The Whole Gang Meets Santa

John and I took the whole gang to Bass Pro Shop on Tuesday night for a meeting with Santa.  We love going to Bass Pro because they have short lines, the area is decorated so nicely, the Santa is usually great (didn't disappoint this time either) and they don't rush you to get a picture and get out.

Jocelyn was a little hesitant at first but she warmed up pretty quickly and we got a great picture of the 3 kids with Santa - of course i had to be in there too since Santa wasn't going to handle all 3 kids at once. 

Once Upon a Time - Murder Mystery 2013

I had my 3rd Annual Murder Mystery Party a few weeks ago and this year's theme was "Once Upon a Time."  The first 2 parties were in August for my birthday but I wanted to put it off a little bit until after the time change so that it would be dark outside by the time the "murder" happened and a little cooler outside.  It worked out great - the weather was wonderful and made for a lovely outdoor dinner. 

I had a wonderful time getting all the decorations for the party put together and the theme was so much fun to work with.  Everyone was dressed for their parts and were so awesome (big thanks to everyone for playing along)!

The entry way was made into a draw bridge with the use of some "stone towers" that I borrowed from church (VBS this past summer was Kingdom Rock), chains made out of cardstock and "wooden bridge" made out of a roll of packing paper.  Not sure if you can tell but the window has "stained glass" on it - diamond shaped tissue paper glued together.  It looked pretty cool in the dark but it was hard to get a picture of that.

Everyone came in and had their picture taken here.  Again, the use of stone pillars from church and a stone backdrop from Oriental Trading. 

 John was initially going to be Rumpelstilzkin - but some last minute casting changes called for him to step into the shoes of Prince Charming.  So, we had to put together a last minute costume.  I went to Goodwill and Hobby Lobby Saturday morning and got a few items - got home, worked with Mom and we were able to put this outfit together in an hour!  Thought it turned out pretty good (even though the jacket was huge on him).

I made a stone fireplace out of foam board - cut to frame the fireplace (covered the wood) and painted to look like stones.  This was super easy! I also made the banner above the fireplace (and the ones over the windows) - these were super easy too - just felt on felt.  I've learned that you don't have to be an artist to do this stuff.  All you really need is to get the effect of it but not necessarily be really intricate with each project. 

One of my favorite things was my awesome chandelier!  It was made out of a hula-hoop, spray painted black, plastic cups glued on with hot glue, battery powered tealights, black yarn and paper chains to hang it from the fan.  Turned out great and looked really cool with the lights out.  I didn't even put this together until Friday (the day before the party) and it was so easy.  I get these ideas in my head and just hope that they work the way I think it will - this time, it did and turned out great.

This was my Royal Feast table - turkey, ham, casseroles, potatoes, vegetables, mac & cheese and rolls.  Lots of food to feed everyone!  It would have been better if I had a double oven to cook everything, but we were able to time it pretty well so that the food was ready and still warm by the time we were ready to eat.  I liked my Cinderella silhouette - cardboard frame, spray-painted gold, red poster board and paper silhouette printed off the internet and cut out.  Worked out great!

Our dinner setting was outside and I had 2 tables set up - one under a tent and on under the porch.  There were candles on the tables and lights wrapped around the tent.  THe lights gave great ambience, although that was hard to capture in the pictures. I did assigned seating.  They are hard to see but on the big table are 2 white pumpkins that I made to look like carriages - thought they turned out cute.

Everyone ate off of paper plates for easy clean up - but I used gold charges to set the table and make it look "royal."

Everyone did an awesome job getting into character and this year (unlike last year) we had several people actually solve the murder!  It was so much fun.  Can't wait until next year....I'm thinking of a western/saloon theme.  Let the planning begin!

6 Months Old

Hard to believe that Liam and Lizzie are already 6 months old!  They are doing great and getting so big.  Big Sister Jocelyn is doing well too.  She has her moments where she wants lots of attention, but for the most part she is very sweet to the babies and understand that they need lots of hands on time from Mommy and Daddy and Ya Ya.  Jocelyn did get to spend a weekend with Grandma and Grandpa while John and I were in Las Vegas for a conference (the babies spent the weekend with Ya Ya) and she had a great time.

Here is a recent picture of all 3 kiddos.

Halloween

I'm not a big Halloween person, but I do like attending a trunk or treat event at a friend's church in Webster.  They do a great job with the evening and the kids get to do other little activities - like story telling and Jedi-training interactive skit.  Jocelyn really enjoys it and has a lot of fun with the other kids.  She dressed up as Ariel, but she wouldn't wear the Ariel tiara - she is very picky about what she'll put on her head.  We took the twins to so they could experience their first Halloween.  I made a simple Halloween costume for the babies so that, when laying right next to each other, their onesies would look like a "Twix" package.

