Spiritual Thought: He is the Gift

For family home evening the other night, we watched this video recently put out by the Church. It's really well done, has beautiful music and a sweet, simple message. Em loved watching it and I'm sure we will watch it many more times this holiday season. I hope you take a moment to watch it if you haven't already. Enjoy.

#sharethegift

Christmas Trees and Santa Claus

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas over here!

We finally got around to getting our Christmas tree last week. We always do a live one and we just went to Home Depot this year. Probably should have gone to the Christmas tree farm again because Em had a blast just at Home Depot!

She wasn't sure about this big balloon.

She found this random stick on the ground and spent the next half hour pretending it was a walking stick. She kills me.

Every time she saw a little tree, she had to hug it!

Oops, dropped her stick down there!

We also went to Hallmark to pick out a keepsake ornament. It's a long-standing tradition. More on that later :)

And {surprise!} we went to the Woodlands last weekend. We totally weren't planning on going anywhere, but stuff happened. We have been scouring Craigslist for the past few weeks looking for Em's Christmas gift, and we finally found one last week. So we jumped in the car to go get it.

It ended up being a really great weekend. We spent time with my godparents et al. and as a bonus, we got some unexpected time with Hans' parents, brother, and niece. Mostly, it involved eating. Why is that all you do when you're with family? But we seriously had the best time.

He's all smiles here, but he wasn't all smiles for Santa

Once again, why does she do these silly things? She is so funny

Oh, just doin' a little shopping! She could barely carry the bag, but wouldn't let anyone take it from her.

She absolutely adores her cousin. Didn't want to leave her side for one second.

Oma and Opa with two out of three granddaughters = pure happy!

We also took Em to see Santa for the first time. I fully expected a meltdown (let's be real, Ryan was NOT a fan of Santa on his turn), but sweet girl did so well!

She seemed a little nervous, but she just kinda stared at him at first and then ended up smiling so great for her photo! I'm a proud mama. Though a little disappointed I don't get the bad Santa photo hahaha.

I love this holiday season!! Hope you all are having a wonderful time, too.

Mama Monday: Santa, what?

Happy Monday, friends!

We had a crazy adventure this weekend and I'm a bit loopy with sleep deprivation. So I'll keep this short and sweet today.

Let's talk Santa. Last year Em was too little for us to even really think about Santa, but this year Hans and I have been discussing it with each other a lot. Is she too young to start the "Santa thing?" How do we introduce her to the idea? And how does Santa... work, exactly?

I've asked several mama friends what's their take on how to handle it. Here's what I've heard:

• Santa's presents aren't wrapped. He brings them in his sack!
• If you're going to wrap Santa presents, have a special "Santa Paper" that's different than what you use for your other gifts.
• Santa brings just one gift, usually the "biggest" toy.
• Santa brings lots of gifts, and mom and dad just give one or two

So basically... we've heard all ends of the spectrum. And so I'm putting it to you! How do you "do" Santa in your house?

I think our plan right now is to have Santa bring the big toy. We originally planned to do the special Santa wrap, but the gift is large size so we'll probably just stick a big bow on it.

As for the other gifts, we were given some advice we really like about sticking to a four-gift rule: something you want, something you need, something to wear (we might make this "play with"), something to read. I think this covers a good spectrum and will, hopefully, keep me from going overboard :)

Don't know if this is where I first heard the idea, but it's one that I pinned from Jones Designs

And that Elf on the Shelf guy? This mama nails how I feel about it.

Scary Mommy: Elf On the Shelf is Not Going to Happen

 Lazy mama, peace out.

Love List: Christmas books!

1. The Night Before Christmas
The seems to be the favorite so far. We read it three times just today! It's the classic poem with great illustrations. Em especially likes the part in the middle where you first see Santa - it folds out to a four page spread. I think you can't go wrong with this one and it'll be enjoyed by kids of any age.

2. Santa's Favorite Story
This is a close second favorite! Figures she likes the big girl books best. I see ripped pages in our future. She just wants to flip through this all day. I think she really likes the illustrations in this one. I like that it has Santa, but it also really focuses on the Christ part of Christmas. Another recommendation for all ages.

3. Olivia Helps with Christmas
How can you go wrong with Olivia? This one sure had mommy and daddy laughing. It's a good perspective on Christmas from a little one's point of view. Another solid Olivia book.

