I’m usually just a black & white gal, but I’m 90% sure I’ll print all of these in color.

We did a ton of talking about giving this year. One time in particular was watching Mickey’s Once Upon a Christmas. In this, both Mickey and Minnie want to buy each other a gift. Minnie wants to buy Mickey a case for his harmonica and Mickey wants to buy Minnie “a chain for her neck to wear her watch.” In the end, Mickey sells his harmonica to buy the chain and Minnie sells her watch to buy each other’s respective gifts. Really, its a sweet story and I made sure SB understood.

here’s a clip….

One thing that EP and I discussed, oh you know the week before Christmas, was that we should have SB think of something he would like to give us. As adults, we tend to buy all the gifts, so I wanted him to take ownership in his gift.

SB and I were talking one night and I said, “Hey, I want you to think about what you would like to buy for daddy and mommy for Christmas, okay?” He shook his head and ran off. He brought me a box a few days later filled with cars, fake money and a measuring tape and told me it was for dad. I let him put it under the tree and reiterated, what could we BUY??

So, when EP said Stunt Boy told him exactly what he wanted to get me, I was a little jealous. In fact, EP said he has asked on several occasions and received the same response every time. They left one morning on a mission and I sat at home wondering what they could be doing. Of all my gifts this year, it was the one I was most excited about getting….for obvious reasons. What had the boy thought of??

When SB proudly brought the box in, told me it was for me and put it under the tree, my heart swelled!!

I kept asking, “what do you want to get daddy?” And it was always his toys. When I’d tried to defer he’d say, “but daddy loves my cars.” Okay, okay!!! {okay, one time he told me that we needed to go buy daddy a big hummer, but that wasn’t in santas budget}

So, Christmas Eve the time had arrived. SB gave me my gift and sat in my lap. He was so excited….he even wrote his name and mine (very well I must say for the small space!) on the tag. Of course I saved it but didn’t get a picture….yet…

Inside was a present for “his girl” a “chain for her neck.”

My husband told me that SB knew exactly what he wanted. People, they went to James Avery three days before Christmas, took and number and waited almost an hour just to get me this “chain for her neck.” AHHHHH!!!! I still well up with tears.

These are the only pics I have for now from her site as I still haven’t gotten my CD from Keri. (HINT HINT — hehe as if she isn’t busy!) It’s funny because she chose a few that we wouldn’t have and now I love these too! AK – I’m never going to narrow it down!

More to come…

On one hand, I hate lugging that big heavy old carrier around. And don’t even get me started about hoisting it up into the car. I swear. The carrier itself weighs 20 – lbs…actually, i looked it up and its only 9 lbs. Starlet weighs 16 lbs so the whole getup is around 25 lbs. YUCK!

On the other hand, I have the cutest car seat cover ever from my sweetest SIL, so Starlet truly looks like a star.

(Day 4 – How prissy is that??)

Also, there is something to be said about ease of transporting babies in carriers. I love my K’Tan, but just running in to grab Stunt Boy at school doesn’t really warrant putting the whole thing on.

Anyway, EP and I were talking the other night how we (ahem – I ) needed to start pricing and looking out for car seats. No sooner than we had the discussion a deal came up on my Google Reader from Baby Cheapskate for a Britax Marathon from Target $149.99. I almost always miss out on these deals because I either see them too late and they sell out or they end up being a pricing error and my order cancels. Also, with car seat deals in particular, sometimes the patterns are ugly or questionable. While Hannah isn’t my top pattern (I’m VERY minimal – i like simple solids), it wasn’t ugly.

Any mom researching car seats knows the Britax name. They are really great seats, period. Britax also carries a HEAFTY price tag. The car seat in question is usually $265! I would never spend that much on a seat. I think I top out at $200.

So, I ordered right away…I was even shaking — don’t tell me you don’t know that i-have-to-get-this-right-this-second feeling. I kept waiting to be cancelled but instead I got a shipped notice. YAY! Delivery date December 15th, but guess what showed up today?!?!?!

Stunt Boy really liked the box…

ohhhhh….what’s this???

Testing out the seat (its HUGE!)

Then of course we had to put it in the car…only bad thing is now I can’t see the mirror :-/ I even tried switching sides, but its too big!

We’ll have the seat for a LONG time as it seats children up to 65 lbs. I was hoping to eventually get both kids Nautilus car seats. SB LOVES his. But, Starlet has to be 20 lbs (which I guess is only 4 more lbs), so I’m planning on getting it for her first birthday. I’m thinking this beauty will eventually be in EPs car with the Fisher Price Safe Voyage (aka. Britax Marathon at a discount).

Now that I’m thinking about it. In 4 years I have purchased Evenflo Travel System, Evenflo Triumph (hate it!), Costco Scenra (for SBs sitter’s use), Safe Voyage, Nautilus, Marathon, –That about $800 in car seats….with one to go. I am NOT complaining. If ever there was something to spend your money on it would be a car seat, right???

