Winter Wonderland

The day after Christmas we were able to enjoy some winter weather!! We probably had ~6 inches of snow and it provided a beautiful backdrop for a day outside. Saela and Asher played in the snow and made snow angels while Daddy, Grandpa Ellwein and I shoveled the driveway. We then used a garbage lid as a makeshift sled and did some *sledding* in our backyard. We all enjoyed the sledding - especially Daddy er uh I mean the kids. ;)

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The snow is nearly melted and we are expecting 50-60 degree weather tomorrow for New Year's Day 2011! We are ringing in the New Year with good friends, laughter and love. Stay tuned in the next few days for our *New Year's Letter." With love and God's Blessings from our house to yours - HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Christmas Day 2010

Everyone waiting to come downstairs to see if Santa came?!?


Hmm...what else can I get into?


Saela in one of her many Dora outfits...she loved them all!
She wore one t-shirt for 48 hours.
Yes, if you're doing the math - that means she wore basically
the same outfit for 2 days with no bath.
Stellar parenting.
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We had a very nice relaxing day - for the most part in our PJs. We started out with stockings. There was an envelope in Saela's stocking with her name on it and she yelled out, "I got hair!" Grandpa Ellwein looked mighty confused until I explained that when she got her haircut last summer, we put a few small pieces into a similar envelope with her name on it. She must have thought she was getting some more hair!?! It was truly comical and amazing that she made that connection. Asher had a little more fun with his own toys and so there were less tantrums to be had. We managed to keep Jilly out of the chocolate for the whole day - and now that has all been polished off - so no more worries about her. We had a nice dinner after the kids woke up from their nap and then spent the rest of the day hanging out and watching it snow. We went to church on Christmas Eve without our coats and then stayed in to watch a winter wonderland develop on Christmas Day. How perfect is that? From our house to yours we hope you had a Blessed Christmas celebrating the birth of Jesus and the beauty of the season.

Christmas Eve 2010

We were fortunate to have my dad visit us this year from South Dakota for Christmas. He came in the Tuesday before and was able to spend a lot of time with the kids for which I am truly grateful. He might be a little "Dora'd Out" though. :)

Saela contemplating what to do next.


Asher was really more interested in Saela's gifts than his own.
He spent much of the evening with this face.



Here's Dad looking at his 2010 photobook!



Instead of cookies...

Saela wanted to celebrate Jesus' Birthday with cupcakes.



The blue frosting turned their poop blue. Nice.

Overall minus a few temper tantrums and the fact that we had to make Jilly vomit the night before due to eating a bag of Godiva dark chocolate we had a wonderful time. We are already looking forward to next year.

Saela's Art

Impressed?

Not really?

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Did I forget to mention...

...that this was during nap time?

In addition to the hands and face...there were markings on her legs and belly too. This was one of those instances where you need to discipline but are biting your cheeks so hard they are bleeding to keep from laughing. Doesn't she look proud!?!

Thanksgiving 2010

I met Steve's family ten years ago on Thanksgiving -

so we decided to take a ten year family picture:

The weekend brought everybody in for cousin Mindy's wedding...
Saela at the rehearsal - she is supposed to be practicing
her walk down the aisle as she was the flower girl.

Asher just hanging out and looking cute as always!

Our little flower girl...following in her mother's footsteps

and refusing to walk down the aisle.

One of our many attempts at a family picture.

Tell us how you really feel Asher.

Saela & Brady

When we first moved from Lansing to Grand Blanc, MI, Saela and Brady shared the same nanny. They saw each other nearly every week day for about 8 months when Saela started regular daycare at one year old. It's amazing to see that she *remembers* him and gets a sweet smile on her face whenever we mention his name. Brady and his family were able to visit in late October and I thought these pictures were too cute to miss...

At this point - Steve intervened telling them they wouldn't be caught like this again for about 20 years. :)

What are You Thankful For?

So, I tend to stress out easily on occasion. If you know me, this is no surprise to you. I am anal. I know it. It is something I have been working on. In some respects, it makes me a very functional person but in others can cause anxiety.

As I sat in my very warm car the other day thinking about what I need to do/accomplish/fit into the day there rode by a clearly homeless person with his 'home' strapped to his bike in below freezing temperatures...and I realized three things that really hit home:

I have never wondered where my

next meal was coming from.

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I have never had to think about where I was going to

sleep at night because I have always had a clean/dry

bed in which to lay my head.

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I have ALWAYS known that I was loved.

There are many people in the world that cannot honestly say these three things.

How very lucky am I?!!

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How lucky are you?!!

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I am so very thankful for so very many things.

God Bless you this holiday season.

Love These Kids!

My first buzz cut...courtesy of Mom!!

Diva Time!

Septemberish

Here are some random pictures from September/early October

On day 1 of potty training...Saela received

some chocolate milk to get the party started!
(I'm happy to report...she mastered the potty VERY quickly!)

Yes, I'm eating off the floor...whatcha gonna do about it?

Teaching Daddy to wash the car.

This is the last time I let Saela

tell Mommy how to do my hair!

Family Reunion

Okay, I know, I'm moving backwards here -

but I just learned how to get the still photographs

off of the video cam - so here we are traveling back in time

to July 24, 2010 and the Ellwein family reunion...

Here are the cousins: Trevor, Jon, Kara,

Emi, Sarah, Jessica, Becky & myself.

Missing from the picture are cousins Nick

and forever missed Lee.

Here is Saela wondering how in the heck

she can get her hands on Kaylee's cupcake.

Here are the kids of the cousins...so the second cousins.


The Children
Uncle Bob, Aunt Roxy, Aunt Roni & my dad Bill


Grandpa Ellwein & Saela...having her first pop!

Here are my kids dashing the hopes of getting a picture

with Grandpa and their cousins Kaylee & Logan.

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The next day we were able to spend time with Dad "touring" South Dakota. I wanted to take the kids to Artesian (where my Mom grew up) and Mitchell (where Dad grew up)...we were able to show them the old houses, playgrounds, the Corn Palace etc. We also visited the graves of my grandparents and even though I know the kids won't remember it - it makes me feel warm inside to know that they have been there.

Elaine & Clifford Ellwein


Gladys & Robert Clyde

I know that they were there that day.
We will see them again.