Sadie's Five!

What a year she's had!

When Sadie started Sunshine Friends this year as "the big sister," it was the best thing that ever happened to her.  She and Jackson like each other sooo much more than they used to now that they have a little time away from each other each day.  And she just continues to grow and change and become such a big kid.

Sadie got to play softball for the first time, and she did great.  

Right after school started, Sadie told me she wanted to cut her hair off.  I honestly felt sick to my stomach.  But she and I were not friends every morning when I had to brush her hair.  So after a few weeks, we had a long talk about why she wanted a hair cut.  She knew it wouldn't take as long to brush, and it wouldn't hurt as much.  She just really REALLY wanted to get a haircut.  So we did.

It was sassy and cute and perfect for her.  She loved it.

She also got to play soccer this fall, and loved it--to a degree.  But about halfway through the season she said, "I like soccer, but I don't want to play anymore." :)  We told her she would have to honor her commitment to her team until the end of the season, and that was okay with her.

She got to celebrate her big day with her birthday twin, Aunt Debbie.  Usually the two of them go out for breakfast, but we all happened to be in Oklahoma visiting Cody, Karen, and Jones so they had the whole day together. :)

Last year, we kept thinking we would have Sadie's party sometime in January.  Then January turned into April, and we still hadn't had a party. : (  Not parent of the year, for sure! But we had her "half-birthday" in May, and we're back on schedule this year!  I promise!  Jackson came up with the idea of throwing her a surprise party, so we're excited about it!  Keep your fingers crossed!

Christmas 2012

Christmas this year was a little different than normal, but then, life would be boring without a little different thrown in for good measure, right?   The Saturday before Christmas, we got ready to have our normal family Christmas dinner, just the five of us. Kevin had told me most of the day that he wasn't feeling great, but we thought it was just allergies...until bedtime that night and he was running fever.  By the time he woke up Sunday morning, it was full-blown sick.  

Flu.

At Christmas. 

Great.

I promise I really did feel bad for him. While I Lysoled every surface he touched.  And spoke to him from a distance of no less than ten feet.  And made the kids wear surgical masks.  

Not really.  But it crossed my mind.

He did go to the doctor... who sent the prescription to a pharmacy that was closed.  Which prompted an 8:00 trip to Tyler to the one pharmacy still open.  But the kids thought it was an adventure, so it was actually okay.

 Jackson got all the goodies he was hoping for.  He didn't ask for anything "big" but he asked for A LOT...he has no shortage of great gift ideas. :)  He didn't get all he asked for, but he was very excited about what he got (Note the football jersey we gave him--we can't let those pesky Longhorns in the family do all the indoctrinating!)

 Sadie's list was pretty short.  She wanted a doll house...and lots of babies. :)  She loved her doll that she said looked like Aunt Robin. :)  She also got the cutest bicycle from Nana, which was a big surprise for her that she loved.

 All Annabelle wanted was "toys."  No specifics.  Just toys.  She loved the time with family, the opening presents, the whole shebang. Santa brought her triplet baby dolls.  That are motion activated and move and laugh (creepy baby doll laugh) and cry at really weird times.  Trip.  Lets.  Not Santa's best choice.

We gave her a Little People nativity set, and she LOVED that.  All season long she's been pointing out "Baby Jesus" everywhere we went (Which made me smile. Every. Single. Time.), so I knew she would love to have a nativity that was hers that she could touch and play with.

I love the conversations it initiated.  I love that my kids are as excited to discuss the true meaning of Christmas as they were to talk to Santa.

 But the biggest, best surprise at Christmas was SNOW!  Not often do we have the dream of a white Christmas become a reality here in Texas, but this year was different.

And different, in this case,  is GOOD. :)

Our Christmas Visitors

Every year after Thanksgiving, our house gets a very special visitor:

 Meet Bruce.  (When Jackson was two, he named him "Elf"...very creative.  So he decided this year that he needed a different name.  Hence Bruce.  I have no idea where he got it, but he was VERY offended when Sadie said it was, and I quote, "lame."  We then had to have a long conversation about not being rude and standing up for things you believe in.

I promise my kids love each other.

Anyway.  Bruce used to just sit around our house... a little like the creepy clown on that scary movie years ago.  But the kids LOVE Bruce.  And as of late (and about the same time I discovered Pinterest, coincidentally) Bruce has gotten to be quite adventurous.  Some days I took pictures of his antics.  It freaked the kids out a bit because heaven forbid I touch him and he "LOSE HIS MAGIC!"

Annabelle liked to test this theory.  She loves Bruce more than anyone else in the whole house.  She was the first to look for him in the mornings and the first to tell him Good Morning.  But I guess Bruce was a little nervous about her getting too close because he always seemed to be just out of reach of little fingers...

One night while Jackson was spending the night with Nannie and Sadie was having a special night of her own, Bruce thought she needed a little makeup...

I made sure I took a picture of her after bedtime, because by the time morning rolled around she'd wiped almost all of it off. :)

Obviously Bruce had a lot of time on his hands at night... 

Aside from Bruce, the kids always look forward to their first visit with Santa at the Hilliard's Santa party.  We always love to go to the Hilliard's house and see all the beautiful decorations and chat with the big man.
There are always so many neat things to see around every corner.  Annabelle is going through a phase where getting a picture of her is hard, and getting a picture of her with Jackson and Sadie is next to impossible.   But if I'm quick enough I can still capture moments of sweetness...

Last year Annabelle had a meltdown, but this year after giving him a cautious once over, she was happy to see him. :)  So thankful for Cara Jordan of Magical Memories by Cara Jordan, who has given us amazing Santa pictures since Jackson was a baby!  They're such special keepsakes. :)