january 29

there were so many great things about our day today:
1) we slept past 7:00am (with no interruptions) and didn't get out of bed until 8:00am!
2) we hit the slopes at perfect north this morning, and all four of us skied!  it was awesome.
3) the sun was shining, the skies were a beautiful blue, and we ate lunch outside after skiing.
4) i took a cat nap in the car on the way home.  so did gavin.
5) i had some quiet time to read.
6) kevin and i made dinner together.
7) after asking for something fun to do (and not liking any of my suggestions), brooke set up a little dinner table for herself and gavin and made it "fancy like a restaurant" (there was even a candle).
8) at brooke's suggestion, she and gavin held hands and each said a prayer before they ate.  melted my heart.
9) brooke, gavin and kevin put on a concert for me after dinner including a song "we love mommy."
10) the laundry including all bedding is done and fresh, clean beds are made.
11) the kids were bathed and in bed by 7:30 and they actually fell right asleep.

january 28

today was just what i needed.  a little rest and a lot of productivity.  i've been in such a funk all week, and i've had a hard time motivating myself to do much of anything around the house.  today i finally dug into the huge mess in brooke's room.  it took me all afternoon, but i finally have it cleaned and super organized.  now there's no excuse for brooke to have a messy room :)  as added incentive i hung up her responsibility chart so we can restart that as an incentive for good behavior.  i've decided i'll get one for gavin, too, and see how it goes.  after i hung it up in brooke's bathroom, she looked at one of the "responsibilites" that we don't have in use and said, "hey, we don't have a pet!"  the responsibility said "take care of pet."  i got a huge smile on my face and pointed out to brooke that she read the word "pet" on the board.  so ironic that that was her first "sight" word (other than our names) given we don't have a pet, and brooke really doesn't like animals.  go figure.  i was so proud of her though.  we were also very proud of brooke and gavin for trying indian food for the first time tonight.  i'm embarrassed to admit that kevin and i have not had indian food in at least 3 years!  so tonight we introduced it to our family for the first time, and brooke was a great sport about it even though all the food had a lot of kick to it.  gavin was a little reluctant but still tried everything on his plate, although the rice was the only clear winner in gavin's opinion.

january 27

i really cherish days like today.  we spent the whole day with heather and stella and had nothing at all planned except to have fun.  we tickled and chased and played and giggled and danced and baked cookies and went out for pizza.  simple. pure. fun.

january 26

me:  gavin, we're going to stop by the grocery store.
gavin:  i want to go to the red grocery store!
me:  the red grocery store?  do you mean kroger?
gavin:  no, that's the blue grocery store!
me:  what's the red grocery store?
gavin:   you know, where i go to the boy aisles and look at the toys...
me:  oh, you mean target!
gavin:  yeah!  target!  i want to go to target!

january 25

today was a family-filled day.  megan, joey and chase came over this morning after we dropped brooke and jackson off at school.  i made everyone some french toast, and the boys had fun playing.  then mom came to spend the day with us.  brooke and gavin have been waiting very patiently to try out the ice cream maker that gram vicki got brooke for christmas.  i had a feeling for what would be in store, so i left it to my mom to try to make ice cream with the kids :)  while the directions were followed and the kids had a lot of fun, the ice cream wouldn't come out of the machine and what did come out tasted pretty salty.  although brooke swore it was yummy :)  so, what else could we do but break out some good ice cream from the freezer and add some sprinkles and whipped cream with a cherry on top?  just the ending we were looking for!

january 24

i spend a lot of time with megan and the boys, and i love it.  it's not quite like having best friends/family two doors down, but it's pretty darn close.  we see each other at least 3 times/week at school and usually 1-2 times/week outside of school.  today megan and chase came over while all the other kids were at school.  we laughed that chase must have missed his aunt tara because he gave me more lovin and cuddlin  than he ever has!  it made my day!

january 23

we were able to slowly ease back into our routine today thanks to parent-teacher conferences this morning.  the kids are off school today, but we spent a little bit of time there this morning while i talked with mrs. lees and mrs. brennan.  then we got gavin's hair cut (finally!) and picked up groceries for the week.  tonight when i was cooking dinner, gavin heard the sound of the grater and came running.  "i can do that!" he exclaimed.  so i let him.

january 22

our trip home today might be the smoothest day of travel we've ever had.  we were actually on schedule for once :)  we had time to enjoy lunch at the airport.  they boarded the plane early.  we had a short flight and arrived home early.  easy as that!  now back to reality for me and kevin.  but not for the kids!  they're busy dressing up and make-believing :)

january 21

i love this moment that i captured.  it's the perfect ending to our disney vacation.

