Making Gingerbread Men

We had a great time making gingerbread men with the girls across the street. Brooke is always excited to play with Ava, Kylie and Morgan. These gingerbread kits were really easy and not too messy. After the cookies were decorated, the girls ran, screamed and played in the house. We are so lucky to have nice neighbors. I wish they could move with us to Texas. Ava would be the best babysitter. I think Brooke and Morgan would be in a constant battle over their toys. We have to separate them quite a bit.

Kitchen Helper

Brooke is so interested in helping me in the kitchen. She wants to "help" unload the dishwasher, cook, and open all the drawers. It is getting a little more difficult to keep her out of things. She can now reach up and open most of the drawers and unlock the dishwasher. I can tell she is paying close attention to me when I cook. I caught her putting on the oven mitt and saying hot.

Who needs Christmas Presents

Brooke really loved playing in the boxes that came in the mail for Christmas. Every time another package arrived, she was excited to play with the empty box. She especially loved when Keith and I would pull her down the hallway. I had to take this picture of Keith when he was "watching" Brooke. I asked him to watch her while I unloaded the dishwasher. I figured something was up when I heard her pulling clothes out of the closet. Sure enough, he had fallen asleep on the bed. She was taking total advantage of her unsupervised time. Keith had better catch up on his sleep now because we are not going to get much this summer.

Preschool closure

Brooke's preschool called to tell us that a gas leak was found near the school and they would be closed for a full week. I kind of had a panic moment thinking of how I was going to entertain Brooke inside all week while I worked. Luckily, my good friend Jess shared her passes with us to the science center on one of the days. Brooke and Jacob had so much fun playing in the water, in the ball pit and on the giant operation board. Thankfully, Jess warned me to bring an extra set of clothes. It was a good thing because Brooke and Jacob were soaked in less than 5 minutes. They are definitely not afraid of splashing. I spent some of the money that would have gone to daycare on a few new toys and activities for the house. Brooke loved the sticky decals and the "Cars" cars. I can't say that it was an easy week, but we survived it. We were both so excited for preschool when it re-opened the following week.

Sitting on Santa's lap

We went to see Santa again this year with the Stasko's and Thomas'. It is much more fun to wait in the long line with friends. Brooke did really well with Santa. She was curious about his beard but overall seemed happy to sit in his lap. I swear she would go home with the stranger. Keith asked her to give a hug to her friend Christian after the picture. She hugged Christian and then the next two random kids in line that we have never seen. I am glad that she is so friendly, but I have to keep a close eye on her.

Christmas tree destroyed

Our sweet little Brooke could not keep her hands off the Christmas tree. We didn't have any lights on the tree or low hanging ornaments, but that did not stop her from spinning it and pulling on the branches. The weekend after we put up the tree she managed to tip it over and break it in half. We joked that it was now the Christmas shrub. Keith and I decided to leave it up as is since we are moving this year. It was quite pathetic looking, but we still managed to have a great Christmas. AND, we bought a new pre-lit tree the day after Christmas on sale. I am so excited to have a beautiful tree next year in Texas.

Nutcracker with Podiatry Wives

The podiatry resident wives had a wonderful girls night at the beginning of December, thanks to Bridget. She organized getting tickets for everyone to see the Nutcracker and then have dinner. It was fun to get dressed up and go to the ballet with the girls. Our group is unique in that we are all experiencing the same thing with out husbands' schedules. They understand the long hours, weekends, call nights, etc. So, it was quite a treat for all the girls to have a night together while the husbands watched the kids. I am loving the mild Pittsburgh winter. It was so warm that I didn't even wear my coat. Let's hope it continues this way.