So sweet!!!

Last week I made the genuis mistake of taking the children(all dressed-up) to visit Santa on a day that he had off. Here are a few attempts at a picture in front of the tree.

Darin and I enjoyed watching Ellery "perform" during a Chrismtas sing-a-long at her school. O.K., so she did more pouting than singing, but it was still entertaining all the same. She was more interested in the cookies following the performance, rather than the actual performance. . . .hhmmmm, I wonder where she gets that?????

Taking a break from shopping to check out the koi fish. The people who planned this shopping center must have had children in mind when they added this lovely feature.

While out doing some shopping, we were fortunate enough to "run into" Santa at a small toy store. This saved us the always fun hassle of standing in a long line while the children grow cranky in anticipation of Santa's arrival. We quickly snapped a picture and Ellery told Santa her Christmas wish--"An Ariel book, please." Have I mentioned how much I love this child???

Darin and I enjoying a much needed night out at his company's Christmas party.

This morning we had the distinct pleasure of watching Ellery's first dance recital. We were unsure of how she would perform, considering she was up most of the night before with a bad cough. Despite her lack of sleep and crankiness, the performance was precious! Darin and I watched as our baby girl danced her own dance and watched us, rather than her teacher. Despite her lack of following direction, she did manage to master the art of the curtsy. We are so proud!!!

We had a fun weekend which included the Christmas parade in downtown Encinitas. It was quite adorable and included homemade floats, decorated bikes and scooters, and even boat floats! Naturally, we forgot to bring the camera, but here are a few pics from our beach park outing today. We did not stay too long, as it was a chilly 62 degrees(wow are we spoiled)!!! Is Ellery trying to lick her brother on the slide???

"See, Dane. . . .these are called ornaments--they stay ON the tree."

A month or so back, I wrote about the lack of gentlemen left in the world. Today I was both shocked and relieved to find that I was absolutely wrong!! While on a trip to the post office(always a dreaded trip in December with 2 young children), not one, not two, but three different gentlemen stopped and went out of their way to hold open the door for myself and my children. I was overwhelmed and thrilled to find that my previous sentiments were wrong. Ho, ho, ho and merry cheer to all!!!!!!!

"Mommy, look at this poor, lonely ornament on the tree. . . .maybe it is time to put up the rest." Check out the stalker in the background of this picture!!!

I wish I knew what this big, blue-eyed boy was thinking!!

Last night we attended a birthday party for Ellery's best friend next door. It was an Elmo theme, which always seems to be attractive to toddlers. Ellery had a wonderful time and as always especially enjoyed the cupcakes--this girl is DEFINITELY my daughter!!!!

Darin's mother purchased this "Elf on the Shelf" for Ellery and Dane this year. For those of you who don't know about this genius creation, I will explain. The premise is that the Elf was sent to you by Santa to watch you and report back to Santa if you have been naughty or nice. The Elf will periodically move throughout your home and "show-up" in different locations to make sure you are being nice. He flies back to the North Pole each evening and gives Santa a detailed report on the behavior he has observed. I remember Casey talking about hers last year and I must say that this is a must-have for all parents!!! Ellery is COMPLETELY fascinated by the Elf and each time he "shows up" in a different location, she is beside herself. We are TRULY enjoying this new tradition and are hoping that it will help with "nice" behavior until Christmas!!

Although I have never been to Paris, I have a strange attraction to berets. I don't wear them myself, but have purchased several for Ellery and she is always willing to wear them. I also love the fact that she wanted to paint while wearing the beret. . .perhaps we should be planning a trip overseas for our little artist!

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving at our home with Darin's extended family--grandparents, aunt and uncle, and cousin/family. Darin's cousin, Denise, has a son close to Ellery's age, so they helped to entertain one another at the "kids table" while the adults(and Dane) enjoyed our own turkey feast. Darin fried our turkey for the first time and it turned out DELICIOUS! I was a bit skeptical about how a fried turkey might taste and I assumed it would be greasy. I was pleasantly surprised at how tender and flavorful it tasted(not to mention the fact that I did not have to cook it). We hope you and your family had a pleasant and relaxing day with your loved ones!!! I think the picture of grandpa says it all!

Here are a few pictures of Dane with his great-grandfather, Marvin. Ellery has always adored him and now Dane seems equally fascinated by him. I LOVE these pictures of them together and feel fortunate that my children will have these special relationships with multiple generations.

Ellery's birthday party was a success and so sweet to watch all the little ones eating their tiny food and drinking their "tea"(pink lemonade). The "tea party" theme was a fun one to prepare. . . .we had many small versions of food,but all the children really seemed interested in were the pink m&m's and the cupcakes. Ellery's lunch consisted of a strawberry, pink lemonade, a handful of m&m's, and 2 cupcakes. . . .no wonder she was cranky late in the day!!!