(Thanksgiving and) Christmas (and New Year's) in July

No, we're not actually celebrating Christmas in July... I'm just finally posting about last holiday season this July! 

Nonna and Pa (my parents) came to spend Thanksgiving with us last year.

Family photos!  Missing Grant and Lindsey, though...

While they were here, we had some family photos taken, went to the movies -- to see Frozen on the day it opened, before it became THE (kids') movie of the year -- made a trip to the Museum of Science, and ate lots of wonderful Thanksgiving food, of course.  I'm sure we did more than that, but that's all I can remember.  Just one more reason why I really ought to post more regularly on here...

The girls had SO much fun with Nonna and Pa during Thanksgiving break!

Thanksgiving dinner, including the highlights, turkey and pumpkin pie

Nonna and Pa's visit also coincided with the Great Haircutting of 2013.  The what, you ask?

Well, Ramona, who had never had her hair cut at all, EVER, decided that she wanted to cut off pretty much all of her hair, so that she could donate it to Locks of Love.  Hair donation was something that had been mentioned to her offhand, probably six months prior.  Someone had commented on its length and said that it was almost long enough to donate (most places require 10-12 inches minimum).  Ramona of course wanted to know what that meant, and why people donate their hair, so we explained that you can cut your hair and send it away to be made into wigs for kids who don't have any hair because they're sick.  Well, Ramona was sold.  She wanted to donate her hair.  And so began her at-least-once-a-week inquiry as to whether her hair was long enough to donate yet.  By Thanksgiving, it definitely was.

Before, during, and after.  Such a difference!  Oh, and Amelia got a haircut, too.

Now, I'm not normally very sentimental about hair, and have been known to make fun of people who get emotional about getting their hair cut...  (I mean, it's just hair!  It grows back, geez.)  I was a little sad, though, to see Ramona's gorgeous golden spirals go.  After all, those baby curls will not grow back!  But any lingering doubt I may have had about chopping off all that beautiful hair was far outweighed by how proud I was of my sweet three-year-old, adamant about doing what she could to help another child in need.   

The four weeks between Thanksgiving and Christmas always seems to fly by, and last year was no exception.  What did we do?  Well...

...Louisa had her half-birthday...

18 months old!

...We took the girls to Stone Zoo for Zoolights...

At Zoolights, the girls met a reindeer and admired the lights...



...and visited with Santa, of course!

...We picked out a tree from the local Boys and Girls Club and decorated it...

It was Louisa's year to put the star on the tree

...Ramona went to a barnyard babies event at our neighborhood library...

Oh, this child loves animals... Just as enamored with the rooster and pig as she was with the puppies and kittens!

...The girls performed in their respective school concerts...

Poor Amelia, doomed to a lifetime of being relegated to the back row... and Ramona got to hold her class stuffed animal during their performance

...We enjoyed the first snowfall(s) of the season...

*S*N*O*W*

...We celebrated with friends at various holiday parties...

Holiday party animals

...And otherwise got into the Christmas spirit! 

December = lots of Christmas prep!

We were supposed to travel to Nashville to spend Christmas at Chad's sister's house with his side of the family, but between me being out of work and them prepping to put their house on the market, we decided the trip just wasn't in the cards for us, and so we prepared to spend Christmas in Boston for the first time since 2007, and for the first time EVER with just our little family.

Luckily, we didn't celebrate the holiday entirely alone, as Grandma and Grandpa (Chad's parents) very graciously changed their travel plans so that they could spend a few days with us before Christmas, before continuing on to Nashville on Christmas Eve. 

Aquarium fun with Grandma and Grandpa... The stingray touch tank was everyone's favorite part.

Top: Baking cookies and opening presents with Grandma and Grandpa
Bottom: Amelia and Ramona got scooters.  Louisa was upset she did not... But she was happy to borrow Ramona's until her newly-ordered scooter arrived a few days later!

And while we missed the extra catching-up with our extended family that we usually get at Christmastime, it was kind of nice to be in town for the holiday, seeing our neighbors at church on Christmas Eve and waking up in our own house on Christmas morning... I'm not saying that we'll skip the big family holiday again anytime soon, but it's nice to realize that Christmas is just as meaningful when the celebration is smaller and quieter. 

Christmas Eve: before church and after Santa's visit

 

Christmas morning!!!



Just the cutest little Christmas diaper and leg warmer set ever!

We wrapped up the holiday season -- and the year! -- with a little New Year's celebration at home.  We dressed up, ate cupcakes, and let the girls stay up late watching movies, waiting to see the ball drop midnight. 

New Year's Eve and naps on New Year's Day

Ramona was the only one who actually made it.  (Louisa was down for the count around 10, and poor Amelia just couldn't keep her eyes open after 11:30... so close!)

Happy New Year, more than half a year late!  But hey, at least I'll be posting pictures taken this year from here on out.

Autumn 2013 Recap

I love it when spring finally arrives after an enduring, relentless winter, and I love the long hours of sunlight and warmth that summer brings, but I don't think that any season can match autumn in New England. 

And the quintessential New England autumn activity?  Apple-picking, of course!  Last year, our friends Jim and Thomas joined us at Tougas, our favorite pick-your-own-fruit farm.  We managed to come home with our fair share of Macs, Empires, and Cortlands, in spite of the incredible number of apples consumed by all while picking.

We love Tougas!

 

Hanging out with Thomas

Apples, apples, everywhere!  Love that Louisa is double-fisting them.

