Lizzie was told to go get dressed for bed. Like a good girl she went to her drawer and pulled out these babies. I almost fell over laughing! They're a little short don't you think?
Somehow she worked her way into Jackson's size 2 pj's. This is what happens when all the kids get the same pajamas for Christmas!
Thanks to Robb we have a beautiful family portrait for Christmas this year. He's got the magic touch to make us look just right. I wish we always looked this good! We wish you a lovely holiday season. Merry Christmas!
Our little Jackson has a HUGE fascination with trains right now. He obsesses over them, he dreams about them and he is not happy unless he is clutching one in his hand.
He was introduced to this movie, The Polar Express, this year and cannot get enough of it! He watches it at least twice a day - I know, we shouldn't let him do that, but hey, it's Christmas right?
So consequently there are continuous songs running through my mind every day.
"Hot! Hot! Oooh we got it. Hot chocolate!"
"Putting up the Christmas tree with friends who come around..."
We all know Jackson's favorite Christmas movie... what's yours?
Lizzie danced in her first dance recital EVER! She has been taking classes this last semester and finally the recital came. Here she is just before the show. Does she look excited or what?! Check out her cute rosy cheeks and lipstick. Her first make-up in public. She was thrilled! Here's her class complete with the ONLY boy that danced in the entire show and her sweet teacher. These kids were the youngest to perform and got the biggest applause of the day. They really were the cutest group up there. This is what Lizzie looked like through the whole thing: body facing front, head turned to watch her teacher standing at the side of the stage. Jeremy captured most of her performance, but the video camera died just before the end. You still get the idea...
Special thanks to all the grandparents that came out to support our sweet girl. We didn't get any pictures of the grandpas, but they were there too! Proud parents (Notice the single pink rose she has clutched in her hand - she was more excited to get flowers than anything else. Is she a real girl or what?) We promised Lizzie a little treat after she finished her show. We hopped in the car, she turns to me, and says, "Mommy! Can we go to In-N-Out?!" I sneak a glance towards Jeremy and he hides his grin. Hmmmm. I wonder who prompted her to ask for that??? I have a small confession to make... This day is one I've been waiting for since I don't know when, but I always knew that I wanted to watch my little girl perform on stage. I'm not the crazy stage mom by any means - so don't get me wrong. This girl definitely chooses what SHE wants to do. In fact she's decided she wants to try gymnastics next. Bye, bye, dance. Sniff, sniff. This may have been her only dance recital ever. Who knows. All I know is - I'm happy. One of my wishes came true! My beautiful girl shared her talents with the world. Maybe every mom longs for this moment or maybe it's just me, but this day was special for her and for ME.
Logan and Trevor did some great performances last week. Here's a sample from their shows.
Here are some of the fans... Grampa Louie came to both performances in his uniform. I love the surprised looks from people in the crowd when they see him. It takes a second for them to realize that he's just there to watch the show. Trevor had a great time up there this year. He was totally into the music and dancing - that's my boy!
I love our real Noble Fir family tree. But there is another tree in the house that is also close to my heart. This baby stands 12 feet tall and towers over the front room. Sadly, she is artificial, but a beauty none-the-less. Jeremy "loves" putting it together every year, but the great hubby that he is does it all - even the tippy top while teetering on a rickety old ladder.
I had grand visions of a "music tree" this year - complete with homemade treble clef and black eighth note felt ornaments while bursting with plumes of black feathers. Don't worry - I didn't get any further than the music ribbon. My decorating canteen was overflowing at that point. So I used an idea we'd used before, but the colors worked. I had a pile of black framed photos in the bedroom and those worked as a great substitute for the ornaments I failed to make.
These awesome fleur de lis were a great ebay find. They were 6 inch wood cut outs that I sprayed black, added a gold ribbon hanger, and dusted with gold glitter. Beautiful! One more to add to the favorites list this year.
The Clovis Christmas Electric Parade happens each year on the first weekend in December. As you may remember, my family, the Durans ARE parade people. We love to watch people. It's in our blood. The Wards, however, ARE NOT. Jeremy agreed to go again because he knows how much the kids love it. What a great guy. He tried desperately to recruit some of his family members and some friends. The only ones he could convince were the Edwardsons - minus Rick.
Caralee & Lucas, Timmy, some of Caralee's friends, Gramma Boggs, my parents, US,
and Mica were all there. Everyone that came had a great time.
The parade got started a little late so the kids had to entertain themselves. They were all "dared" by Jeremy to run out into the middle of the street to do a little dance for 30 seconds. They were hesitant at first, but quickly caught on that it was fun to play in the street - they never EVER get to do that! So while they were entertained the adults got to visit for awhile. We froze our buns off, but had a fun time being with everyone. By the end of the night Jeremy had decided that we need to be IN THE PARADE next year. He already has his dad working on a float plan. Stay tuned and see if we actually do it...
I want to know if there are any more parade people out there or if we're just weird with our people watching. Are you a parade person?
Lizzie was told to go get dressed for bed. Like a good girl she went to her drawer and pulled out these babies. I almost fell over laughing! They're a little short don't you think?
