First Things First...

I have been blogging about Fin's birthday for awhile.

She is ONE!!!!!

Time has flown by. Finley is sassy and devilish, which is totally different from Gabbie, but we love it! She starting acting older the day after her party. She loves her new toys and plays so nicely with them.

This is Fin's own little cake! Her party theme was very "SUMMER-Y"...Lady bugs, butterflies and bumble bees. The red frosting actually came out of her clothes!

(PS Piece of Cake made the cake. It tasted good and looked cute but they NEED to get organized!! Don't count on them to get you order correct!)

After the cake, came the presents. Finley is not timid. It was good practice for Christmas morning.


We had a small party, but the kids had fun and look how cute they are!

CLASSIC!

My baby is growing...

I also have to give a mention to all of you that have holiday birthdays...It sucks!

I will always try to make Finley's birthday a SEPARATE event, so I hope she does not resent it.

CHEESE!!

We went to see Amy, over at Legacy Photo and Design. We had a laid back family photo session. There is something about the camera that brings out the craziness in Gabbie, but Amy always pulls through with some great pics. Check out the sneak peek here.

The Holiday Season

These are the BIG TICKET items that we are asking Santa for this year. Can you guess who wants what? :) I think mom will be the only naughty girl, because that picture DOES NOT mean that I want to clean the house for Christmas, but I think I will be doing just that.

This item is actually in our basement right now. He is "just trialling it."

This is sooo cute!

Barbie MUST have 3 stories!!!!

As the countdown to Christmas gets serious, I have started to FREAK out a little.

Birthday party, Christmas program, Christmas dresses, Christmas pictures, Christmas cookies, Christmas decorations, Christmas tree, Christmas presents and the list goes on and on.

I have always had a theory about starting all of this early (like in the summer): I think that if I started that early, I would still continue to shop, decorate and plan up to the 25th, which does not mean less stress or less cost. I also really love "The Spirit" of the holidays. I like to shop with the Christmas music up above. I feel like I get more creative as the days in December go by.

After saying all of that...I am going to try to plan for next year starting December 26th. I am not sure what has changed this year to make me feel a little more stressed. I have added more stuff to our family commitments, but I am not willing to let anything go. I guess you can say...I WANT IT ALL!!!

This post is not meant to be negative. I really love the holidays and the girls have brought a whole new level of anticipation. If you can relate to this at all, I hope you have time to ENJOY a few of your own things this season!

Here are a few of the things we've been up to.

Gabbie and Finley's childcare center have a Christmas program every year. The kids get all dressed up and the older ones sing. They sit with Santa and play a few games. It has become a tradition! (Fin was not crazy about the big guy in red.)

This is the first of 4 Christmas functions for Jason's company.

Gabbie's class went to the public library for a field trip. She's getting so big!

Gabbie had her second gymnastics awards night. She really enjoys this activity and she got her balance beam award. PRESENT!

Halloween & Jason's Deer

We had an awesome Halloween. I really think it is one of my favorite holidays. It has even become sort of it's own season. We had such amazing weather this year. I have so many fun ideas for next year if the weather is as nice...it will probably BLIZZARD!! ;)

My 2 Tinkerbells with Great Grandma.

OOHHH Gabs!?!?

!!!!!!!!!!!!!

BOO

Our Peter Pan Theme...I will keep a family theme going every year for as long as I can. Next year...Alice in Wonderland?



Isn't she lovely?



We had a pumpkin carving party at Grandma and Grandpa's. I think they turned out pretty good. Brayden & Gabbie had a great time.

Just a fun shot of my peanut. Fin has had a rough couple of weeks with a flu bug. We have gone through lots of pedia-lyte, diapers and balmex, but I think we are getting over it.

Well, I warned you all that these pics were coming.

Jas got his Hills Archery Buck and it is a nice one.

GOOD JOB!!

What's with the tongue?

Finley Elisa

Well, it is Fin's turn to SHINE, and she does, every DAY!

The video is of Finley, just being herself and there is a little walking, too. She is almost ONE. I CANNOT believe it. That also means Christmas is coming. I always say we are so busy, but we keep getting busier. Just when I don't think we can add another thing to our day, we usually fit it in. Finley has been such a good baby and she is getting quite an attitude now. I wonder where this year has gone? I can still remember her in my belly. Just reflecting and rambling. Thanks for reading! Enjoy some baby giggles.

Other good news!!!! Jas shot a buck! YEAH on SOOOO many levels! I will post some pics soon, so you have all been warned!

Disney Magic (Part II)

This is the final installment of our Disney memories and it already seems so far away :( I will apologize now for the randomness of these pictures. I really need to refine my blogger skills.

