christmas

on christmas eve morning we went to see santa. they really aren’t into santa at all, but for the sake of the tradition we do it.

breakfast afterwards. with aurora, of course.

later that day we went to the christmas eve service {at a church we just started attending}. the church had a really neat service for the entire family, and it was the best way to kick off the holiday.

…..

christmas day was an incredibly relaxing day. my parents came over and joined us for brunch, gifts, games, oh-and a trip to the urgent care. during naptime adalaide attempted to climb out of her crib for the first time. she fell head first onto the hardwoods and the poor girl got a concussion. thankfully, nothing serious was wrong so we were able to come home and resume our christmas fun. aside from that little incident we really had the best day celebrating jesus!

here are my favorite pictures from the day….

the best we could get of the girls together.

i was so excited to give adalaide this fridge alphabet toy. our friends have one and she always loves playing with it.

her reaction did not disappoint!

 these are the stockings my parents have for the girls. made by my amazing mom!

i may or may not have taken some baby food straight from our pantry to put in lyla’s stocking so she could have something to open. clearly she didn’t seem to mind.

 

 

sweet lyla’s first christmas!

gingerbread houses

Since brian always works on the friday after Thanksgiving I started a tradition with my mom a few years ago. We basically set aside the day for getting into the Christmas spirit. We stay in our jammies all day, decorate the house, listen to christmas music, bake, eat and relax. Every year we make gingerbread houses, and of course this activity is a huge hit with my sugar loving girls.


by the way, if you are wanting to make gingerbread houses with young children i highly recommend the kit from costco. the house comes assembled so it’s much easier for those of us who are a little challenged in the structural department.

25 things i’m thankful for

i’ve seen some people share on facebook or blogs one thing they’re grateful for each day leading up to thanksgiving. i’m not that organized, so i thought i’d just share mine in one list. i’m not going to include the things i’m thankful for that are a given: God, my family, friends, and good health.

i am thankful…

1. that lyla is such a happy, easy baby

2. that brian has steady work {and that he works so hard for us}

3. for my crock pot

4. for our fireplace {for the heat, and the coziness}

5. for costco gas

6. for my moms group bible study

7. to be living near family

8. for coffee

9. for our family photos-so many i want to frame!

10. for children that sleep well, and a 4 year old that still naps

11. that our fridge is always full

12. that brian and i have been able to go on more dates this year than ever before. yay for grandmas nearby!

13. for dvr.

14. for yoga pants

15. that our target has a grocery store and starbucks in it.

16. for friends who understand how much i hate talking on the phone, and love me anyway.

17. for our extra freezer-which means we can get whatever we want from costco, and i can also go crazy making baby food!

18. for days that we get to stay home, with nothing planned but hanging out in our p.j.s.

19. for God’s work in our marriage this year

20. for hand-me-downs. best part of having a third girl is that she doesn’t need a single thing!

21. for pinterest and the hours of fun brian and i have had ‘pinning’ ideas for when we build.

22. that lyla will take a bottle

23. for binkies, exersaucers, baby carriers and the like that make parenting so much easier.

24. for family traditions {the ones we grew up with, and the ones we’re starting for our own little family}

and lastly,

25. for the God-given energy that has gotten me through some VERY sleep deprived times lately.

that, plus the coffee helps too.

a special day

today was a very special day for this little lady. she got her ears pierced!

she’s watched both her baby sisters get theirs done, but she has adamantly declined each time.

so we were really surprised when she randomly had a change of heart and started asking to get hers done too. we waited a while to make sure she was really serious, and as you can see-she was. she chose the pale pink diamonds, and boy are they pretty!

i was so proud of her for actually going through with it, and she didn’t even shed a tear! this one never ceases to amaze me!

on the move

just a few days after turning 6 months old lyla took off crawling.
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qo3AXrdaY2M]

when finley and adalaide learned to crawl i had some time to get around to baby proofing our house. not so with this girl. she figured out how to get where she wanted, and she hasn’t sat still since.  

finley turns four!

last weekend our first baby turned 4! somehow the lucky little lady ended up with 3 separate celebrations.

first, we had some friends join us at the bounce house down the street.

then we had a few family and close friends over for some ice cream.

and finally, she went on a special birthday date with just mommy and daddy. this year she wanted to go to dinner at red robin and listen to justin ‘beaver’ in the car REALLY loud. done and done.

i was so proud that our shy girl agreed to let the waiters sing happy birthday. it could have had a little something to do with the ice cream that came with it…

i loved our special date with the birthday girl, and i know she did too. she was so excited to have our undivided attention she hardly stopped talking the entire night. i tried to ask her a couple serious questions, about life and whatnot, but she mostly wanted to talk about whether or not four year olds still have to take naps.

of course they do.

more on our 4 year old coming soon.

also, there are more birthday photos in the album

lyla-6 months

my lyla girl,
 these six months with you have flown by. i try not to get sad about how fast you’re growing, but of course i can’t entirely help it.

this is my favorite thing to do. kiss your neck. the harder i do it, the harder you laugh.

your squishy thighs are a big hit around here.

 

it’s actually a bit funny how often people comment on your juicy little legs.

your one dimple is still the cutest thing i have ever seen. ever!

your 5th month was an exciting one:  you had your first taste of real food, your first round of ‘crying it out’, and your first cold.

you ate like a champ from the very first bite. so far you’ve had rice cereal, avocado, banana, and yort {homemade yogurt}. you love it all, but i’m going to have to modify things as you’ve joined the constipation club, just like your big sisters.

you are nearly crawling. i’m guessing any day now you’ll be doing it full-blown. right now you are able to make your way all around a room by rolling and army crawling. you are unbelievably strong-in my biased opinion :)

people tell me that you have your own look, but i actually think you are a perfect mix of finley and adalaide.

you love to play in your exersaucer and your favorite toy is sophie la girafe.

you also love your muslin blankies, and you need to have them tucked by your cheek while you sleep.

i love watching you interact with your sisters. you watch them all day long and love when they stop to play with you. they make you laugh so easily-it’s adorable.

lyla scott, you are such a blessing to our family. we love you.

 

happy half birthday!