Cookies for Santa

We decided to make cookies to leave out for Santa. We got it on good authority that oatmeal chocolate chip are his favorite, so Cameron and I decided to whip up a batch (from scratch) while Lexi napped. (Good thing I got home early from work!)


He insisted on doing everything HIMSELF... including mixing.
Yup, you can imagine the flour mess pretty accurately, I'm sure!


Taste testing to make sure the chocolate chips are okay...
Looks like they pass inspection!


Here are the finished product... hope Santa's hungry!
(He wouldn't let Jon or I even taste one... The ENTIRE batch is for Santa!) Got to love his new smile!

Here are the kiddos ready for bed... Excited for Santa to come and eat their cookies:




(Yes, Lexis is singing)



All that's left to do now is dream of sugar plums and wait for Santa to come. Good night and Merry Christmas!

All I want for Christmas...

Lexi officially has teeth!
She got her two front teeth and a bottom tooth all on the same day. It's been a little tricky getting pictures of the illusive little buggars... but here are our best shots:



Lexi is also walking pretty well all on her own...



Oh, And Cameron survived another haircut:


This time he did a million times better. For one thing, there wasn't any vomit. (Like I said a huge improvement.) And with a little help in the form of a lolly-pop bribe, we escaped tear free!

Snow Lovers Unite

So we've gotten a few storms so far this year in NH. This was the first one I wasn't driving white-knuckled in to work so I thought I would take the kiddos out and enjoy it. Here are a few pics of our fun in the snow...

Cameron get SOOO excited every time it snows:


Cameron showing me the entrance to this year's snow fort:

(He "helped" Dad build it - so says Jon.)

Lexi seems to love the outside and the snow just as much!


Cameron giving Lexi a ride in the sled:

(Such a good big brother.)

Lexi LOVING the sled:


In spite of our recent "Escapades" in the snow, our kids still seem to love it... Oh to be young again and "Frost Proof"

Christmas Tree Adventure

This year after driving the HOUR to our favorite tree farm, we made the HORRIBLE discovery that the farm is only open on the weekend. In hindsight, we probably should have called first. Since we were out, we decided to make the best of the situation and went in search of another farm. (Thank goodness for GPS!) What we found was an old farm that let you tromp through their woods and cut down any tree you wanted for $20. SOLD. So our tree isn't as full and pretty this year, but what it lacks in cultivation, it makes up for in character... and height. Here are a few pictures from our adventure.

Cameron locating our tree:



Lexi and I setting up camp (a safe distance away) and waiting for the action to happen.




Cameron and Dad getting to work with a hack saw:



TIMBER - The tree is down!



Cameron once again lending a hand... (Such a big helper.)




Here we are with our tree: (And yes... I may have donated a few, as in 14 +/- inches, to Locks of Love.) Not my best hair day though. (Go figure - tromping through the woods in the wind.)



To put it in perspective the tree was just over 20 feet tall when we cut it down... Check out these muscles:



When we got home Jon trimmed it down to a much more manageable 16.5 feet. (And yes, I cried a little when he cut some off the top... for old times sake.) Why did Dad always feel the need? Seriously! MEN!

Overall, we had a great time and have learned a valuable lesson. Get our tree on Saturday next year! :)

Thanksgiving Fun

We took a 2 week Thanksgiving adventure south to visit family in Jersey and PA. Our first stop was to see Nana and Pop-Pop. They took us to the "Please Touch" Museum in Philadelphia which as a HUGE Success! There were way too many great pics to share them all, but here are a few:






What a great time!

Our next stop was the McLaughlin Family Thanksgiving festivities. Here are a few pics of the whole crew:


(Mammie in 7th Heaven with all five grandkids. She didn't quite have enough hands.) I just love this picture of Roarke - He is such a cutie!


(Grandpa - AKA Bumpa to Abby.) They have a great bond. :)

And here are snapshots of my siblings and their families:


(Although to be fair, Rugar is missing.)





While we visited Aunt Amanda and my side of the family, we rented a cabin to stay in with Sarah, Josiah and Abigail. As you can probably guess, the sleeping arrangements, while fun for the kiddos, left us with slightly less sleep than we would have ideally wanted. In the end the cabin was a lot of fun and the kids all had a blast!



(You can almost hear the giggles... :)

The three oldest cousins had a sleep-over one night at Aunt Amanda's and enjoyed a hot breakfast together in the morning. (Notice my child is the ONLY one chowing down a chocolate donut...)




We spent Thanksgiving Day at Great Grammie Tuthill's. Here is a shot of the 4 generations:



The kiddos kept things "interesting." Lexi put on a performance in her Rock'n new Tutu. (A birthday present from Aunt Jessica.) Although I'm not sure we ALL enjoyed her vocal styling equally...



... And Aunt Jessica gave Cameron A LOT of "Running Hugs"






Before we left Nana and Pop-Pop took Cameron to the Aquarium. He didn't want to get too close to the shark's teeth though...



We had a great time everywhere we went! What a fun way to spend a vacation! It was so good to see everyone again ... We miss you all already!

Happy Birthday Princess

As hard as it is to believe, Alexia turns 1 today! Here are a few shots of the birthday girl herself:



Her first car... Inspired by Aunt Amanda:



A rose from Daddy. One Rose for One year old.



Opening Presents:



NOT impressed with the party hats. Enough said.



Her favorite birthday present was actually a musical card that her "Aunt Ellie" got her. She was rocking out to the disney princess theme song. It was adorable to watch her sing and dance:



Loving her new Uggs. Turns out that they make great hand-warmers:



When it came time for the cake we could pretty much read her mind. It went something like this. "Okay, so I LOVE the tiara, but nobody said anything about fire!" Let's just say that Lexi was a little unsure about the cake...



Ever the good big brother, Cameron stepped up to the plate to help make sure she got her birthday wish:



She wasn't so sure about the cake at first... She had to poke it a few times to make sure it was wasn't going to bite her:



I guess she decided that she liked it... Even the dog got in on the action:



What was left of the cake when she was all done:



We love our little princess and are so glad she's a part of our family. We still can't believe she's been here a whole year! Happy 1st Birthday Lexi!