I had to lead with a pic of Fin. She is so sweet and has been left off of my blog, because of the subject matter. She is walking... not always, but mostly on her own. It isn't as stressful as when Gabbie walked? This pic is from our day at the pumpkin patch and it has been one of very few that required some winter gear, but doesn't she look cute!

This is our little "Tinker Bell" exhausted! The day Gabs had her makeover was a big one.

This was Gabbie's Fairy God Mother, Maye. See the one piece of hair stinking straight up...the FGM's have quite a sense of humor. The stuff they use on their hair is interesting, but it works every time.

THE REVEAL!!!

This was the night we celebrated Halloween at Mickey's Not-So-Scary Halloween Party. They decorate Magic Kingdom and have a Villain Parade and lights. It was really amazing how different the park looked. Our glasses are for the 3D movie we were about to see. It was probably our favorite thing. It's fun to hear Gabs talk about it. Ask her.

"I feel like someone is watching us?!?!"

:)

This was a magic moment for all of us! We had a breakfast at the Tusker House in Africa in Animal Kingdom. Donald and friends joined us in appropriate attire for the safari!

We miss you Mickey!!!

MY FAVORITE CHARACTER!!!!

I will say Goofy is one tall, dark & handsome dog.

Can you tell who Gabbie liked? She says, "Mom, look at her beautiful eyes!"

As I roll mine.

Our WONDERFUL Host!

Again, our food was GREAT!

Thanks Donald.

A fun view of Italy in Epcot.

In Chicago O'Hare on the way home.

SOOOO SAD!

Hollywood Tower of Terror

The one BIG ride I REALLY wanted to go on. It did not happen.

NEXT TIME FOR SURE!!

One of the characters in the SpectroMagic Parade of Lights.

There were plenty of Oooooh & AAHHHS!

This was one of MANY figures at our hotel. They are HUGE! It was very fun for kids.

Can you see Gabbie?

And last...our first Henna tattoos. I think I need another.

So, there you have it. We would like to go back in October 2012. Wanna join us?

Disney MAGIC!!!!!

Well, we've been home from Disney World for over a week and I am still coming down from the high! I want to start by saying that EVERY business and EVERY person could take a lesson from the outstanding customer service we received while staying in Orlando! Every single "cast member" was pleasant and always addressed Gabbie. We stayed at an All-Star Resort and I was so glad we decided to stay in the park. There are so many little extras when you stay in the park. We dropped our luggage off at the airport in RC and did not see it again until it was in our room. (We had already been shopping!) Our vacation anxiety melted away when we got on the airplane. The weather was HOT...in the 80's EVERY day with humidity. I heard it snowed here while we were gone:) !! We did leave Fin in RC and we missed her, but we CANNOT wait to take her back! Lookout Disney the Love's will be back in October 2012!

Here are some of our favorite pics. I think this is the first of a few Disney posts ;)

We had dinner with the Princesses in Norway at Epcot. Sleeping Beauty was a BIG star that week because of the re-release of the DVD! Aroura was very sweet to Gabbie. Look at that face! Can you understand why my happy tears flowed so easily? PS Dinner was great too!

Princess Jasmine was my favorite (& I think Jas liked her too...). She was stunningly beautiful. I think Gabbie was in awe!

Princess Ariel was sort of silly..she called Gabs a Starfish and I don't think Gabbie will ever forget it!

Well, Cinderella's appearance at this dinner was quite a surprise. Cinderella hosts her own dinner in Magic Kingdom, and when I made these reservations the women made it very clear that "Cinderella will probably not be at this dinner." Things must have been slow that night at the Royal Table ;)

These were some of Gabbie's Fairy Godmother's at the Bippity Boppity Boutique. Gabbie had a Princess (or Fairy) Makeover. It was one of the most memorable days! Again, the happy tears flowed freely! PS I want that job when I retire!! I will post a makeover page soon.

This was Day #1 at Magic Kingdom. We were watching a show at the Castle. The smile on Gabbie's face says it ALL!

This was also day #1. Gabbie spotted Mary Poppins from a mile away and Gabbie LOVED her umbrella. Dreams really come true at DW!

We indulged in some fun things. Gabbie got her face painted. She got her hair braided and we both got henna tattoos. The face painting is free hand and it looked so good! Of course she chose the Tinkerbell!

OOOOHHHHH! EPCOT! I was so impressed with the "big golf ball" at Epcot. I took lots of pics of it.

This was the way our Princess Dinner started. Belle posed for picture after picture, as did our little Princess throughout the week. I think I will leave you with these pics and show you some more later!

You know that commercial when the mom and daughter get on a ride and then the mom turns into a kid...that was me!