Christmas Decorating and Party

I suppose it was 2 weekends ago that we decorated the tree. Here are some pictures of the little elves hard at work.

That was the day Eve learned to say Cheese! for a picture. Here's how she looks when she says it

On to last weekend. We started early (Thursday) with having old friends and their new children over. John and Eve had a great time playing with new friends, and we had a great time catching up and reminiscing on old times. Saturday morning we had a party from 9-12 with 8 kids total, and we sent the parents away to do their Christmas shopping. We actually invited a lot more, but God knows our limits. We had a great great time! It was only a little bit crazy, but a lot bit fun!

First we decorated aprons. Nothing like giving permanent markers to 2 kids 1.5 and 2, 5 3-year-olds, and a 6-year-old. They all turned out great! We also made wreaths with old wrapping paper to use as an ornament/frame (pictures from the party), cookies, and jingle bells. The cookies and jingle bells were later enjoyed by all!

This is Claire...she's such a doll!

Austin lives next door

Lydia, Claire's older sister

Riley, Austin's twin brother

Eve - already knows that cookie dough is better than baked cookies

John - must've been the one to teach Eve about cookie dough

Morgan

Little Sister Maddie
They're all super cute, if you ask me.

Here's Lydia stringing jingle bells. Unfortunately some of them exploded while we were jingling them, but that just made things more exciting.

All the kids gathered on the couch (eventually) and Buck played some Christmas carols to jingle and sing along. This was definitely one of the highlights of the party (although I just realized most don't look thrilled in this picture...once the music started I promise they were all smiles)! I wish I knew how to put video on the blog.
That night after church we continued to Journey to the Manger (drive-through Bethlehem I mentioned in an earlier post).


Today, nothing to do with Christmas, we tried on some overalls that Uncle Rod gave us a year ago. They fit, and the kids love them, and they're super cute. John has even learned to maneuver the buttons to undress and dress to go potty. I think that's impressive!

So, here's a picture to prove that deep down inside, there's some Wisconsin in that blood. These are straight from OshKosh, WI, the source.

Another Great Suggestion

Yesterday I was sitting in the chair with both kids in my lap reading a book. I retreived a rather large "buddy" from Eve's nose, then realized I was trapped with it stuck on my finger. Jokingly I asked (out loud) "well, what am I supposed to do with this now?" John's prompt response, "Put it in my nose!" He thought it was pretty funny. Although it's terribly disgusting, I have to admit I did too.
So, it's Christmas time. Our tree is leaning on a 30 degree angle (fortunately it's leaning in the direction of the wall), the lights are hanging down to the floor as they're partially removed, most of the ornaments have been taken off, some broken, some distributed throughout the house, and almost all the rest of the decorations are still laying in boxes in the hallway...waiting to be put right back up in the attic because we never got around to putting them up. There's a batch of cookies in the trash because I forgot they were in the oven until I finally had the next tray to go in (30 or 45 min later). Not to mention that I haven't cleaned in weeks because it's just been too busy. So, is it only in a house like this that a child makes such a recommendation about boogers? If so, I'll take it. Despite the mess and the craziness, we're having a blast in the midst of it...and it'll only get more crazy and more fun in May!

Advanced Sense of Humor

Eve really impressed me the other night, sort of, with her advanced sense of humor. We just left the drive-through Bethlehem (Bethleham - as my southern son calls it) called Journey to the Manger. It's the live nativity where John was Jesus when he was a baby. Anyway, in keeping with the reverence of the experience, we were on the way to pick up a pizza and John was making flatulent noises with his cup and saying "Excuse me, I toot". Eve, only one and a half, found that to be hysterical...so did John. While we were sitting in the car waiting on the pizza, they were eating apple slices, and Eve cleverly turned hers sideways to go from cheek to cheek, smiled as big as she could, and giggled. Only minutes later she shared her version of "see food" and was laughing again. I really thought we had at least a few years before she figured all of those out. I have to admit, though, I was laughing too.
Language update - with the addition of CHEESE! to her language, and her new found love for lolly pops and cookies (not so new found), we've made a smooth transition into PLEASE!...more like PEEEEEEEES! with a big grin. Very cute, and she's caught on like a champ.

Cheese!

Yesterday we were putting up the Christmas trees and of course I was taking hundreds of pictures to get just one good one. Didn't happen, BUT, there was a fun outcome. We kept telling John to say Cheese! and Eve heard it so much she learned. She even started holding toys up to her eyes and saying cheese like she's taking a picture. She's saying it constantly and it's so cute. Strangely, I remember when John learned it, too. He was spreading mulch with Daddy and Scotty from next door. They were cute so I was going to take a picture. Scotty said Cheese! and John followed suit.
Similar story, Boo boo is another one they both picked up quickly. Scotty pointed to one of John's and John immediately learned the term. Eve got one when we were tailgating at Clemson. John pointed at it and Eve immediately learned the word.

Tattling

I've probably already mentioned that John has started tattling. Usually it's annoying, but sometimes it's funny - he's still learning how to tattle properly, so sometimes he'll say something like "Mom, Scotty said Baby". Sometimes it's useful. The other night I had gone upstairs to get a change of clothes for the kids. As I was walking down the stairs John said "MOM! Baby Eve grabbed a poop!" Keep in mind usually we keep the bathroom door closed to keep her from playing in the dog's water, or better yet, the toilet. Well, John had opened it to use the facilities, and lolly-gagged in flushing. Sure enough, she was playing in the toilet...not a clean bowl. Yuck! I suppose every kids has to have a poop story. Fortunately she hadn't moved it, and maybe she was just playing in the water. Nevertheless, we cleaned her hands thoroughly!

Tree Farm

Yesterday we had a big day full of Christmas spirit. We woke up and had breakfast with Santa, Grandma, and our friends the Powells. For the first time John ordered his own food (and we promply had to clarify his order). The waitress was going around the table taking orders, and when she came to John he knew it was his turn and promptly said "I want pancakes with syrup and waffles with syrup." It was really cute. Again, he did great with Santa. Poor Eve was way past ready for breakfast, so she got into a twit and wouldn't go near him. She felt much better after eating, but we didn't try again. I just don't think we'll convince her this year...not even with candy. After breakfast we headed to a tree farm to cut our own tree.

Grandma and Eve brought up the rear.

Is this one big enough?

John helped Maddie and Rob get their tree

TIMBER!!! (Don't worry, just the camera angle...didn't hit Eve)

Then John helped Daddy get ours. Apparently the last time Daddy was at a Christmas tree farm Grandpa Bucky lost his wedding ring. Daddy was very careful to keeps his gloves on. The lady working on the farm thought it was "a nice marital gesture".

After cutting the tree we headed to see their animals. This is the biggest pig I've ever seen. It looked WAY bigger in person. I learned that a pig weighing more than 150 lb. is called a hog (didn't know exactly what was implied by the term hog). This one was certainly a hog and then some!

Three turkeys. Both John and Eve really liked this turkey and talked to it alot.

Then we headed to the campfire and the Powells shared their marshmallows with us. Morgan, Maddie, John, Eve, and Grandma

Eve wasn't crazy about the marshmallow. I'm not sure she even tried a bite despite Grandma's best efforts

She did enjoy being a goat

Then we finished with a hay ride that was super fun! Grandma, Suzie, John, Morgan, Maddie, Rob, Buck, and Eve. Grandma and the Powells are some of our favorite people to have fun with.

Blurry picture, but it was the best one to capture how much fun John had.

Oh, and one more thing before we left...we had hot chocolate (that had been cooling for quite a while). Both thoroughly enjoyed it. Eve wouldn't let me pull the cup away from her face. She was holding it tight. She'd breath a while into the cup, the slurp a bit...funniest sounding thing! I suppose she was afraid if she let me pull it away I'd never put it back.
By the looks of that chocolate mustache, I'd say she liked it!

Some Thanksgiving Pictures

The yearly family update was given by the Turkey (Patty, in the middle), the Big Turkey (G.G. to the right), and the Apprentice Turkey (Julie, to the left). This is why we don't invite girlfriends or boyfriends until we know it's serious and they won't run away :)

Turkeys past and present (Buck, Kyle, Brian, Ann, G.G., Patty)

G.G. provided a craft for the ladies to do with the kids. Cara was very patient to work "with" Eve. I managed to quickly snap a picture before she walked away and made Cara finish all alone.

Ann helped Bella

It turned out nicely.

Patty helped Batman (AKA Marco)

Mimi and John also had lots of fun (can you tell my aunts are all teachers and great with kids?)

Back home to start on the Christmas lights

What a big strong helper!

Oh What Fun It Is To Ride!

Unfortunately I don't have any pictures. I'm finding it's harder and harder to keep up with children and take pictures at the same time; although I want to capture every second, particularly at Christmas. Anyway, tonight we had a blast! We went to Fountain Inn. They bring carriages and horses from Charleston and drive around town to see the lights. People go all out because they know they're on the route, and they are judged for winners by the garden club. Anyway, we got there expecting lots of people, but managed to walk right up to Santa. It took a little warming up, but John actually got in the sleigh with him and told him what he wanted (a blue car). Eve, on the other hand, surprised me and would have nothing to do with him. She and I stood behind the sleigh for the picture. She may be different when we see him again. She was tired and had her 18-month well check and shots today. Anyway, John was so excited to see Santa and had that magic of Christmas glow in his eyes. It was so cute. Afterward we rode the carriage. I suppose Eve enjoyed it, but John LOVED LOVED LOVED it. He really entertained everyone on the ride with his comments the whole time. Again, so cute. Tomorrow morning we're going to have breakfast with Grandma, some friends, and Santa, then off to find a tree and possibly some snow!
Earlier this week John and I went shopping for family gifts from him, and 2 adopt-a-child lists. We picked kids that were his age so he'd be interested. He was only interested in the toy part of the list, but we still had lots of fun just the two of us. Mom kept Eve and John and I went alone. My favorite part was our special snack. We got sweets at Atlanta Bread (ended up spending forever there, but it was so fun). We just sat and talked, then he saw their fire. He said "Look, they have a campfire...and those ladies are camping!" They were sitting beside the fire. When they left, we took our turn and went camping. I could tell he really enjoyed it. He didn't enjoy the shopping so much, and it exhausted me, but he's been talking about it ever since, so I know he understands the purpose somewhat.
Eve and I had some special one-on-one shopping time today...until we had to go to the doctor and get her shots. Boo. According to the doctor she looks great, is doing great, and is in the 60-70% range for size. AND, she doesn't have to go back for 6 months. Yay!

For The Record

I want to go on record predicting that Baby Buck #3 is going to be our creative child. We've been thinking about Christmas gifts lately and my creative juices have been flowing like crazy (not normal for me at all). I think this is going to be our creative baby for sure.
As of today, John wants to go on the record as requesting a baby girl AND a baby boy. We'll see about that.

Thanksgiving

We just finished up an exhausting but awesome Thanksgiving holiday. Thanksgiving has always been the biggest holiday of the year for my family. Lots of crazy traditions that I LOVE. The entire Madding side of the family, or as many can make it that year, get together. This year we gathered at Amy's. We enjoyed the standard Turkey Tree, Chinese Auction, and Turkey Hold-em poker tournament. It all started when Daddy and his sisters started getting married off. Grandma didn't want to fight over Christmas, so she said "give me Thanksgiving, and do what you want for Christmas". When we were kids, Grandma and Pop started putting up the Christmas tree while everyone was together. It expanded to giving small gifts and was then called "Turkey Tree". Later we added crowning someone the Turkey and telling the story of Thanksgiving. Maybe my order is a bit skewed, since it all started when I was very young, but that's the gist of it. We also used to have a talent show and hilarity ensued, but we've taken a small break from that. Anyway, I look forward to Thansgiving every year and it was so great to spend time with family. John and Eve (especially John) LOVED playing with Bella and Marco. They played constantly, and all day long...way past John and Eve's bed time. One night we let John sleep over and he had a blast. I really can't describe how much they enjoyed their time together. It was really fun to watch. I was a little worried with John doing his first Chinese auction (white elephant exchange, whatever you want to call it...the one where you can steal gifts). I wasn't sure he'd get the point. We played carefully with him, and he actually did really well, even when his gift was stolen, and when Marco got a gift he really wanted but we suggested he not take it from him. It did help that Eve slept through it, so John got to pick for both of them. The coolest thing we did, though, was go to Hollywild. It's a drive-through zoo that has tons of lights at Christmas and lets you pet the animals...well, some of them. We took carrots and put the top of the jeep down when we got there. In the deer forest there were deer, buffalo, cows and ostriches. John got to feed a deer straight from his hand! It was so cool! We also had a cow come up to the jeep and spend quite some time. It has fairly large horns and was right next to Eve. Everyone thought she'd be a little scared, but she just laughed and laughed. After driving through, there's a walk-through where you can feed and pet all sorts of animals. Llamas, goats, pigs, zebras, camels, donkeys, zedonks (probably not the right name, but it's a cross between a zebra and donkey), the hugest cow I've ever seen, yaks (at least I think that's what they were), and ostriches. Unbelievable! The kids absolutely loved every minute of it! The only problem was the cold, so John wanted me to carry him wrapped in a blanket the whole time, but other than that, they loved every minute. Eve just laughed and laughed when the animals came near and she got to pet and feed them. We'll definitely have to do that more regularly. The kids were so tired from all of the Thanksgiving festivities (and the really late nights) that they both napped about 4 hours yesterday and were still ready for bed early.
Today we planned on putting lights up on the trees outside. We ended up napping quite a bit, but got a good start. John has been talking about it for a while, and I think he actually remembers it a little bit from last year. Today he was so excited and was talking about it on the way to church. He said we'd have to put up lots and lots of lights...THOUSANDS of lights. I chuckled knowing that he can barely count to 20 and has no concept of thousands, but he's probably right with his number anyway. It was really cute. He was so excited all day to help Daddy put up the lights. He helped for a good 2 minutes, then lost interest and went to play with Scotty next door. I guess it wasn't as exciting as he remembered.

