Christmas in Louisiana

Like I said in my last post, we drove to Louisiana the day after Christmas. It was fun (the time there, not the drive). We spent most of the time at Robert's cousin, Chris', house. We had a lot of good times and big laughs.

The group that stayed at this house included eight adults and five children five and under. There really was never a dull moment. And the funniest part was when we had put the babies to sleep. We would hear one cry out and all look at each other trying to figure out whose baby it was. It didn't just happen once. It happened every time.

Reagan longing to go play with the big kids outside. Yes, we didn't eventually go - once we got bundled up in coats.

Lindsey concentrating very hard on sidewalk chalk.

Lindsey and Brielle. I love these side by side pictures. You can see how very different they are. Short/tall. Dark/light. So fun!

Reagan with her cousin, Ethan. He was born towards the end of June. So he and Reagan are about four weeks apart too. Brennen was also there (another cousin). He is just six days older than Reagan. It was soooo much fun to see all the cousins with each other.

Reagan loved playing basketball. Actually all the kids did. The older girls even got several rounds of Horse/Pig/Elephant in while the biggest boys were watching football.

See, she loved it.

Another cute shot of Brielle and Lindsey. Brielle with her daddy's boots on and Lindsey with Chris's boots.

We had a fun few days all together. I wish we could do it more often. Love you guys!

Next up is the Lindsey family Christmas in Oklahoma at my parents house. Stay tuned.

Blasingame Christmas 2009

Our Christmas was (and is usually) spread out over about a week. I love doing it that way. It is more relaxed. The girls enjoy the time with each family. And basically, I love Christmas. Well, the day after Christmas, this year, was spent with the Blasingame's. We were planning on leaving to go to Louisiana that day also so everyone came to our house for presents and breakfast. It turned out great.

Reagan and her new big-girl backpack she takes to school. She loves to carry it all by herself.

Robert a little worried with his gift from me and Barbara. Always funny because he forgets year to year that we do this each Christmas.

Manny enjoying his gift from us - the ear warmers (apparently it gets really cold up in Boston!) And Arthemon enjoying trying out our new video camera from Robert's work.

Lindsey LOVES her new Sleeping Beauty vanity. Barbara and Manny stayed up Thanksgiving Night to go to ToysRUs to get it on Black Friday. Crazy people! But Lindsey is so grateful.

Before we jumped in the cars to head to Louisiana, we had to take a picture of the great snowman Robert and Lindsey made. And yes, his eyes are Reese' Peanut Butter Cups. His mouth is made of Hershey Kisses. And his nose is not a carrot. Haha - it's what we had. :)We had a great, long day. The girls were good in the car which made me extremely happy. It's great to get new toys and books and then quickly get in the car with them all. Lots of new things to discover. I recommend it to all those out there with little ones.

Here's What You Have Been Waiting For

Things have slowed down just a little bit so I thought that I would get caught up on my blogging before things get crazy busy again. Seems like the last pictures I posted were from Christmas Eve so Christmas morning seems like the next place to go.

Lindsey was excited to see the note that Santa left for her and Reagan. She wanted to read it before even looking at the presents and stockings.

Reagan was a bit more interested in the Santa head left over from Santa. He also left cookie crumbs. I love her face in the picture. She is thinking, "Do I get the leftovers?"

Reagan's gift from Santa - one of those bead roller coasters. She loves it.

Lindsey's gift from Santa was pink luggage - but with a surprise Tiana doll inside.

She was also very excited to get the nail polish that she asked for.

In Reagan's stocking were new sippy cups. She likes them. Can you tell?

Reagan's gift from Lindsey was a Magna Doodle. She plays with it just about every time we are in the car.

Lindsey also loved her new jewelry box from Reagan. She had a lot of fun filling up the drawers with her jewelry. And then switching it all up again.

Reagan got pajamas from us. Doesn't she look happy? Maybe she isn't the pajama fan that her sister and I are.

Lindsey was pretty excited about her new movie, too. She got Night at the Museum - Battle of the Smithsonian.

And the mess. Why is it that anything fun makes big messes that aren't so much fun to clean up?

I'll try and get some more pictures uploaded later. Either today or tomorrow. I've got lots to do.

The Sweet By and By

Written by Sara Evans and Rachel Hauck, The Sweet By and By is a great story of family relationships. Jade is a girl with a past. And in that past, her mother, Beryl, doesn't have much of a role. But Jade's upcoming wedding causes both women to look at and talk about the past. Beryl was a hippie chick and more interested in what her love (at the moment) was doing rather than the upbringing of her children. Jade grew up without a mother, for the most part, and is trying to forget the past and move on with the love of her life, Max.

The story goes back and forth between the past and the present as Jade tries to put the past behind her. Several times during the book, you wonder how she could have turned out so well with her mother not in her life. But she had great relationships with her grandparents and also friends in college along with another very important relationship that she wasn't even sure existed.

I would encourage you to read The Sweet By and By if they are looking for a "real" storyline. I enjoyed getting to know the characters. They are people that live in the real world. That fact made the book more enjoyable for me to read.