the end is near...

Almost every culture has special beliefs reserved for the first day of the year. 
In some places, your supposed to open the windows at midnight on New Year's Eve so good luck will fly in and bad luck will fly out. It is also very important to make as much noise as possible with noisemakers, pots and pans and fireworks to get the bad luck to go away. I have also heard that if you take a drink at midnight you will have good luck in the new year.  Then of course if you get your smooch on with someone good luck will come your way and you will have lots of kisses in the new year as well.
I am going to be doing every single one of them at the first stroke of midnight.



I need to ensure good luck for 2011.

When I look back at 2010 its been a good year, don't get me wrong.  We have lost some loved ones but gained some great memories along the way and we have gained a 100% healthy little boy who is a wonderful addition to our family.   But let me tell you this last month has been a tough one for us.   Its been horrible!   One car out of commission (still not fixed), the rear ending of another vehicle, an accident with the rental car when the other was in the shop, and the supposedly fixed car coming back with more dings to it.  And in other years December has always been kind of hard for us.  A few years ago my husband was in a horrible accident the day before the New Year, in 2008 my Honda got stolen out of a shopping mall parking lot a week before Christmas and then all this stuff happening this year. 

GAH!!!

should i be doing community service?
attending church more often?
helping out at our local homeless shelter?
all of the above?

So here's to a new year with lots of luck and lots of good memories. 

via

CHEERS!!!

and...DONE!

WOW!

What a crazy Christmas!

Thankfully its all over and we can slowly get back to our normal routine.

But it was a great Christmas and the kids loved every minute of it.

Here are a few (quite a few) highlights in pictures!!

right before all the madness started

up way too early!

super excited to get her stocking

showing her brother how things work...

ok, she'll just do it for him

see this is how you do it...

little man not interested his presents.

just his sisters!

this was his favorite gift!

and this one too :)

what she asked santa for

look at that smile!

complete and utter chaos

a christmastime quiz

I saw this meme when I was reading the Unofficial Mom.  Sara is fabulous so go check out her blog!

Egg Nog or Hot Chocolate? During the holidays I love eggnog but only if its cut with 1% milk.  Its too strong and gives me a tummy ache if I don't.  Otherwise I am a true chocolate lover.

Does Santa wrap presents or just sit them under the tree? Santa wraps all his presents but with different wrap then ours.  It makes it a little more special!

Colored lights on tree/house or white? I love the classic white lights.  Its so pretty.  BUT since meeting my husband we have added red and green lights to the outside.  He says he will turn me to the dark colored side eventually but I refuse to let it go any farther.  I have put my foot down!

Do you hang mistletoe? We haven't this year...ACK!  To the store I go :)

When do you put your decorations up? We put our x mas lights up the day after Thanksgiving!! But we usually don't decorate the inside till we get the tree.  About 3 weeks till.

What is your favorite holiday dish? Sweet potatoes.  YUM. 

Favorite Holiday memory as a child? Climbing down the stairs with my family on Christmas morning.

When and how did you learn the truth about Santa? I don't remember how or when the truth was told.  Maybe it was my siblings?  Micah? Tracy? Did you steal my childhood? ;) Just kiddin...

Do you open a gift on Christmas Eve? We always open up one present.  And its always our special holiday pajamas!

How do you decorate your Christmas tree? White lights!!!  Oh and a mix of ornaments.  The majority of them are from my mom. 

Snow, love it or hate it?  I love snow.  Wish we got it more often!

Can you ice skate? No.  But I used to be a killer roller blader back in the day.  Does that count?

Do you remember your favorite gift? I have a horrible memory. 

What’s the most important thing about the Holidays for you? Spending time with my family.  Yeah...its every ones answer but its true!

What is your favorite Holiday Dessert? Pumpkin pie of course.  With a dollop of homemade whippin cream!

What is your favorite holiday tradition? Christmas eve PJ's, stockings filled and placed at the foot of the bed, and our big family breakfast at my sisters. 

