Merry Christmas!

On the eve of the birth of our Savior,

The M Family would like to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas!

Love, J&L

Biggest Brother, Younger Brother, Big Sis, Little Sis, and Princess Aurora

...relatively speaking.

:)

Best Buddies part 4

I'm positive there's something not sanitary about this,

but Brother and Sis don't care.

They've got claymation cartoons

and a candy necklace, big enough to share!
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If you missed the previous "Best Buddies" installments, here are the links, dating all the way back to the first ever post on this blog!

Best Buddies part 3

Best Buddies part 2

Best Buddies

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Oh, and I almost forgot my favorite one!

Afterall, best buddies can't be best buddies all the time. :)

Nasty Grams

Horseplay

Horses really are magnificent creatures!

While I may be a bit biased, I am fortunate enough to help care for a pretty enchanting bunch.

This is Ace.
And he's hilarious.
He's just a big, sweet, dopey guy.
But lately, every time I have arrived for the morning feeding he has put on quite a show!
I suspected (especially with a new snowfall) that this particular morning would be no exception. So I grabbed my camera on the way out the door.
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Fellow horse lovers, enjoy!

Look closely...all 4 feet are completely off the ground!

Phew, that was exhausting!

Okay Ace,

are you quite ready for your breakfast now?

:)

Backtrack to Birthday Eve

Now that I have a minute, I thought I'd go back and post some pictures from Princess A's birthday eve celebration. 1st birthdays earn one the right to monopolize the blog for a few days. :)

We decided to celebrate at home the night before her birthday so that Biggest Brother wouldn't miss out by being at school.

She loved the candle!

Not so fond of the cookie however...

"Here Daddy, you eat it!"

Having lots of brothers and sisters always guarantees a present opening audience.

Testing out the new play phone...

"Hello?"
I love how she answers the phone on the top or back of her head! :)

Also on the gift list, this inflatable ball roller, and a new Baby Einstein DVD.

I love this picture because it shows off my favorite place to kiss!

After the festivities were finished, Daddy went upstairs to put Big Sis and Little Sis in bed.
But Younger Brother lingered in the living room to share some more birthday enthusiasm with Princess A.

Younger Brother really has a gift for that sort of thing.

That scripture in Romans 12:15 that says, "Rejoice with those who rejoice, mourn with those who mourn." ..... He is very good at that.

As I mentioned yesterday, he nearly cried when he heard about Princess A's trip to the doctor.

But his most favorite thing to do is celebrate!

And he celebrates heartily with anyone who has an occasion to do so...especially a little sister!

Picket Line

Well, the not-so-fun part of turning 1 came today...
the 1yr check-up!

While I love our Pediatrician, and am so thankful that my children have access to medical care, it's never fun to see your baby get shots. And Princess A got a lot of them! She got her 4 regular booster shots; one in the tender back of each little arm, and two in her thigh. Then she got a toe stick to test her iron levels and test for lead exposure.

Then she had to go across the hall to have a RAST test (a blood draw to test for food allergies following an odd reaction she had a month or so ago.)

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The nurse gave her one of these little stickers-on-a-stick thingies to distract her. It might have worked, except the first attempt was a botched one, and she dug the needle around (back and forth, in and out) several times before I asked her to stop and try again rather than dig around that way! By the time she got to the second arm, Princess A was totally inconsolable, obviously.

In all of the upset, she dropped her sticker-on-a-stick...which she had really liked.

The nurse made her another one. And as soon as she handed it to her, Princess A flung it to the ground with fury!

She sent the clear message of, "Oh no! We're not doing that again!!!"

Smart girl. :)

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As I mentioned, she did really like the bribe. And she warmed up to again once we were safely out of the doctor's office. But watching her crawl all around the house with it clenched tightly in her little fist made me wonder if it was in love or protest.

Given the preceding events, I think I'm leaning toward protest.

Happy 1st Birthday, Princess A!!!

Hey, hey, it's your birthday, Princess A!!!

Good morning baby girl.

We love you so much.

Happy Birthday!
xoxoxoxoxox

Rumor has it...

It's a very special day!!!