today we relaxed in the sun at the pool and swam with the kids.  interestingly, brooke launched herself off the pool steps into the water without any floatation device and sunk right to the bottom.  thankfully i was right beside her and pulled her up above water.  she looked at me and said, "mommy, i thought i could swim, but i couldn't!"  bless her heart.  she had in her mind the day we spent in mt. orab when she swam like a fish in her water wings.  she was just doing what she remembered, but this time she got a very different result.  i didn't let on that she scared me half to death... i simply congratulated her for holding her breath and spending several seconds under the water!

brooke requested to see the fireworks over the castle one more time, so we went to magic kingdom tonight for a parade, shows and the fireworks.  disney by night is even more magical than disney by day.  tonight was spectacular.  and it was packed.  it was a perfect way to say goodbye, even if some of us (brooke :) aren't quite ready to go...

january 20

today was definitely the most exciting day for the whole family!  this morning the kids could not wait for our appointment at the pirate's league where we were all made into pirates.  it did not disappoint!  we really let gavin go for it by supporting his choice to have his whole face painted as a skeleton pirate and buying him a full costume to go along with it.  he looked amazing!!!  kevin had so much fun with this experience and looked awesome as captain jack sparrow.  brooke was really taken by the experience of going into the "secret room" where there was special treasure (gold medallion necklaces) hidden in a treasure box just for us :)  the entire experience start-to-finish was something we will always remember!  after our transformation into pirates, we watched the live pirate tutorial being performed by captain jack sparrow on the stage outside.  we had also seen it earlier in the week, so gavin kept quietly asking me, "is he going to call me up, mommy?"  it was so sweet.  sure enough, when captain jack asked who wanted to join him on stage, gavin walked cautiously up the steps where he was greeted by captain jack himself who took notice of our awesome little pirate :)  people all over the park remarked about our costumes and were so taken with gavin's appearance.  it was kind of hard not to notice :)  we stayed at magic kingdom all day.  we rode rides and watched parades and performances and really took it all in.  this evening we had a special dinner at chef mickey's with mickey, minnie, pluto, goofy and donald duck.  i think it's safe to say that we've seen everyone worth seeing at disney :)

january 19

we had tons of fun at hollywood studios today!  brooke and gavin danced on stage during the Disney Rocks! performance, and it will for sure be one of the highlights of our trip.  i was so proud of them for getting up there.  gavin only lasted about 2 minutes, but brooke danced her heart out until the very end.  it was adorable.  it's so important to me that our kids seize the moment and not shy away from opportunities that come their way.  today they did just that, even if in a very small way.

we also spent a lot of time in toy story land today :)  we met woody and buzz and toured through some special toy story exhibits.  we also rode the toy story ride, which did not live up to all the hype.  we also visited with lightning mcqueen and mater.  it was super exciting for all of us to have some of our favorite characters of all time brought to life right in front of our eyes.  kevin and i laughed at how easy it is, even for us, to get caught up in the excitement of disney.  i guess that's what it's all about.

this afternoon while gavin was napping, i took brooke to the floridian hotel for an afternoon tea party with alice in wonderland.  it was a kids only event, so i dropped brooke off and headed outside to the pool area where i had a chance to relax for an hour and get a taste of a true disney operated resort.  brooke was as happy as could be when i picked her up.  she had a wonderful time at the tea party decorating cupcakes, playing hide-and-seek with alice in wonderland and the mad hatter and doing some special crafts.  it was exactly her kind of event.  and there were only 5 kids there, so they each got very special time with some great disney characters.

tonight we went to downtown disney to eat at the t-rex restaurant that was recommended to us.  as brooke said, "this is the best restaurant we have ever been in!"  best in terms of entertainment value that is :)  it was a huge restaurant with different dinosaur-themed dining areas and huge animal displays everywhere you looked.  it really was something.

one thing is for sure about disney - it's really tough to be in bed before 10:00pm!

