Tea Party

I had promised Riley that, when Aunt Kelsey came, we'd have a tea party.  You see, Aunt Kelsey is a tea party EXPERT!  She works at what sounds like an amazing little bookstore, and part of what she does is host tea parties.  I'm pretty sure I want to live at that bookstore.  So after much waiting, the tea party arrived.  And it did not disappoint.  Sure, we didn't have a nice tea towel or a theme, but you do what you can with what you got...

What we had was some delicious pink lemonade tea...

...cucumber sandwiches (which may or may not have been graham crackers with green frosting and sprinkles... special SPECIAL treat!)...

... some professional pinkie-lifting...

... a lumberjack...

... and a finger-lickin' good time! 

 Thanks, Aunt Kelsey!  Even Brooks liked it. :)

Sorry for the deluge of pictures.  I just couldn't decide. :)

Snow Day

Uncle B and Aunt Kelsey came to visit us, and we are so glad they did.  I was a little worried that they weren't going to get to meet Brooks until after his first birthday, but Brandon was able to get a little time off to fly out to Wheaton.  And just so they got the full Chicago-area experience, we got a nice little dusting of snow.  

I spent the 20 minutes or so to get the girls suited up, and out we went!

Riley stayed out for about 4 minutes before deciding that the wind was not her friend, and she wanted to go back in.  We snapped a pic before she ran to safety, though. :)

Noelle made her first snow angel.  I think she liked it.  And she is a sweet little angel, that's for sure.

Then we brought the toboggan out.  FYI-- it's much easier to pull uphill when just Noelle is in it, not Noelle AND Riley. 

Fortunately, Riley witnessed how much fun we were having and made a reappearance.  She also, I think, felt that duty called and that SOMEONE had to shovel the snow.  

Uncle B did help her, too.

Then Noelle joined in the game.  It's a shovel-off!

Even Kona got in on the snow action.  She likes getting any attention, but getting to chase a fake duck is up there with her favorite things.

 
Cold is not my favorite thing, but I'll tell ya... it's much better when shared with family. :)

Nana, Granddad and LOADS of fun

Christmas number two!!  Nana and Granddad came, and we got to do more Christmas-ing!  First, the kids all got matching pj's, adorable pj's!

Pose for me, Riley...

Here's our tiny Christmas elf!

Noelle really liked massaging Granddad's head.

And both girls liked snuggling with Nana!

But the biggest winners of the day were the splash art boards! The girls completely forgot about their other unopened presents while they played with these.  And they're no mess.  Yes, please.

Nana, Granddad and Brooksy-boy

The girls (and Brooks) got this huge piano, too.  Why they make the default volume settings for noisy toys on extra-super loud is beyond me... but besides that, this toy is awesome!

Finally, after days of waiting, we got to make the Wuggle Pets...

It was pretty fun!

Meanwhile, Brooks was his usual charming self.

Yesterday, the grandparents watched the little guy while Mike and I went to Monkey Bizness with the girls.  I snapped this cute shot before leaving.

Remember the recordable book Great-Aunt Nancy gave the kids?  It's a winner!

Monkey Bizness was a BLAST!!!  The girls loved it. 

It was absolutely perfect for Riley, who was dancing with joy.  She's gained so much confidence at preschool that she now will tear around a place like this, going down slides, playing in the bouncy house, and climbing all over.

Noelle kept gravitating back toward tower-building.

...but she also liked the little treehouse.

Riley was, literally, throwing herself down slides.  I'm so proud of her.  If you had met her four months ago, you would NEVER believe she was the same kid.

We even took a look at the (trashed) art room.

But then it was back to sliding and running and jumping.

Even though Riley is now a champion slider, she let Daddy join her, too.

And Noelle was a fan of the slides, too... as long as she had a lap seat.

Monkey Bizness, you were a delightful surprise.  We'll be coming back!  

And a final "Merry Christmas" to everyone!!