3rd Day of Christmas

On the 3rd day of Christmas, we had a day off from school due to icy roads. Our driveway and deck were solid ice! It was SO nice to have the time at home with the girls. 2 days in one week of extra at-home time! :) See what we did in the morning instead of getting dressed... we made cookies and ate the dough. Yummy!
On the 3rd day of Christmas, my sister gave to me:

A pen and mechanical pencil set (see how happy it makes me!)And my sister gave to me... a 3-pack set of Princess crayons (I only broke at least 5 when I colored my first picture that night!)

The Second Day of Christmas

Can it be true? I'm getting something up here 2 days... in a row?? Tonight I'm making it in because we just got the call that school is canceled tomorrow!

Tonight was the second day of Christmas for the girls. See the excitement in their faces? Poor things had to wait patiently while Daddy figured out the SD card which wasn't cooperating for a few minutes...Camden picked out a mug with some chocolate candy for Katie. What a perfect gift!
And Katie picked out a Disney Princess necklace with interchangeable princesses. It's one of Ben's favorites, because Camden grabbed it so quickly she broke it before she could even wear it. :) It was a challenge for Ben to put it back together, but he did it. And Camden lived happily ever after... until bedtime...

The First Day of Christmas

Here it is December 14 already! Yikes, how time flies...
This year Katie and I thought it would be fun for her and Camden to each go to the Dollar Store and pick out 12 items for one another that they can open for the 12 Days of Christmas. Technically, the 12 Days of Christmas don't begin until Christmas Day and continue for 12 days. Since they are going to a waterpark with Grandma and Grandpa Nelson after Christmas for a few days and won't be here, we decided to start now and end on Christmas Day. Here they both are with their gifts for Day #1. Katie got a giant pen and Camden got a Princess puzzle.
But it looks like Camden's favorite toy of the moment is the empty wrapping paper tube!
Stay tuned to see what the 2nd day of Christmas has in store for us. My goal is to get something up everyday! We'll see...

Happy 3rd Birthday Camden!

Last weekend was Camden's 3rd birthday! Here are some pics from her special day!

Getting off to a great start: breakfast with Katie and Grandma
Camden's favorite teacher, Ms. Sharon, came to spend Camden's special day with her!
She wanted a Dora party. Here are her colorful cupcakes (which, by the way, all the kids loved the frosting and didn't even try the cupcakes. next year, maybe we'll do mini cupcakes...)
And the Backpack goody bags for the kids, with Map sticking out:
Who needs party activities when you can play with your best friends in your room?
Katie and one of her best friends, Darby look so cute!
Camden is very excited that she is 3!
Yum, yum, yum, delicioso! Eating on the deck out back:
Clara, Finley, Camden and Kaya play Pin the Tail on Swiper
Blowing out the candles
What kind of fiesta would this be without a pinata? Camden taking a shot at it
Blowing her Diego whistle, looking super cool

A great time was had by all! Still can't believe she is already 3. Where does the time go? Hope you had a happy birthday, sweet pea #2.

Happy Birthday Katie (4 months ago!)

Yes, Katie's birthday is in January. And yes, it is April (almost May!) now. Add to that the fact that this is my first blog post of 2010, and I guess you can tell we've been a little busy!

For her birthday, Katie wanted an American Girl tea party. With the help of my good friend Korisa, we pulled it off. Here are some of the moments:

All the girls and dolls!

At the table: Katie is ready with Felicity and Kit in her arms.

A big hit: the cupcakes. Korisa decorated these beautiful treats with a flower decoration on top. The recipe: (not red velvet!) Half of these were the Skor cake recipe from Aunt Mavis, half were just a yellow box mix. Everybody loved them!
The table settings. The white china came from Katie's Great Grandma Jo, and the real silver engraved with a "K" came from her Great Grandma Rose. They were both here in spirit! Korisa filled in with the blue and the napkins were borrowed from Grandma Gloria. The napkin ring: a ponytail holder with a hair ribbon tied on it which doubled as a party favor.
Kaya, Katie, and Camden, ready for the party to get started. Party girls!
Dessert: Ice cream flowerpots. Found this idea online and thought it was just perfect! Ice cream and crushed oreos make up the flowerpot filling with a fake rose in each one. The girls loved these too!
A sweet picture: Bellah, Katie, and Ella with their dolls.

Katie turned 8 this year! Here she is in preparation for her party with her matching dress to Kit's.

There were about 500 pictures to go through, and evidently I have been putting that off. But, here are just a few so you can see what our fanciness was like! It wouldn't have happened without Korisa's help, so I owe her a big one!! Now we are getting ready for Camden's 3rd party. We've agreed: low-key, family style cookout! The theme: Dora. Stay tuned. Maybe in about 4 months, we'll post some of those pictures....

Wow, isn't technology amazing?

I am sitting here on the couch on my phone loading this all on to the blog!
It is amazing how fast everything can upload just like that!! I am amazed.
Let's see if I can share some of my favorite pics from our vacation. Well I guess not. At least I haven't figured it out yet. The girls are having a great time at the beach with Grandma and Grandpa Nelson. We came home today, but they will return on Thursday to spend New Year's together. Katie has requested to have salmon for dinner so I guess I'd better get to the store!