People have been asking me lately what I am craving. Well, here they are. Every morning I mix Cherry 7-up and Orange Juice. It is so good! Thankfully I have cut out all caffeine (except the occasional chocolate).
I also love Smartfoods White Cheddar popcorn. Yummy! If only your fingers didn't get so dirty.
And, of course, I am also craving any kind of baked goods. So So Bad! It was awful having all that birthday cake in the house this weekend.
My dad took Avery and Sterling to his company Christmas party (for children) on Saturday before Sterling's birthday party. They had a great time--received a present from Santa, made a cute snowman out of a sock, and had some goodies. Here they are before they left.
Whew! 289 Christmas Cards are in the mail. I'm so glad they are done. I do love this tradition--especially receiving pictures of family and friends. I did a Christmas letter several years ago, but just haven't taken the time in the past couple of years. Most of the cards (184) I sent out are for our business customers. I still think it's nice to pass on good cheer during the holiday season and let our customers know we appreciate them.
Also, I ran out of Christmas stamps at the end of our personal family cards. I sent Juan to the post office and he came back with Liberty Bell stamps. I really wanted Christmas stamsp, but I guess they will do just fine. Oh well. He said he had never bought stamps before.
I was trying to go "light" this year on the Christmas decorations because I'm getting bigger everyday and just don't want to think about having to put them away when I'm even bigger. Here are pictures of the decor:
CHRISTMAS TREE - I need to try to take a better picture of the tree.
Every year since Juan and I have been married, my Aunt Karen has always given us an ornament. Here are pictures of some of my favorite ornaments (not all are from Aunt Karen, but many are):
FAVORITE ORNAMENTS Teddy Bear Door Knocker with our name engraved (for our first home purchase that year) from Aunt Karen Our First Christmas Together - 1997 (Year we were married) from Aunt Karen Sugared Fruit - I have several of these in pears and apples. Christmas Tree Pretty Green Egg Shaped Ornament Baby's 1st Christmas Book(Avery) - From Aunt Karen Baby's 1st Christmas opened SLAH Sacred Symbol Ornament
Whew! I just finished playing the "tooth fairy." I was a nervous wreck afraid that Avery would wake up. She was so excited that the tooth fairy was coming, and I didn't want to spoil it for her. It all started over Thanksgiving weekend--my mom discovered that she had 2 permanent teeth coming in behind her cute little baby teeth. I can't believe I hadn't noticed them before or she didn't say anything.
Avery has always been upset that she hasn't lost any teeth (and some of her friends have). Well, she ended up at the dentist yesterday and had to have 2 pulled. I kind of thought they would have taken the other 2 beside, but our dentist didn't think they needed to be pulled. She did say that her tongue should push the new teeth forward. I hope so or we are going to need some serious braces! Her are pictures:
BEFORE -
RIGHT AFTER AT THE DENTIST -
And, here is Avery's sweet letter to the Tooth Fairy:
Merry Chrismis Hi from Avery! Hope you like my first teeth! Can you ask my mom for a picture of you! I have a tooth fairy pillow so you can go! Love, Avery
OK, I'm a little behind. We just seem to be so busy lately, and the holidays are right around the corner. I did get the photos taken and the Christmas cards ordered. And, I got some Christmas shopping done yesterday (online). I think most of my purchases will be online this year. I just don't feel like dealing with crowds. And, most merchants have some sort of shipping deal. Here's the list for the kiddos: Avery - Nintendo DS Lite 3 Games for Nintendo Bicycle (she outgrew her little 12" bicycle. I just can't stand to see her ride it anymore Digital Camera (something inexpesive, but pink) Candyland board game (her request)
Sterling - Leapster2 (I hope he will enjoy this and is not too little). Thomas game for Leapster Tool Bench with tools Lil' Quad motorized Bike
I also might pick up a few smaller items at Target (stocking stuffers, etc.)