january 18

we treated our birthday girl like a princess today, quite literally.  brooke is 5 years old today, and it's almost too hard to believe that 5 years have passed since our beautiful girl was born.  i can still remember every detail about that day, and i hope to remember every detail about this special day, too.  brooke started her day at the bibbidi bobbidi boutique where she was transformed into a princess - cinderella was her choice.  she got the full royal treatment - nails polished, hair done (wish pixie dust sprinkled in), make-up applied, a brand new cinderella dress, shoes, wand, tiara and a special birthday princess sash.  after a ride and some shopping, we were back at cinderella's castle for lunch at cinderella's royal table.  brooke loved seeing cinderella as we entered the castle!  we had a delicious lunch and were visited by snow white, sleeping beauty, belle and ariel.  after lunch the rain rolled in so we headed back to the hotel for a nap for gavin and some quiet time for brooke.  brooke played so contently in the room thanks to the new tinkerbell set she purchased with her birthday money, and the matching cinderella princess outfit we bought her for her american girl doll (which she brought along on our trip).  once we were rested and the rain had stopped, we headed back to magic kingdom and arrived just in time for the nighttime electrical parade.  it was fantastic!  and we were so lucky to squeeze the kids up front along the street because it was packed.  brooke really took it all in.  after the parade we made a mad dash to the emporium gift shop so brooke could purchase a cinderella castle play set with the majority of her birthday money.  gavin also purchased the cutest little mickey mouse pirate set with the money that ba kaye and bob bob gave him.  new toys = happy kids.  we stayed for the "music, memories and you" light show on the castle and the fireworks.  even the fireworks at disney are kid-friendly!  it's the first time brooke has ever enjoyed fireworks because they weren't loud.  she loved them!  gavin still covered his ears :)  the kids were anxious to play with their new toys so we headed back to the hotel and ordered room service for dinner, which felt like the perfect ending to this jam-packed day.  i always put so much stress on myself to make sure the kids birthdays are perfect.  and every year i'm reminded that the kids don't need perfection.  just a special day that's all about them will do.  brooke got a little more than that this year, but i think the best part of our celebration was all the birthday wishes brooke received today.  everyone from the bus driver to fellow vacationers to disney employees to princesses wished brooke a happy birthday, and that alone is enough to make a little girl feel like a princess for one day.

january 17

yay!  we arrived at disney world today.  the sun was shining, the weather was perfect, and we were excited!  we spent the afternoon at epcot and really enjoyed it.  so many things about epcot were fascinating - like "turtle talk" with crush and the ride through epcot's greenhouses and food labs.  there was such a good mix of learning, sensory experiences and rides at epcot.  and, of course, there were princesses everywhere we looked as we strolled through the "countries."  brooke was very resistant to waiting in any kind of line, but i persuaded her each time, and she got to meet mulan, snow white and donald duck.  the kids were so excited that they refused to stop and eat lunch, and before we knew it gavin was asleep in kevin's arms and the rest of us were starving!  i can tell already that we might as well through our schedule out the window at disney...  we eventually made it back to our hotel and had a fabulous meal at an italian trattoria tonight.  on brooke's last day as a 4 year-old, she received a lot of special treatment from a very funny and spirited waiter.  it was such a great experience and really got our stay at disney off to a perfect start.  tomorrow is the big day!  brooke turns 5!!

january 16

seeing kevin making music with brooke and gavin makes my heart so happy.  today while i was getting ready for our trip, kevin spent some quality time downstairs with the kids, their guitars, an amp and various other musical instruments.  they love to go down and "practice" and then call me down for the "concert."  sometimes it's music to my ears, and sometimes, well, it's not... :)  but, either way, i always love to see how they express themselves.  kevin makes up songs for them, and they love it!  they learn the words and dance all around the room singing along.  and i stand in awe of all the wonderful things my husband is teaching our children and inspiring them to become in that very moment.

january 15

one of my favorite birthday shots ever.  i pressed the shutter button at just the right instant.  love it when that happens.  and see that cake?  i was up all night baking and decorating it.  i ended up making 2 cakes from scratch because the first time around i forgot to butter the pan.  #^@%!  so this castle cake that brooke requested became quite the endeavor.  when the pan arrived with the beautiful picture on the front, brooke gasped, "is that what my cake will look like?"  "well, not exactly like that," i replied.  "but mommy will do her best."  well, i think i did do my best.  lots of icing and food coloring and decorative tips and many, many hours later, and i had a cake that looked pretty darn close to that picture.  phew!  if not, i would have been running to kroger first thing this morning to buy a cake :)

this morning we had a small gathering of family at our house to wish brooke a happy 5th birthday.  the deal was no parties since we are taking brooke to disney world to celebrate, but i couldn't pass up the opportunity to allow brooke to celebrate with her family.  something she hasn't been able to do in a couple of years... and she loved it!