4. Bear Stays Up For Christmas
This one's really cute! Very short and simple. There's not a whole lot to the story, mostly just cute woodland creatures getting ready for Christmas day. It's a quick, easy read and has a sweet message about being with those you love on Christmas.

5. What is Christmas?
Another very simple, Christ-centered book. I think this is perfect for Em right now because it tells the story of Christ's birth in the most basic terms. I do think that it has a shelf-life... it's good for the littlest of littles, but I don't see her reading this year after year like I do some of the others.

It's a solid start to our Christmas library. Please let me know what your favorite holiday books are!

Turkey coma, family visit, and other things

Welcome back to our regularly scheduled catch-up sesh. How was your Thanksgiving? Ours was both wonderful, though it had a few bumps.

We started our Thanksgiving with our new-ish tradition of running the Turkey Trot with a few thousand of our closest friends. 

I probably look more excited than I felt. But I was more excited than Hans - he came down with a bad stomach bug the night before, but insisted we run anyway.

Em was all bundled up and riding in style! At least it wasn't nearly as freezing as last year. 

Since we didn't want Hans to puke, we had to walk a lot more than we have in previous years. I rudely left them the last two miles so I could run and still finished in 1:04. Not as good as last year, but not bad for how much walking we did!

Hans' parents came from Panama and Em couldn't be happier.

Em had lots of time to read with her Oma.

Saturday we went to the Chuy's Children Giving to Children parade. We have never been before and it was so fun! We all had a great time.

It's Curious George, of course!

She really was having fun, I swear...

Hans' favorite float, for obvious reasons :)

Waving Hi to the firemen

Every year we do a live tree and we haven't quite gotten around to getting it yet, what with Hans still not feeling great. We will put that one in the dining room and gate that room off because I have a feeling our little monkey would tip it over. But it made me sad not to have a tree in the family room anymore, so I got a little fake on to put on a table (up high, away from tiny hands). We call this one "Emma's tree" and let her decorate it the other night. I can't believe how engaged she was in decorating it. Very serious business.

 And since Oma and Opa were there, we were able to sneak out for a little late night movie. Huuuun-ger Games! Loved it.

Christmas Cash Giveaway!

Good morning, dear friends!
Today I am very excited to announce another fun giveaway, brought to you by my lovely, dear friend at Mr. and Mrs. Powell.

In case you haven't seen my million other posts about her, Karina is married to my godbrother, Aaron, and their sweet little boy is just a couple months older than Em. We are already planning their wedding. We will just have to get them to understand by that point that they are not actually blood-related cousins, just "cousins."

But I digress. Karina is hosting an amazing giveaway starting today, meant to jump start your Christmas shopping. One lucky reader will score a $250 visa gift card to help with all those holiday splurges. How do I keep this prize for myself?? So enter below, good luck, and happy shopping!

Giveaway brought to you by:

Mr. and Mrs. Powell  ||  Em & Me  ||  Style Elixir  ||  Ellie Love

Ry Diaries  ||  Simply Mars  ||  Southern Mama + Child  || Sweet Sunlight Style  || Nelson Notes

   Good to be a Gilbert  ||  Les Dedrickson  ||  Silver Lining  ||  Words About Waverly  ||  He and I

Giveaway will run for 1 WEEK and end December 9th at 11:59 PM CST!
Good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Mama Monday: Top 10 picks for toddler christmas gifts

Can you believe it's December?? I feel like it snuck up on me. Then again, I almost always feel that way. And with Christmas less than four weeks away, I need to get my butt in gear.

In case you're a first time mama (or daddy) and trying to figure out some gifts for your little one, I put together a little list of our top 10 picks for toddler gifts. I'd say the age range on these is up to 18 months. I don't have any books on this list because those are always my number one request for any gift. Last year my dad sent a whole box of books that were mine when I was little - totally awesome gift. But besides books, any of these would make a great gift for a toddler.

1. Activity Center 

There are a ton of these type toys out there - they have different activities with shapes, colors, numbers, music, lights, and fine motor skills. 

