Merry Christmas!

We enjoyed a nice Christmas at home this year. Kyle was up at 7 and we finally had to wake Max up at 7:45 - Kyle just couldn't wait any longer! We came downstairs and lit Kyle's advent candles and sang "Happy Birthday" to Jesus. Then we opened presents! The boys had a lot of fun and seemed to be very excited with their gifts! Jason made yummy garlic cheese biscuits for breakfast. Then Ma, Pa, and Uncle Mike arrived for more presents and a Christmas meal. It was a fun, relaxing day! We took so many pictures I couldn't decide which ones to post, so here is a link to the rest . . .

Gingerbread house and BIG snow!

This weekend we got 22 inches of snow! We decided to build our annual gingerbread house while we were stuck inside. Max was actually able to partake in decorating this year and both boys quite enjoyed it! We also watched some Charlie Brown Christmas, played in the snow for a bit, enjoyed some hot chocolate with marshmallows, and made snow ice cream!

Kyle's Preschool Christmas Program

Today was Kyle's Christmas program and party at his preschool. We all got to attend. The kids sang songs including "Go Tell It On The Mountain," "Jingle Bells," "Mary had a Baby," and "We Wish You A Merry Christmas." Kyle did a great job! This was followed by a party with food and presents for both parents and kids! Max really enjoyed "Jingle Bells" and the food! Jason was quite popular with the little ones and was even asked if he does birthday parties! He had a group of kids around him playing with some toy gears much of the time. Kyle made us a beautiful Christmas tree hanging out of his handprints as well as an angel ornament. I've included one video and if I can figure out how I'll post a link to the rest of the videos later :). Enjoy!

First Snow

We had our first snow of the year yesterday. The boys were very excited! Max was in awe - he loved looking at it but didn't want to touch it quite yet. We took a short walk while it was snowing yesterday and then came inside for some hot chocolate.

Happy Thanksgiving!

We traveled to my parents house on Thanksgiving Day for our traditional Thanksgiving dinner made by my Mom with all my favorites - turkey, ham, mashed potatoes, stuffing, green bean casserole, sweet potatoes, rolls, cranberry sauce, pumpkin pie, and apple pie. We got to spend the day with Ma, Pa, and Uncle Mike and had a great time and lots of yummy food! It was a nice, relaxing day.

We also enjoyed a second Thanksgiving dinner at our house on Sunday with Jason's family. Grandma Luster, Grammie and Grandpa Inman, Aunt Jessica, cousin Michael, Aunt Casey, and Uncle Carey all came over to share a pot luck Thanksgiving. We had ham, corn casserole, green bean casserole, seven layer salad, cheesy potatoes, rolls, pumpkin pie, coconut cream pie, custard pie, and an assortment of cheesecake. It was another fun time!

We're very thankful for our families! :)

Gold Belt

Kyle had his first belt test in karate tonight. He has now moved from a white belt to a gold belt - yay Kyle! He had to do a series of punches and kicks, as well as break a board with a stomp kick. He did a great job and is very excited about his gold belt! We took him out for a celebratory dinner at McDonald's (his choice) and he kept saying "I'm so happy I'm a gold belt and I'm only 4 1/2!" Due to a camera "issue" we do not have a video of him breaking his board, but he did get to bring his board pieces home and we have some other cute videos and pictures to share. The last picture is of Kyle and his teacher, Mr. Nick.

Max 2 years

Max had his 2 year check up last week and he is now 24 lbs. and 34 1/2 inches tall. At age 2 Kyle was 22 lbs. and 32 3/4 inches, so it looks like Max is going to be our "big" guy. :) He's 10th percentile for weight and 50th percentile for height. Kyle wasn't even on the charts for either. Hopefully Kyle will hit a big growth spurt at some point or else I don't think he'll be too happy if his little brother gets bigger than him. :) Overall he's doing well and in good health. He had some normal bloodwork done which all came back normal. Everything looks good! The only concern is that he is not drinking milk anymore since we finally stopped giving him a bottle. He refuses it out of a cup. The good news is he does LOVE yogurt now (a fairly new development) and he eats cheese. For now he's getting his calcium that way, but if he still won't drink the milk after a couple months we'll have to start him on a calcium supplement, which apparenly do exist for young children, but are just harder to find. It's amazing what a difference six months can make. At his 18 month appointment he wasn't walking or talking and now he doesn't stop running or talking! It's hard to remember when he wasn't like this because he's such a little ball of energy and that's what I think of when I think of Max. He's such a curious, passionate(in the good and the bad), enthusiastic little guy! As challenging as he can be, it's a fun age and an added bonus is that he now sleeps really well - he wears himself out!!