Merry Christmas 2011

This is by far my favorite 2011 Christmas picture.

And I love this one too.

And could this be any sweeter? Ashlyn loves her "Da-dad" so much.  It was supposed to be "Granddad" but she has made up her own name for him.

We had such a great time celebrating the birth of our Savior with family and friends. 

I love how excited she was to open presents.

Ashlyn's "bean box" from me and Christopher.  Who knew that a bunch of dried beans in a plastic container could be so much fun?

Hope your Christmas was merry & bright.  We have so much to be thankful for.

Santa

Christopher's grandmother invites us to the Palmetto Club each Christmas for pictures with Santa.

Chase was a little unsure at first, but he was happy to sit with Santa.

Ashlyn was ok for about 17 seconds.  Then she flipped out.  I got a couple of pictures before the hysteria.

One more attempt to get her not to cry and both of them to look at the camera at the same time.  Chase was not interested in participating.

A big thank you to Christopher's mom for getting their sweet Christmas outfits.

Chase with his great-grandmother, Frank Frank.

Cookies

 We are loving life and enjoying time with our little people who are getting big really fast.  One of Ashlyn's favorite books right now is "If You Give a Mouse a Cookie."

I made sugar cookies over the weekend.  In my mind, I pictured me and Ashlyn decorating them together and then taking them to our neighbors.

Lovely thought.  I threw all the ingredients together and realized as I rolling the dough that I used baking soda instead of baking powder.  Oops.  They did not turn out as wonderful as I had imagined. And we did not even have anything to decorate them with.  Ashlyn and her daddy still ate them though.

She loves to shove the paci back in Chase's mouth when he spits it out.   She also takes it from him and then pretends she is helping him so she does not get into trouble.  Look at that face of innocence.

Bows & Baby Blues

Ashlyn NEVER wears a bow.  I have almost given up with even trying.  But this morning she let me stick one in her wild and curly hair and snap a few pictures.  Our sweet friend Ashley made these adorable Christmas pants for her.

I love this silly face.

Sweet baby blue eyes.  I know they may change colors, but they look just like his daddy's right now which I love.

Celebrating at Preschool

  Ashlyn's school Christmas party/program was Friday.  So cute watching a bunch of two years olds try to figure out why their parents and grandparents and aunts were hanging out in their classroom (Thanks, Mimi and Aunt Jaime for coming).  They sang the Christmas songs they have been learning (more like their teachers sang) but it was still fun to watch. 

She did not want to wear anything I picked out.  Including leggings with her dress.  But it was 72 degrees yesterday so who cares.

Miss Independent likes to select her own clothes from the closet these days.  I have been telling myself it does not matter as long as it is weather appropriate and clean.

We love our preschool and are so blessed to have such wonderful teachers who love children.  What a fun first half of the school year!

Baby Food & BIRCHBOX

I am thinking about making some of Chase's baby food.  I did not make any for Ashlyn - so this would be a first in the Newman house.

Is it weird that I am kind of sad about starting him on solids?  And I think the main reason is because I have been his only source of nourishment since he was in my belly - and it makes me a little sad to think that he will want and need more than just me.  And that he will probably be excited about it.

I guess that sounds kind of silly.  I just love my little boy.  And I love taking care of him.

And on a totally different note - have you ever heard of BIRCHBOX?  

My sister got me a 6 month subscription for Christmas.  I mean, how much fun is it getting a little box filled with fun beauty samples in the mail each month?  I got my first one Tuesday.  LOVE.

My Santa

One of Ashlyn's favorite things right now?

"MYYYYYYYY SANTA."

Everything is "MINE" with a 2 year old, right?  Which is why I am glad their Mimi got Chase his own Santa :)

Freezer Cooking

Don't you just love friends you can call at 9:30 in the morning and say "Why don't you come over today and help me destroy my kitchen while we make a million meals for the freezer?"  And they agree with little to no hesitation?

Ashley and I cooked yesterday.  We ended up with a kitchen that was a complete disaster area along with a few meals including:

2 crockpots filled to the brim with Chili

4 pans of Cream Cheese Baked Spaghetti

20 Egg, Cheese & Salsa Burritos

32 Pizza Wraps

24 of Rachel Ray's Chipotle Chicken Enchiladas

6 freezer bags of Crock Pot Chicken Tacos

Not bad for a Saturday afternoon.

And did I mention that the boys were playing golf?

And we had all four babies at my house?