Sunday, November 27, 2011

Time to Decorate

I had told Hunter that we would start decorating for Christmas the day after Thanksgiving. Hunter was ready at 5:30 am the morning after Thanksgiving. So, still in our PJ's, we began decorating. We slowly got everything out and put up. Mackenzie was so tired from Thanksgiving that she took an early nap. This helped us get a lot done. Hunter was really into decorating. The excitement was a little too much at times. I ended up asking him if he would make some decorations. He began coloring and creating. (I am going to have to find a way to hang these creations up or I am going to find them hanging up in random places with. Piece of tape at his eye level. Pinterest will have some ideas I am sure.) What a great day! Adameven put more than 1 ornament on the tree. I got into my PJ's on Thursday night and didn't get out of them until Saturday morning. I have never done that before, but I think we have discovered a new family tradition for the day after Thanksgiving.
Note to self for next year:
1. Get out the art supplies and Christmas crafts before getting the Christmas decoration boxes out. Put Hunter to work on his creations.
2. Stay in my PJ's for the day.
3. Instead of stressing about getting the decorations up quickly, do a little at a time. Stop and make memories with the kids while decorating. It may take an extra day or two to get the task done...but the memories that are made will last longer than any of the decor that is hanging on the walls.

Friday, November 25, 2011

Thanksgiving 2011

I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE, Thanksgiving!!! I did extend the invite to anyone and everyone. However, we did have the whole week off from school, and a lot of people went out of town due to this extended week off.
So...Thanksgiving ended up being the "original 7", Dave and Michelle Legried, Kevin, Jayme, and Hayden Deardorff, Kathy Tobin, and ourselves. I was looking forward to a small and quiet day for some reason.
Adam stayed home from work and helped out with the kids. Getting everything in the turkey and in the oven can be difficult. Having him around was very helpful. I enjoy doing the cooking on this special day and spending time with the ones I love most. I can't tell you how many times I walked out of the house just to be hit with the aroma of all of the goodness cooking in the oven when I would come back in.
I did plan a later dinner just in case Adam did have to work (4pm vs. 2pm). There was no rush. However as Dave, my annual turkey carver, was carving the turkey he notices it wasn't ready. Every year I have at least one "oopsie". What an "oopsie" this was!!! We ended up putting the carved pieces into the oven and cooking them a little longer. It put dinner off a little, but it worked. Note to self for next year: buy a turkey breast instead of a whole turkey; pay attention to BOTH the time AND temperature. Dinner was a hit and the company was even better. Hunter and Kathy made crepes for dessert. It was a great day.

Wednesday, November 23, 2011

Hitching a ride

Mackenzie loves hitching a ride with Hunter on his firetruck. This can be a little aggravating for him at times. He solved this problem by adding the tricycle to the back. Problem solved!

Sunday, November 13, 2011

Happy Birthday...Again

Hunter's birthday celebration was this weekend. The Burke kids' birthdays are so close to his that we, as we did last year, decided to go in together on a combined party.
Time: After Lunch
Place: Adrenaline Naples (a combination of MyGym, Monkey Joes, and a gymnastics gym).
Who is invited: Any and all kids that have energy.
Follow-up Activity (for those teachers out there reading this): NAPS
The kids had a blast jumping, sliding, and riding around. Mackenzie is not scared of anything. Adam even took her up the slide and slid down with her. She had a rather confused look afterwards, but no tears. Lots of fun!

Celebrating 60 Years

Great Aunt Sallie enjoying mom's new addition on to the house and peeping through the window.
All the grandbabies with Papa and Mawmaw enjoying our birthday feast.

Briley decided he wanted to be a present for Papa.
Uncle Jeff and Mawmaw looking on as Papa opens his presents.
Aunt Rhonda, Lindsay, and Martha posing for a pic.
Briley really got into the present opening.
After the party Mackenzie decided to take it easy with Papa.


This morning we began the day by waking Papa up with all of the babies and singing "Happy Birthday". Mackenzie made some noises mimicking our sounds. She is really picking up a lot words lately. This morning I pointed to Papa and asked her to say, "Papa". With no hesitation, she said, "Pa-pa". Other than Mama and Dada, she hasn't been clear with any of her other words. This was perfect. His face lit up and all of our hearts melted. Throughout the day whenever asked who he was, she would point and say, "Papa". Talk about the best birthday present ever.