We went apple-picking at the end of September, so I was hesitant to get pumpkins at the same time, unsure whether they would last until Halloween.  We knew we likely wouldn't make it back out to Tougas, though, so we went ahead and picked pumpkins, too!  (And they DID make it to Halloween.) 

Pumpkin pickers

And no trip to Tougas is complete without visiting the goats.  Always a fun destination!

Feeding the goats

Most of our family lives pretty far away: Colorado, upstate NY, Tennessee-now-Pennsylvania... further than you want to (or can!) drive for a weekend trip.  The one exception is my uncle, aunt, and two youngest cousins (middle-schoolers) who live in Connecticut.  We try to make it down there a couple of times a year for a visit, which usually involves a sporting event, excellent food, some video-gaming, and a couple of hours relaxing on their deck.  They have a fenced-in back yard (ah, the benefits of suburbia!) and two dogs that the girls adore.  Always a fun trip!  We caught an 8th grade football game while we were there in October.  Dressed in their Broncos gear, of course, the girls had fun cheering for Timmy, number 90.

Louisa says "touchdown" and needs a nap toward the end of the game...

October also included one of our regularly-scheduled visits from Nonna (my mom).  We are so lucky that she's able to make it out here as often as she does.  When she returns to Colorado, the girls always want to know when she'll be here next.  Usually, the next trip is already planned, so it's easy to answer them!

At the playground with Nonna, post-swim lessons

Nonna's October visit included a trip to the circus.  The real circus, too -- not the little circus that is set up at Government Center every year.  (We actually love the Big Apple Circus, which is great for little kids, but I think a real circus needs elephants and lions.)  The girls loved it.  Even if they don't look particularly excited in this picture...

Autumn also brings one of my favorite Charlestown holiday events: Halloween.  I don't really care much for Halloween itself, but I love the way that our square mile of Boston celebrates it.  It's one of only a couple of days out of the year where a bunch of the streets are blocked off, and the whole neighborhood gets together, giving it a fun, block party feel.  Plus, I really enjoy all of the candy.  And having the girls collect it for me.  :)

Pumpkin guts!  Amelia is not a huge fan, Louisa was a little confused by the whole thing, and Ramona mostly just played with the seeds

Halloween carnival at the community garden: games, crafts, and pony rides

Costumes, jack-o-lanterns, friends, candy... HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

Another fun fall event?  Nothing like a rolling rally!  We didn't watch much of the Sox's season last year, but we were happy to celebrate their World Series victory with a parade, and headed down to North Point Park to view it -- as did MANY other people.  Luckily, we ran into some friends there, which made waiting for the arrival of the duck boats much more enjoyable. 

Congrats, Red Sox!

And that was our autumn in summary.  I leave you with a few pictures from a random evening at the Monument...

Cute girls!  Not sure where Amelia was.

...and some of my fall favorites from my phone.

More to follow soon!

Last August...

Okay, so it's a little weird to be revisiting Amelia's 5th birthday and Ramona's 3rd birthday (among other things) as we begin planning for their 6th and 4th birthdays, but this is where I left off last year, so... here you go.

August is birthday month for 80% of our family, and so around here August means lots of cake, lots of special breakfasts, lots of candles, and lots of fun.  (So glad that August is just around the corner again!)  Chad is first in the birthday line-up.  We went (candlepin) bowling for his birthday, followed by a picnic at the Monument and cake at home. 

Yes, Ramona likes her carbs; yes, it is kind of difficult to bowl with a toddler on your hip; and yes, Louisa may not enjoy being called "Thing 3".

Ramona's birthday is next.  This child loves cinnamon rolls more than almost any other food, so that's what she picked for breakfast.  (The whipped cream made it fancy.)  Presents took quite a while to get through because she was so enamored with the barn set that Chad and I had gotten her (thank you, IKEA)!  The prospect of cupcakes encouraged her to move along...

Ramona is THREEEEEEEEEE!

Lest you think that I am exaggerating about her lack of desire to open more presents following the barn, here is some video proof...

I know, she's weird.

In between the girls' birthdays, we threw them at joint party at a nearby farm.  The party included a bounce house, a hayride, blueberry picking (with each kiddo taking home a pint of blueberries), and plenty of cake.  It seemed to be a hit, and I would highly recommend it if you're looking for a kids' party idea.  Such a fun theme to work with.

My birthday girls!

I was surprised how excited all of the kids were about picking blueberries... And Ramona still talks about that hayride!

Amelia's birthday followed the party.  By that point, I think we were all a little caked-out, so we celebrated her actual birthday with pancakes and mango for breakfast, and ice cream and strawberries for dessert.  Also, Amelia loves having her nails painted (and anything girly like that), so the evening before her birthday, my mom and I surprised her with a trip to a nail salon for her first real manicure.  At first, Amelia refused, saying that she wanted ME to paint them instead... (Kids!)  After watching for a while, though, she relented and ended up with glittery fuchsia fingernails. 

Five going on fifteen

My birthday finally rolls around at the end of the month.  Unsurprisingly, since I'm usually the one behind the camera, the only picture I have is this one from my phone:

Louisa and me, sharing my new scarf from Lindsey and Grant

But don't worry, Chad definitely made me a cherry pie, and it was delicious.  You'll just have to take my word for it. 

August also included a visit from my mom at the beginning of the month and a visit from my brother at the end.  Here were the highlights:

At the movies with Nonna!

No visit from Nonna would be complete without a trip to the Common

At the beach in York, ME with Uncle Grant, playing in the waves and exploring the tide pools

Sandy baby feet

Post-beach lunch.  And ice cream.  And taffy!



They love their Uncle Grant.