12.30.2008

one fun filled day

stop 1: dealey plaza & a quick history lesson

stop 2: a beverage & a bite to eat
stop 3: a walking tour thru downtown dallas

stop 4: dallas aquarium

stop 5: looking at something below

stop 6: a little something pink for us girls

stop 7: a lite snack at ann & petes house

stop 8: a quick ride home & a beautiful sunset

12.29.2008

one tomtom
one tank of gas
one holiday road trip
one dvd on the interstate
one indoor pool
one order of cheesy fries
one fun day
getting there is half the fun!

12.28.2008

colin loved all his gifts

but his art case is by far a huge hit

not to mention a ream of paper too

(no more borrowing out of the printer!)

he is already busy drawing us all pictures

the refridge is covered with masterpieces

who would of thought

such a simple gift

would bring the biggest smile!

heres to always creating & dreaming &

drawing & painting!

go colin go.

12.27.2008

nathans favorite gift this year

was ripleys believe it or not book

right in the middle of all the morning excitement

heres nathan just reading & memorizing

don't worry about the rest of the gifts to open

nathans in his world

nathan loves his statistics

in any form, in any style

gotta love that!

12.26.2008

justins favorite gift this year

was his cell phone that santa brought him!

this will be interesting.

wonder if santa will pay the monthly bill too?

heres to always being able to reach justin.

hope he remembers to answer it.

today was a warm sunny day

the girls went shopping for sales

the guys went golfing

happy day!

12.25.2008

christmas in review

morning santa gifts at 7am

merry wii gift from mom & dad at 9am

can't believe i made it till then

accessory gift from poppa & grandma

another wii gift from nan & granddad

how did they all know?

the exciting connecting & setup

wii 3 brothers

love the bags of garbage in the hall

off to the hudsons for christmas brunch

with friends & family of the path

complete with the "blue plate"

the wii was a hit in the hood

everyone got one

where are the children in this picture?

warm & cloudy today - 78

outdoors to try out the new lacrosse sticks

in flip flops

while the girls practiced their rock band moves

at rachaels!

merry wii christmas

merry christmas to all

here to the real reason with celebrate the season!

happy birthday rachael

happy christmas eve birthday rachael!

may your day be filled with holiday lights and birthday candles!

enjoy!

12.24.2008

christmas eve memories

our cutout cookie frosting tradition in pjs

with lots of frosting and jimmies

"if great grandma mcguirne could see those now"

a favorite nan line

getting ready for our open house

christmas eve party

sunny & 70's

the tree all decorated with only half of our ornaments

less is truly more

christmas afternoon service with beautiful music

ms. sarah explaining the rules to dirty santa with

everyone anxiously awaiting on the "one" rulethe gifts are opened & stolen back & forth

guy tools are the hit this season! dirty santa takes a twist with hidden treasure maps

this year - gifts found buried in our backyard. merry christmas eve!

12.23.2008

happy christmas eve eve from the fairway path pole

frosting cookies for santa tonight at the huttons

last minute errands today

baking cookies tonight

indian projects with adyson this afternoon

3 boys in 1 best buy finishing their shopping

last minute wrapping

planning tomorrows menu

this is my favorite time of the year

so much to do

go mom go!

12.22.2008

simple this year
less decorations - both inside and out
concentrating on making memories for us to cherish
christmas movies and popcorn
making holiday cards
wrapping presents together
singing alvan & the chipmunks again
watching elf just one more time
stamping cards as a fun activity
talking about the real meaning of christmas
this is my christmas goal today

happy bday brandon

happy birthday brandon

may your day be filled with winning hands, crown on ice, movies you haven't seen and

bose surround sounds!

enjoy!

12.19.2008

last day of school before winter vacation

classroom parties

sugar highs

teacher treats

airport runs

christmas wrapping

mailing boxes

kickball games

friday relaxing

only 5 more days till santa visits

i can hardly wait!

12.18.2008

today was filled with last minute elf errands

lunch at starbucks

book browsing at barnes

post office packages stuffed and sent

afternoon guitar lessons

special school letters

peppermint candy cane cookies

and a snapshot of a busy holiday elf

working hard at the north pole

warm cloudy day

no sunburns for auntie laur this trip

dinner at texas roadhouse

complete with a birthday rodeo next to us

some horton hears a who to fill our day

a special kris kringle gift from

lauren and aaron

to complete our holiday day

heres to gumballs & zoo books &

naps by the fireplace

heres to mastermind at 6am &

trundle bed sleepovers

heres to a great visit with auntie laur

maybe you'll be snowed in with us tomorrow!