“Mom, we DO NOT BITE. Biting makes Jesus sad because it makes someone else hurt and you bad. You need to pray right now that Jesus makes your heart ALLLLLLLL clean again and then Jesus will forgive you and you can be happy again.”

ANd he waited…..”Well, are you going to pray?”

Me: “oh, yeah, sure” and I proceeded to pray for forgiveness for love biting my child…

Um, okay, sorry dude.

LOL – Just found this. I remember it so clearly because I was excited to capture this face. This is SB watching Polar Express (in his Thomas PJs)…this is the Hot Chocolate scene.

So, that year we heard about North Pole Express in a neighboring town. NPE is a vintage railroad that offers 30 min train rides for kids during the Christmas season. We knew we had to go.

We had purchased tickets for our family members, but the baby had a runny nose and they ended up not being able to make it, so my friend Meg and her daughter came along.

SB loved it even more than I had expected…

In 2008, SB was three and STILL obsessed with trains. My husbands entire family was able to make it that year. SB had such a fun time with his favorite cousin! (I REALLY need a fake name for him!! Stunt Double? or is that too confusing?)

(that last picture is by SBs bed and he STILL talks about it.)

So, now its 2009, SB is 4 and I really thought we’d skip the train this year. Last year was kind of a let down because there was too much story time, singing, etc….it was really kinda like- okay, enough! But, then I got a letter from the school saying that they’d be taking a field trip there…how could I turn it down?? So, I paid the money and sent EP and SB on there way. EP didn’t want to take my big camera so I only have iPhone pics.

Stunt Boy became a gardener.

We picked out our Christmas wish list over breakfast.

Starlet was involved in an at-home photo shoot.

We visited the zoo with family (i still haven’t come up with anything creative for them yet!!).

Had a BUNCH of pre-Thanksgiving eating….

And finally….Thanksgiving. I was thankful to have my husband home!!

…you find yourself saying “you have to brush your teeth because if you don’t all of your teeth will fall out.”

…you have a day all to yourself and realize as you pull in to pick the kids up that you’ve been listening to the kids CD all day!

My big brother, K, and his girlfriend are in town from VA and he’s a huge Cowboys fan. A few of my family members are getting to go the game on Thursday, but we all wanted to see “THE” stadium.    I really wanted to take Stunt Boy since he’s a huge fan as well and no one was available to watch Starlet so I braved the tour with both.  (Really, I feel like I have everything under control these days. It certainly helps that I have very well behaved children.) And I wasn’t totally alone since my sister and dad were going in addition to K and his girlfriend.

Both the kids wore their Cowboys get-up:

In true S family fashion, ALL of our plans suddenly changed this morning when my dad flew in town early and decided to join us.  It’s amazing how one simple thing like that can really throw a wrench in the system.  I ended up chunking everything I may need in the car, throwing the kids in and heading off about 20 min prior to what I expected.  20 min is a lifetime with two kids.  I needed that time, but I digress…

So, we left the house at nine, were at the stadium (after a detour) at ten, tour at ten thirty. We arrived at the stadium and of course, we were in awe of the sheer size of the thing. This wasn’t even my first time there, but when you see it you can’t help but gasp!  I think SB’s comment was along the lines of, “whoa, that REALLY big.”

The tour hit everything…(these pictures are all my sisters or my iphone as I abided the rule on the website that said no cameras with lenses over 3 inches long – I even measured mine to be sure, I found out the hard way they aren’t enforcing that rule as DSLRs with telephotos lenses were everywhere – BOO!)

Here we are waiting…so excited!!!

Starlet started in the stroller but I ended up carrying her 1.5 hours….the K’Tan is comfy but my word!

the giant screen… you really can’t grasp it until you see it. crazy. in this photo we are actually in the press box.  my sister said stunt boy exclaimed, “That’s the biggest TV ever. I want one!”

suites…clubs….locker room (my FAVORITE part!)

(my sister, Diva, has an obsession with Bradie James)

The view from the club that the Cowboys walk through to get to the field.  Pretty cool.

and the field (ok, maybe that was my favorite part).

But by the time we got to my favorites, we’d already been walking like cattle for almost 1.5 hours.  Now, don’t get me wrong, it was interesting, but my word…the length.  I was prepared for an hour and a half, but the last 30 min were draggggggging on.  SB was starting to get hungry.  I had been wearing Starlet for almost the entire thing in the K’Tan and while it is comfortable…I was so tired and hungry.

I had two choices after the tour: feed Starlet in the parking lot or go with the family at eat and feed her there.  I knew either way she’d be catnapping in the car and that it would be a long afternoon.  (We do NOT transfer well. Car goes off, eyes open.) Lunch was exactly what I had thought, fussy baby, rushing food in my mouth, rushing out the door.

I got in the car home at exactly 1:45….4.5 hours from when I left home.  I honestly had thought we’d be home by 1.

So, note to anyone visiting the glorious Cowboys Stadium for a tour: wear walking shoes and expect to be there 2 hours, at least.  Oh, and buy tickets from ticketmaster so you aren’t sitting there waiting for the first available tour.  That saved our life.  AND, don’t be afraid to take your fancy camera because no one cares.