Basketball Time!

February, 2012



Chandler is playing on a competitive basketball team and loves it so much.  His team made it all the way to the semi-final game of the play-offs!

Grandad came to almost all of this games!

Christmas 2011

December 2011

We had a wonderful Christmas.  Mimi and Grandad came over and spent the long weekend with us.  We exchanged gifts on Christmas Eve.  Chandler got a hamster from us and he named it Hammie. 

Taylor got an Ipod Touch

Cory

Lannie hangin' out with Daddy

Mimi

Grandad got a scarf for cold baseball games :0)

On Christmas morning, we found out Santa spoiled them all!

Here is our Christmas card picture:

And here is last year's:

Holiday Traditions

December, 2011

We LOVE having a large family, and our family loves having traditions. The time of the year that we enjoy our traditions the most is around Christmas.  Before Thanksgiving, we attend the Starlighting Celebration in our hometown. Between Thanksgiving and Christmas, we decorate the house and put up the Christmas Tree, make a gingerbread house, and make Christmas cookies as a family.  Of course, I love to bake tons of goodies for Christmas, and often have help from the kids, but we always make Christmas cookies as a family.  We use our Christmas cookie cutters, many colors of frosting, and tons of fun decorations.

Chandler is hard at work!

Taste test

Cory

Cookies make us SILLY!

.

Landon was right in the middle of it all....

But, all the fun made him a tired out little guy

Beautiful, Yummy, Christmas Cookies

Gingerbread House and Pond

Some of our other favorite Christmas traditions include making hot chocolate with marshmallows and getting cozy in the car, with our hot chocolate and blankets and jammies and driving all around our neighborhood looking at Christmas lights.  Our family always exchanges all gifts on Christmas Eve, and Christmas morning is just for Santa.  We also have little things for the kids to open in the days leading up to Christmas Eve.  We started this when they were little and have kept it up.  We always give the kids an ornament and jammies each year.  For Christmas dinner, we always have ham and turkey, gravy, mashed pototoes, fruit salad, cranberries, noodles, coleslaw, green bean casserole, bread cakes, dressing,and pies.  I believe traditions are a wonderful, important part of being a family.

The Boys of Fall

November, 2011

Taylor played on the high school football team this year.  He played offensive tackle.

#72

Chandler played up a year. He played running back, kick-return, and line-backer.

#41

Halloween 2011

October 31, 2011

We had a very fun Halloween.  Mimi and Grandad came over.  Chandler and Dad carved the Jack-o-lantern together.  Mommy and Daddy took Landon trick-or-treating around the cul-de-sac for the first time. The older kids came along with him, too. The teenagers took Chandler and his friend trick-or-treating and they came back with lots of loot!  For trick-or-treating, Landon was a caterpillar, and for the Halloween party, he wore the super-cute chicken costume that Heidi and Ray brought him.  It was adorable!!

Here is a flash-back to last Halloween: 

Landon was just 10 days old and still in the NICU

Landon's Birthday Party

October 22, 2011

Landon had a wonderful birthday party. He got to stick his hands in his chocolate birthday cake and taste the frosting. He was very serious about it...he has never had his little hands in something gooey like that before. He was able to get his bandages off just in time for his party and his little hands had healed from the surgery well, so he was free to dig in to his cake.

Landon's Birthday Cake!

Diggin' in!

Landon had so many fun things to open!

Happy 1st Birthday!