My Christmas gifts are on the way. We just purchased new office furniture and living room furniture. I'm so excited. I can't wait for it to get here. We've also been busy hanging new ceiling fans and light fixtures. We finally hung Sterling's baseball fan that we bought last year. Sterling is so proud of his new fan. Now, if only he would sleep in his room! We are still debating changing the fan in the family room and entryway. The only issue with those is scaffolding would have to be rented and its sort of a pain. But, those lights are so ugly. Also, we broke 2 of the light bulbs inside the fan, so we only have two lights that light up. It looks really attractive! But, what can you do--it's way to high to reach even with a ladder. I'll try to add some pictures of the furniture. I'll definately add some when we get the rooms all ready.
Oh, I've also been busy getting the baby's room ready. I sure hope we get the room painted this weekend. I'm so ready to start setting up. I have started buying diapers. And, the bedding has arrived from Pottery Barn. I went with the Kasey Navy. I am 29 weeks now!! And, drinking water has really helped with my swelling and achy joints. My blood pressure also seems to be holding steady too. It won't be long now.
Here's a picture of Avery at her school 50's day. Doesn't she look cute!!
And, here's a picture of Big Boy Sterling!
Also, I just posted Halloween pictures. Whew! I think I'm caught up. Kind of, I'm sure I forgot something.
Juan's 37th Birthday was last Monday (10/20). He can't believe he is only 13 years from being 50. Time is flying! We didn't really do much for his birthday, just went out to eat out New Orleans Seafood Kitchen.
Wednesday I baked Halloween cookies on a stick - ghosts, cats, & pumpkins. I wasn't so happy with the icing. I am still in search of a good icing recipe that will harden on cookies (but not too hard).
Thursday I baked for the Teacher Appreciation Luncheon. I baked an Elegant Pumpkin Pecan Pie and Pumpkin cupcakes. The cupcakes were the best! The recipe was on the cover of the Family Circle magazine. I will definitely make those again. Here are some pictures.
Avery came home early from school on Thursday with a sore throat and fever. Thankfully it was not strep throat. Surprisingly, she has never had strep. Sterling ran a low grade fever and Friday, and I had a sore throat, too. I guess it's just a virus we all caught.
Avery went to a Halloween party at a local park. She had lots of fun. Here is a picture of her in her Barbie Mariposa costume. Sterling, the cowboy, stayed at home because of his fever.
Here is a quick update on the pregnancy. I am actually starting to feel better. I am not as tired as I used to be. I had a doctor's visit on Friday, August 22. I am 15 weeks. Heartbeat sounded great, and 4 vials of blood were drawn for testing. Everything is progressing well. I can't wait to find out the sex!!! I don't even have any guesses??
Boy the summer sure has flown by! I didn't even have time to add any new posts. So, this is my attempt to try to fill in on the summer events. I will try to post the pictures shortly.
Vacation - June 23 to June 28: We took a trip to Cancun, Mexico. It was a lot of fun, but not exactly what we thought. We did not do the all-inclusive package, so we were on our own as far as food. Food and bottled water were very expensive. Breakfast buffet was $22.00 / person & a liter of Evian at the hotel was $10.00! Avery and Sterling had a lot of fun at the beach and pool. It was very pretty, and it was great to get away!
Fourth of July - We went to the neighborhood parade. Sterling loved it! Avery and Sterling each got tattoos. We then went to Columbus and had dinner and watched the fireworks.
July 12 - We had a small gathering of school friends over to celebrate Avery's 6th birthday. The girls all painted their own ladybug bank. We also enjoyed "ladybug" treats and opened presents.
July 14-18 - Avery had a wonderful experience at Vacation Bible School. She really did enjoy herself and learned about Jesus. She can't wait to go next year. And, Sterling is ready, too!
August 6-7 - Juan was on vacation this week. We spent the night in San Marcos. We had a nice dinner and did a little shopping at the outlets. The following day we spent at Schlitterbahn. It really was a lot of fun. They had a lot of stuff even for little children. Schlitterbahn has grown so much since I was there years ago. We definately plan on going back.
