The greatest news!

We are absolutely overjoyed by the latest family news!

Curtis & Brittany have been in the adoption application process for months and their positive attitudes and diligent efforts have paid off, THEYARE APPROVED! We are so happy for them, truthfully for all of us, and can't wait to have a new little one in the family.

So I am doing my part and spreading the word!

https://www.itsaboutlove.org/ial/profiles/25001259/ourMessage.jsf

http://curtisbrittany.blogspot.com/

Help us out & wish us luck!

Christmas Numero Uno

A few years ago we started the tradition of celebrating Christmas with my family the Sunday before the actual holiday. Genius! It removes the pressure of a single day where you need to see everyone and be everywhere, we love it. We do dinner and gifts and really get to enjoy the time without having to run to the next house or feel guilty that we aren't doing it all. Genius!

This year Curtis and Brittany were our fantastic hosts! They made a delicious meal, I mean DELICIOUS chicken fricasse. And had quite the spread of snacks and treats. After absolutely stuffing ourselves we opened presents, lots of presents! My mom went a little crazy this year but we aren't complaining.

I love this shot. It started as a totally random moment but I made Ryan re-do for a picture, then the camera wouldn't focus so it took a long time and got pretty awkward!

Dylan fell asleep on the way there so he slept through dinner and you can see in the first few pics that he was a bit cranky from just waking up. Also, he insisted on wearing the tie - so cute!

As part of his crankiness he did not like the sound and feel of ripping the wrapping paper.

Ryan insisted I sit on his lap to open our joint present,
he's so in love with me!

Anna has been dying for an excuse to get Dylan this ladybug.
It's adorable and he loves it!

The bubble choo choo train has been on pretty much non-stop since Dylan got it Sunday. If you have been to my house you can attest to this, NON-STOP!
He loves the train and I love the pics...


I also love his efforts to play with everything at once! In the sled from grandma, playing with the train from grandma and wearing monkey from Curtis & Brittany. At one point the ladybug was in there too but it was collecting too much soap.

My mom made us these awesome aprons.
Don't we look fantastically domestic?

We're so happy grandpa and grandma came this year!
Dylan is thanking them for the cozy hoodie, he's such a sweetie.

This is the book we read the ENTIRE way home, over and over.
Like I mentioned in a previous post - constant sugar high!

Thanks everyone for all the thoughtful and generous gifts.
We had a wonderful night!

Trees, Rinks, Dickens & Gingerbread

We went to the Festival of Trees with my mom and sister a few weeks ago. Dylan wanted to play with all the trees that had toys! He also loved watching the hip-hop dancers, he was totally rockin' with them. I'm telling you he can't sit still when there is a beat! He also ate SIX of these gingerbread men along with Hershey kisses, he's been on a sugar high most of this month. He had fun painting a gingerbread man and making a stained glass ornament too.


The Dickens Festival was fun too! Dylan fell asleep in the car and actually made it through transition to the stroller so he slept for the first hour, it was fantastic! Once he woke up he was on the go. Grandpa was looking at this amazing "playhouse" that Dylan of course fell in love with, well to be honest we all did! We also played in this synthetic snow stuff, it was really weird.

My mom gave us this rink that we had given her 14 years ago and Dylan absolutely loves it! Anna was about his age when we got it and I remember her nicely sitting and watching the pretty ice skaters and listening to the carols. Dylan sees this as an entirely different game and he is not content with simply observing. He loves to take it apart put everything back together, knock down all the skaters in one fell swoop often using the Christmas tree, put his cars on the ice, run over the skaters - basically there is the grand addition of crashing and exploding sounds to this once serene piece. Boys are so awesome!

I was totally a slacker with the Christmas decor this year, it didn't get up until last week. But totally worth the wait. Dylan loves his own little tree and for a few days wanted to hang anything on it that had a string, for example his boots. So funny! I can't tell you how many times I heard "hang on dare?".


I ventured into uncharted territory this year by making homemade gingerbread and it was not a simple task, especially with the "help" of a two year old! But it turned out to be a lot of fun, Dylan loved decorating the house, tree and cookies and it was actually quite tasty. However next year Ryan will not be in charge of buying the candy decor, M&M's and Mike & Ikes - that's it! What? No gumdrops, licorice ropes, red hots, mints, etc. etc....But the end result is still pretty impressive.
Such a good helper!

Flour on the face, floor, you name it!

Our supplies...

Cutting the cookies & snitching the candy. I love the "who me?" face.

When Dylan broke this one he said "sorry gingerbread man leg".

Yeah ~ Our masterpiece is complete!!

Oh and a funny story that I don't want to forget...Dylan was at my moms house a couple of weeks ago and she had her tree with wrapped presents under it (she is very on top of things for Christmas!) and he took one over to her and said "open book?" - and it really was a book for him! Clever kiddo :D

Anniversary Extravaganza

I guess to us EXTRAVAGANZA means...

Self taken pics in front of our Christmas Tree.

Posing in my awesome leather jacket - thanks Ry!

Driving to dinner.

Dining at our favorite restaurant ~ Cafe Trio.

Pretty much a perfect night out!

Dylan's December Doings

This kid is hilarious - I am not exaggerating even a little bit!

The many faces in these pics don't even begin to portray his personality!

It's amazing to me how seemingly overnight he has started speaking in full sentences, and not just repeating what we say (although he does a lot of that too!) but actually taking what we say and forming his own sentence. Some of my favorite things are "hinga" (finger), "put on dere" (put it on there), "I dun lika" (I don't like it), "heno"(hello, he answers the phone heno mama), "kissmas" (Christmas), "hlease" (please), he says all of his shapes, numbers and colors so cute, "watch a show", "sicka" (sticker), "my turn" or "din turn" (Dylan's turn), "goo clues" (Blues Clues), "fassa" (faster), "bizzy" (Dizzy, he is always bizzy when he dances), "koo koo hlock" (Cuckoo clock, in reference to any clock), grunting when he flexes his muscles, "gabba gabba" (Yo Gabba Gabba, loves that show), "watch me", "kayzee" (crazy, he loves us to drive crazy), "reay set go" (when he wants you to go do something for him), "ball ceral" (kix), "apple ceral" (apple jacks), "canna" (camera), "sawich" (sandwich), "pack pack" (backpack), "ouside" (outside), "what doing?" (what are you doing), "i luh you" (I love you) "gimmie dat" (give me that), "I wanna" (I want it), "fwing" (swing) "Din" (Dylan, he references himself in the third person).

I dun lika is one of my favorites and most often heard, for example when I am trying to find out what he wants to eat it goes like this...
Me: Dylan do you want chicken for lunch?
Dylan: No mama, I dun lika chicken
Me: Ok do you want a sandwich?
Dylan: No, I dun lika sawich.
Me: What about a quesadilla?
Dylan: No, I dun lika quasadilla.
Me: Do you want cheese?
Dylan: No mama, I dun lika cheese.

I make him chicken.

My other favorite is "what doing?"
Dylan: What doing mama?
Me: Working on my computer, what are you doing?
Dylan: Din working fire truck.

He is not playing, he is working too!

*********

On the look-out

In "Dylan's House" and swinging


Lots and lots of swinging!

He spends so much time in this pot! His latest game is to start the singing Christmas toys we have (a penguin and Pooh Bear) run to the pot, climb in and to sit in the pot to watch them, then he does it all over again!


And in this basket. He loves to put the lid on and hide from us.

Or just chill and watch a show.


Thank you for making every day more exciting, unpredictable and fun little Dilly!