Were we the only parents wide awake on Christmas morning waiting for our children to get up?! Our kids were sound asleep....Caroline over sleeping 2 hours more than usual, we sat down stairs enjoying coffee with family that dropped by, hoping to catch the kids opening their presents......Caroline finally stirred and we went in to wake coop.......

It was fun to watch Cooper get into it this year....Grampa and Nonna stopped by to see what Santa brought.

After all the presents....we headed out to make the rounds.......



Merry Christmas everyone!

I'm still in shock that Christmas is over.....so fast! so fun! We had our friends and family over on Christmas Eve.....I wish I was able to stop and take some pictures.....but we had alot of catching up to do with family we only see once a year....I did catch a pic of Cooper at the "make your own cup cake station" i set up....this was a big hit for little ones and teens!

Caroline couldn't get enough hugs from the cousin she adores!

when the party was over.....the kids went to bed right away.....until Rob and I got Caroline out of bed to take care of the Santa things, that we forgot.....throwing the "reindeer dust" on the lawn and leaving cookies for Santa.

The cold.....and pecans

Now that it has stopped snowing...the weather has turned cold......so cold, Cooper stops in his tracks when I open the door. What do I do when I'm cold....I bake.....so, I am sharing my favorite spiced pecan recipe......I bag these up for a homemade gift....and I make an extra batch to keep out for company. It warms up the house, makes it smell amazing....and the bowl is always empty....this is one of those recipes that you can't eat just one of. So, I made 2 batches today!

Spiced Pecans

1 cup of sugar

1 1/2 Tbsp. cinnamon

1 tsp cloves

1 tsp salt

1 tsp ginger

1/2 tsp nutmeg

1 egg white

1 Tbsp of cold water

1 pd of pecans

preheat oven to 250 degrees, grease large jelly roll pan.

mix together all dry ingredients.

beat egg white with water until frothy not stiff.

add spiced sugar mixture, add nuts.

bake for 1 hour, and stir every 15 minutes.

Pink cheeks from sledding, and the kids enjoying Santa books last night.

Round 1

Round 1 of Christmas....my mom's side of the family traveled from all over the Northeast....through the snow and ice.....Caroline gets excited about wearing one of her many outfits....she is very much the girly girl. Every one made it safely....and we truly enjoyed the day.

warm home, good food, smiles, hugs and family.....it doesn't get any better than this.

Winter Wonderland

It has been snowing for 3 days.....3 blissful days! Caroline stays out for hours.....Cooper is having mitten issues.....an early Christmas present of new mittens seems to have worked.

even the construction vehicle, which has become a permanent fixture in our yard....looks better with snow.

Waiting

Feeling blessed today. Rob made it home safely from a business trip...and he is now grocery shopping with the 2 year old.....Caroline and I have been enjoying a quiet house. She is doing Christmas crafts while I enjoy a second cup of coffee....life is good.

Today we wait for snow. We are getting ready for a winter storm....a foot of snow is predicted. It is a great feeling knowing that we don't have to go anywhere...no school, no work. The house will be full of food, there are cookies to make and snow to play in.....life is great.

Tomorrow we will wait for our family to arrive....Traveling from NY, NH, and Vermont....we have lots of cooking to do, some cleaning....and setting the table....about 15 for dinner.....and the first round of presents. The kids are excited....and I am excited for them.

I'll try to post pictures of the snow....its suppose to start this afternoon!

Cookies

Ya gotta have the right hat for the job.......one for Coop and one for Caroline.
A little concentration.....

A few smiles.....and a little mess

One batch of Christmas cookies done....many more to come.

The making of an island.......kitchen island

This is what our kitchen looked like about a month ago....the tile was finished and the cabinets in.....And Rob's stepfather has been working on this..... a wood counter top for our island.....here it is unfinished, with the undermount sink in place. And you wouldn't know it but there are steel rods running through it for support. This was the exciting part....Rob and Grampa brushing on the top coat....


Installation on Friday.....

And now we have an amazing wood counter for our island.....

" To Do "List for the kitchen...

1. trim around doors and windows.

2. new appliances (after the christmas dust settles).

3. plumber coming this week (hopefully) to hook up kitchen sink.

4. appliance garage built.

5. pulls and knobs on cabinets.

Holiday Wishes

Cooper and Caroline have something to say...please turn off the music below to hear.

Tree Gazing

The tree is half decorated.......but the kids can't get enough of tree gazing.

They love scooting underneath the tree and looking up at the lights....2 and 4 are really great ages for Christmas.....they are loving every bit of the magic. I might jinx myself here but we are pretty low stress these days......I am slowing checking things off the "to do" list.....and making more lists as I go. Hopefully the Christmas cards and shopping will be done by the end of the week....and then on to wrapping and baking, what fun!

I hope you have time to gaze under your tree....try it, its magical.

Winter Lake

The past few days we have been hit with cold days and even colder nights.....but we try to get the kids outside for some fresh air......last weekend we spent a few days at Nana and Grampa's house. While Rob and Grampa worked on the kitchen island we took the kids outside to explore the lake shore.





Nana has boots in all sizes....and Nana hats are fun too! Nana, I think these hats are missing something?!

We found Santa again!

We heard Santa was going to be at our town's tree lighting....and since we are only a 5 minute walk we bundled the kids up.....snack in hands....and we were off in the night to find Santa!
Found him! Once again....Caroline happy to see him! Cooper not so much...

On another note.....this was Rob coaching Caroline's basketball team.....Cooper didn't understand why he couldn't play...and threw a hissy fit when he couldn't go with them....he is giving me the "look, I got what I wanted mom" look.

Christmas Tree Hunt 2008

All Set! Lets go find the perfect tree! Hang on Coop!

It was a touch and go search....a little whining, a bit of crying, Cooper wanting to be held, Caroline had a boot malfunction......but in the end we found our tree! Cooper liked the sawing part!

And Rob had two great helpers.


And the kids found a playgroup friend!

Santa Traditions

Two of our favorite traditions are Breakfast with Santa at Ioka Farm.......this year Caroline couldn't wait to talk to Santa.....
while Cooper clung to Rob as we tried to get a group picture with the cousins.....at this point he couldn't even look at Santa....but as the morning went on, we enjoyed pancakes and hot cocoa.....Cooper warmed up to Santa enough to wave. This is Santa's stash of books...... and every night in December when the kids have taken a bath, in pjs, brushed teeth......they look for the hidden "santa books." Last year we started out hiding the books under Caroline's pillow.....until she clearly stated she didn't want Santa in her room.....it kinda freaked her out......so now Santa uses "magic" to hide one book for Cooper and one book for Caroline in mommy and daddy's room. I keep the stash in my closest.....and hide them while they are in the bath. All year I buy Christmas books from tag sales to book sales.....and we now have over 100 Christmas books.