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Here are some pictures from last week when we were just hanging out at home. Stella was on my back in the mei tai while I was cooking. We've gotten alot better about staying put now that there are three under three. The idea of packing three little ones up for an outing....is just not that tempting. I do leave the house with all three girls to go to MOPs, a play group, and to the gym. However, I have yet to brave some place like Target with all three by myself - why invite the madness if you don't have to right?! All of this extra time at home has also led to more cooking which keeps everyone happy and fed!

The girls just got home this morning from a sleepover at Nana and Papa's house. It sounds like they had a great time. They did, however, convince their grandparents to get up at 5:30 am and have breakfast. That is 2 hours earlier than their normal wake time....maybe this will mean an extra long nap this afternoon...here's hoping!

I'm counting the days until Alex's Christmas break. We save a large portion of his vacation time every year so that he can take off all the days between Christmas and New Year's Eve so he gets a nice long break. It will be so nice to have him home for so many days. I can't WAIT to meet all these new babies that have entered our family in the last two weeks. First we'll go see Alex's cousin in Dallas and then on to meet my two new nephews in Austin. I look forward to the days when all the kids are old enough to run and play and have as much fun as Andrew (my brother) and I did with our cousins. I'm already guessing that the girls and Sawyer (my brother's oldest son) are going to have lots of fun playing together this year.

Well - a baby to feed and breakfast to eat!

Gingerbread Houses

We made gingerbread houses for the first time this year. The kids all thought it was HEAVEN. A table full of candy - with which they had full access to!!!! Needless to say they ate more than they stuck on their houses, but fun was had by all. We were afraid there might be some sick tummies in the middle of the night, but they surprised us and slept just fine.

Thanksgiving Turkey Trot

We started a new tradition this year - running a 5K on the morning of Thanksgiving. The girls think it is so EXCITING to get up early and get all bundled up. This was the second time I had run in nearly a year...so needless to say I was a bit out of practice and some walking was involved. The news said 5-6,000 people ran the Turkey Trot this year. It definitely felt like that many people participated. It never thinned out - we were dodging walkers left and right the entire race...which can be dicey when you're pushing (or I should say Alex was pushing) a triple stroller!

Best Parents (Grandparents) in the World

We visited my parents tonight to help eat up left overs. I know I have said this a million times but my parents are just the best ever. We love to sit in their living room and talk away the hours. Addie and Jazz sang their Christmas program songs for Nana and Papa.

Baby Stella was on her best behavior and smiling for everyone. My dad even held Baby Stella for what seemed like hours. He in not the one to often hold babies but Stella has won his heart over.

Nana got to hold Stella for a few moments. We love their relax style with the children. What better grandparents could a child have. They are considering keeping the twin over night to give us a little break. Should be fun... I feel sorry for young families without grandparents like mine...

Here we are the tired parents catching a few moments of no kid time. They are you guessed it playing with my wonderful parents. Life is good. Merry Christmas... One should always be careful about leaving their blog up at their parents' house - It might get used...

Amy Pennington Family Photos

We had our pictures taken by a local photographer, Amy Pennington, when the girls were just over a year old. Now that they are two and half - we decided it was time to do it again. I love that she'll come and photograph you in your home...makes life much easier!!!

(Apparently, this is the month of photos - first Amy's, then Nate's, and in a few weeks we'll be photographed by Randy Bacon as a family for one of my mom's projects).

Here are our photos from a few weekends ago with Amy -

Fall Photos

And the photos are in! Here are the rest of the photos from our friend, Nate. (There were actually TONS more - but here's our favorites) I LOVE the photos of the girls playing in the leaves with their friend Quinn. I think I'm going to frame those together and put them in the girls' room.


Oh my! : ) I think it is hilarious that Addie's arms are straight down...haha


So sweet! Little kids holding hands are always adorable.


Mina has a real "thing" for Quinn - and asks to see him all the time.


Pure bliss - LOVE IT!



Stella Stella...what are we going to do with that hair?!?!

Stock Photography

Our friend Nate (a professional photographer) asked us a couple of weeks ago if we'd be interested in posing for some stock photography shots in each for free pictures. Well - yeah!!! : ) The girls had a great time playing in the leaves and carrying around pumpkins. Nate said he'll eventually sell some of the photos we took to some magazines like Organic Gardening, Trail Runner, Hobby Farm Home, Urban Farm, Southern Living, and Midwest Living. So if you are a subscriber - who knows you may see us some day. Below are pictures he also took of our friends, the Smiths, who brought some testosterone to the event with their two little boys.

A GREEN Halloween

The girls weren't old enough last year to really understand the concept of Halloween & dressing up. However, this year they totally got it and LOVED it! Their Auntie Hayley brought them princess dresses as a gift when she visited shortly after Stella arrived. They made the perfect Halloween costumes. They wore them four times this week alone! : ) Thanks Hails! Stella had a cute little black & orange tutu...but since she's in the mei tai in most of the pictures...you can't see it...but she was cute! The first Halloween outing was the Trunk or Treat at church. Then this week the girls wore their costumes on Monday to MOPS and Thursday to Parent's Day Out.


Then last night we went to a Halloween/birthday party. Alex and I got into the spirit of dressing up with some thrift store finds and green hair spray. The girls LOVED that we were Shrek and Fiona - they even nominated Belle to be the donkey and Tinsley to be the dragon. : ) Check out the picture of Alex double fisting it with two beers and a cookie! Okay...so maybe one was mine...and perhaps the cookie was too. In my defense, I took it away from Addie after she grabbed it off the tray - she already had had a cookie and a cupcake - and since she bit it I didn't want to put it back! We are still finding green paint in our ears & hair today...hopefully we'll get it all off before Alex goes back to work tomorrow...


Here are the girls digging into yet another sugary treat with Holton the birthday boy and Super Farrow, my friend and Holton's mom. Farrow made all the costumes for her family this year!!! Impressive, hey!


Here's another cute picture of Stella from the church event. She tends to get the shaft on the weekends with regards to naps, but she is such a good sport regardless and often takes a snooze in the mei tai.


These pictures are from my dad's birthday celebration last weekend. The girls are all about birthdays and want to know "how old are you?" It often is the last question we answer before bed every night. They also loved helping him open his presents - a magnetic dartboard calendar & a T-shirt.


We took these pictures while the girls slept one night. The transition to big girl beds was SO MUCH EASIER than I feared! They love their beds and generally stay put as long as we don't rev them up before bedtime. However, they do occasionally fall out of bed. It is happening less and less as they get the hang of staying put. On this night, Mina was hanging half over the edge of the bed! And in the bottom right picture, Addie has discovered that green chalk makes some attractive eyeshadow! : )

Stella is getting closer and closer to sleeping through the night and eating less frequently, which makes life so pleasant. We are just enjoying watching her get bigger and more interactive. She's grabbing things all the time - my face, shirt, her sisters, the dogs, toys. She loves kisses and laughing. I made some pear puree for the freezer yesterday (after I accidentally ordered 24 pears instead of 4 when I was online grocery shopping). Before we know it - she'll be eating it and all kinds of other foods. Watching her grow is such a sweet pleasure and one we realize we didn't always enjoy with the girls since we were new parents and they were A LOT more work! : )