our annual card

it was pretty easy this year to create our annual christmas card.  we had so many awesome photos from our trip to disney in june, it was a no-brainer!

ice skating

the girls were excited to go ice skating today at an outdoor ice rink near grandma & grandpa's house.  being a holiday, it wasn't too terribly crowded.  little sister ended up with a blister, but big sister came out okay thanks to a pair of grandma's thick socks.   i think they had fun "leaning" on each other so they didn't wipe out!

merry christmas!

christmas morning in oklahoma...

stockings have been filled....

our elf has made her final move...

 santa ate his cookies and drank his milk...

and santa dropped off him merry load of gifts for the good boys and girls in the house...

merry christmas, everyone!!

almost christmas

it's all falling into place....

begin holiday break from school, pack the truck, drive to oklahoma, with little sister's new huge bear...

get settled in at grandma's, fall asleep waiting for cousins to arrive, wake up early and begin playing with them...

go to mass and then eat dinner...

open one gift after - (yay, new pajamas!)....

now we just need santa...

do not open until christmas?

knowing we had a limited amount of cargo space in the truck, we decided to open a few gifts early tonight so we didn't have to transport more than necessary on our 10-night holiday getaway to oklahoma.  little sister was the most excited to open her gift from big sister, which came in a HUGE box.

cookie bake n take

today the girls had a half day of school, early release for the winter break - so i decided to host a cookie bake n take with a few friends.  the idea was basically to have everyone bring a cookie recipe and any special ingredients.  i provided the basic ingredients like flour, butter, sugar, eggs, etc.  then we mix and bake the cookies in my kitchen and share the resulting goodies.

we had a great turnout - 7 adults & their 12 kids!  i'd been baking a few other times this month, so i also had those cookies to share.

to keep the kids busy, the girls and i pre-baked a batch of cutout sugar cookies for them to decorate.  i think everyone had a great time.

i tried out a new recipe - chewy molasses cookies.  they were delicious.

the assortment: chewy molasses, iced oatmeal eggnog, chocolate mint snowtop, cranberry orange, peppermint kisses, and chocolate-chocolate chunk, just to named a few.....

class party

little sister enjoyed a morning of partying with classmates to celebrate the end of the semester and the beginning of winter break.  they had an ornament exchange in her class, then all of the 4th grade classes rotated between classrooms for fun activities:  christmas bingo, headbands guessing game, a magic schoolbus movie, and a breakfast feast.  this was the first year i was not running back and forth between big and little sister's parties - a bittersweet reminder of how fast the girls are growing up.  i try to always attend their school activities, since in the blink of an eye they will be off and grown, or so it seems sometimes.

win showcase

little sister has been working hard all semester in her win (g/t) class on building a mini city.  she and her teammates got to show it off tonight at school.

surprise lunch date

little sister is always asking me why i don't come eat lunch with her at school, so today i surprised her by sneaking away from work and meeting her for lunch, with one of her favorites (mcdonald's).  she ate that, plus a few things from the lunch i packed her that morning.  she invited two of her crazy friends to sit with us.  she was really happy to see me, but most importantly - very surprised!

new pajamas

our elf on the shelf, nicole kristine, left the girls a gift last night - santa pajamas!!  they look so cute in them!!

twins??

we couldn't resist when we saw a kid's t-shirt that matched almost perfectly the one that daddy wears every year.   the girls will just have to take turns wearing it!!  ;-)

winter wonderland dance

big sister attended her first school dance tonight.  and it was all her idea.  a flyer came home from school, but i just set it aside.  then a few days ago, she asked if she could buy her ticket at lunch.  i said "sure, do you need money?"  

