Our Tree

The day after the Festival of Trees, we headed to Mahoney's to choose our own tree for the Purple House.  They have all kinds of Christmas decorations at the nursery and the kids loved exploring.  They even found Rudolph!  They have watched the show a few times now and the boys really love it.  I NEED to get video of Jack saying, "ah boh boh bo snowman."  You may notice that Ben is carrying around an envelope.  It is a piece of junk mail that I handed him and told him it was his mail.  He didn't let go of it the entire night.

They all loved the greenhouse and admired the flowers.  There were some beautiful orchids there, along with pontsettias and all kinds of other blooms.  Once we got outside, the boys giggled as they ran through 'the forest' to find a tree. 

Once we were back at the purple house, everyone got into their pjs and we decorated the tree (after Grampy had put more than 1000 lights on).  The kids were very careful with the ornaments and really did a nice job.  Of course, all of the ornaments occupied the same two feet of space on the tree, but they were very proud of their work.

Apparently, Edward from Thomas the Tank Engine was present at the birth of Christ.  Who knew?

 I have been talking to Mairead lately about God, angels, heaven, and other concepts that are tough to grasp.  She seems to 'get' that God and the angels watch out for us, even though we can't see them.  I explained that Jesus is God's little boy, and told her what a manger is.  She quietly and independently arranged the manger just so.  She told me, "They can all see the baby."  I was impressed!  Maybe she remembers from last year- or maybe she was guided by a little angel.  Or Special Bear...

Festival of Trees

Last Friday night, Nana and Grampy suggested a trip to the Festival of Trees in  Methuen.  This annual event raises money for charity by collecting donated decorated trees from the community.  People pay admission to the event and then can purchase raffle tickets in the hopes of bringing one home.  It is pretty amazing.  One tree had all Patriots' decorations, and included a pair of tickets.  Another tree was adorned with tons of kitchen supplies (spoons, wisks, measuring cups, etc).  There were so many creative ideas.  The kids loved it.  It was a little overwhelming because it was crowded and there was just so much to look at, but they did really well.  The boys took turns with Grampy and Daddy.  I think they determined that up off the ground with these guys was the safest place to be- and the best vantage point.

I don't have pictures of them doing it (too crowded), but the boys' favorite part was taking the raffle tickets and putting them into the receptacles at each tree.  They would put a ticket in the slot and then peer in to see where it went.  Thanks for a fun night out, Nana and Grampy!

Happy Fakesgiving, 2011!

On the Sunday after Thanskgiving, we celebrated with our annual Fakesgiving dinner.  This is always one of our favorite holidays.  Jimmy and Jessica brought their amazing pumpkin soup, Jen and Mike made pumpkin martinis, and everyone contributed to a great meal on the table.  Mairead was very helpful in the making of the martinis.    The kids had so much fun playing together and we all enjoyed the quality time together.  Also, Katie and Steve made the big announcement that Lily is going to be a big sister in June!  Congratulations to the Crowder family!

At one point, my mom brought out a bag of old costume jewelry and let the girls have at it.  They LOVED it.  Lily kept yelling, "More Jew-ry!"  They tried on all kinds of combinations and Mairead declared herself to be "gorgeous."

Awww, how cute is this?  If she can't have a sister, a cousin is the next best thing!

This last picture is not actually from Fakesgiving, but I thought it was such an interesting shot.  Look at their hands and their faces- they are exactly alike.  They are so interesting to watch sometimes.  Their personalities can be completely opposite at times, but they have these little habits and connections that are fascinating to us.

We hope that everyone is enjoying the holiday season!  We have been having fun with family gatherings, parties, decorating, and all kinds of Christmas-y activities.  It is the best feeling to watch them get so excited about Christmas and everything that comes with it!

More fun at Grandma's

The day after Thanksgiving, we headed over to visit Dave's grandmother, who everyone calls Memire,  Mim has faced a lot of health problems recently so it was great to see her doing well.  The kids were a little shy and grouchy at first, but then they saw that Mim had a Christmas tree and some goldfish crackers, so everything was fine after that!  They had fun running around and on each lap, they ran by Mim and stopped to get a hug.  It is very special that our kids have great grandparents in their lives!

When we got back, Grandma had a fun project set up for us.  We used peanut butter and pine cones to make birdfeeders and then decorated a tree with our projects.  The girls really loved it, and the boys actually did, too!  Mostly, they liked scooping the birdseed and dumping it over the pine cones.  Also, they love doing anything that Rachael does.

The weather this November has been unbelievably cooperative, so it was great to spend time outside!  At Grandma's house, there is plenty of room to run and the air is crisp and clean.

Because it was so nice out, the kids were able to explore a bit.  Daddy took the boys down to check out the pond on Grandma's property.

 The boys loved having so much space to run.  They are sort of like dogs, that way.

For the record, this vehicle was not running or even on.  She just wanted to climb up and sit on it for a minute.

Thanks to all of our NY family for a great visit.  The kids had fun and made some great memories!

Over the river and through the woods...

To Grandma's house we go!  We packed up the car and the kids and headed to NY for Thanksgiving this past week.  The kids were so excited to visit Grandam and Grandpa and to see Rachael.  They were also looking forward to seeing Rosie (the dog) and And Ry... that's what Mairead calls Aunt Ry.  The kids were really great in the car- thanks to the dvd player that Grandma and Grandpa gave the kids last year.  It was a lifesaver!  We did watch They Might Be Giants... Here come the ABCs about 20 times, but they loved it!  It's actually a great dvd for helping kids learn letters.

When we got to Grandma's house, the kids were instantly energized and had a great time running around and playing with their cousin.  They pretty much worship Rachael and she was so great and so patient with them.  It was so nice to see the cousins playing together... especially Mairead and Rachael.  If Mairead can't have a big sister, I am glad she looks up to her cousin so much! 

The boys had fun running all over the place, playing trains, and jumping on the air mattress that would be Mairead's bed.  They chased Rosie and Ava (the cat) around a bit, too.  At one point, Jack looked at Rosie and then at me and said, "Um, Mommy?  I think Rosie is feeling a little jealous."  Where does he come up with this stuff???

Grandma and 'AndRy' had some great gifts waiting for the kids so they spent some time coloring with their aunt and cousin.  Jack and Ben kept their bowties and suspenders on for about five minutes.  "No necklace!  I don't want to be beautiful anymore!"

Ben's tie is blue.  Also, we got the boys hair cut last week and for the first time, they have different styles.  Jack's is pretty short while Ben's still has some length.  Maybe this will make it easier to tell them apart?

We had a fabulous Thanksgiving dinner and enjoyed the afternoon with the family.  We hope that the boys' whining about who had what train wasn't too bad!  For the first time ever, they did not nap at all, so they were a little, um, challenging, from about 5-7pm.  Then, they stayed awake laughing their heads off in their pack n' plays until 11pm!

That late night didn't bother them, though, we had a very busy and fun day the next day!