Camping

John likes to bring a blanket and pillow into our room sometimes and lay down. He calls it camping. Yesterday while I was folding clothes he started camping. A few minutes later I heard Eve in the other room screaming in frustration (not so uncommon...more of a squeal than a scream I suppose, but it's easily recognized as frustration). I wondered what was going on, but because I recognized tone, I wasn't really concerned. A few minutes later, she showed up in our room with her blanket and stuffed monkey (her favorite), and laid on the floor. Clearly she had been having trouble pulling them through the spindles of the crib, but by golly, she was going camping, too. Something tells me we'll be pitching the tent in the back yard a lot in the spring when it gets warmer.

A Star on the Rise

Today way John's Holiday Program at school. The last "program" they had was technically his first. They had a dinner to support March of Dimes, and when it was over the kids went up front to sing some lullabyes. It was really sweet. Since I didn't think they were doing much, I didn't bother to bring the video camera. Worked out well since as the kids were about to walk on stage we saw the teacher holing him as he cried. Buck went to get him and he never got near the stage...nor did he sing back in his chair. He's just never been one to perform, and certainly not in front of big groups. Lately, though, he's had a rather bad habit of taking his clothes off. We just can't seem to keep them on. On top of that, every time he takes his shirt off (I mean EVERY time), he swings it around. We've joked with our friends that he's going to be a rather talented "dancer". I've already written about his "camping" episode (which was the second time that day I'd found him naked). Yesterday we had the kids from small group meeting at our house while the adults met elsewhere. Right before they came he stripped down naked, in his defense I think it was because he had his halloween costume on and needed to go to the bathroom. At any rate, we explained to him that he needed to wear clothes when we had guests at the house. As soon as they left, he stripped back to his underwear. When we asked why, he said because we didn't have guests anymore...and that's what boys do. With all of that in mind, I didn't think he'd sing, but in case he decided to put on a show, I had the video camera ready this time. We sat in the very back partly because we were running in last-minute and partly because we thought it would be all over if he saw us (he behaves much better for his teachers). The older kids performed, then it was time for his class. Of course, he saw us, but he was thrilled and announced over and over to everyone that we were there. For the first few songs he just stood still, no motions, no singing. As they went along, though, he started to get into it and I think he actually enjoyed it. He almost looked disappointed when they were done. He was just getting started. AND, he kept all his clothes on the whole time. I'm so proud. On the other hand, the kid next to him kept lifting his shirt. Kids programs are so darn cute.

Portland - Day 7

Wow, Day 7, and it's only taken me 2 months to post. It was our last day, and one jam packed with excitement, fun, and family. We certainly ended with a bang.

First, we got up early and took the train (I forget the name. All I can think of is Hank because Aunt Michelle started saying "Hey Hank" back and forth to John and it's been ingrained into my head). John loves trains, buses, and all sorts of transportation.

And we ended up at the ZOO! What fun!

You can't see the sea lions in the picture, but we could, and they were really cool.

There also was a birds of prey exhibit where they flew right over our heads. It was so cool. They had a bald eagle and I got chills to see it fly within feet.

Then, I can't remember, but something goofy must've been going on at our table in the restaurant...
By the time we saw all the animals and ate, Eve was tuckered out
We got on the train to the rose garden. It was certainly a super highlight of the day.

On the way back from the garden we snagged the seat on the very back of the train. Super cool!

This is the train...a pretty big "steam engine"

At the rose garden...

Uncle Greg and Eve

Eve and Aunt Michelle

Eve and Uncle Greg taking a rest

Back at Michelle's house...
We had a great dinner outside
Played some soccer
And had some snuggles to say goodbye (Aunt Michelle)
Kendra (soon to be Aunt Kendra)

Uncle Rob

Cristina

Grampa Bucky



The brothers (Uncle Christopher, Dad, Uncle Greg, Uncle Rob)

And somehow, after all this invasion of her house, Aunt Michelle is still smiling.

Goodbye Portland. We had a BLAST!