Bring on Christmas!

A Christmas story for each night of December.

The stockings are hung by the chimney with care.

Gifts are made for IAs and parent helpers.

Cookies and treats are made for the girls' teachers.

We are ready!

Christmas Programs

Ali had her program first... it was actually still November when her class performed. In fact... it completely snuck up on me! (So, thank you Gramma, for helping her get a beautiful dress... the night before... oops!)
By the time I got there (early, even!) the auditorium was packed. Our seats weren't too close to the stage, therefore, the pictures of the performance were not great.

Merilyn's program came next. She was right in the front row, and our seats were closer, so the photos for her performance are much better! She was a bit of a cheeseball... whenever she saw the camera, she either smiled, posed, or hammed it up.

Fashion Sense?

Or not...? Merilyn likes to change her outfit several times a day. Two things never change, however, lipstick and hair bows. It seems her new favorite accessory - that seems to go with everything - her cowgirl vest (from Halloween).

Another Beaver Game!

We went to see Stanford trample the Beavs... yes, we were prepared for the worst! It was a very rainy and cold day! We weren't prepared for it to be so cold, so Trav and I walked up to the bookstore to get gloves and hats.

After eating and playing at the camper, we all headed out to the stadium.

We had a great day... and we managed to stay warm and fairly dry. (Thank goodness our seats were undercover! The diehards that were in the open were soaked!!) The game was actually pretty good... until the 3rd quarter. What is it about the second half that brings the Beavs down?! It was okay though, because Merilyn fell asleep in my lap for the second half, so I stayed nice and toasty warm while the game fell apart.

Happy Halloween!

Merilyn and Daddy picked out our pumpkins at the field trip to the pumpkin patch. Grandma Sandy got to go along with them this year! She'll probably do more amazing things with her pumpkins... like make delicious pies! (Ours will stay on the porch until December...)

Thank you Gramma Barb for making Meri's costume! It was exactly what she had hoped for! She said she was Jessie from Toy Story, but she didn't really want to have the "Jessie-looking" outfit. She's got to have her own spin on things! :) Ali had been wanting to be a pirate since the summer. (She said her idea came because she loves the Pirates of the Caribbean ride at Disneyland.)

Casey and her family came over for Mom's spaghetti and trick-or-treating through the neighborhood. This year, Charlotte got to join in on the fun! I thought she might make it to 1-2 houses and then go back with Gramma. But, no! She wanted to go everywhere and do everything that the big girls were doing. In fact, when Casey said it was time to go back, little Charlie-Belle was not happy! Gramma was able to convince her to come inside when she brought out the candy...

We can always count on the daddies to not miss a chance to get in on the action... a country hick and a dog catcher. I came home from work and saw a strange man carving a pumpkin on our back porch. It took me several minutes to figure out it was my husband! With the hat on, and his head down, I truly didn't recognize him! Great costume, pa!

Junie B Jones!

Mom found tickets to Junie B Jones... Jingle Bells, Batman Smells! The girls loved it!! We started our day with a wonderful breakfast at Sam's. The girls love a good buffet!

After breakfast, we went to the NW Children's Theater for the performance.

So cute!

After the show, the girls got to meet the actors, and had them sign their programs. Ali brought the book along, and asked all of the characters to sign that!

Merilyn with Junie B Jones!

Ali and Meri with May... Junie's lifelong "enemy"!

The girls with Junie B's "stuffed" elephant.

Of course, after the performance, the girls were starving. Hah! So, we stopped by Red Robin for a quick snack... except for Ali and Natalie, who ordered full-on meals! (Growing girls!?)

Merilyn's First Tooth

Our baby lost her first tooth! It's been wiggly for awhile now, and when it finally came out, she was SO excited! Daddy was the first person we texted with this picture...

Of course, Mommy had to take several more pictures...

And, then Merilyn needed to document the day with her own photos.

Congratulations, Sweetie!

OSU Beaver Game

Well, once again, the Beavs aren't having the best season. But, we're still big fans and we always have fun at the games!! Today's game was even better because we won the first game of the season! Woohoo!

There was a lot of orange going on!

It was a beautiful day in Corvallis. It was sunny - and not too cold. It was the perfect weather for a football game.

Pre-School Begins - September

This is me at my house before we left for school. I was so excited!

I was just about to go inside to see my teacher and my classroom.

My daddy brought me to school today. I was happy that he was with me. My babysitter, Karen was there with Eva. She took a picture of me and Daddy.

This is my friend Charlie. He was in my class last year. We're playing a different kind of blocks... they stick together. Pre-school was wonderful. I love it! By, Merilyn