this afternoon brooke and i spent some quiet time at home watching princess and the frog while kevin and gavin went skiing.  i was sooooo tired and welcomed the chance to curl up on the couch with my girl.  kevin and gavin had a great time, and gavin was doing such a good job skiing on his own that kevin was even able to put on his own skis.  kevin said that gavin would go as fast as he could down the bunny hill and then find a way to turn himself so he could stop.  pretty impressive for a 2 year-old!

it was a really great day from start to finish.  brooke told me at bedtime that her wish (when she blew out her candles) was that the day would never end :)

january 14

the kids and i went to the mall today while kevin was at the uc basketball game.  i intended to pick up a few things and return home, but somehow we ended up being at the mall all day!  we even happened to be in the disney store at just the right time so brooke got to participate in a kids' craft event - making a princess crown.  what a perfect primer for disney world!  we had lunch at cheesecake factory, and poor gavin fell asleep in my lap and missed the entire lunch.  then it was time to actually do some shopping...  mostly for shoes.  i'm such a sucker for shoes - for them and for me.  we finally arrived home just in time for dinner.  now i need to get ready for brooke's little birthday celebration tomorrow.  somehow i don't think that spending the entire day at the mall was such a good idea...!

january 13

today kind of reminds me of the chilren's book "my many colored days."  today is a mixed-up day.  i'm feeling all kinds of things...
happy... because brooke was so thrilled to celebrate her birthday at school today :)
tired :(
mad... at gavin who has been behaving terribly today :(
relieved... because kevin will be home in 3 hours!  wooohoooo!

january 12

my dad has a big birthday today, but he hates birthdays so i won't say any more about it..
we were back to our normal routine today, including gavin's weekly request to go to the "bagel shop" (panera).  it's like our little weekly morning date.  we sit by the fireplace and share a cinnamon crunch bagel with hazelnut cream cheese.  it makes gavin so happy, and for those 20 minutes there's no place i'd rather be.

january 11

i awakened with a cold today (ugh!!!) and brooke and gavin have been fighting one all week.  so, i decided to keep brooke home from school today so we could all get a little rest, and we ended up having such a fun morning at home.  it reminded me of our days in snoqualmie when some days (like today) we wouldn't even leave the house.  brooke's school schedule makes that impossible now, so today was a good change of pace.  we played and did some art, and then i let the kids play in the sink.  brooke wanted to do an "experiment" and see which things would float and which things would sink.  so, i plugged both of the sinks and filled them with water, and brooke and gavin got all kinds of little toys that they dropped into the water.  they played like this for at least an hour (took their shirts off by themselves after they were soaking wet :)  i love to see them find such delight in the simplest of things.

january 10

we had such an active day that the kids went right to sleep tonight.  that's always a sign of a good day!  after i picked brooke and gavin up from school we met up with some of brooke's classmates at veteran's park.  it was our first time there, and it was beautiful!  our little group had the entire park to ourselves, and all the kids ran and played for hours.  i enjoyed seeing brooke playing with her friends.  there are a couple of boys in her class that she's really becoming good friends with, and it's cute to see her interact with them.  gavin fit right in and did a pretty good job keeping up with the big kids.  i eventually tore them away so we could get home for nap and quiet time.  as soon as gavin awakened he was asking to go outside again so we did.  we rode bikes around the neighborhood, and ella came over to play with brooke.  i'm pretty sure we soaked up everything this day had to offer!

january 9

a simple question: "who wants to play with legos?"  a simple answer:  "me!!!!!!!"  i love that.  today we made little boats, and they sailed them on the sea...

january 8

two back-to-back great days make for a fantastic weekend :)  brooke, gavin and i had a nice morning at home.  we made chocolate doughnuts and broke out gavin's new legos for the first time.  i haven't played with legos in a looooong time, and i have to say it was a lot of fun for me and the kids.  i was happy to see how entertained the kids were by the legos.  i can see a lot more legos in our future :)  after lunch we headed to stella's 2nd birthday party!  gavin was soooo tired, but he was resisting falling asleep in the car. so i told him if he didn't nap in the car he would have to nap as soon as we got to aunt heather's house.  with only 10 minutes left in our drive, i could see him in my rearview mirror squeezing his eyes shut with a smirky grin on his face, trying to "trick" me into thinking he was asleep.  i noticed he kept his eyes squeezed shut for several minutes, and then sure enough, he actually fell asleep!  so i sent brooke inside, and i sat in the car with gavin and enjoyed the peacefulness and the sunshine.  when gavin awakened, we went in to see the birthday girl and her brand-new john deere 4-wheeler.  brooke, gavin and stella took turns driving, and they all had so much fun cruising around in stella's new ride.  a few spins around the neighborhood, and it was time to get the music-themed birthday party started... there was lots of music, lots of dancing, lots of food and lots of toppings for the kids to decorate their own guitar mini-cakes.  needless to say, everyone had lots of fun!

january 7

today was a really great day.  i had so much fun with the kids.  we went to joseph-beth in hyde park for lunch and spent time in the children's bookstore with randall, antje, lexi and kenzie.  i love to see how the girls light up when they see brooke.  brooke even sat and "read" books to lexi.  it was really precious.  the kids were also thrilled that uncle randall spoiled them by buying each a special little toy.  he sure does know the way to their hearts :)  we ran to whole foods to pick up some quick groceries and then headed home for a neighborhood bengals tailgate party before the big playoff game.  i thought it would be a fun way for me and the kids to spend the afternoon since we didn't have any plans.  it was a great party complete with a bengals van in the driveway, outdoor music, an outdoor flat screen tv, drinks and catered montgomery inn food.  it was a gorgeous day, and it was great to be outside socializing with our neighbors.  the kids ran around playing hide-n-seek and tag with the other kids and then eventually found their way into the house to play.  after 4 months in our new neighborhood, i'm finally starting to feel at home.

january 6

in the 20s and snowing on monday, mid 50s and sunny today!  i was determined to make the most of the day.  we went to the library after school, had lunch out and spent the afternoon outdoors!  we biked around the neighborhood and colored our driveway with sidewalk chalk.  while we were out our neighbors came by and invited us to another neighbor's house to play on their outdoor play set.  we jumped at the chance (the kids miss our old park!), and the kids had a great time playing with other kids in the neighborhood and pretending the play set was a pirate ship :)  we stayed out until dinnertime and then had our usual friday night pizza.  it was a great end to our week.

january 5

thankfully things settled down in our household today.  we got to spend the evening with megan and the boys, heather and stella.  that always puts a smile on my face.  so do these little superheroes :)

january 4

today started out just fine (my mom slept over last night and spent the day with us), but it slowly unraveled into quite the nightmare.  our kitchen sink clogged up, which caused me to call a plumber.  the plumber came and fixed the sink, and i had them look at our toilet in the basement that also seemed to be clogged.  after an hour of snaking the toilet and a resulting horrible stench in the house, the plumbers realized that there was nothing wrong with the toilet.  instead, the sewer pump in our basement was full, and in turn overflowed because the GFI outlet that operates the pump had been tripped and no one knew it.  argh!!!!!!   i think i usually handle things pretty well when kevin is out of town, but this just about put me over the edge.  thankfully i got a hold of a carpet cleaning company who came to our house "after hours" to sanitize the floor and clean the carpet.  i was so upset about the basement that all i could think to do was bake chocolate chip cookies.  funny, right?  i figured that was a sure-fire way to distract my mind and make the kids happy.  so in the midst of all the chaos, we baked.  and it worked.  those homemade chocolate chip cookies made us happy :)

january 3

it was back-to-work and back-to-school day around here.  kevin left very early this morning for a 10-day business trip to asia.  i know kevin's always ready to go back to work at the beginning of the new year, but 10 days in asia will be a shock to all of our systems after having him with us every day for the last 2 weeks.  the kids did a great job jumping right back into the school routine.  after school we played board games and did puzzles.  i thought brooke was never going to be interested in puzzles, but that's finally starting to change.  brooke is getting a lot better at putting puzzles together all by herself, and gavin does a pretty good job, too (when it holds his interest).  today we played "share a berry" for the first time, and it was a huge hit!  although, gavin did not like it one little bit that i won the first time we played (it's not the kind of game that you can intentionally lose :).  he cried and begged to play again.  all the way through the second round of the game, gavin was saying, "i'm gonna win.  you're gonna lost."  so funny!  i tried teaching him the merits of sportsmanship, but i think it's going to take a little reinforcing :)  we topped off the day with special time with gram vicki, popcorn and the michigan bowl game.  i'm going to try and fit as much fun as possible into the next 10 days so we don't have too much time to think about how much we miss kevin!

january 2

i love having monday as the observed new year's day holiday.  it's like getting two holidays for the price of one.  for two days i have felt no pressure to do anything but hang out with my family and relax.  with college football on today, it even feels like new year's day :)  while we've been enjoying every second of the nice weather we've been having this winter, it was kind of exciting to see snow flurries today.  gavin really wanted to go outside so i got him all bundled up, and kevin joined him outside.  then it only took a few minutes for brooke to decide she wanted to have some fun, too.  so there they were... pretending that there was enough snow to go sledding :)  i told them they're lucky they have such a good daddy.  one who braves the cold (and he hates the cold) and pulls them down a grassy slope all just to put a smile on their face.

january 1

a new day.  a new year.  2012.  it has a nice ring to it.  i am so excited to say that i completed my 365: 2011 project, and it is one of the very best gifts i have ever given myself.  over the past couple of years i've gotten better about getting some of the pictures off of my computer and into photo books, particularly when it comes to special trips, vacations or events.  but the magic in my 365 project is that it captures the little things that make up our every day.  it captures our life.  just the way i want to remember it.  so here i am again.  ready to capture 366 days in this new year.  it is sure to be a year of change and new beginnings.  that is for certain. so today, i'm slowing down; i'm relaxing; i'm savoring the art of doing nothing... and it feels very good.

december 31

when we lived in our little house on beverly hill dr., i always said that i would entertain like crazy when we had a bigger house.  then we moved to seattle where we had a bigger house but no family around to fill it.  now that we have a big house and family/friends around, i've stuck to my word!  2 thanksgivings and 2 christmases were not enough.  i really wanted to throw a new year's eve party!  growing up, we always celebrated new year's eve at my grandma and grandpa's with my aunt, uncle and cousins.  it was a party every year, and i loved it.  so, i set out to have a fun-for-adults AND fun-for-kids new year's party. the key to the fun-for-kids portion - balloons!  lots of balloons!  the kid's craft table and cupcakes didn't hurt either, but the balloons were the hit of the party.  we did a new year's countdown for the kids around 8:00pm.  the adults counted down and cheered, and the kids looked at us like, what do we do now?"  it was kind of funny.  i think the key to the fun-for-adults was the good mix of company we had - a mix of families and good friends.  and the bearcat bowl win!  and perhaps the sangria and champagne....  :)  i personally loved being with my siblings.  it's been a very long time since we've been together on new year's, and it was a really great night.  i can't think of a better way to ring in the new year!  here's to 2012!

december 30

for joey's birthday party tonight, he requested that everyone come in costume :)  his only other wish was to have blow-pops with everyone in jackson's room.  wish granted.  we always have so much fun when we get together with megan's family.  the kids all love each other and play very well together.  brooke and sydney worked on their own little dance routine for a good portion of the night :)  kevin and i had to cut out early for dinner at nada with our neighbors, but brooke and gavin were able to keep the party going thanks to gram vicki :)

december 29

after brooke got a perla bead stuck up her nose this morning and, thank goodness, coughed it out (!!!), we headed up to dayton for the first time since we've been back in cincinnati.  we spent the afternoon at bob and kaye's house for the 2nd annual bolinger family post-holiday gathering.  we had such a great time last year, and i'm so glad we did it again.  we don't see kaye's family often enough, so i'm thankful that everyone makes the time to get together during the holidays.  it's fun to see brooke and gavin with kevin's cousins' children.  they barely know them, but it doesn't matter.  give them kids to play with, and they're happy - brooke and olivia; gavin, nathan and chris.  look at gavin checking out nathan's ds3d :)  i'm sure it won't be long... for now mommy or daddy's iphone keeps gavin happy.  i'm pretty sure this concludes our long list of christmas holiday festivities of 2011.  it sure has been fun!

december 28

kevin and i awakened this morning and decided to make a mad dash to perfect north to get the kids on their skis.  we were out of bed and out the door in about 45 minutes.  not too bad considering all of the clothing and gear we needed!  in the car, gavin said to me, "mommy, today is my first day skiing."  priceless.  i seriously think he's been looking forward to this for a year!  there wasn't much snow at perfect north given the weather we've been having (it was all man-made snow), but it was good enough for some runs down the bunny hill for brooke and gavin.  brooke picked right back up where she left off and was going down the hill and up the magic carpet by herself.  gavin got right on his skis and was ready to go with daddy!  he really is fearless.  gavin skied all by himself (with his hands on his knees "like a football player") and kevin ran after him to stop him.  there was never a single tear or a whine or a complaint.  quite different than brooke's first time on skis!  it was awesome to be out there as a family.  we'll definitely be there a lot this winter, and i fully expect to have two great little skiers by the end of the season.  maybe i'll even improve a little bit :)

this afternoon we went to randall, antje, lexi and kenzie's for cocoa and cookies.  it was a festive and intimate after-christmas party with lots of yummy goodies.  brooke and gavin opened their last! christmas presents (from randall and antje), and gavin was thrilled to wear his new construction worker costume to dinner :)  brooke also insisted on taking her new bucket of perla beads into the restaurant, but thankfully she thought better of opening them.