What tops your tree? A beautiful gold sparkly star.  Lila put it up this year.  She was beaming!

Which do you prefer giving or receiving? I love getting presents.  No, but seriously...giving is wonderful.  And getting is just a plus :)

What is your favorite Christmas Song? Last Christmas for sure.

Candy Canes: Yuck or Yum? They are pretty good.  Maybe once a year.

Favorite Christmas Show? Scrooged with Bill Murray!  That's such a classic.  My husband and I actually watched Its a Wonderful Life for the first time the other night.  It might have to be a tradition for us.  I really liked it.

Saddest Christmas Song? This one is a tough one.  I guess I could use some help here?

I would love to see you all play along!

wordless wednesday {waiting for santa...}

 M e r r y   C h r i s t m a s ! 

our x mas card

                     

 from our family to yours,  happy holidays!

the big ouch of '10

My son pulled a potted plant onto himself.

Yep, a very heavy pot.

He is totally OK and actually didn't cry very long at all. 

Only about 15 seconds after I picked him up.

Dirt was EVERYWHERE.

It seriously broke my heart.

It looks horrible.

His cheek bone was immediately bruised.

Poor guy.

His dad says he is a toughie.

Still breaks my heart though...

little monster theme

We have decided to do a little monster theme for Blake's 1st birthday.

  I am so excited!

I really love these invitations that I found on Etsy.

via

Aren't they too stinkin cute?!

I have quite a few ideas about monster things.

  I want to make a shirt for Blake and Lila with cute monster faces on the front and a huge no. 1 on the back of Blake's.

  I want to print out coloring pages of little monsters for the older kids to color on and I want to have a little monster smash cake for Blake. 

I could use any suggestions or help! 

Oh man...I can't believe in less then 2 months my own little monster will be 1!!

a little accident goes a long way...

  This past weekend the kids and I got into a small car accident.  We got rear ended at a stop light.  The woman who hit us said her foot slipped off the pedal.  My husband was in his car a few vehicles behind us and came immediately to the rescue.  I was beyond scared.  My son was crying in the back seat and my 3 year old was saying that we hit a bump, "really hard mommy".  Shaking uncontrollably, I opened my door and ran to the back of the car to see if my kids were ok.  Then I realized that I was still in the middle of the street so I got back in and drove off to the side.  My husband took care of the info swap and came over to the car.  The adrenaline had worn off and I was practically in tears.  Thankfully both the kids and I were all ok and Blake was only crying because he got awakened (very rudely I might add) after only falling asleep just moments before the accident. 

  Later that night after putting both kids to sleep I sat on the couch and thought about how lucky we were.  It could have been so much worse and it really makes me scared and sad to think about how precious life is.  One fluke accident and a whole life can be gone, just like that.  I don't know what I would have done if the kids would have gotten hurt.  I can't even imagine it. 
  So now I am sitting here being VERY thankful that we are happy and healthy this holiday. 

Drive safe!

xoxo,

here kitty kitty kitty...

Lila had a lot of fun playing with our cat this weekend. 

he looks so pissed...

tis the season

On the hunt for our perfect Christmas tree...

 Decorating the beautiful tree...

Happy Holidays!

{this was our fun experience last year}

check it out!

stitch b*tch

This all started in my quest to begin a new hobby...



I recently have taken up knitting!
I LOVE IT. A big shout out to my Aunt Joie for showing me the ropes!!
I am working on a scarf for the Hubs right now.
Honestly, its probably going to take me till next Winter to finish but hey...I am going to try.

I just finished this project.


I began not knowing exactly what I was going to end up with.
But don't look too closely.
Its far from perfect but I am still very proud of it.
Its my first knitted thing!
Don't laugh...

*I am totally cheesing from ear to ear*


Do any of you know how to knit?
What are some of your favorite sites on knitting?
Please share :)