 

Here is Jocelyn as Ariel during the Jedi-training:

 

 

Halloween is officially on Thursday and I planned on taking Jocelyn around trick or treating in the neighborhood but the weather forecast looks pretty bad, so we'll have to play it by ear.  I never went trick or treating as a child since we couldn't in Deer Park and I never really knew I was missing anything, so I don't think she'll care too much if we don't go.  Shoot, she might enjoy it more just staying at home and giving candy to other kids.

Baptism, Babies and Big Sister

This past Sunday we had the twins' baptism and it was a beautiful and wonderful day.  Family from all over came in to town to celebrate with us.  Grandma came all the way from Colorado, Grandpa and Grandma came in from San Antonio, Aunt Melanie came from Mississippi and Great Aunt and Uncle Hamrick came down from Granbury.  The service was great and the babies did so well.  Liam fell asleep of course but neither of them put up a fuss at all.  Lunch afterwards at our house was very nice.  Big thanks to my Mom for making so much food for us, it was casserole central with a delicious ham from Honey Baked Ham and cake from HEB. 

 

 

Plus, I wanted to share some pictures of how big they are getting and how much their Big Sister Jocelyn loves them!  They will be 4 months old on Friday (9/13) and I can't believe how fast the time is going by.

 



First Day of Pre-K

Jocelyn started at her new school on Monday.  She is in the PreK3 class at Eagle Heights Christian Academy after spending 2 1/2 years at Primrose.  I don't think she really understands that she won't see her Primrose friends anymore, although one boy from her old class at Primrose is in her new class at Eagle Heights and she says that he is her best friend.  She had a good first day, although she did cry a bit when I dropped her off.  But when I picked her up she was all smiles and the next day drop off by my mom went way better!  Look at this cutie in her "uniform."

The babies are doing great and getting so big!  They are sleeping a little better during the night, but I'm still waiting for the day where they sleep for like 12 hours straight.  I caught some Liam smiles on camera and it is the cutest thing.  Lizzie is a very happy girl and so sweet. 

Birth Announcement

Ordered these today...can't wait to mail them out!

12 Weeks Old

Liam and Lizzie are 12 weeks old today!  Can't believe how big they are getting and that 12 weeks have already gone by.  They are so precious and their little personalities are coming out more and more each day.  They are sleeping longer through the night and I hope that a pattern emerges where they are each sleeping 8 hours or more at night instead of sometimes one baby sleeps long and the other doesn't or vice versa.  A couple times both slept for more than 7 hours and those nights were awesome!

Jocelyn has been doing great.  She had a very busy weekend this past weekend with 2 birthday parties and a fun play date with Owen.  She will start her new school on August 26th.  She will be in the PreK-3 yr old class at Eagle Heights Christian Academy.  I know she'll miss Primrose and all her friends there, but I know she'll enjoy this new adventure.  I've been talking it up a lot!

Here are some fun pictures I took this weekend.

The crochet outfits are from etsy and they turned out so cute (and they weren't that expensive either)!

2 Months

Liam and Lizzie are now 2 months old and they are getting so big.  At their 2 month check up Lizzie weighed in at 10 lb 10 oz and 21 1/2 inches and Liam was 11 lb 9 oz and 23 inches.  They are practically double their birth size.  They are so cute and so different from each other.  Liam is a boy that likes to eat and will let you know when he is hungry by screaming at the top of his lungs.  Lizzie will fuss when she is hungry but when she is tired of eating (even just half way through her bottle) you can't force that kid to eat anymore as her lips are closed. 

 

I went back to work on Monday the 15th and its quite an adjustment.  My mom is watching the babies while I'm at work and what a trooper she is.  Two babies vs one Ya Ya...tough match but advantage babies (even though Mom won't admit it).  I don't know what I would do without her.  Jocelyn has adjusted well and she loves her brother and sister so much.  I can tell she wants lots more attention though and gets sad when we can't go do what she wants because of the babies. 

4 Weeks Old

Well, life has been busy the past 4 weeks with two newborns in the house to take care of.  The babies are doing great.  Liam's reflux seems to be under control and not causing him many problems.  Lizzie is a bit of a grunter and strains alot to have a bowel movement.  Doctors say this is normal and she just has to figure out how to coordinate her muscles and it will get better.  She is not constipated as she does finally poop, but her grunting and straining does make for restless sleep for us.  We're getting through it though.

 

We had newborn pictures taken of the babies when they were 2 weeks old by Laura at Studio Bloom Photography in Pearland.  She lives super close to us and we went to her house where she has her studio.  She did a great job and was very patient with the babies to get some great shots.  We were there for 3 hours.  Here are some of her photos of the babies...they are so cute.

John went back to work today and Mom is officially retired, so she is at the house to help me out with the kids...and I need it.  Melanie has been visiting too and is a huge help.  Mom and Mel were at the house last night and so John and I got to go to the movies to see Hangover Part III...it was really funny.