12.17.2008

ho ho ho

lots of christmas spirit today

started with a lot of shopping at ralph & crew

caffeine at starbucks

holiday sing-a-long at school

can you find waldo in this picture?

it took laur and i about 7 minutes to find him today
and look who else we ran into
clearly nathan was excited to see us

blokus

chicken parm

homework

late night wrapping

christmas cards

cool cloudy today

tomorrow looks warmer

12.16.2008

look who is in texas with us.

a quick visit from auntie laur.

bringing gifts from nan.

perfect for college fridays every week.

go iu.

lots of christmas shopping today.

lots of starbucks.

lots of catching up.

lots of chats & laughs.

lots of gifts exchanged.

never forget a quick run to cvs.

never forget the clearence rack.

never forget the music paper.

heres to waldo & 39 clues & ae necklaces.

heres to old photos, scarfs & animal house.

heres to horton.

watched elf by the fire.

heres to this week.

hohoho.....

birthday wishes to deanne

happy birthday deanne!

sending you wishes from austin to rochester -

may your day be filled with homemade cards, frosting smiles &

birthday songs from your boys!

enjoy!

12.13.2008

snow day.

slept in.

capital building.

guided tours.

sideways buildings.

underground halls.

whole foods

blood oranges.

picnic lunches.

presidential libraries.

texas history.

sunny day.

warm walks.

salaedo sidewalks.

christmas carolers.

holiday lights.

loading dock.

animal house.

many quarters.

many cosmos.

many laughs.

great day.

12.11.2008

congratulations justin.

a job well done.

we dare you to use what you have learned

in this course everyday.

12.10.2008

look what we woke up to this morning...

not enough to make an earlier morning snowball...

a little holiday snow...
actually checked the tv for school closings...
nothing like a little snow to make it feel like christmas...
dug out the hats/mittens/jackets...
warmed up the car...
you would of thought we never saw snow before...
heres to the simple joy of a snowflake...
happy wednesday!

happy birthday rosie

happy birthday rosie!

may all your birthday wishes come true

& hopefully halloween will disappear!

enjoy!

12.9.2008

the ornaments are on the tree.
a new record.
15 minutes flat.
all on one side.
only put on half of our stash.
less is more.
maybe a little rearranging when the boys go to school.
the train still works.
still whistles.
still bellows smoke.
happy tuesday.

12.8.2008

pine cones...christmas trees with lights...the sound of the trains' whistle as it goes around the track...the nativity stable & straw proudly on display...the stockings hanging from the mantel...sprinkles awaiting for the cookies & frosting...fresh rolls of wrapping paper...christmas cards and nutcracker stamps all piled up...three boys counting the days till santa arrives...i love this time of the year.

12.7.2008

more signs of christmas...cutout cookies...snow day today at teravista...sledding/snow/seventy degrees - one of these things just doesn't belong...the boys had muddy fun...'grandma got run over by a reindeer' song - gotta love listening to this at 7:15am every morning on the way to school...especially with nathans lyrictosis...christmas lists filled with things to do this week...happy sunday!

12.6.2008

a pile of holiday magazines....a cup of hot cocoa....a warm cozy blanket...college football in the background...hanging out on saturday nite with my four guys...the perfect weekend night....ps. fred claus wasn't a huge hit around here...

12.5.2008

{nathan sticking to a starburst ornament tonight}

christmas in the air today...ordered cards...bought a couple presents...cocktails at friday...rented fred claus...picked up cards...searched for mini christmas tree replacement lightbulbs...thought about printed holiday return address labels...pickup snow day bracelets (we actually pay to go sled on snow down here - go figure - no one is from the north down here)...made starburst tree ornaments with the boys (thanks aunt debbie & uncle paul - what a fun family activity)...cocktails at fridays...three weeks from today the big day will be all over...please slow down this clock i'm racing against.

12.4.2008

signs of christmas today...
stay focused...
lunch at daily grill...
target. barnes. navy. bbb. hallmark. bath & body.
borders. zgallerie. sur la. cosco. office max...
many stores...
many laughs...
crossing off on the list...
time checks...
no time for cocktails today...
women on a mission...
this grey minivan will travel...
girls with coupons & visa cards..
watch out christmas...
watch out austin...
2 girls on the loose from round rock...
hohoho...
christmas here we come!

12.3.2008

signs of christmas today...
colin: "hi daniel, i want tools and legos for christmas - what do you want?"..
i better get in touch with santa claus quickly and give him this update...

12.2.2008

signs of christmas...ups rang our doorbell at 7:30pm last night...package for nathan...he did his christmas shopping online on black friday & selected his presents based on 'free shipping - today only"...he is ready for christmas...wrapped his presents already because he didn't trust any hiding spots in our house....hohoho...gotta love nathans practical nature and his lack of procrastinating.

12.1.2008

little signs of christmas are starting to appear...
fresh rolls of scotch tape that will magically disappear when i go to wrap a present....
bundles of envelope mailers to send treats across the country...
peppermints and bark to attach to gift tags...
baby pinecones to attach to holiday presents...
jingle bells in all shapes and sizes to decorate gifts...
mini cookie cutters to hang from presents with cloth ribbon....
rolls and rolls of wrapping paper to match the ribbon...
the wrapping center is stocked and ready for business !
hohoho....