Tahoe Time!

Rain and snow, we saw it all this trip up to Tahoe. We went up with the Donnell's to get some skiing in and enjoy the weekend. We were a little worried because it rained the entire first day that we were there. For those of you who have been skiing with me before, you should know, I do NOT ski in the rain. But....Northstar was doing free mommy, daddy and me ski lessons so I had no choice but to suck it up and get wet! It was totally worth is because we learned a lot of great tips to help Andrew learn how to ski and now I can say I skied in the rain and I don't have to for 10 more years!! Saturday, the weather changed and it finally snowed! Brian got his first experience of skiing in the powder and after a few runs, we decided that having a cocktail might help our skiing a little. :) None of the runs were groomed so it made skiing down the mountain challenging. We had a great time though and we were just happy that it was snowing. All in all it was a great trip and we can't wait until we get to go back up in two weeks! This is turning out to be one ski filled winter!

They didn't have magic carpets when I was learning how to ski so I was a little hesitant about it.  What happened to the good old fashioned rope tow?!

Andrew on the other hand was an expert!  Notice his water proof rain jacket?  That is because it was RAINING!

Brian rode up the carpet too!  He tried to get out of it but the instructor nicely reminded him that the lesson was called mommy, DADDY and me.  :)

So happy it was snowing on Saturday.

Andrew and Savannah playing in the snow.

Andrew's snow angel.

So excited there was enough snow to ski back to the condo!!

Andrew loves shaking the snow off the trees

Shannon and Savannah

Brian, Andrew, Bobby and Savannah

So funny...

I love the stage that Andrew is in right now.  He says whatever is on his mind and will tell you exactly how he sees things.  Here are a few of my favorite moments from last month:

• When I was going to hang up the Christmas stockings, Andrew got upset saying that his was broken.  It looked fine to me so I asked him what was wrong. His response "It's empty, there are no presents inside."
• Andrew is petrified of automatic flushing toilets.  It makes going in public restrooms very challenging.  As much of a hassle it is I love what his reasoning is.  He will tell you (at a loud volume in the bathroom) "Mommy, it's going to flush my cute little butt down."  We've gotten a few laughs from neighboring stalls with this one.  Perhaps I call his little bottom cute too much!
• He loves to sing and will make up words to Jingle Bells and Frosty the Snowman.  He sings the chorus correctly but will make up words for the verses.  I'll need to get this one on camera for the full effect.
• A proper party must have a cake.  Andrew went to a Christmas Party at daycare and when I picked him up I asked if he had fun.  His response "No mommy, it wasn't a party.  There was no cake."

I'm sure I will think of some more later but those are my top favorite from the last month.

Happy New Year - 2012

Happy New Year! We hosted our annual "European New Years Eve" this year and every year it gets better and better. Andrew was really into it this year and was asking all day when the party was going to start.  He loves it when his friends come over to play.  The extra bonus was the Barna's were in town and were able to come over and celebrate with us too.  Allyson has an embroidery machine as well so I was able to get some tips and tricks from an experienced person.  It was a great party and we all had an amazing time.

 Happy Scott with his beer.

Happy New Year!

It was impossible to get a picture of just the kids so I gave up.

Outside throwing snappers.  I let them do the streamers inside but I drew the line at little explosives in the house.

Poor Zippy.  Andrew begged him all night long to "go high"

I'm pretty impressed with our group picture!

Zoe and Alex learning to be domestic.  :)

Someone (Zippy) thought it would be a good idea to teach the boys how to jump off the couch.  At least I got a few fun photo's from it.  Explaining to the boys this morning that they couldn't do it again didn't go over so well.  I told them when they go to Zippy's house, they can jump off his couch!

Happy New Years!  The boys with their champagne (sparkling cider)

How do you tire out three boys who have had cookies, cupcakes and juice?  Have them run laps around the house....

Grevin

Andrew

Brewer

Cheers to you and your family.  We wish you all a happy and healthy 2012.  We are so blessed to have such amazing family and friends.

Playing with our presents...

Oh Christmas Tree! We were so lucky and blessed to get fantastic presents this year. Brian has wasted no time flying his new plane (he's only had to do major repair two times now) and I'm embroidering anything I can get my hands on!

Elfy

Elfy came to live with us soon after Thanksgiving and he has been a great addition to our family. We are so lucky that Santa chose such a nice and friendly elf to come and stay with us during the Christmas season. Santa sends Elfy to watch our house and each night, when we go to sleep, Elfy fly's back to the North Pole to tell Santa if we have been good or bad. Each morning, Andrew gets up and runs around the house looking for Elfy and were he is hiding next. Elfy is magic, so you can't touch him and he only talks to Mommy and Daddy when no one else is listening. We will miss Elfly when Santa comes to get him on Christmas Eve but we are looking forward to him coming back next year to spend time with our family.

Wing Family Christmas

The Christmas parties never stop in this house! On the afternoon of Christmas the Wing family came over to celebrate. We are lucky that they all live close and we are able to see them throughout the year but it is nice to get together as a family and celebrate the holidays. We had a nice relaxing afternoon with Andrew and Trevor playing and the adults catching up. Brian took the boys out to fly his new RC airplane but they came back quickly because the airplane had an "accident". I've been told that RC flying involves lots of accidents and rebuilding the plane is half the fun.

Christmas Morning

There isn't any time that is more magical than Christmas morning. The excitement of seeing what Santa brought and finally finding out what is under the Christmas tree. This year has been the best year yet. First, Andrew slept in until 8:00! Second, he was SO excited and actually understood what was going on. Third, my parents were here to celebrate with us. It couldn't have been any better.

Andrew was so excited and thankful for everything he got. He was really good at opening one present at a time and waiting while other people took their turns. Andrew must have been a really good boy this year because Santa brought him a fire station. We had to ask him to stop playing with it so we could open our stockings and more presents!

Trying to get a sneak peak as we go down the stairs

So excited!!

Seeing his smile makes it all worth it.  I love this little guy!

His smile is cute too!

Since Brian knew what I got him for Christmas already, I made him work for it!  He had to go on a scavenger hunt through the house.

Gma and Gpa recorded a book for Andrew.

Yeah for me!  I got an embroidery machine.  Next year everyone will get embroidered gifts.  :)

You may have noticed that we are all in matching PJ's.  My mom is so cute, she had them waiting for us on Christmas Eve.  :)