Christmas Blizzard...

Here are a few pictures that we took of all the snow that we received from the Christmas blizzard. A few days later we received even more snow! Dave and Benjamin were pretty busy shoveling out our driveway and deck with all that snow! We do not have a snow blower so it was a lot of shoveling that the boys did. I was not much help with my big belly plus Dave did not want me out there where I could fall and have something happen to me. Thank goodness for caring neighbors as they came and blew out our driveway at least one time each day over the Christmas weekend! We had so much snow that I really didn't know where we could put more snow. We will have to wait till spring to see if one of our trees has split down the middle due to the weight of all the snow. It was a beautiful white Christmas but we could have gotten by with a lot less!

A Few of Our Favorite Toys...

Benjamin and Ada kept asking Santa for a couple of things. Benjamin wanted a dinosaur rock and a camera. Ada wanted a dollhouse and a stroller for her babies. These two must have been good this year as they each got what they asked for. They were each so excited to open their gifts this year. It was so much fun watching them get into opening presents. Ada would have to tear hers open slowly and remove every piece of paper and tape while Benjamin ripped into his and would have been done with all his presents in .2 seconds flat if we let him! You should have seen Benjamin's face when he opened his dino rock--it was priceless and he was so excited! Dave couldn't get Ada's baby stroller opened fast enough! She had to take all her babies for a ride. Benjamin even got to give his dinos a ride in the stroller. We had such a wonderful time being snowed in at home, watching the kids play with their new toys, playing family games like Candy Land, Chutes and Ladders, Go Fish, and even checkers. We watched a movie and even played some computer games and a few games on the Wii. It was just so nice being together as a family.

So Pretty...

The Night Before Christmas in Hartford...

Benjamin and Ada enjoyed putting out cookies for Santa and taking in all the Christmas magic. They really got into looking at Christmas lights and all the different Christmas decorations. They enjoyed reading the Christmas Story and the Night Before Christmas. Unfortunately with all the snow that we received and the Christmas Blizzard we were unable to go to church. This was our first holiday at our house in Hartford and we were really looking forward to going to our church for Christmas Mass. We were really bummed. We read stories, read from the bible, and had the televised service on tv but it was not the same. We enjoyed our holiday together as a family and really liked our relaxed atmosphere and the idea that we didn't have to go any where was nice. The snow hampered our church plans but we really didn't mind being snowed in all together. It was actually kinda nice. Both Ada and Benjamin enjoyed their "goodies" in their Christmas stockings. We love watching their excitement on their faces. Alot of what they get are practical things like a toothbrush, toothpaste, socks, etc. They each get their favorite candy and a few other miscellaneous items. Being home together for the weekend must not have been too bad as Benjamin declared this the best Christmas ever! Dave and I both agree with Benjamin and think this was the best Christmas ever as we were able to spend at our home together as our little family.

Merry Christmas from our Family to Yours!!

Sweet Siblings...

Every year Dave and I give the kids new pj's for Christmas. We let them open up their pj's on Christmas Eve so they can wear them Christmas morning while they open up presents. Who would have thought that this Christmas would be the perfect pajama day (due to all that snow we received-more on that later)? Here the kids are showing off their new pj's. Don't they look so precious?

Happy Birthday Jesus!!

The kids and I make a birthday cake for Jesus every Christmas. This year we (they) decided to make a Christmas tree one. I frosted the tree green and then they came up with ideas to decorate it. Benjamin was pretty proud of our cake. He couldn't wait to eat it!