Pajama Day

Though B attends a K-8 school, they still get a few perks as Kinders. One of those perks is that they get to wear actual costumes on Halloween AND Pajamas on the last day before Christmas break. He loved it. Even the teachers dressed in their warm PJs and robes.

School Play

One of the perks of going to Catholic school is that when they have a program in December, they get to call it a Christmas Program. Not only do they get to sing songs about Santa and Christmas, but they also get to sing about shepherds, angels AND baby Jesus! Reminds me of public school when I was a little kid!

My folks, T's folks and Nany were on hand with T & me to see B's class perform their version of the Christmas story. They sang and danced (a bit). There were costumes (mostly just headdresses) and a few kids had lines to memorize. I tried to get some good shots of the group, but since I am a bit height challenged, mostly I got lots of audience back shots and bit of the kids showing behind them. Believe me, it was a hoot. They sang a verse from SO MANY SONGS! Sister Denise, the school music teacher, gets a big thumbs up for teaching 28 kinders so many songs in under 6 weeks (meeting just about 60 minutes per week).

B was part of the shepherd contingent.

Cuddled up with his teacher, Mrs. Davis.

Posing with Mom and Dad

Unfortunately, once T's head wasn't cut off, B's smiles turned all "Chandler Bing"

Twirl Test

G got a new dress for her birthday, but we never had a reason for her to wear it. She did, however, wear it for Thanksgiving. In fact, she tried out the twirling in the living room. Then she showed off the twirling in the aisles at church, too!

How do you know you've taken too many photos of your little princess?

When she starts posing like this without any prompting!

Disney Character Overload!

I could break this down into several posts-o-cuteness, but I am over 5 weeks late in getting these to the blog so I thought I'd just give you most of the Disney Character photos in one big post. B is definitely more into rides than getting character photos and autographs these days, so G is in more photos. But I did manage to get him to smile a real smile with a few the characters during our stay. I must admit, I felt a little sad when he whispered to me one day, "Do you want to know the biggest secret at Disneyland? There are people inside those costumes!" Maybe that is why they lost their luster for his this year. That or he really just loves roller coasters!

Where did December go??

Sorry for the radio silence. I had high hopes of getting so many thing accomplished early this year. Christmas cards were going to be mailed just after Thanksgiving. (Ha!) All gifts were not only going to be purchased by wrapped before the 15th. (Ha Ha!) Blog was going to be organized and all of those important year end thoughts and photos were going to be uploaded. (Ha Ha Ha!)

Then reality set in. T was gone for a week, which isn't unusual, but does make those precious evening hours after the kids go to bed a bit more precious. Throw in a head cold that WON'T GO AWAY. Add Christmas programs, school volunteering, play dates, family photos sessions, family celebrations and a lovely little stomach bug that hit me the night of the 23rd and is still lingering...(I am not sure if it is food related or viral, but I stayed away from just about everyone in case it was contagious). T proved once again to be superman. Woke up on the 24th asking what needed to be done. Did it all. Brought me saltines and sprite. Kept the kids entertained and away from me for long periods of time. Got everyone to Christmas Eve Mass, including Nany. Made dinner and celebrated Christmas with his parents. Left a note for Santa - with cookies and eggnog and carrots for the reindeer. (T wanted to leave a glass of Bailey's but B wouldn't allow it since Santa was driving the sleigh and it's not OK to drink and drive.) Got kids tucked into bed (in matching PJs too!). Prepared the house for Santa's arrival.

Go Ducks!

Can't visit the Happiest Place on Earth without a hug from my FAVORITE character...Donald Duck!

11 - 0 - I LOVE MY DUCKS!!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Today I am thankful for many things, including wonderful kindergarten art projects!

Lego Land

Our first major excursion when we arrived in sunny southern California was a trip to Lego Land. GREAT place for anyone with little kids. Big kids can enjoy the rides, too, but this place was designed with little ones in mind.

Yes folks, that is a lego replica of Mt. Rushmore. We also saw the Taj Mahal, Vegas Strip, New York City, Sydney Opera House, elephants, dinosaurs, etc. I know several adults who would LOVE to work there.

This may be my favorite restroom sign of all times. No better illustration, especially with a newly potty trained family member!

The Place Formerly Known as the Happiest Place on Earth

We had a great vacation. Seriously. However, the magic of years past has been altered a bit. I will post all of the happy faces and great poses later, but I wanted to keep it real. Our week started with a bit of the grumps. We saw much more of this face than in years past.

Someone forgot that you must be patient when waiting in line for rides.

Or when waiting in line to see favorite characters.

Or waiting for food to be served.

Or waiting for grown-ups to put on swim suits to go to the pool. (No photos of that, thank goodness!)

Or that LOOOONG wait (maybe 2 minutes) while a ride operator checks all the riders so a ride can start.

Rough life. A week at Disneyland with his parents and both sets of grandparents. Our annual family trip may be altered a bit next year. (T and I had some serious discussions about going w/o the kids next year.)