings "Call Me Baby."  

Then we ate at Chick fil A... it was your choice.

We had a great time together!

You are feisty and sweet!

I completely adore you!

You are one of my favorite people in the whole wide world.

I love you dear girl!

Happy Birthday!

Mom

Almost Three!

Well, it's already that time again. It's time to order another blog book because your birthday is quickly approaching.  I can't believe you've been here for three years already... and at the same time, I can't really remember what life was like without you.

Lookin' through pictures and posts of the last year prove all the great times we shared together.  But I'm going to be honest... as much fun as we had, there were probably more hard times.  Two year olds really are terrible.  The tantrums, biting, hitting, disobeying, etc... were constant most days (often leaving us both in tears).  I've never felt as much like a failure as I've felt in the last year.  I've questioned my ability to be a mother.  Fact is though, I am one.  I am YOUR mother. And I love you.

I tell you all this not because I want you to feel guilty, or like you're not good enough...

Believe me when I say you ARE good enough.

I tell you this because when you are an adult, and a mother, I want you to know that the challenges you face are normal.  And like you are "good enough" at 2 years old as a child, you will also be "good enough" as a mother.  As long as you are doing your best and always trying to improve, you're doing great.

I hope you know that I'm always doing my best in raising you.  I'm certainly not perfect but I am always worried about how my actions/words will affect you.  We're learning and growing together.  I am so lucky to have had such a great little challenge for my first baby. I know that we were meant to be together!

You make me proud.

You have a brilliant mind.

You have a kind heart.

You love to sing and dance, bringing a joy like no other into our home.

You keep me honest.

You make me laugh.

You make me cry.

I worry about you and I also know that if I can raise  you right, I'll have nothing to worry about.

I hope I make you happy and fill all your needs the way a good mother should.

For your third birthday, the theme will be Despicable Me.  You love the movie and it is a fitting theme for the year we're finishing up.  Pictures of your birthday will start your next book.  I've gotta get this one printed!

 I love you dear!

I'm very curious about what the next year will bring.

Wish me luck!

Mom



Lil Racer

If you don't know already, your mama is a runner.

It makes me feel good.

The photo's below show me (and Auntie Sunny) at one of our half marathons... in fact, to this date, it's been our fastest one!  We ran it in 1:52 with an average 8:35 pace.

When we were finished, there was a kids race.  You all got your own ribbons.  You did so well and ran a majority of the way.  You were thrilled.  It was fun!

 

Love you,

Mommy 

I love my sister!

You're a great big sister.

And you take care of your Sophia.

You often tell other people, "Don't touch my Sister" or "I love my Sister."  It's cute.