Overall, she really hasn't let anyone pick her up. She has been clingy to me, but does wander off to play with the babies. However, no other adults have been able to pick her up without her putting up a little fight. Papa is the ONLY adult she has gone to without hesitation. She will sit in his lap and listen to him whistle or sing. She is his "little lady".

We invited the family over to celebrate his birthday. In the morning, we noticed he was being a little withdrawn and were worried that he wouldn't do well with so many people in the house. As people arrived, he was involved in conversation and didn't seem overwhelmed at all. What a blessing!!! He enjoyed the celebration and everyone's company. I am so glad I am here to be apart of this celebration.

Saturday, November 12, 2011

Playing around

They gather around like little birds waiting to be fed. I was feeding them grapes, and I couldn't get it in their mouths fast enough.
Briley pulling Mackenzie in the little red wagon.

Evan wasn't too happy about one of Mackenzie's decisions.
The babies and Papa "coming out of the closet".

The little people are really starting to warm up to one another. It is so much fun to see them interact with one another. Some of there characteristics reflect our characteristics. See below for further explanation:
Evan-He looks exactly like Sara. He loves to "talk", and not just a quiet jibber-jabber. When we sing, he joins right in, and at the end of each song he raises his hands above his head and says , "Yeah!!!" It has been funny to watch him react to Mackenzie's presence. He is the "alpha" baby when it is just the 2 boys, but Mackenzie is testing those boundaries. He has been giving her some really funny looks. It is almost like he is thinking, "I don't know who you are and why you are here, but this is not the way things go around here." Really funny to watch unfold.
Briley- Has a good mixture of his mom and dad's features. He is the baby that tends to have the "whatever" attitude with everything. If Mackenzie and Evan are having a little conflict, you will see him shy away from the situation. When singing, he just sits there and occasionally will jump in with a clap or a "yah". When he walks, he looks like a cowboy who has just gotten back from a long ride. He has the cutest little laugh and HATES bathes and is disliking naps at the moment.
Mackenzie - Last but not least...she is defiantly a girl! She walks on her toes at times. I thinks she is just preparing for dance one day. She does try to share, but when it comes to her blanket or Violet (her stuffed BFF) there is no sharing happening. When we sing, she joins right in and mimics our mouths with hers. She does as many of the hand motions as she can. When told to put something up or she sees something in a wrong place she makes sure it is returned in its correct spot. She is the princess of the group and wants things her way.

Nannie's house looks like on Christmas morning. She has transformed the back closet into a play closet. Whenever we can't find someone, the closet is the first place we look. We constantly joke on how the babies are "coming out of the closet". Papa is doing really well and seems to be enjoying everyone. Tomorrow is the birthday party and his birthday. Praying it goes smoothly for him. He can become real withdrawn when large crowds are around. We shall see.

Brrrrrr...

Not so sure about the gloves.

Crunching leaves and trying to figure it out.

These are some pics of Mackenzie enjoying the cooler air in TN. She did keep the mittens on long, but was able to move around pretty well in the large coat (which was one that we wore when we were younger...we being my sisters and I).

Birthday Surprise



Several weeks ago I decides to buy a plane ticket to surprise my dad on his 60th birthday. Due to the prices, we decided it would be best for Hunter to remain in Florida. This broke my heart, but I knew he would be fine with having a "boys weekend" with Adam.
Thanks to the great support of my team, I was able to make it to the airport well before my flight time which was at 4:50 pm. Mackenzie did great on the flight. We arrived in TN by 8 pm. Mom picked us up. Dad was with Martha in Manchester for the week and wouldn't be back until tomorrow. The next morning, Nannie suggested I make bows for Mackenzie and I to wear. We hid behind the door and once he made it into the house we jumped out and started singing "Happy Birthday". He was shocked. His reaction was priceless. The remainder of the day was us sitting and enjoying the babies playing. Mackenzie took a while to warm up, but eventually began to wonder away from me and play.

Thursday, November 3, 2011

The UPS Costume Over Time

2008
2009

2010

2011

Oh how time is flying!!!