december 27

brooke and gavin received so many wonderful presents for christmas.  they've been playing happily for days :)  brooke has been knocking out her new craft projects one-by-one.  today she decorated a princess mirror and a new water bottle.  i finally showered :)

december 26

the aftermath.  we're hibernating today, and it feels soooooo goooooood.

december 25

christmas morning... brooke was the first to awaken, which means she was excited because gavin is always awake before brooke.  we were able to keep brooke contained in our room for about 15 minutes until gavin finally started stirring.  once gavin opened his door, the kids were taking off for downstairs.  there is nothing like the feeling on christmas morning when you are a kid, or when you are a parent of young children.  it is pure magic.  santa brought skis, games, a lalaloopsy play set, a batcave, dollie and me clothes, hot wheels and lots of other goodies.  brooke tore through all of her presents, while gavin took his time by playing with his gifts as he went along.  by the time we were done opening presents, bob and kaye arrived for breakfast.  we watched the disney parade on tv and told brooke that we were taking her to disneyworld for her 5th birthday!!  we opened more presents.  then we played and relaxed.  the kids put on a puppet show with their new puppets and puppet theater.  i spent 3 hours sewing a little bear for brooke by hand (thanks, santa :)  kevin and i were in our pjs for the vast majority of the day.  it's a good christmas when you don't have to get out of your pjs :), unless you're brooke and gavin who couldn't wait to put on their new clothes (a sundress that matched her american girl doll for brooke and a new batman shirt for gavin).  it was definitely a very merry christmas!

december 24

christmas is here and it did not disappoint!  we had soooo much food and so many presents and so many happy kids (and adults, too).  we were together all day starting with brunch and ending with dessert and everything in between was just perfect.  and filled with lots of love.

december 23

today was all about getting ready for tomorrow... grocery shopping, cleaning, baking, cooking.  it was a busy day.  in the midst of all the preparation, brooke reminded me what this is really all about.  i found this picture of the nativity scene in her school bag, and i absolutely adore it.  she has it all right - baby jesus, mary and joseph in the manger with the angel looking over them and a cow and two sheep nearby.  and then there's the addition of the little girl in the bottom corner of the picture.  brooke.  she drew herself into the scene.  and that makes me love it even more.

december 22

when we told brooke and gavin that we were moving back to cincinnati, one of the first questions brooke asked me was, "do they have a nutcracker there?"  our first trip to see the nutcracker last year really made an impression on her!  so, brooke and i have been waiting for a while for this day to come.  our 2nd annual day at the nutcracker.  brooke was so excited to have a girls day.  i was excited to make her feel special.  i hoped to have lunch at a nice restaurant, but i did not plan for the massive crowds downtown.  we were turned away at every restaurant :( which had brooke quite worried, but i wasn't going to let anything ruin our day.  after walking all over downtown in the pouring rain, we ended up having a nice lunch at the westin.  then we headed over to the aronoff center to see the nutcracker.  (had kevin not put a bug in my ear about the aronoff, i would have just assumed it was still at music hall!!!  now that would have been a disaster!)  we had great seats, and we both absolutely loved the cincinnati ballet's "new" nutcracker.  it was truly magnificent.  brooke even noticed things that were different than the first (and only) time she saw the nutcracker.  having seen the nutcracker in seattle, i had a real appreciation for the strong sense of tradition that is present in cincinnati.  it's special to people, and you can feel it just by being there.

december 21

today is the start of christmas vacation for the brooke, gavin and kevin, and i'm really looking forward to spending the next 2 weeks together as a family.  today it was so nice outside that we rode bikes.  the kids raced each other up and down the driveway.  brooke got mad when she couldn't keep up with gavin (he is much, much faster on his bike :), but she still hung in there and caught him off guard a few times in order to win the race.

december 20

this week it was brooke's turn for me to volunteer in her class.  i picked the last day of school before christmas break because who doesn't love that day?  it's exciting even in preschool :)  the kids got to decorate cookies, eat ice cream and listen to a great concert by the McNick band.  brooke was in the front row with her friends sara and tess (look how tall brooke is!), and they were having a ball.  back in the classroom i got to play alphabet bingo with some of the kids, which was a total treat.  brooke loved having me at school with her, and i loved it, too.

