Christmas Eve!

I bought a pre-made gingerbread house at Wal-Mart, and although I'm sure it's much more disgusting than a homemade one, I figure since no one actually eats them it probably doesn't matter. The candies that came with it were without exception particularly disgusting.  Jeffrey put one in his mouth, spit it out and said, "Yucky!".  Arabelle did enjoy several of these tiny ball candies.

Jeffrey worked hard on the windows and door.

Rice Krispie house from a different kit someone gave me.

Jeffrey really loved Santa Claus cooties and won both times we played.  My "key" that I had made turned out to be very useful for him and this was the first year he "got it".  **See if you can spot Elsie eating a piece of bologna.

When I gave Arabelle her stocking she put it on her head like a hat.  It was really cute but I didn't get a good picture.

We finished off the night by hanging up stockings and acting out the Nativity with Grandma's stuffed manger scene.  I didn't get any pics of these events because things had gotten quite wild by that point.

Random December

Fairly neat as far as big messes go:

As a rule I dislike "kids naked in the bathtub" pics, but when I saw this I knew it was a photo op:

Preschool Christmas Party 2011

Arabelle really enjoyed watching Jeffrey's little program.

The kids sang a couple songs including Jingle Bells.  Last year Jeffrey refused to sing at all.  This year, he sang the entire chorus of Jingle Bells and snatches of other songs.

Jeffrey's "Doctor Check up" as he likes to call it.

Arabelle loves Jeffrey's school.  I volunteer to help with lunch on Thursdays and she gets to sit and eat with the "big kids."  I think she is more ready for school now than Jeffrey was when he started last year.

This is one morning before dropping Jeffrey off at school and Arabelle was in a bad mood for some reason.

Remodeled Bedroom

I really wish I could find some good pictures to post, but just imagine the ugliest room you could possibly imagine:  dark greenish blue/extremely smelly carpet from the seventies, dark brown floral wallpaper, also from seventies.  trim that was painted three different shades of beige, cracks running through the ceiling.

We began the "remodel" a year and a half ago when John ripped out the smelly carpet, revealing unfinished floor boards with large cracks in between them.  We then lived with those floors for over a year, and although there was paint all over them and they were unfinished making it impossible to clean them and also causing us to get splinters in our feet, I have to say it was better than the disgusting carpet.

Over the past year and a half John removed the wall-paper a bit at a time.  We found at least 5 or 6 layers, and also several gaping holes that had just been swiftly covered with wall-paper rather than patched.

 John began the remodel in earnest this past summer, fixing the cracks in the ceiling, re-texturing and sanding walls, and then installing new floors which he sanded and stained himself.

I got the new dressers on craigslist and the nightstands for Christmas.  John also put up my curtain rods as a Christmas gift which made me finally decide that a picture was warranted.  There are still things I would like to do:  matching lamps of some sort, some artwork, and a pretty floor-length mirror and chair to go in the corner. But all in good time, all in good time.

More December

Jeffrey decorating cookies at the Bailey Family Christmas Party:

Unsurprisingly he chose blue.

Arabelle got lots of tastes of frosting.

I took a bunch of pictures of them last Sunday before church, but these were the best I got.  They were not in the mood to stand still.

 This is when I told Jeffrey to give me that old soft shoe:

December

Arabelle didn't want Jeffrey in the picture.

Daddy's Tiny Assistant

Tiny Snow-shovelers

Arabelle likes to eat snow.

I told Jeffrey to put his arm around Arabelle...

but Arabelle didn't like it.

Jeffrey's Drawings

 At long last Jeffrey finally became interested in drawing and writing letters about a month or so ago.  At the same time he also began holding his pen closer to the correct way (Even though I'd shown him a million times, he had always insisted on holding the pen way up high with his fist so he had no control whatsoever).

These are the first people ever drawn by Jeffrey.  Those are "stairs" on the left, and unfortunately, Arabelle added a few embellishments (anything that is not people or stairs).

More of Jeffrey's first drawings of people:

He sure took his time getting around to being interested in drawing people (4 and a few months), but I find the result quite interesting!

 Jeffrey wanted me to help him do a picture of Elsie, so I helped him with Elsie's head (below) and then started drawing a side view of her body.  Jeffrey said, "No, like this!" and proceeded to add the bird's eye view:

J

Then he did these two Elsie's all on his own.  He said the tongue like things are her nose/mouth.

Thanksgiving 2011

Little fashionista:

Watching the game:

I think Jeffrey must have been paying attention when the turkey was carved:

Burning the midnight oil: