Family Pictures and Santa

Merry Christmas to everyone. We did not send out Christmas cards this year, so we are sorry for that. We will be staying here and going to some friends house for dinner Christmas evening. We wish we could be with family, but living here it is tough to get back home. Some friends had a Christmas party at their house and Santa came for the kiddos. It was a lot of fun to hang out with friends.

Our family pictures at the party.

Our friends Erika and Jude.

Here is Santa, we are doing okay as long as mom is here.

Oh, wait I'm not so sure about this guy.

Now I am happy! No Santa and a gift.

The party.

This picture is for Uncle Brian and Aunt Celine. Mari got this awesome hat for her birthday and we have even worn out.

Here are some of our family photos.

Mari is blowing kisses in this picture.

The outside pictures are my favorite.

Mari did okay considering she decided that she only need a 1/2 hour nap that morning. So as you can see in most of her pics she looks very serious.

Her beautiful Christmas dress.

Who says I don't know how to read.

Almost Christmas... Yeah!!!

Well, there is not much to report from this end. Just lots of pictures! We had a very nice Thanksgiving with some friends and lots of yummy food. Mari is feeling better and so far seems to be healthy we hope it lasts, but it's that time if the year with lots of kids around. I guess the biggest thing is that Mari has started to walk more so than crawl.

Christmas is right around the corner and I love this time of year. However, having a small house and a toddler the thought of decorations and a big tree was a bit overwhelming. So here are some pictures of what our tree is this year.

For starters you can see the candy in the background that Mari discovered in about 15 minutes. It is now on the dining room table. She thought it was fun to hand them to me. Until.....

Oh wait these open and I think they have something yummy inside.

Yes, Mari had her first peanut butter cup. She takes after her mom and went nuts.

Here is our beautiful 4' tree. I actually LOVE it. Mari so far hasn't been to into tearing it down. I am just waiting though. Now is the decision to wrap gifts and put them out or wait. I am pretty sure I would have to wrap them a couple times, so I guess we will wait.

Here is one of the adorable outfits Mari got for her birthday. All ready to go to church, looking cuter than ever.

Look what I can do if I take everything out the drawers. It helps me reach the ones a little higher.

Walking, walking, walking.

Out for a walk with the dogs one beautiful day in her new snow suit.

Lately, Mari has 2 favorite things to play. They are feeding her babies and throwing the ball. It is so fun to watch her hold her baby and feed it. Now to try and teach her to be a little more gentle, especcially before the new baby comes. She is going to be such a good BIG SIS.

At Daddy's volleyball game and playing with him.