Merry Christmas and Happy 2 Years

So I am obviously a little behind here. We have just been having too much fun to find the time to edit pictures and then actually type something out. Let me do a recap of the past week starting off by saying that Lucy is finally 100% well and Annie and I escaped getting even a little ill. YEAH!!! Lucy was fine a few days before Christmas and I have never been so relieved to have her back to her normal self. That was one rough week for my sweet girl.

We started out in OK with Justin's side of the family. Lucy and Austen got so much cool stuff - golf clubs, keyboards, dance cams, Little People sets, etc. Lots and lots of goodies. Annie and Jaksen raked in some great toys also, but Lucy did the honors of opening pretty much everything for the little bitties. Nana and Grandy really went above and beyond in the gift department and the kids were in heaven. Cayce had several fun Christmas activities for Lucy and Austen to do and I was so happy about that because Lucy missed out on all of her fun Christmas things we had planned when we were home. They made Christmas sugar cookies and Christmas placemats. These kinds of things are right up Lucy's alley.

Late Christmas Eve we left OK to head to my parent's house. We have done all of our driving during the girls' bedtime. It has worked out great so far. Annie has slept the entire time and Lucy has slept and watched some movies. We were kind of late getting up Christmas morning because the girls were up so late. Lucy was still kind of asleep when she came down and found her Santa presents. She just sat in Justin's lap and checked everything out. She was definitely happy with what Santa brought her - an ironing board and iron, cash register, broom set, mailbox, etc. Lucy and John played in the toys for a while and we all ate breakfast. Then it was time for all of the presents from this side of the family. Again, a zillion things for all of the kids. It was crazy. Lots of great books, puzzles, dolls, a Barbie laptop, a scooter, and dress up shoes. Lucy just adores opening presents, so she has loved all of this activity.

We have just been playing and having a lot of fun with our families. Lucy has once again, been VERY slow to open up to her cousin, John, but starting yesterday we are seeing some improvement. Annie is the center of attention all of the time and she has just loved it. She is so easy going and relaxed now. Still having sleep issues, but I know that will get better with time. She is such a joy to have around and everyone cannot get enough of her.

I have become 100% obsessed with Rock Band. Seriously, I love it. We all kind of do, except for my mom. Of course Justin rocks out on the drums at expert level and can nail it, but the rest of us are improving. I prefer either the guitar or bass, but I am not scared to belt out the vocals. Let's just say I have no chance at a career as a vocalist! :) It is so much fun and we are all not getting nearly enough sleep because we are staying up late and playing.

Finally and most importantly, yesterday was our 2 year anniversary of Lucy's Giving and Receiving Ceremony in Vietnam. 2 years since the queen of the house moved in. Unbelievable. Life would not be anywhere near as fun without her with us everyday. Lucy, you are funny, intelligent, a great big sister, and our baby girl. We love you so much. You are such a blessing.

I am going to have to break the pictures down into several different posts. I will start with the ones from OK and keep catching up over the next few days. I hope you all had a lovely holiday season filled with love and laughter.

Getting started on the Christmas cookies.




Everyone should try the icing to make sure it is okay. :)






Annie and Jaksen - they are basically the exact same size even though there are almost 5 months between them.


Opening one present the night before - precious jammies and a movie from Nana and Grandy.


Present opening professional.