December Daily - Day 7

Every year it seems as if something comes up that stops me from completing my daily pages.  There has been sick children, pregnancy issues, selling our condo and buying a house, and now I can add snowstorm to the list!  And although it is frustrating to get behind yet again, what can you do...life happens!  We were out of town this weekend in order to go to a Polar Express experience and got stuck in some bad weather and some even worse driving conditions.  We passed one exit and then the highway proceeded to jam up and it took us over an hour to get to the next exit which was just over 3 miles away.  We heard on the radio that we were stuck behind one accident and even further south the highway was completely closed due to another.  So, we got off at that next exit, stopped at a grocery store and found a hotel.  Again although frustrating, we are safe and it makes for a bit of an unexpected holiday adventure.  

The Polar Express experience was so fun for Michaela.  Avery stayed home because there is just no way she would have made it through the two hour event.  The experience takes place at a railway museum and starts out in the main foyer of the museum.  We were able to walk around for a little bit before the show started, but were quickly summoned to our seats.  When we got there, the hosts came out singing and dancing and then handed out hot chocolate to everyone.  Then, a live narrator read the Polar Express story as the pictures from the book came up on a big screen.  At the end of the story a conductor yelled "All Aboard" and we all gathered our things and got on to the Polar Express.  Once on the train and after we were on our way, the conductors took our tickets, handed out chocolates, sang Christmas songs, and then gave all the children a bell from Santa's sleigh.  The whole experience ended with a visit with Santa.  This was the first year Michaela went up to talk to Santa all by herself...way to go Michaela!  She asked for Elsa and Anna (from Frozen) and a Sophia doll (although I am pretty sure she brought that up because another girl in line was talking about it).  So fun!  Thanks to Grandma and Grandpa for inviting us!

Here are some of the pictures...

Here are the pages...

title page

two page spread

a closer look

a closer look

December Daily - Day 6

"Giving" is the story for Day 6.  Ryan and I are always looking for good, age appropriate ways to promote thinking of others with Michaela.  Avery is still a bit young to "get" the concept, but modeling thoughtfulness is important at any age.  I don't if any of you have experienced, "I would like to add that to my Christmas list...and that...and that...and that" from your children, but Michaela is definitely at that stage.  She is really sweet about it; she never throws a tantrum or asks to take it farther than putting it on her list, but she definitely enjoys verbally adding to her list!  So, when my Mom mentioned pulling a name off the gift tree at her church for the girls, it couldn't have come at a better time.  My Mom took both girls out to the book store and asked for their help in choosing a gift or two for the second grade girl whose name she had picked from the giving tree.  They had no real information about the girl except that she was in second grade and in need of a Christmas gift.  So, with my Mom's guidance they carefully narrowed down the choices until they decided on a mini American Girl doll and book set.  Then Michaela worked with my Mom to write a note to the little girl saying...

I hope you like to read.  I love books, I hope you like these.  Maybe you can read to Josefina.  Merry, Merry Christmas, Michaela

The best part of this experience for me was hearing Michaela talk about this little girl that she has never met and probably never will.  Thank you Mom for providing Michaela with a powerful example of the joy of giving.          

Pages are not complete yet, but these are the pictures my Mom sent me from her phone.

Day 6 put together

December Daily - Day 5

I didn't use any photos to document today, which I think is a nice change.  I chose to document a bit about Michaela's first year of preschool.  Of course I had to add a little update on Avery too.  Here is the journaling...

Michaela has preschool every Tuesday and Thursday.  She loves going to school and is learning so much! We love seeing her work and the way she signs her name.  Every Thursday her teachers send out an email update so we know what's happening.  Michaela keeps us pretty up to date too.  Avery is learning a lot at home too...today she climbed out of her crib for the first time after her nap!

I scanned a piece of Michaela's work and sized it to fit on the page and was very pleased with how it turned out, I guess I wasn't expecting it to look so much like her original work.  Michaela actually handed me her "K" sheet and said she made the rainbow K for me.  So sweet!  I also included the update email from the teachers.

December Daily - Day 4

The girls were especially playful with each other when we got home and so I decided that had to be the story for the day.  They also discovered they could sneak behind the Christmas tree and have a little hidden hideout where we couldn't reach them.  Here is what I wrote in the journaling about their play.  

The girls are getting more interested in playing WITH each other lately rather than wanting to play the same thing, at the same time, but separately. When we got home today they started pushing around the baby stroller and shopping cart and chasing each other around. That game brought lots of laughs, but they quickly moved on to their new favorite place to hang out…the narrow opening between the wall and the Christmas tree. I think they like it because they know we can’t fit back there, it’s their space! I love watching the connection between them develop.  

photo 1  

photo 2

December Daily - Day 3

On Tuesdays we get home from our day and then head out for evening swim lessons.  Avery goes first followed by Michaela.  Ryan and I figured out last time we had back to back swim lessons that it was easiest for one of us to swim with both kids while the other watches and then get the kids cleaned up after.  This is our first time doing swim lessons in our new community and they do not allow parents or siblings sit on the side of the pool.  Instead, we have to watch through windows in the hallway.  So, the pictures are not the best because Ryan took them on his phone through the hallway window.  However, they definitely do the trick of giving a taste of what the girls are up to during swim lessons.  I am liking adding some texture to the pages by doing a tone on tone pattern that I cut using the Silhouette.  I did the same with stars for the title page and I LOVE the way it turned out...I'll have to post that some time soon.

December Daily Day 2

The girls helping make brownies

December 2nd is always a special day for our family because it is my husband's birthday.  A busy holiday weekend followed by a busy Monday at work left us scrambling to get everything ready for our small evening celebration.  My Mom was kind enough to help the girls make some baked goods during the day.  As I got them out of the car at home, I could tell they had done a bit of tasting those treat too (hello, frosting on their cheeks)!  After dinner we sang, gave Ryan his presents, and then it was off to bed for the girls. A quick, but wonderful celebration!

actual photo Day 2

actual photo Day 2

December Daily day 1

actual photo from day 1

As always, I am trying to keep this album simple, while still capturing our family events in a thoughtful way.  I decided to try out making my own book with the Unibind Photo Book Creator that my husband got me for a gift last year.  My albums always seem to be overflowing after 25 days and the 8x8 hardcover I chose this year may not work if I don't try to keep my album on the thinner side.  

For December 1st, I decided just to record the fact that it is our first Christmas in our new house. 

We are all thrilled to be celebrating Christmas in our new house for the first time.  Michaela is filled with excitement over all things Christmas - ornaments, Elf on the Shelf, wish lists...everything!  Avery is growing and adding to her vocabulary constantly, including her new word as of today...Elfie!  Ryan and I are just trying to keep up!  We can't wait to see what this season brings.  

Day 1

Here we go...

As I was working on finishing my December Daily album from 2011 earlier this fall (yes, I have not quite finished 2011 or 2012 yet), I knew that although it takes me FOREVER to actually finish the albums that when they are finished they are awesome reminders of what our lives entailed that particular year.  The girls seem to really enjoy looking back at them too.  So, while I am always determined to keep up with the pace that is required for daily documentation, I know that it is not really realistic of our family lifestyle.  However, I am going to give it my best effort to do what I can do.  I already use the App Momento to help me document so that I have stories recorded somewhere, like the fact that Avery added a new word this morning...Elfie (our very creative name for our Elf on the Shelf)! Here we go, Happy Holidays!