7 inches and counting...

Our own little ET

Tonight Jason was playing with Emma and put a blanket over her head....she started walking away and reminded us of that scene in ET on Halloween. The even funnier thing is Emma LOVED it and kept wanting the blanket to be put on her head. She was bumping into everything and kept mumbling "bop bop bop"...but every time the blanket came off she wanted it back on. We have our own personal entertainment...enjoy!!

Let the Little Children Come to Me...

...there is a sweetness about little children learning their prayers and such a sincerity in which they say them. I have been trying to catch Angelica saying her Hail Mary for awhile now but every time she spots me with the camera!! It is so cute....she knows it very well when we say it together, but when she does it alone she splits it into two prayers...the Hail Mary and the Holy Mary with an Amen at the end of both!! We have been adding prayers to her night time prayers and she has fallen in love with her Guardian Angel prayer...we have to say it about twice at night and she repeats it during the day. Yesterday Jason found her kneeling in front of our nativity scene saying it.....because after all there is an Angel on top!! So today, I caught her again and here it is....notice when I try to get her to say her other prayers she always goes back to the Angel one...and I have no idea what the Tupperware lid adds to the prayer at the end! So sweet, definitely one of those melt your heart memories to hold onto! (sorry a little dark)

Holiday Treats

My little Baker Elf has been helping me FINALLY make some of our favorite holiday goodies, plus some new ones. With all these snow storms, we have been home bound and happy cooking! So here are some of the ones we have made (click on pics for recipes) and hopefully a few more to come!! PLEASE feel free to leave a comment with any of your favorites as I am always up for adding to our list and trying something new and yummy!! Hope your holiday baking and goody making is coming along as well!!

Recipes below (click on pic)

Christmas Pretzels
Holly Cookies

Chocolate Mint Sticks

Puff Balls

Peanut Krispies

Peppermint Bark

Just Help Yourself!

More Nativity Fun

I ordered this magnetic Nativity Set and reversible board and Angel is really enjoying it...helps make more real the story of the birth of Jesus. Think I might have to get the Easter ones too!

And THESE just arrived and I am eager to make our own gingerbread nativity.

Movies

Some that we have watched recently and enjoyed are:
Facing the Giants (very cheesy but it is a low budget film and I didn't know produced by the same company that came out with Fireproof, which I hear is good but have yet to see)
The Great Debaters (really loved this one and based on a TRUE story, also can't beat watching Denzel Washington!) and
Freedom Writers (another true and inspiring story of what one teacher can do!)

Be Careful...

...what you teach your children...such as
Case #1: A few weeks ago, I had a cut on my finger and started teaching Emma the word "boo-boo" and that we give kisses to make them feel better. Well....she got this concept really quickly and the other day as we were in the check out line Emma noticed a pimple...yes not a boo-boo but a lovely red pimple on my forehead....and remember Emma is LOUD....so she proceeded to repeat over and over "boo-boo" "boo-boo" and point to my pimple and then started giving kisses.....yes, we got looks and I was at that moment wishing I had not taught her that particular word!
Case #2: In our family room, I have a hanging bundle of mistletoe. Angel was playing with it one day so I explained what it is and let's just say we spent the rest of the day kissing and that was how Jason got greeted when he came home too. Not that we mind the kisses, but having to be pulled down to her level and have mistletoe hung over your head all day long does get a bit annoying....she even was able to plant one on Aunt Caitlin!!

Emma the Dilemma

This is definitely what I have been calling her for the last several months, since I cannot figure out her eating likes, habits, quirks etc. She has always (and still is) an avid nurser, but when we started foods, she took awhile to warm up to them. Since I made all her baby food, she eventually took to all the purees and also loves applesauce and yogurt. She will eat certain finger foods and snacks like puffs, cheerios, crackers etc, and is finally starting to drink from the sippy cup. When the stash of purees I made ran out, I bought a little baby food mill grinder and have been trying that. But she is so funny. She will start eating things and if she gets a bit of texture that she doesn't like, she will spit it out and then flail her arms and she is done with it. She also LOVES to throw things over the side and wipe frantically off her tray, which is just annoying and so different as Angel never did this. But, at her check up her pediatrician didn't seem concerned because: she is still nursing so getting those calories and nutrients, is still young and only truly needs small amounts of food, is gaining weight and growth properly and is healthy, can feed herself just fine, and still only has two bottom teeth so the doctor thinks that might be one reason why she isn't eating more table foods as readily because she can't really bite or chew still. So, after worrying a bit and stressing about her not eating "well" or "regular" foods, I had to remember that I cannot compare the process to Angel (the only one I know) because each child is different and will reach milestones at different times and in different ways, that Emma will let me know in her own time and way when she wants and likes new foods, and after reading this WONDERFUL POST AND COMMENTS....feel much better about Emma's dilemma. I think I will just make more purees for now and keep doing and trying what we have been....and hopefully those other teeth will come in too!! Aren't all the little challenges of motherhood exciting? If you have any tips, PASS them on!

