Fantasy Lights

I am a sucker for all things Christmas especially Christmas lights so I was so happy to share this love with Ella and Ashley and take them to Fantasy Lights for the first time. It did not disappoint!

 These trees are my favorite! Bernie doesn't know it but I am getting a lot of ideas for our lights next year!

Ashley's Tricks

Mom's Night Out!

Some of my college girlfriends and I had a night out with our moms! We went to dinner downtown and then went to see the Seattle Men's Chorus perform their Christmas show at Benaroya Hall which was very entertaining! There were eighteen of us and it was such a great time, we even got to meet "Lady Gaga"!

For the Love of Binkys!

The plan is for Ella to give all her binkys to Santa so he can give them to babies that need them. Not sure how that is going to go, she clearly has a strong attachment!

Gingerbread Party

Our neighbors had a Gingerbread party and all the kids got to decorate their own gingerbread houses. What a great idea right? Unfortunately we got there a little late and most of the kids were just about done and Ella wanted to run around and play so that is our house on the bottom left. I know pretty pathetic...so once we got home from the wonderful party I scrapped off the frosting and we made a second attempt at decorating our gingerbread house the next day. 

A few of the decorated houses and our not so decorated house!

All the kids watching the Polar Express

Ashley was happy just to watch

Our second time decorating

Ella realizing that she could also eat the candy!

Ta-Da!

The Best Christmas Pageant Ever

Ella had her Christmas Pageant debut tonight and she did great. Honestly I was a little worried since at rehearsal this morning she had no interest in being on stage and refused to partake in anything. Tonight she did much better. When the first group of kids went up to sing Ella said' "I gotta go up there" while running for the aisle. I explained to her that it wasn't her turn yet and showed her in the program when she would be going up on stage. She then sat in chair starring at the program to see when it was her turn to perform she was so much more excited than I had expected. You never really know what you are going to get when you put a bunch of two year olds on a stage with hundreds of parents in the audience with video cameras...I have to say I was pleasantly surprised with the results! Lookout Broadway here comes Miss Ella!

Ella and her buddy Riley

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O_d3m8irCh4

Santa Pictures

We went and saw Santa at our wonderful photographers this past week and wow was I all wrong as to how it would all go down. After last year I was sure that Ella would be the one that was deathly affraid of Santa. The pictures say it all, Ashley was the one that was not into visiting Santa this year. Ella on the other hand did awesome. She sat with Santa and he read her a book and then she said so matter a factly, "Santa you know PJ?" Pj is our elf (elf on the shelf)!  Ella told Santa she had been a good girl and that she should get a doll house for Christmas. As she jumped off his lap she said, "that was so fun, Santa is so nice...just like Boppy!" then she waved and said, "see you later Santa!"

It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas!

Our tree is up and decorated and there are even a few presents wrapped.

This is Peppermint, we call him PJ our Elf who Santa has sent to watch over Ella and Ashley until Christmas!

The girls got their very own tree this year in their upstairs playroom. I remember growing up we always had a kids tree downstairs that we got to decorate however we wanted. This way my mom got her fancy upstairs tree that she could color coordinate so I wanted to start this tradition for my girls. This year we did a candy tree and I love the way it turned out. It took a few different evenings to decorate it because Ella seemed to get easily distracted but it was a lot of fun!

The finished product!

A few of my favorite ornaments on the girls tree...

This was my ornament as a little girl, my very first cabbage patch

 One of the cupcakes that made the perfect candy tree

Gingerbread man from our friends and neighbors the Ledesma's

 Ashley's First Christmas ornament (this was also mine as a baby)

The girls upstairs stockings

Ok it's official we are ready for Christmas!