Christmas 2009

The joys of Christmas with a two-year-old. And yes, we made it through in one piece. All and all Daniel had a great time and seemed to get the concept pretty well. We did of course have the moment that he thought all the presents under the tree were his but he quickly got it that it wasn't true and went on his merry way.

On Christmas Eve, Daniel and I went skiing in the morning (see post below) and made Santa cookies and his gingerbread train in the afternoon.

In the evening we stopped over at a friend's house but before we went, Daniel had to call Santa to find out where he was....

Christmas morning brought a happy little boy who enjoyed all his presents (Thanks everyone!!!)

"Did He Come??"

"My Stockings!!!"

And of course opening presents....

By the end of the day, I had two exhausted and happy boys......

Merry Christmas to All and to All a Good Night!

Skiing...

We have a local ski mountain in the town next to us and on Christmas Eve and yesterday Daniel started his first sets of skiing lessons. All and all he did very well and with the help of his friends spent almost two hours out on the slopes (with a break in between). Here are some cute photos of our little skier and him coming down the mountain, which by the way, he did a little by himself a couple of times.

"Getting on the Magic Carpet"

"Standing All By Himself"


"Going Down"


(Sorry for the graininess. It was a little cold that day and the camera had its own mind.)

From Our Home to Yours.....

What A Difference A Year Makes

Last year, this is what our sleigh riding experience mounted to....http://dukerdiary.blogspot.com/2008/12/sleigh-riding.html

However, one year later, this is what our sleigh riding experience mounted to...Bigger Hill and one Happy Boy!

Don't You Wish You..

Had this kind of energy first thing in the morning....

Santa Success!!!

After Mike's failed attempt to get Daniel to visit Santa at a "Breakfast with Santa" event, we decided to try once again today. Luckily our local nursery was offering free photos with Santa today and this is what happened...

SUCCESS!

He even spoke and told Santa what he wanted which was a new Rudolph book.

And I just want to say, I am two for two in getting Daniel to "visit" these types of icons. Last Spring I got him to sit on the Easter Bunny's lap and as you can see today was a huge step. And yes, I am very proud of myself and him.

Snow Anyone??

Baking Christmas Cookies....

with a two-and-a-half-year-old is an adventure. And why did I think this was a good idea?? Oh I know - it is just plain fun for the two-and-a-half-year-old.

Just take a look.....

"Flour, Check"

"Butter, Check"


"Let's Turn This Puppy On!"

"Looking Good to Me!!"

"Roll, Roll, Roll"

"Into the Oven They Go!"

"Cookies All Done"

The Joys of Homeownership...

With being in our new home for a little over a month now we can honestly see why the phrase "The Joys of Home ownership" was coined. So as a public service we like to offer these little tidbits:

1) As great as hardwood floors are, they are a pain in the rear to keep clean;

2) Don't ever let your two-year-old hold and look at holiday bubble lights cause when they break, and they will break, the red in them WILL stain your hardwood floors;

3) When making stuffing in your KitchenAid, make sure that the KitchenAid is turned off and the beaters are down before you plug it in cause if not you will "beat" yourself in the face with the beater;

4) When cutting flowers, make sure you cut the stems, not your hand;

5) When changing the shower head, make sure you don't crank off the old shower head off cause it will break off in the wall;

6) Make sure you always check your slop sink to insure that nothing could clog the drain that your washing machine drains into. If not, your slop sink will overflow and leave you with a basement with a 1/2 inches of water;

7) And when you are trying to avoid your spouse and your child on the stairs, don't try and jump over them cause you will hit your head on the I-beam and split your head open;

Other than that, home ownership is GREAT!!