Perfect for Cold Weather

We have a Cocomotion, which I love....makes yummy hot chocolate or coffees SUPER FAST with minimal work!! However, Jason had gotten this many years ago when he was a bachelor and of course didn't save directions which also had the recipes....so after some searching, here is one I found that is very yummy. If you have any others...please pass on!!!

Mint Hot Chocolate (similar to Starbucks recipe)
1 cup water
4 TB cocoa
4 TB sugar
3 cups milk
2 tsp vanilla
peppermint syrup

Add everything to cocomotion and hit the start button!! Top with whip cream of course!

Yummy Dinner Recipes

A couple new ones from my sister:

This one is FABULOUS: Chicken Medallions with Capers and Tomatoes
and
Penne Arrabiata (I might add a little tomato paste next time though)

Frosty Fun

***Sorry, this is a LONG post, but for my mom who is still in NYC, and Angel misses her!!***

Today we woke up to a beautiful cover of winter white!! We had about 3-4 inches and decided to make the best of it since we couldn't go anywhere and Jason ended up having to stay home. Angel went out to enjoy it with her papa...that is after we bundled her up so much that poor thing could barely even stand up straight and walk let alone bend over. I laughed so hard when she kept falling over at first...but hey, at least she would be warm!! I must go look for a snowsuit once we can get out! While she wanted to mostly just eat the snow....she and Papa had some snow ball throws, made snow angels, made a snowman, and enjoyed some sled time, although Angel had to lay down on her belly since she kept falling over sitting up!! I know, I took a lot of pics and video, but what is a mama supposed to do? We don't get snow that often!!

I know rude parents, but it was so funny, poor thing couldn't bend over or get up she was so padded with clothes!!

Eating Snow

Sled Time

Throwing Snowballs

Snow Angels

Is Angelica under all those layers?

When Aunt Caitlin and Aunt Alli babysit....

....we make some music...

...we take some pictures (actually Alli takes a LOT!)...

...we do some hair...

...we have some funny face hood time...

...some cuddle time...

...some laundry of course...

...and well, I just don't want to know!

Decorating the Tree

We decorated our Christmas tree the other night and I wish I had had the video camera. While Angel was "helping" put the ornaments ON the tree....Emma took one look at the silver and red bulbs and decided to grab and RUN!! She was fascinated by them and would keep taking them OFF the tree and running thinking no one would be able to catch her!! So cute!

Christmas Treasures

My Meme (paternal grandmother) has given me a Christmas treasure every year since the day I was born until I got married. I would wait in eager anticipation to receive her handmade Christmas ornament and see what figure I had gotten that year. She always put my name and year on the ornament and some years made them very appropriate for my achievements, such as 1996 was Santa in a car since that was the year I learned to drive. She has done this for all her grandchildren every year (of which she has 11) and even started for her great-grandkids....Angel and Emma loved hanging them up this year. It is such a special gift she has done every year and holds so many memories for me...and helped to decorate my tree when I left home and had no other ornaments!! Thanks so much Meme, I will treasure these ALWAYS.

My Ornaments

Angel and Emma's

A Winters Day

Today was a very successful winters day...although it has only been hovering around freezing for several days now, I had to get to the post office today....CHECK....and then a long put off trip to the grocery store to stock back up...CHECK...all thanks to my sisters who watched the girls for me today (of which they had way to much fun, I will post pics soon!). Nothing better than getting your errands done, house cleaned, and sitting down to a this.... ....a hot bowl of chili and homemade cornbread!! That is of course, unless they would make these warm PJs in my size!! Hope everyone has a warm winters night!!

Another Great Novena

We enjoyed praying the Novena to Our Lady of Guadalupe....
...we are continuing our St. Andrew Novena until Christmas...
...and just started last night this beautiful Christmas Novena (Novena to the Child Jesus Infant of Prague).

More Advent Fun...

...and learning how to use finger puppets...a work in progress. (Funny - last year my hubby kept telling Angel to bring him the lion....um, I don't think lions were present at Christ's birth...and more importantly I think Joseph would be offended, although at first glance...the beard does look like a fuzzy mane!!)

Practicing...

Hair Fun

The other morning we had fun doing hair-dos. Here is Angel's ponytail loop thing and well....Emma's cute clip since she barely has hair!