tonight i met all of the women in my family at el coyote for a special holiday dinner.  we see each other so often, but with all the kids around, we rarely get to sit and actually talk.  so tonight was the perfect way to spend some special time together before the real craziness of the holidays begins.

december 19

that jingle bell sure is funny!  he loves to hide in brooke's room.  this time he even dressed up as sleeping beauty :)

december 18

we kept the festivities rolling today... i got some time to myself to get out and do some shopping, and this evening we took the kids to the children's museum (with heather, danny and stella) for a Christmas pajama party.  we saw lots of trains, and the kids got to ride a train over and over again :)  we had hot cocoa and cookies, sang carols, danced to carols, played games and watched a performance of the Gift of the Magi.  the kids had a great time and looked so cute in their PJs!  i couldn't get enough of stella's little elf shoes :)  can't believe there's only one week until christmas!

december 17

another day to add to my list of favorites this year... more baking :) this time with my family at heather's house.  we spent most of the day and evening huddled together in the kitchen making cookies and fudge.  the kids even had their own table to roll out dough and cut out cookies.  stella loved anything that was in the mixer, and i loved seeing her stick her finger into the mixer and exclaim, "yummy!" after it went into her mouth.  she is so darn cute.  after dinner the kids got to ice and decorate the cookies, and then of course eat some :)  i'm really cherishing being with family this year during the entire holiday season (not just one week at christmas).  it feels like such a gift.

december 16

since christmas last year i've been meaning to buy gavin a few additional pieces for his train set in order to optimize the track layout.  so while gavin and i were in target yesterday exploring the "boy" aisles (as gavin likes to call them) i found a figure-8 wooden set that i bought.  i guess we should call it an early christmas present.  immediately after buying it i felt guilty for not buying brooke something, and i knew i'd get the question... and then it dawned on me.  i am giving her a special christmas present by taking her to see the nutcracker next week.  those tickets were way more expensive than gavin's train track!  thankfully, brooke was completely accepting of my answer, and gavin loves the new addition to his train set.  it turns out the set came with a battery-operated percy, which has been very exciting for gavin!  today i put the new track layout together on gavin's train table, and we played for a good hour.  i ran to get my camera because who can resist a little boy and his trains?  simply adorable.

december 15

our second year decorating a gingerbread house was a huge success!  i really enjoyed baking the pieces of the house this year.  even though we don't eat it, it was more fun creating it from scratch.  kevin added the icing, and brooke and gavin each decorated one side of the house.  it turned out great!  kevin and i were amazed at how much the kids' decorating skills have improved since last year :)  this will be a fun annual tradition in our household.

december 14

this picture makes my lips turn up in a giant smile.  their expressions are so hilarious.  i must have said something dumbfounding :)  in reality, we were outside this evening enjoying some nice weather and having corn muffins for a snack.  brooke and gavin were both way more interested in the muffin than they were in mommy taking their picture :)

december 13

i volunteered in gavin's classroom today!  it was my first time volunteering at school, and i loved seeing gavin in his school environment.  we had lots of fun playing in all the different areas of the classroom - reading books, painting, doing stickers, building towers, etc.  i enjoyed seeing gavin interact with the other kids in his class, although i know that he plays with joey 90% of the time :)  gavin and joey were the cutest things on the tire swing today.  they're not just cousins now, they're friends :)

december 12

today we had the pleasure of celebrating (aunt) megan's birthday with her.  i bought some yummy cupcakes and a little gift, and we had megan and the boys over for an impromptu lunch after school today.  my brother was out of town, so i was more than happy to make sure her special day did not go by without some celebrating.  i also took the kids to see jackson play basketball tonight.  he made two baskets and was thrilled everyone was there to see it!

december 11

this morning kevin and i slept in until 9:45am!!! (thanks to my mom who had the kids overnight so that we could attend a friend's holiday party).  i seriously have not slept that late in 5 years.  kevin and i spent the rest of the day cleaning the house (woohoo:)  mom brought the kids home (with more cookies!), and then our friends matt, kristen, bentley and braxton came over for dinner.  the kids had lots of fun playing together, and we enjoyed catching up with matt & kristen.  tonight before bed i wrapped up the sand tarts to take to the kids' teachers in the morning.  we've gotta get some of these cookies out of this house!