santa express 2013 {holiday fun}

on friday night we went on our annual 'santa express' train ride in boone.  this is such a fun family tradition that we have shared with friends and family over the years.  this year we had a large group that included two sweet families that we just love, and my kids' cousin, aunt and uncle, and nana and papa!

(don't let that first photo fool you - the kids had a blast! so much fun, but so close to bedtime.......)

of course, this train ride is like a real life version of the polar express, so you have to wear your jammies (christmas ones are preferable!)

hendrix thought it was important to hang onto your ticket (and they even punched them multiple times just like the conductor in the movie!)  

these girls were not thrilled about posing for a photo, but they both seemed to really like the bumpiness of the train ride.....they were rather antsy with getting up and sitting down, and wanted to snack and read the whole trip, which was perfectly fine ;)

love this sweet family (my brother, sister-in-law, and niece!), and was soooo thrilled to share this experience with them!

peering out the window to see the north pole!

snacking on christmas cookies and hot cocoa.

hendrix's opinion of the trip - a thumbs up!!

oh, and the visit from santa was pretty magical!  hendrix is gripping his bell super tightly, saying merry christmas, santa!  (he even gave him a big hug!)

and don't forget the christmas stories!

what a fun way to really build excitement about this magical holiday season!

happy holidays! 

easter 2013

so on saturday night before easter morning, we all snuggled up for a family movie night.  we watched 'the rise of the guardians', which was a really fun family flick, and it really got hendrix talking about the easter bunny.

he told us that he was going to see the easter bunny, and he went to bed very excited for morning.  

his enthusiasm sure was contagious as i giddily put together the kiddos' baskets - filled with some clothes and toys that i had been stockpiling.

and then daddy and i hid a bunch of candy-filled eggs down in his playroom, wondering how much he would enjoy the hunt, and hoping that he would teach blaire all about it!  lol

they both woke up happy and smiley, and we bounced downstairs together.  hendrix was so pumped about the things in his basket, that we had to open them and play with them right away.  his favorite item was the sidewalk chalk, which we did use on his chalkboard in the playroom then, and also outside later on in the day when the sun came out ;)

blaire liked her new sippy cup, and actually she has been gripping it and swinging it around today.  maybe i will be able to get her to take milk from a sippy since she won't take a bottle?!?  lol

they both got new umbrellas, and hendrix has been obsessed with carrying both of them around the house.  he loves that blaire's has minnie on it (from his beloved mickey mouse clubhouse show), and he keeps telling me that he 'thinks it is raining'.

my happy girl loved watching hendrix run around collecting eggs 

and of course, it didn't take him long to realize that the fun part was opening them up to gather and taste his loot!  

my kiddos do clean up nicely! 

oh, and this one is all cheese for the camera!

i was thrilled that we got ready with enough time to take a few photos before church.  

i love the precious interactions between my two little babes.

such sweet siblings.

they are my joy!

my boys.

and us girls!

then we came home to the first ham i have ever cooked (it turned out great!)  

it ended up being just our small little family of four for the day; and while i missed seeing our families, it was really nice to just enjoy each other!  

this little man kept us chuckling and counting our blessings all day long!

happy easter!

the family party

better late than never, huh?  

hendrix got to drag out the fun festivities of his second birthday as we split the celebrations up into two separate weekends this year.  we celebrated with all our family the weekend before (labor day weekend), and all his friends the weekend after; and then of course we did some special things ON his birthday which fell in the middle of the week ;)

while it was fun to have a huge backyard party for him last year, this prego mama was really thankful that nana offered to host and prepare for the family party this year, which took a good deal of stress and planning off my plate.  

while dinosaurs was the theme to his party and a huge passion of his right now, he was equally interested in every kind of art that he could work on.  he likes to 'practice his letters' and is becoming very adequate with a pencil.  he was happy to show off his skills to his great-grandma ;)

he loves all of us uncles (he has four of them, the lucky lil' guy), and pretty much jumps around to each one trying to act big and keep up with them.  fortunately they all seem to like him just as much, and are willing to follow him around and do whatever he wants.....

one of the first presents he opened had some colors in it, and became a huge distraction for him to want to open anymore presents.  his aunts and mom had to take over for a while, while he enjoyed his new dino coloring books!

he does really like opening presents though, and he did a pretty good job telling each person thank-you (with a little prompting from mom and dad).  i think christmas is going to be a blast this year!

he got some dino slippers that he has enjoyed wearing these last couple days since it has gotten chilly.....

and one of his favorite gifts was this umbrella.  he has used it at least a dozen times since he got it (and i think we have only had one rainy day........so yes, we do like to use it even when it is sunny!)

and it was perfect, as it started to drizzle towards the end of the present opening, and he got to try it out right then and there!  

he was a very happy little boy (which is surprising since he didn't take a nap. at all.  all day.)

he had dino shaped rosettes, and while he was a pro at blowing out his own candles, he was more interested in the m & m's that were to be a topping for the ice cream than he was in any of the other parts of the dessert. 

he has a serious sweet tooth like mama.....

it was fun to see the newlyweds, back from their honeymoon and looking as adorable as ever!

he got this little pillow/bed from his nana and he loved it so much he had to try it out with a movie that afternoon.  it has since been a bed, a sleeping bag, a chair, and even a climbing tower.  what a cool gift!

here he is hamming it up with the big boys, after a nice big game of climb on everyone's backs.

oh, and hannah and i got a few 'bump' pics together.  gotta make sure the cousins get photographed together right from the start!  can't wait for blaire and annalise to meet, and bond and have girl time ;)

  

the day was wrapped up with a bath, jammies, and a little family game time before we headed home.  what a perfect day!

hendrix is a very independent, fiesty, energetic, and well-loved little two-year-old. ;)