Santa!

We made our annual trip to Bass Pro Shop last weekend to see Santa! This was our third year. (A funny side story... Mamaw Katherine rode with us. Just after we left the house, Drew "called Santa" and said.... "Hey Santa, we're on our way. Katherine is with us." Haha!) That place is really more of an attraction than a store. We spent several hours in there and never ran out of things to do! We looked at the big fish, rode the glass elevator, and then it was our turn to go get in line to see the man himself! They have the line area strategically staged with toy trains, a talking reindeer, and other fun things to look at.  While we waited Drew and Anna Kate were really excited. We have talked a lot about Santa this year and they sort of "get it". I was curious to see how our Santa encounter would turn out this year. Two years ago they sat on his lap but screamed and clung to each other. Last year, they didn't even entertain the thought of sitting on his lap.  They marched down the red carpet and straight to Santa. Anna Kate was very friendly with Santa and talked to him right away. Surprisingly, Drew stuck very close to John Clay and wasn't really sure he needed to sit on his lap. They ended up standing in front of him to get their picture. I'll take it! 

 Checking out the train. The boy loves trains!

 Um..... I'm not sure about this.  Anna Kate told Santa she wanted roses for Christmas. I'm not really sure where that came from because that was the first I had heard of that request. Drew told him he wanted a "big ole' truck and trailer". He wasn't going to sit on his lap but had no problem telling him what he wanted!

A celebratory carousel ride.  They thought they really just needed to stay on it and ride it a few times but the long line of waiters had other plans!

  

 We're going to have to do a little more work on the whole Santa thing and how it all works. Drew thought he would be telling Santa what he wanted and Santa would produce it immediately for him. My sweet, oh so stubborn child was NOT going to be leaving Bass Pro without his "big ole' truck" like he requested. We tried getting an Elf on the Shelf and said that was Santa gave him to them today and that he had to go back to the North Pole to make his truck. None of these explanations were good enough and we finally just had to just leave with an angry boy. We did bribe him with popcorn too. That may have helped a little!

The look on their faces is awesome! Even though Anna Kate bravely interacted with Santa, you can see if her face that she just isn't quite sure about this!

Crazy kids

I have seriously been a blogging slacker. I have good excuses. We have been BUSY! But all of the things we have been up to have also been blog worthy. Hopefully, I will get caught up by the end of the year!
This will be a blog of few words and many pictures as I have found some pretty funny ones on my phone.

 Drew and Anna Kate helped me decorate the Christmas tree this year. This picture is blurry but is the best one to fully show the awesomeness of the entire day.  They were both still in their pj pants (this was at 6ish in the evening), crazy, non-matching socks, and Anna Kate has her shirt on backward. Most people have beautiful pictures of their kids in front of the Christmas tree with smocked outfits on and I have this. Haha! But I wouldn't trade it for anything.

The end result. Notice the heavy concentration of ornaments in the center at the bottom. This took a lot for me to just let it go and let them do it how they wanted to. I did fix it after they went to bed but they didn't notice.  Hopefully, next year we will be living somewhere that they can have their own tree that they can decorate however they want to!

 Gitty up horsey!

 Drew has major issues with his outfits. He has definite opinions about what he wants to wear and usually we are launched into World War 3 if we don't agree with what he thinks he will be wearing.  He has also had a hard time transitioning from shorts to pants and short sleeves to long sleeves. I imagine we will get this issue straightened out sometime in April when it is time to go back to short sleeves and shorts.

 They have discovered Disney Junior and love it. This is a rare moment though. These kids are busy and usually don't sit still for long!

 A beautiful princess riding her 4-wheeler!

 Helping Aunt Teresa blow out her candles at her surprise 50th birthday party. They really just wanted some cake.

 Having fun with cousin Raylan

 Her mad face. Hahaha!

 Good times with Aunt Ashley.

 Drew may be a future cheerleader too!

 She didn't want me to take her picture but she was pretending this basket was her car this morning. Their imaginations are so fun!

Sweet sleepy babies. I love it when they cuddle up and actually lay nicely together. 

Happy Birthday to Hayes!

Everyone we know has a birthday between the end of October and Christmas (or so it seems!). This is wonderful for Drew and Anna Kate who love a good birthday party and love cake even more. This makes an already busy time of year even busier. But it is so much fun and I look forward to the last few months of year because of all the fun things that are in store for us!
Hayes birthday party was a football theme at a gymnastics center this year. It has been pretty cold so this was a great way to let the kids run around and run off some energy. Drew and Anna Kate really love Hayes and I was able to use going to his birthday party as leverage for good behavior for a solid week! :)

 There was an inflatable slide at the party and it was by far their favorite thing.  I am glad they have moved past their fear of the inflatables since our bounce house sat pretty much unused this summer! Can you tell Anna Kate was excited?!

 In the middle of the action with the big kids.

 Having so much fun!

 All smiles!

 Crashing into each other at the bottom.  They seriously went down the slide no less than 40 times. They loved it! I was tired just from watching them.

 Practicing her balance beam skills.

 Drew's turn on the balance beam. I think we are going to be starting them in gymnastics in January. They are going to try and go to a class with Hayes which will be so much fun for them.

 A good day made even better with cake.

 Drew was "helping" Hayes get up.

 Stalling instead of putting their shoes on to leave. We were, of course, the last people out of there.

Again with the cooperation. It is just too much to handle!