We picked the Fisher-Price Learning Home and have not regretted it. I mean, what kid doesn't love just opening and closing a door?! She also loves playing with the mailbox, opening and putting in mail, and shutting the door. You can drop balls through a shoot, turn the light off and on, open and shut the window, spin the clock, numbers, and flower, and it has two shape sorters. And the music always makes her shake it. Other kids that come over always love playing with it. Even after a year of owning it, she plays with it almost every day.

Bonus: I saw this on Black Friday sale at Toys R Us for $45. What?! That's a killer deal.

2. Cozy coupe 

This is probably her favorite toy to date. I suppose any ride along toy would work, but there is just something about that red and yellow car that just can't be matched. From day one, she's been in love. I like that you can put the bottom in when they are little so their feet don't drag, and then take it out as they get older. I've found that kids like to both ride and push each other, and it works great both in the house and outside.

3. A walker

Em was just about to start walking last Christmas, so we got her this V-tech walker.

I really think it helped her gain some confidence to take her first steps. You should have seen how proud of herself she was able to cross the room on her feet by herself. We thought this toy would only be good while she learned to walk, but we have been surprised that it's still one of her favorites, even at 21 months. Sometimes she will sit down in front of it and just play with the gears, keys, puzzle pieces and lights/sounds for 15 minutes straight (which is a lot for our kiddo!) And let's not forget running. I think that's been a theme in this list, but now that she has discovered running it's so much more fun to push this thing. I'm very pleased how this one has aged with her and continues to be one of her favorites day after day.

4. Little People sets

We have the Fun Sounds Farm edition and love it. Granted, the lamb bleeting noise is super annoying, but it's bearable. It comes with a farmer and several animals. Em likes to play gallop them across the floor and open the doors to tuck them safely inside. She also loves sending these down the silo to trigger the sounds. And for some reason, she just loves carrying them around everywhere. For the longest time, the farmer (we call him "Farmer Dan") went everywhere with us. She just liked to hold him in the car, at the grocery store, at church. They are the perfect size for little hands.

5. Pull Toys

Another great toy for new walkers! Em has this roll and learn turtle from v-tech. At first, you could tell she was really interested in the mechanics of it all. "I pull this... and he's... following me?" And now she gets sheer joy from rocketing around the house with him flying behind her. Simple toy, great fun.

6. Baby dolls

I'll just start by saying, these aren't just great toys for girls. Little ones like to copy their mommies and what better way than to mimic how mommy takes care of a baby?

We like this rosy cheek baby doll. She's so soft and sweet. When we first received her (Em was only 9 months old) she was fascinated by her little tuft of hair. As she learns words, she likes to point out the baby's eyes, nose, mouth, etc. My favorite is when I see her read to her baby. It's about once a day now that she looks at me and just asks "Baby?" and we have to go find it. I'm not sure this one will ever get old - it's so sweet to watch.

7. Hammer peg toy

What's not to like? Take out any aggression you might have on a little peg! Bang bang bang! But really, it's great for motor development and coordination. And littles love that noise.

We like this one from Ikea.

8. Puzzles

Puzzles make a great quiet time activity and I like that they encourage coordination and pattern recognition.

Em's favorite is this wooden farm one from Melissa and Doug, though they have several others we like as well. It's also great for learning animals (and other skills).

9. Blocks

Not just for kids. What is it about blocks that is just so fascinating? I love playing with them, too!

We received two sets of these B Toys blocks and they are my favorite. I love the colors and the sides of them are covered with numbers, animals, shapes, and patterns. They are soft and rubbery which is perfect for when baby chews on them and when they get thrown at you (as happened tonight, actually...) Since she got them for Christmas last year, she has LOVED the destructive part. We will build a tower and she will crow with glee as she knocks it over. Now she can stack them all up herself so she gets to enjoy both ends of the process.

10. Balls

This one seems almost too simple and obvious, but you seriously can't go wrong with a good ball. Em has so many and we keep them in every room of the house and in the car.

Our favorite is this large spiky ball from Target - she holds it during car rides and it's our favorite one for parks. We have a budding soccer player on our hands. I also recommend smaller ones for summer time. She loves having a ball to play with in the pool or at the splash pad.

There you have it! I'd say these are easily her favorites and the ones that have stood the test of time. She has other toys, of course, that she plays with periodically, but these are the ones I think she'd really miss if we took away. We are still figuring out what to get her this year, so if you have suggestions for tots in the 2-3 year age range, please let me know in the comments below!