Merry Christmas!

Here is one of the versions of our 2011 Christmas card. We did an a'la carte approach this year :) Got some free cards from Shutterfly, Dave made this version to compliment the Shutterfly version and then the kids each designed cards at Art Time that we sent out as well. Hope people liked whichever version they received :)

Advent wreath

I've wanted to make an advent wreath for years but lacked supplies and time. I'm so proud of myself for tracking down most everything at the Dollar Store. We lit the 3 candles yesterday and read from our Advent countdown. I don't exactly have the 5th candle but figure I can improvise :)

Can you spot Eli lurking in the background??

1st grade isn't for wimps

I was blown away by the work Jack was doing in Kindergarten once we switched schools (coming up on a year!) but I find myself remarking at how advanced the work he's doing in 1st grade is compared to what I was doing in 1st grade. I'm pretty sure I was just learning how to write and sound out words....... Jack, on the other hand, is learning geometry and pronouns. His writing has TAKEN OFF this year due to the amount of writing they do in class and for homework assignments. His wealth of words that he knows how to spell and sentence formation really astound me.

Here are pictures of his tests from 2 weeks ago and a letter to Santa that he wrote during class. He loves to write and I love to read his writings :)

Christmas party at Chelsea's

My friend Chelsea had a Christmas get-together last night and Dave and I got all spiffed up for it. We met up with my fabulous photographer, Nikki, and her husband. Chelsea is my hairdresser so the pressure for good hair was intense (most of the salon staff was there as well). It was a great fun and we enjoyed meeting Chelsea's family and friends.

Visiting the Kerisit's

I brought cousin Katie some food today and had a wonderful visit with her little family :) I wanted to take some pictures of Amelie and Elise while I was there and I think some of these turned out pretty well. How could they not with the gorgeous little girls! Amelie is 4 days old now and Elise is 3 1/2. Arnaud came home before I left so I was able to take a couple of pictures of him and Elise while Amelie was eating.

Amelie has a different look about her than her big sister did as a newborn. She reminds Katie and me of how Jack looked all those years ago. She has more "Hadskey" features to her you could say :) Isn't she fine though? And Elise is a bundle of sweetness. She was looking for Minnie Mouse in my camera flash and that just cracked her up.

Congratulations to Katie and Arnaud. What fine girls you have!

Mom's Club cookie exchange

I went to a cookie exchange tonight and came home with about 30 different types of cookies. This is one of the most popular events of the year for the club and is always a lot of fun. I came down with the flu last year and missed out on the fun so I was super happy to partake in hearing about the different recipes and reasons for baking that type of cookie. I also met new people which is super fun :)

I took Puppy Chow (not a cookie, I cheat), which is crispix, peanut butter, semi-sweet chocolate chips, butter and powdered sugar all mixed up. It's SOOOOO good and super addictive! Just google Puppy Chow recipe to get the exact amounts. And don't blame me when you can't button your jeans :)

Amelie Juliette

Jack and Theo have a new cousin to love! Katie had Amelie yesterday and she was a healthy 8 lb 6 oz and was a whopping 21 1/2 inches long! Little Amelie didn't come early like her big sister, Elise, so Katie had to be induced on her due date.

I get to go see Amelie on Friday and can't wait!! In the meantime, I've been busy doing a million crafts for the boys' school and making Puppy Chow for a cookie exchange that I'm going to tomorrow. It's chex mix, chocolate chips, peanut butter, butter and powdered sugar, all mixed together. Good stuff!!!