Kate Ate - Part 2

Apparently Kate really really liked lunch that day. Here she is licking the plate clean. I cannot get enough of this baby!

She is just the sweestest baby.

Of all the presents under the tree ...

... Emerson's favorite was Sophie!
Emerson's best friend in the whole world since birth, Sophie, came to sleep over Christmas night. Emerson declared that Sophie was her best Christmas present. They have not lived in the same state for more than half their little lives but they still adore each other.
This is her little brother. He is sooooooooo cute. And so much like Rileigh.

Christmas Traditions

We had the greastest Christmas this year. The nice thing about being home for Christmas is that we can begin to establish our own Christmas traditions. It allows us to incorporate what we love most about both our Christmases growing up and incorporate some of own own:

• We begin the Christmas season by taking the girls to the Boston Ballet Co.'s Nutcracker with Mike's firm


• We read mostly (and only if the girls will let us Christmas books beginning in Dec.)


• We decorate a ginger bread house


• We get a great tree and as we unpack each of the ornaments we tell the girls their significance (some from our travels, th Lenox ones for girls were born and one from the year we got married, and our favorites - some that Mike made with his beloved Grandma Eunice. We just love to tell the girls about her)


• Once the tree is decorated we ceremoniously light the tree for the first time and gather around it and read Luke 2. Hearing Mike read it still makes me cry


• We dust off our Italian and German Nativities that night


• We have special mailbox that Santa has direct access to. Throughout Dec. he will leave "Naughty" or "Nice" notes. Luckily, rarely there are naughty notes. But when there are boy! are the girls really good the next day


• Before we pack up the ornaments, we use the same mailbox and write the gifts that we want to give the Saviour this year. Next year when we unpack it we can review that list


• We adopt a family to do Secret Santa. This was our most amazing year!! Honestly, it was best part of Christmas for us. E-mail us if you want the details but I know that Mike and I will never ever forget this Christmas for that reason


• On Christmas Eve morning (except if falls on Sunday) I go to the Italian Bakery to get some cannolis and Italian cookies that my grandparents served (the cookies are so dry, so this year Mike and I decideded we get them less for the tasting of them and more for the "Center Piece")and we go to my Uncle's. Just like I did as a child. Santa makes a visit there. This year the mantle of Santa was passed on to a Santa that mommy can attest she has kissed under the mistletoe


• Before we leave for my uncle the girls hang notes on the front door for Santa asking him to stop at our house and we put out a carrot for Rudolph


• While we are gone Santa's elves bring a new pair of pjs for the girls and put them in their stockings to wear on Christmas Eve


• When we get home we put out cookies for Santa (and tell the girls the story of the real St. Nicholas), and open one gift


• On Christmas Eve we read only Luke 2 for the girls and then sing many Christmas carols around the tree. Mike and I talk about the true meaning of Christmas and what Christ means to us.


• Grandma sleeps over


• On Christmas morning the girls wake up way way too early. We say a prayer to thank our Saviour for the incredible gift that He gave us. The girls have a very hard time during this prayer.


• Then in Chatwin family tradition we line up according to age and march to the living room


• We open stockings first, which also have oranges in them (Chatwin Family tradition)


• Then Santa gifts (they are never wrapped)


• Then Mike hands out the gifts and everyone creates their pile of wrapped gifts around them and we each take turns opening one, youngest to oldest (Chatwin tradition)


• Family and friends come over later for dinner


• We read the Christmas story that night again

We also started two new traditions whcih I love

• This year we went to Sarah's and slept over and made and decorated sugar cookies and gingerbread cookies and then sled. It is so charming that we decided that we should do this every year.


• And we deliver treats to a local fire station to thank the firemen for working on that day
  

The girls got the American Girls dolls. Emerson got Samantha and Rileigh got a Bitty Baby and named it the same name as Emerson's Bitty Baby. The girls LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE their dolls. I do not know how we can ever top this Christmas
Wile we were busy unwrapping Kate's gifts for her she snuck off and stole the cookie that Santa left half bitten. Showing early signs of genious!
My favorite gift - GPS. I am famous for ALWAYS being lost. My friends tease me constantly and the girls have had many faith promoting experiences do to my lack of direction.The girls and their beloved dolls. It really was a magical Christmas.
Kate might have been a little overwhelmed.

Rileigh's Holiday Performance

Unfortunately I cannot upload Rileigh's very favorite song "Dreidel, Dreidel, Dreidel". She has been practicing that song for so long. She sang it today with such gusto!

Keep in mind as you watch these, they are rocky because I also had Kate in one arm.

Rileigh and our beloved Ms. Lucy. Emerson had her as well. We truly love Ms. Lucy and there is no one in the entire world we would rather have teach our babies.

