Thank you!

Braden Goes Swimming.....NO FEAR!

Braden had his first swim lesson tonight and had so much fun! I got the kids in lessons at the same time so it worked out so well. Madeleine is in her own class with an instructor and Braden goes in the pool with me. He had a lot of fun blowing bubbles, refused to kick his legs and had no fear running and jumping into the pool. He LOVED running and jumping! So funny! Check out the video Jeff got of him below.

Christmas Creek Tree Farm

We were on the hunt for the perfect tree and found it! We headed out to a tree farm near our house and had a great time running all over to find just the right tree. We finally picked a beautiful Grand Fir and cut it down to bring home. While there, we visited Santa's workshop for yummy treats and a chance to sit on Santa's lap. The kids did so well and jumped right up! We finished our morning adventure with a hay ride around the tree farm. Such a fun morning! Madeleine & I spent the rest of the afternoon decorating our tree!

Snowball, our Elf on the Shelf!

If you haven't heard of the Elf on the Shelf, it's worth taking a look at the tradition: http://www.elfontheshelf.com/

But, here is a little overview...

Each night, after the family goes to bed, the scout elf uses his magical Christmas powers to fly back to the North Pole. Once there, the elf will make his or her daily report to Santa and visit with elf friends where they will tell stories about their beloved families, play with the reindeer, and of course, sneak some of Mrs. Claus’ cookies! 

Before the family awakes each morning, their special scout elf will fly back to their home from the North Pole. However, since these elves like to play games, don’t expect to find them in the same spot!  While some like to hide in the freezer (probably because it reminds them of the North Pole) and others prefer to sit on the fireplace mantle or hang from the chandelier, these elves love to play hide-and-seek with their families. 

Madeleine named our elf "Snowball" and is so excited to wake up and find where Snowball landed. Snowball watches us each day and reports back to Santa about his findings. So far, so good...we've had some really sweet kids ;)

On the very first day that Snowball flew back, he decided to take a bath in marshmellows in our sink. Madeleine got a total kick out of it when she finally found him! I wonder what he will be up to tomorrow?

Visit to Santa!

We visited Santa the day after Thanksgiving. Not one tear from Braden! We've been reading a ton of Christmas books to him and making a big deal about Santa in hopes he wouldn't be scared of the real life Santa...it worked! It didn't hurt that Madeleine was super excited to see Santa, Braden seems to copy everything big sissy does these days :) He thinks she is so neat!

Madeleine asked for binoculars and a trampoline adventure...I'll explain that one in another blog post!

After we saw Santa, the Carolers were singing. The songs were beautiful! The kids were in awe and enjoyed  hearing some of their favorite Christmas songs live!

Braden Talking

Adventures with Lucky!

Lucky is here visiting and the kids love it! Every chance we get, rain or shine, they want to take him on a walk. Of course BOTH kids have to hold the leash :) Thanks Lucky for being such a good sport!

Some recent photos...

Madeleine has started to play with one of my old dolls and named her Marabelle from the Fancy Nancy books. Madeleine loves to dress her, put her to bed and cuddle her!

Braden is such a little cuddle bug lately :) He loves to hug big sissy and I was lucky enough to be included!

7 years!

Jeff & I are celebrating 7 years of marriage tomorrow - 11/12! Over the weekend my parents watched the kids for us so we could go out to dinner and to a benefit concert. We had so much fun! We got all dressed up and went out for yummy Vietnamese food at Monsoon in Seattle and then headed over to Benaroya Hall for a concert benefiting Children's Hospital. Some friends of ours are part of a guild that puts the concert together...it was amazing! We enjoyed ourselves very much and hope to go again next year!

We slept in the next morning and then headed out to breakfast. We finished our day seeing 007 in theater! Thanks Mom & Dad for giving us a MUCH NEEDED BREAK!

I love you Jeff! Happy 7th Anniversary!

Seattle Children's Museum

We headed to the Seattle Children's Museum with Shannon, Taylor & Lauren. The kids had lots of fun! This was Braden's first trip where he got out of the stroller and explored there. He LOVED painting! He could have painted all day!

It's election day and the kids cast their vote! Will the bunny vs giraffe win? Broccoli vs Cauliflower? Popcorn vs Caramel Corn?

Painting

Five years later and we finally painted! We picked a grey for the downstairs and a bold blue for the downstairs bathroom and office. We are so happy with the colors! Madeleine decided daddy needed some help :)

Super Hero Training!

Our neighborhood YMCA is always hosting fun family nights and recently hosted "Super Hero Training"! Madeleine was very excited to go and saw a few friends there. They ran through obstacle courses and learned how to capture a bad guy!

Happy Halloween!

Happy Halloween!

Madeleine was a care bear (Tender Heart Bear) and Braden was a tiger. They both looked adorable! We started to night off with friends to decorate Halloween cookies and then headed out to trick or treat. Jeff stayed back to answer the door and I went our with our group. Madeleine knew just what to do and ran ahead with her friends to get candy. Braden would try going to the door as well but by the time he got close, Madeleine and her friends were done and off to the next! He was happy to just run after everyone! So cute! Every once in awhile, he would make it to the door and grab a piece of candy, inspect it and then put it back. He just learned how to say thank you so he would say "bye, tank you".

Madeleine also attended her school Halloween party with her favorite guy, Daddy! She was so excited to show all her friends her costume and carve her pumpkin with Jeff! They had a blast!

Madeleine and Madeira, her best buddy in her class!