Ahhh, the cookies are done.

My favorite cookies in the world? Frosted cut-out sugar cookies! My least favorite cookies to make? Frosted cut-out sugar cookies! We were iced in for awhile today, so the girls and I just "went for it" and made the cookies a couple weeks early. The trick will be to not eat them before we bring them to holiday parties! Chris lent a 30-minute hand before the Vikings game too!

I think Amelia is contemplating eating them in the photo above! {We all got a cookie for our hard work!}

Happy holidays to you all!

The holidays are {almost} here!

Wow! I think the holidays snuck up faster on us this year! But, somehow, we have a bit of the shopping done and the tree up a week ahead of schedule. Took the photo and ordered the Christmas cards tonight too, so we are feeling a little ahead of the game!
Can't believe Thanksgiving is this week, and then it's the usual 3 or 4 weekends of scrambling to make sure all the gifts are bought, the cookies baked and frosted, and the Christmas cards are mailed. We are up for the challenge this year!

Mira and Amelia were a big help decorating the tree and putting up the decorations, and Mira was charged with arranging the snow village {"snow" to come after I visit Joann Fabrics tomorrow!}:
Here are a few outtakes from the Christmas card photo {plus the first one in this post}:
Happy holidays, everyone!

A Snowman Named Bob

Oh how it's snowing! It seems to have snuck up on us quickly with our near 70-degree day on Monday! It's been going all day long and still doesn't look like it's going to stop. I think we've gotten about 7-8 inches so far. But, it was perfect snowman snow!

We went outside today to try out the "snowman kit" I bought a couple years ago, and made our snowman. We decided to name him Bob, since my dad (Bob) received a book a couple years ago, appropriately titled "A Snowman Named Bob." This snowman looks just like the one in the book! More importantly, we had a great time making him!
Enjoy the snow, and drive safe this winter!

Operation Christmas child

As we do every year, we create a Christmas box for a child in a third world country and our church sends it to a little girl. Mira and Amelia were really happy to create a special Christmas box! They went to Target with me and picked out everything. We filled the box with a toothbrush, toothpaste, soap, crayons, drawing paper, underwear, socks, butterfly barrettes, lollipops, and a Barbie doll. We hope she loves it!

Trick or Treat 2010

Happy Halloween! Mira and Amelia had a blast trick or treating in our neighborhood, as always. It's so fun to see all the neighbors out and all the kids running around. We live in a terrific neighborhood for trick or treating. Some neighbors really do their houses up for the holiday.
My friend Megan, her husband Ian, and their kids Katherine and Austin joined us. It was a great evening.

Carvin' pumpkins

After a stupendous costume party to celebrate my niece Chesney's 8th birthday, we came home and carved pumpkins. The girls really enjoyed it and are keyed up to go trick or treating tonight!
Amelia loved the new eyeballs in the gift bag from the party!
Have a happy and safe Halloween!

Thumb in a hole

Amelia and I were on a walk today with Mira and Winter.

Amelia was holding my hand and she stopped and said, "Mom! We have to go back! I saw a hole! I love holes! I want to put my thumb in it!"

Okay . . .

Oh, and Amelia has changed her name to Natalie. It's the name of our babysitter who she loves! I'm trying to respect her name change, but it's hard!

First grade conferences!

Tonight, Chris and I met Mira's teacher, Ms. Lawson, for conferences. We were very happy with the report. Mira is doing very well in letter and word recognition! She can recognize 68 upper and lowercase letters (in no particular order) in one minute. The goal is 37, so she's well ahead of the average. She is also recognizing words beyond the learned reading words. And her math skills are ahead of average too! It was nice to hear that great report.

We asked how Mira is doing socially, and Ms. Lawson said she is quiet! That surprised us quite a bit! Hopefully the spring conferences will be just as great.

The school always has a book fair during conferences. Here is Mira showing her pick, A Diary of a Wimpy Kid book: I took Mira and Amelia to get their hair cut last night. I would only let Amelia part with 3 inches, but Mira insisted on cutting her hair to her shoulders! So she had about 6 inches cut. I was nervous, but it looks really cute and Mira loves it! She showed off her new style at school today and said she got lots of compliments.
Hope you are all having a great October!

Apple Jack's 2010

Today we went to Apple Jack's, as it's our tradition to go to a local Apple Orchard/Pumpkin Patch every year. The weather was actually hot, which we've never encountered at this annual outing before! The place was packed (beautiful day, and the Vikings weren't playing), but we still enjoyed our favorite things, like:

Getting faces painted:
Riding the cow train:
Playing in the hay bales:
Petting the farm animals:
Photo ops in the cut-outs:
And, new this year, playing along with the local band!

We're going to try to find a different one for next year, but this one is great if you are looking for a fun afternoon this fall.

Mira and a two-wheeler

A couple weeks ago, we tried to teach Mira how to ride a two-wheeled bike. She wasn't quite getting the hang of it {and still isn't comfortable}, but we'll keep trying!
Earlier that day, Mira and Amelia painted in our kitchen. It's a craft they really enjoy doing! They used up the last of their canvases and watercolor paper making their latest creations. We'll need to add those items to their Christmas lists!
I went into the girls' bedroom last week and saw this sweet sight:
I love seeing them just sitting and reading in their room! A little mini-me in the making! Hope you are having an enjoyable fall! With this glorious weather, how could you not?