Merry Christmas!

Dealey Holiday Party in Room 5

Daniela

 Charlie

Snack time!

 Ever wonder how to get a room full of toddlers to sit nice & quietly?  

Feed them!

 Madelyn

 Julian

 My munchkin

 Julian's older brother, Braden

 Maggie & her dad, Mitch

 Contrary to Reid's belief, this is NOT allowed

 Kyle

 Julian & his mama, Kimberly

 Sad that this one is blurry...Reid's running to give Ms. Shakeitha a big hug (also sad we didn't get a photo with Ms. Lupe).  Reid loves his awesome teachers!

Santa Claus

For the 2nd year in a row, we visited the Galleria for our Santa Claus photos.  This will definitely be a tradition for us.  

Even though Northpark IS my absolute favorite mall of all time and their Santa IS absolutely amazing, the "system" they have in place for seeing Santa (yes, there's a system) and the insane amount of time it can take is just not something this working mom can do.  Well, I guess if I took a day off work for the occasion I could make it happen...

Anyway, we love the Galleria Santa.  Not to mention all the other bonuses of this location:

• Dad can race to meet us there after work
• We can park in our favorite Galleria/Nordstrom parking garage where we always find a good spot
• Did I say Nordstrom?  Yes, Santa is located right outside Nordstrom on Level 2
• Speaking of levels, just outside Nordstrom on Level 3 is one of the mall's food courts as well as a play area for the kiddos (similar to the one Reid played at with his cousins in Corpus that I wrote about on this post.)
• So once we've filled our bellies and expended some energy, we can jump back in the stroller and head to Level 2 to meet dad and Santa.

In preparation to see Santa, look who got chicken nuggets for dinner.

Waiting in line to see jolly old St. Nick

As our friendly Santa put it, "Don't worry mom, this photo {crying} is a right of passage for every child."  Thanks, Santa, for the reassurance!  :)

 He calmed down a bit after a few seconds, but he still looks P.I.T.I.F.U.L!!!

Haircut Drama

Haircuts are never a joyous occasion, but they typically go a little smoother than the last one did.  Who knew the boy had the strength of Hercules!?
Mom had to bust out a secret weapon - Reid got his first lollipop!  If it counts for anything, it was organic, gluten-free, soy-free, infused with Vitamin C and had no high fructose corn syrup or artificial dyes!  ;)
Here's hoping our next haircut has less drama!

Christmas Tree Hunt

It wasn't much of a "hunt" this year after all.  While we were shopping for the perfect tree, all Reid wanted to do was ride on the push carts that are used to haul the trees from one place to another {I wonder where he got that idea in the first place?}.
Then once we arrived home to unload the tree, all Reid wanted to do was push his lawn mower in the alley.
Finally, once dad got the tree in place and ready to decorate, all Reid wanted to do was climb on the step ladder.
Basically, I said all that to finally say - our photos leave a lot to be desired, but they do, in fact, tell the true tale of our Christmas Tree hunt!
Side note:  earlier this day, Reid took a little tumble while playing at the park, hence the red nose and scratched up face.  Other than the bark and mulch all over his face, in his mouth and up his nose, he handled it very well!

 This was the best pic I could get of Reid riding the cart

 "Helping" dad

 

 

This is one of the only ornaments on the bottom 1/3 of the tree.  I have a feeling our tree will look like this for a few more years.

 

 Baby A & Baby B

Shock & Awe

In case the title didn't give it away, this post is all about our plan journey to make Reid a big brother.  
It all started on October 1st {well, not really but this is when we'll start the story} when I set out to take a pregnancy test.  We had just begun the pregnancy endeavor, but somehow I knew it wouldn't take long this time around.  Lo and behold, not one but three pregnancy tests later, and it was, in fact, true....we're pregnant!
My sister, Jamye, was with us for a couple of days before flying out to San Diego, so she and Reid got to help me reveal the news to daddy when he arrived home from work that evening. 

Reid's "Best Big Bro" t-shirt

But little did we know, our pregnancy wouldn't be the only surprise in store for us. 

We went for our 1st ultrasound at approximately 6 weeks, and our sonographer was thrilled to be the first person to tell us - 

"You have TWO little ones in there!"

10 Weeks

 And yet another surprise at 16 weeks - TWO more precious boys to add to our family!

This is the card my sweet hubby brought home to me after we first found out we were having TWO.

There's no doubt in my mind that God's blessings come in all shapes & sizes - some in the form of adversity {and we just don't know it's a blessing yet} and others in very obvious form - a complete and wondrous miracle!  

Thank you, God, for blessing us, not necessarily how we expect or want to be blessed but how you see fit.  

Because it's your plan that really matters.