Kid's Christmas Party 2009

We had our 5th annual kid's Christmas party this year. We started having a kid's party when Nolan was 18 months. I just thought it would be neat to get all of the kids together for some Christmas fun. I am so glad that we host this party each year. It seems to get better each time! Now that some of the kids are getting older we were able to do crafts and next year we will do games too. We were lucky to have GREAT weather that day. The kids made crafts, ate junk, opened presents and played with their friends - does it get any better than that?

My friends are amazing parents and it is so special to be a part of this giant family. I love being able to spend time with all these sweet babies and kids. Truly, they are my life.




















These last two pictures are so funny to me. Amy made these cute little pretzel stick snowmen that were decorated with candy. Hud must have had 10 of them during the party. He just kept getting them off of the table and eating the candy off of them. He was a sticky mess but had a great time!

Joe Fish

PaPa's boat has all kinds of yucky, icky, sticky boy things in it. Stuff used for fishing that this momma knows nothing about. Well apparently to catch a really big fish you need more than a little worm. They actually have little fake fish to bait your hook with - yuck! Hudson (lover of all creatures - including worms, roly polys and other insects) found a little fish in PaPa's tackle box and he just fell in love with it. MiMi and Hud named the fish "Joe Fish" since he was from Joe Pool Lake. Hudson has carried around Joe for the past few days. He has given joe baths, fed him and even asked for a blanket for him. I gave him a cup towel and he wraps him up like a baby. It is the sweetest thing ever. I hope that Santa brings Hudson a sweet baby of his own - so he will no longer feel the need to parent random fish. Ha ha!

Presley's 1st Birthday!

On Saturday we went on an impromptu road trip down to Austin. Becca and Conner were planning to go down for sweet baby Presley's 1st b-day but Conner got sick and wasn't up for the trip. Nolan and I went in his place and I am so glad that we did. We had a great time! Aunt B taught Nolan all of the road trip "rules":

1. Hold your breath when you pass a cemetery.
2. Put your finger on a screw when you go under a bridge.
3. Lift your feet up when passing over railroad tracks.
4. Kiss your hand and hit the ceiling when you see a car with a headlight out.

The poor kid was worn out from all the rules - it's hard work keeping up with all that. It was hilarious.

We also had to explain that you had to have snacks and special drinks for road trips. First stop was at 7-11 for treats. I told Nolan he could have any kind of drink he wanted and he promptly yelled out "Mountain Dew!". Um, heck no. I am not going to be stuck in a car for the next four hours with a kid hopped up on that! He then requested "Dr. Pepper" so I said that he could have that as a special treat. Leave it to Aunt B to come back with a 20oz of the stuff. He had the biggest eyes ever as she handed it to him. I have to say that he was so good in the car, very surprising with all that sugar!

We stopped at the Czech Stop in West which he loved. My kids LOVE breakfast foods so this was kinda like donuts and sausage rolls but better! Ha Ha! We talked about all of the tractors, windmills and other random stuff as we made the drive down I-35. We listened to Bluegrass music on Aunt B's i-pod and of course lots of Michael Jackson. I think we had as much fun in the car as we did at the party - you know it's a good road trip when that happens. :)

Presley's party was at Todd's parents house on Lake Travis. It's an awesome party house. Lots of decks, a ping pong table, washers pit, and a cool view! Maddic and Nolan has great time running around like wild animals. They were so funny! Presley even had a pinata at her party which started out as a cute little fairy and something seemed a bit wrong with the situation when she was hung up by her neck and then beaten with a broomstick. :(

All in all it was a GREAT day! Presley is precious and we had a great time!









And let the cake eating begin...

Our Elf on the Shelf

This year we have a new Christmas guest at the Mays household...Marty. Marty is an elf from the North Pole. He was sent here by Santa to keep an eye on the boys. He sits back and watches who is being naughty and who is being nice. Then each night he magically returns to the North Pole to report the day to Santa. Each morning when he returns, he is in a different spot. The boys love waking up and looking for him each day. We love Marty! What a great new Christmas tradition. Everyone's behavior and attitudes have certainly improved with our new buddy around. We hope he comes back every year.

Trish's 50th Birthday!

Friday night we headed up to WinStar in OK for Trish's surprise 50th b-day party! I worked with Trish for over 10 years and I miss her so much now that she isn't there! It was fun for us to surprise her on her b-day! Christi won about $70 on the Ebay slot - we were all yelling like it was a million dollars - so funny!