Threeeee Gooooolden Kiiiiidss!

I know we've written this in the blog before, but we have this parenting belief that 9-months-old is absolutely the golden age in infanthood.  We know...for most other families, this age can already be a pain since their young'uns are ultra-curious, mobile, and dangerous.  Our kids just don't quite get there by this point.  They are always immobile, bubbly, and set in their nap schedules.  And, so it goes with our baby Neve, who turns 9-months today.  Our little gal just lights up our family nowadays.  She even gets some smiles and giggles from Michael, who honestly reserves most of his joy for Daddy these days.  She is a champion sitter, eater, and babbler.  And, she is absolutely HUGE (taller than chubby), so we can't wait to get her measurements next month.  Even though she still doesn't move (not even a roll here and there), she is extremely curious and lunges at things within her grasp.  She, of course, sticks everything in her mouth, so she may not be as popular with her siblings once she starts crawling.  Her favorite targets tend to be her brother's Legos (perhaps because they are ALWAYS scattered everywhere on the floor) and our important paperwork.  She likes electrical wires a lot, too.  Perhaps she is gnawing on everything since she has sprouted 4 more teeth this month!  (By this point, neither Katie nor Michael had any teeth!)  Her bright red hair is starting to grow in enough to curl around her ears, so she is starting to look more Katie than Michael.  Now we can't wait to share our first Christmas with our baby girl.

Since we will be on the road soon, we want to wish everybody a very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!!  And, if the Mayans are right and the world ends tomorrow, we hope we put a little smile on your face with this last picture of our golden baby.  :)

So You Think You Can Dance?

Michael's pre-school class put on its annual Christmas concert for the parents this afternoon.  If you can spare 3 minutes, the video above may be the best documented evidence of how males in this family are not compatible with the singing and dancing scene.  At least, the best since Mike's "Milli Vanilli" moves at his brother's 1989 wedding reception.

To be fair, Michael did come down with the stomach bug later and was not his usual jovial self all day long.  But some of his faces and refusal to partake in any of the merriment kept us highly entertained.  Mike has been looking for any physical evidence that Michael is actually his kid.  I think he found some...

Two Trees

Even though we actually got it up last weekend, we are finally posting a picture of our Christmas tree.  We love our trees more and more each year as we add new ornaments celebrating specific memories from the prior 12 months.  It provides such a snapshot of our lives.  For example, a couple of our newest ornaments:  the Eiffel Tower, commemorating Michael's tower fixation; and a cute baby sitting up on her own, just like our little Neve.  Of course, some of our favorite ornaments are the school-made ones that Katie has brought home.

Speaking of child-made ornaments, we added a new tree tradition this year.  On a spur-of-the-moment purchase, Mike got the kids a smaller pre-lit tree for their bedroom.  Since it didn't have any decorations, Katie and Michael decided to make their own this afternoon.  (Someday, Neve can join in on the fun as well!)  The kids did a fantastic job designing their own chain-link garland, star topper, and ornaments.  Katie created a fantastic apple and house, while Michael added a snowman, radio tower, and the Washington Monument.  The best thing about this tree?  The kids are allowed to touch it without fear of breaking anything!  We can't wait to see how this little tree gets decorated every year.

Seasons Greenings

We absolutely love this time of year in Washington DC!  We always try to look through all of the bajillion holiday things going on around the city to pick a few things with which to surprise our kids.  Tonight, we decided to reprise one of last year's favorites, Seasons Greenings at the National Botanic Gardens.  The conservatory on the Mall does a fabulous job of setting up wondrous train tracks, "fairy" homes, green miniatures of DC landmarks, and beautiful plant/flower displays all around its exhibits.  Of course, they have a gigantic Christmas tree and live music to make everything more festive.  One bummer about this year:  Whereas Katie totally let loose and danced all around the live band last year, she was much more reserved and just quietly watched this year.  Guess that comes with the self-awareness of a school kid. 

Before we headed downtown, we did stop at one of our favorite neighborhoods to get a bite to eat.  The kids were thrilled with all of the Christmas lights adorning the street.  We were just thrilled that we made it through a nice dinner out with three kids five and under!!

Skyline

Michael and Traci spent a portion of this morning trying to recreate the Chicago skyline with some Legos and blocks.  (They have been studying the skyscrapers in one of our coffee table books in anticipation of our Christmas trip.)  From left to right:  Willis Tower (that's Sears to me and you), Crain Communications Building (the real one has a diamond-shaped head), Trump Tower, Aon Center (Traci's favorite in the city), Wrigley Building, Tribune Tower, Marina City (corn cob towers), Chicago Water Tower, Hancock Building, and Hilton Suites (our hotel for our stay). 

Thank goodness I snapped this shot, because he demolished it seconds after the flash went off.  But, can you tell that we are a little excited?  :)

Merida the Brave!

Today Katie and Traci got to attend a really fun birthday party for our little buddy Lyla.  The party was held at a movie theater, where the kids got to take a behind-the-scenes tour of the control room, munch on free popcorn, and watch Disney's "Brave."  Since Katie has always been afraid of loud sounds, she had not been to a movie theater since she was about two.  We didn't know what to expect.  Thankfully, she was up to the challenge, even though the movie was a bit frightening (in the way that most Disney fairy tales are).  During the movie, she started in a row with the kids, eventually made her way to a seat next to Mom, and finally finished the climactic battle scene safely on Mom's lap.  Truthfully, Traci didn't mind one bit as she doesn't get to cuddle with Katie as much as she used to.  (And, shhhhh...don't tell Katie, but Traci may have had a tear or two streaming down her cheek during the ending.)  Afterward, we all enjoyed cake out in the lobby.  A big thanks to Angela and Ben for letting us in on the fun!  And, the good news?  We don't think Katie has been scarred for life.  She has agreed to go back to the movie theater, as long as the movie is a little less dark!  As for Traci's review of the movie:  You can never go wrong with a red-headed heroine!

Jumps and Giggles

Since she still refuses to roll for us, Neve has to get her exercise from somewhere.  Enter the good, ol' Jumperoo.  This trusty thing has seen us through the development of all three kids.  Katie was definitely its biggest fan, jumping for long stretches at a time.  Michael tolerated it but was much more interested in moving forward.  Neve?  She likes it well enough, but she would still rather just be hanging in our arms or with her big brother or sister.  At least we captured some good giggles here!

Future Gal Pals

Awww...just look at the lovely ladies on the right!  It's our little Nevie swinging with her new best friend, Katy.  Katy (11 months-old) is the third child of our good friends, Julie and Matt.  She is also the little sister of Sam and Oliver, good buds of our two older kiddos.  We all met up for quite a lovely (almost 70 degrees!) December day.  It will be fun watching these two babies grow up together.  Julie and I were imagining how EASY their playdates would be...just the two of them (while all of the older kids are at school), playing with their dolls in a corner while we parents lounged on the couch.  We can dream, right?

Sweet Outtake

Just one of the many hilarious outtakes from our Christmas card photo shoot yesterday.  You may just be able to figure out our theme this year....;)

PS - We wanted to send a huge shout-out to our good friends Kim, Jim, Patrick and Colleen.  They welcomed a gorgeous, perfect baby girl to the world yesterday.  And, we are so thrilled and proud to become her godparents in about a month.  We love you already, Charlotte Mary!