"no, mom, i have $4 in my wallet."

well, okay then.  she and a few girlfriends made plans to meet at the dance.

when it came time to get ready for the dance, she picked out her own outfit and accessories.  she requested that we put hot rollers in her hair.  when it was almost 7:00, i told her we needed to get going, since the dance started at 7:00.  she said, "not yet, mom.  we can get there a little late."

when we drove up to drop her off in front of the school, she got nervous and asked that i come in with her.  i gave her a hug and told her "you'll be fine.  go in and have fun.  text me if you want to come home early."

she texted me about an hour later: "having a great time"

my heart swelled with happiness for her.  middle school can be so tough, but it seems like she is managing it just fine.

sparkle & twinkle

finally, we are no longer the darkest house on the street!

choir concert

all five of our school district's elementary schools descended upon one school tonight for their holiday music showcase.  little sister was very excited for us to hear what she's been working on at choir practice each week.  her group sang three songs.

turn off that nose

 

carol of the bells

 

this holiday

holiday concert

big sister made her band concert debut tonight at the middle school.  she, along with all the other clarinets, played "carol of the bells."  she has  been working on this song for a few months now.

the other instruments played different songs, but for the finale – everyone played "jingle bells."

it was quite thrilling to hear the gym fill with musical sounds as each group played their part.  we are very proud of big sister for learning the clarinet and devoting so much time to perfect playing it.

the nutcracker

we traveled to oklahoma this weekend to attend the nutcracker.  with grandma playing violin in the orchestra that accompanies the ballet, this has been an annual tradition for us since 2012.  (we only missed it in 2013 due to icy roads.)  and our third time seeing the show did not disappoint.  the girls were happy to get all dressed up for the saturday night show.

happy turkey day!

we hosted the big meal at our house this year.  the last time we were home for thanksgiving was 2009!  i think there were as many desserts as regular food, so no one went away hungry.

i tried to keep the kids entertained and engaged with some crafts.  little sister decided she wanted to make napkin rings using pipe cleaner, googly eyes, and construction paper.

 she & big sister also made oreo turkeys.

  earlier in the week, we built some m&m turkeys to place around the table.

but the pièce de résistance were the turkey cupcakes.  my nephew (and the girls) are fans of those cake-decorating shows, and he really wanted to make a cake that looked like a thanksgiving turkey.  we compromised and made cupcakes, thanks to the recipe & inspiration i was able to find here.

jump for joy

tonight was big sister’s end of season cheer party.  the squad voted on the location – lots of jumping, with pizza and cupcakes at the end.

i made little megaphone favors for each girls to take away, with a team photo and the names of cheers and chants scattered around.  the girls thought they were really cute.  i also made the cupcakes with decorations of m&m paw prints with gold sprinkles.

thankful

so cute to see what little sister is thankful for this year....

last soccer game

little sister closed out her soccer season today with the final game victory, giving them a record of 7-2 for the season.  she played goalie for the first half and sat out most of the second.  she sure does love to play with the **sparkles***!!

volleyball tournament

little sister's last volleyball event for the fall season was today's double-elimination tournament.  her team, the cRaZy SoCcEr MoNkEyS, ended the regular season with a 3-5 record, in 5th place overall out of 8 teams.

game 1: they played the #8 team and won.

game 2: they played the #7 team and won.

game 3: they played the #1 team and lost.

game 4: they played the #3 team and lost.

so overall at the tournament, they came in 3rd place.  not too shabby for a team that has mostly first-time players!!  the team is ready to sign up again for the spring season, so i'm sure they will all get better as they continue to play.

extravaganza!!

big sister's squad had their season finale show tonight.  they've been working on a chant, stunt, and dance for weeks now to prepare.  we even had a last-minute practice this morning to fine-tune their moves.

it's always fun getting fancy and sparkly.

 

here is their stunt & chant:

and here is their dance:

after all of the squads performed, the girls received their trophies and we gave them a special treat the coach and i made - candy necklaces.  so cute!!

happy halloween!

it's been a while since halloween has landed on a saturday.  so in addition to the usual games, we had to keep up our energy for an evening of trick or treating.

little sister's soccer game was cancelled due to rain, so we took the opportunity to go get their flu shots.  their doctor had run out of shots when we visited back in september.

then we picked up a few supplies to make festive cupcakes for little sister's volleyball team.

next, it was time for little sister to go play volleyball, and for big sister to go to her cheer game - the last of the season!  even though it was no longer raining, it was a gloomy fall day.  only 7 of the 13 girls came to the game - i guess many parents took the whole day as a holiday? - and the girls that did come were goofing constantly.  here, big sister is giving rides on her broom.....

then we got a few hours rest before hitting the streets.  there were more people home giving out candy than we thought there would be on a saturday night.  the girls ran around with a neighbor friend, so they were happy as could be.  happy halloween!!