Christmas is here!

Christmas is here in our house and I love it! Decorations are up, presents are wrapped and goodies are being made in the kitchen! This is one of our favorite times of year and we can't wait to travel and see our family!

Rainy day painting!

Madison is officially hooked on painting with water colors! I've been saving this activity set for a rainy day and it came in handy this week as it has been raining NON-stop!!! For a mom and daughter who usually go outside three times a day, we are getting restless being stuck in the house! So painting has been a perfect activity to do while Emily is sleeping and it's just the two of us! For a two year old, Madison is incredibly careful not to make a mess! She takes her time and has done very well at trying to stay in the lines!

We have now painted 4 pictures this week! As you can see...she is really enjoying herself!

Early teether?

I believe that this little girl is starting to teeth. She chomps on her hand, my fingers, her pacifier and is drooling so much that I have to change her during the day because she just soaks herself! Yesterday I tried orajel after she had been screaming for 30 minutes and within minutes of applying the gel and giving her the pacifier, she was asleep!

Honestly, I am not ready for teething to begin...it's too soon!!! But at the same time, I would love to get it over with. I can't even imagine how painful it is for her and for me...well, it's just plain frusturating! I just pray we can both get through this in one piece!

Thanksgiving 08

Dinner turned out wonderful this year! I did all the cooking and wasn't even stressed because I was able to do most of the preparations the day before. We had 15 adults (counting Blain and I) and 3 kids. The house was packed. One couple brought some appetizers, another drinks and another brought Mac 'N Cheese. Nothing came out of the oven cold, undercooked or burned (yay)! And the turkey was BEAUTIFUL! My deviled eggs and brownies were a huge hit and that made me feel like I really accomplished this task of feeding all these Marines, Airmen and soilders! Thanks to everyone who came!

Busy day!!!

This whole week has been non-stop for me! The past two days I have been super cleaning our house: bedrooms, all downstairs, both bathrooms and of course kitchen! Today I am doing almost all the cooking! Currently, the second batch of potatoes are cooking, the eggs are boiled, and the turkey is thawing! By tonight, the mashed potatoes will be mashed and in the fridge, the green bean casserole will be mixed and in the fridge, the eggs will be peeled and the turkey will have all its insides taken out...by Blain of course! That way, tomorrow, all we have to do is put everything in the oven!!!

Go me!

My photo shoot with Madison

I love this little girl! She is funny and animated!
She has so many different expressions!

Kisses for Mommy!

It's so fun having a daughter who is not camera shy!

Madison has brought a whole new joy to my life that I can't explain! I am blessed and so lucky to have been given such a beautiful gift and I am curious to see what the future holds for her! Mommy loves you Madison!

Emily's first trip to the Aquarium!

We took Emily and Madison to the aquarium on the 15th and it was such a nice outing! Madison was running from here to there, wanting to look at every single fish and Emily was so well behaved and even followed some of the fish with her eyes! She is tracking so well now! It is so nice to get out of the house with both girls and just be a family! I am looking foward to many more outings with our girls!

Emily with Daddy looking at the BIG tuna fish and sharks!

My new favorite picture!!! Emily was so comfy in Daddy's arms!

Madison was in awe at the little sharks! (above)

And at the crabs! (below)