This is Ms. Mona. Rileigh absolutely adores her. She is kind and patient. She is so soft spoken and absolutely loves loves loves the children. She substituted for Emerson last year and we loved her then. We are so grateful that she now teaches Rileigh.

We just love our preschool. We couldn't imagine a better place for children.

Christmas in NYC

We had such a great weekend. We went with our good friends to NYC for the weekend. Although, I think the children's favorite part was being on the same floor at the hotel as their buddies, swimming with their buddies, and staying up really late with their buddies. Here we are in Times Square. I felt a little cheesey taking our picture in Times Square but I really wanted it for the girls someday. Mike and me in front on the tree at Rockerfeller Center.
These two get along so great. They are fun to watch play together.
Imagine this: New York - Christmas time - hoards and hoards of people on 5th Ave. - and two families trying to stick together with double strollers.
Of course, no trip to New York is complete these days without a visit to the American Girl Store. We had to wait in line to go inside.
Samantha, the doll on Emerson's list.
Rileigh hurt her lip the day before jumping on the bed. Mike has always called her "monkey" for that reason.
Tired out!!

The babies taking a bite out of the "Big Apple". Couldn't resist

The weekend by numbers

The weekend by numbers:

Nor'easters (n: heavy amounts of rain and snow, producing hurricane-force winds, and creating high surfs that cause coastal flooding) 2 - Thursday and Sunday

Snow: 20-24 inches

Hours spent shoveling snow and chipping ice by Mike and Dina: 5 1/2 hours with plenty more Monday morning from the plows (if anyone wants to help, you know where we live)

Lost boots in snow: 1

Frost Bite Scare: 2 little feet due to the above mentionned

Feet in Snow pile in yard from shoveling: 4 1/2

Visible teeth on display at once: 32, As shown by Mike in form of huge grin at 11:00p.m. Thursday night while coming home and founding super hero wife in driveway who just spent 2 1/2 hours shoveling while children were all nestled and snug in their beds (super hero wife checked on children frequently)

Bathes drawn by husband to thank super hero wife: 1

Amount of shovels it takes to clear end of driveway after plows came through multiple, multiple times: 37 (by Dina, Mike certainly would be much less)

Heating Bill for month of December: $1,453,278 (o.k. that may be slightly high) in spite of the fact that we keep our heat on 66-68 degrees during day and do not ask about night, it goes lower. We loves sweaters in this family! We hate the heating bill.

Nutcracker

Every year Mike's firm hosts a mini-matinee (about one hour of samplers from the more famous numbers) showing of the Nutcracker performed by the Boston Ballet Company. We love taking the girls. It really is magical watching little girls watch ballet. I am in awe of the dancers. They are truly some of the best in the world and yet some are so young. We look forward to this event all year.

The wiseguys, er, I mean, wisemen and a little girl's Christmas wishes!

Our nursery performed a nativity play for the ward party this weekend. Rileigh and Aileen were the wisemen. It was so sweet and fun. Honestly, it was the best nativity play I have seen. What a great idea to have the nursery children perform it. Rileigh helped me make the beards. They were so proud to be the only wiseguys, I mean, Wisemen with beards. Aileen is to Rileigh what Emerson's little friend Miya is to Emerson. Rileigh and Aileen go to school together, they have at least one playdate a week together, their parents are friends, and they are in the same nursery class. These two are so mischievous and fun. Can you believe that they are only 3 days apart?
Emerson wrote her Christmas list all by herself. It reads:

I would like

Samantha Doll

and I would like

Groovy Girl

I would like

special markers

Thank you Love

Emerson

Most children this age seem to have a list a mile long. When I asked Emerson if she was done with her list she said she had everything she needed. I am always so touched by her maturity.

Rileigh only asked Santa for one thing ... a Bitty Baby.
Here is what happened when Cakey met Santa for the first time. I am sure in time they will become good friends.

I feel like I write this all the time, but I am so grateful to be the mommy to these little girls. Christmas through their eyes really is magical.

"Mommy, do I look pretty?"

I should know by now that when Rileigh is quiet for too long, something is up!! The other day she found my mascara and the above photo was the result. She was so proud of herself. Once again, we love that crazy kid.

Oh' Rileigh!

Yesterday Emerson and Rileigh were playing outside in the snow with friends. Rileigh came in while Kate was taking her afternoon nap. Excitedly and loudly she started to tell me something. I asked her to use her inside voice because her baby sister was still napping.
She looked at me with the most sincere expression and said "Mommy, I was using my inside voice outside and I lost it. Its gone foreva and eva."
Seriously, we love that crazy kid!!

Cooking with the girls

This gives new meaning to "licking the bowl clean". The older girls love to help mommy cook. They love to come up with new recipes. Some of the recipes are actually pretty good.