Santa Toys

I haven't had time to go through my Christmas photos yet but did spot these 3. Forrest riding his scooter and Summer reading "Little House on the Prairie" book. My hightlight was watching them walk down the stairs on Christmas morning and seeing them yell...

"He came! Santa came to our house!" That was the only present I needed.

I hope everyone had the most joyful Christmas!

Schultz Christmas Card 2011

My favorite thing in December is going to our mailbox and seeing cards and pictures of all of the people in our lives that we LOVE. Since our first Christmas as a married couple, David and I have sent out a photo christmas card. I have all of the christmas cards we have sent out over the years in a small book that we bring out each December. It is a great way to ensure that we have at least one family picture taken with all of us together each year. I love flipping through the book and seeing how our family has grown. The three people with me in this picture are the most treasured people in my life.

Good Morning

How cute is my Summer in her Christmas nightgown...

I am getting excited to see the kids' faces on Christmas morning.

There's nothing better than Christmas morning with little kids. Nothing.

Santa Sheets

Christmas Rooms

Summer and Forrest call their rooms the "Christmas Rooms". I got them flannel christmas sheets with santas and snowmen on them. You would have thought I bought them the moon. They were beyond excited. On December 1st when I was washing them Forrest moved his little step stool into the laundry room to make sure he was there the minute they were done. The buffalo check duvet covers were an easy switch and I think made it so cute. In january we'll go back to their usual covers but this has been fun for them for Christmas.

Here are Summer reading a christmas book and Forrest playing "Throw the Grinch".

Santa

We took our kids to see Santa last night. It was crowded at the mall and the line was long. Our kids were wiggly and excited. After what seemed like an eternity we made it to the front of the line. We sat both kids on his lap and they quickly took the picture. As soon as they got the picture Summer and Forrest each got about 30 seconds of Santa one-on-one time. Priceless. I forgot to set my camera's settings before the kids got on his lap and then it was just crazy and too late. The pictures are a mess but I'm thankful I at least got something! You can see Summer explaining to him with her hands the exact thing she wants him to bring her to hold her Leapster games in. Forrest was just as descriptive asking for his very own toy train with a snowplow attached.

I love the author Chris Van Allsburg's description of how he felt about Santa as a child. He explains it as, "An exquisite almost unbearable anticipation of a fairy tale coming to life, a fairy tale that included me."

Just 11 more sleeps!

Christmas Tree

I love going to the christmas tree lot. I love watching my kids play chase through the rows of trees and getting their candy canes. We have been going to the same tree lot for the last four years. However, this year we did something new. We went to the one that is super close to our home. Forrest and Summer both loved riding on the 1967 firetruck. A real classic. On top of it there is a huge ladder with lots of christmas lights hanging decorated like a tree. So pretty!

We found a great tree... fraser firs are my favorite. I love the smell in our home. Our ornaments are going up and I can't wait to see it with all of the white lights.

Stairs Makeover

I was with my friend Sharon one day and was admiring some pretty hardwood stairs in a model house near our home. I wanted them for my home but I knew the price of hiring someone to do the job was crazy expensive. David then said, "You know - I know how to do it." That was all I needed. I said, "Sign me up!" All I had to do was find some things in the garage that we could work with. Removing the carpet was easy. Over the next few weeks I did my homework, filling in the holes with wood filler and sanding and then told David I was ready. We stained all the wooden steps in 30 minutes, it was that easy! David stained them two more times to get the dark shade we wanted. I then painted the risers in a semi gloss white paint. David removed the old stain off the railings and used the same stain. It all ties together. The beautiful thing about these steps is that it is indestructible. Summer has already walked up and down in her high heels and Forrest has taken every one of his toy cars, trains and airplanes to its surface. I love pine. The more knots, nooks, and crannies the better. Thank you, David. I love them.

Thanksgiving

Our family on the day after Thanksgiving...

For the past two years we've been going to the same rental house on Kure Beach. What a year it has been since last Thanksgiving and how thankful I am for our family. I love getting together with David's family every Thanksgiving. This year David's brother in law was able to join us and it was a lot of fun.  I love that my kids were able to spend time with their cousins and I love being able to hang out with my sister in law.  The main highlight of the week for me was watching all of the cousins playing together. Their days were filled with swimming, fishing, playing on the beach, eating, dolphin sighting, playing dress-up, and running around the house. The dads took the "little kids" to see Happy Feet 2 while the girls shopped. David's parents were so gracious to offer the beach house for all of us and for that I am so grateful. I even loved the daily walks on the beach... David and I had an hour of uninterrupted time together to just talk. That was a treat in itself. Thanksgiving dinner was delicious and I did not take one photo of it. It was a wonderful week.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Shooting Arrow

I am still sorting through my pictures from Thanksgiving week however I did come across these two from Forrest's Thanksgiving program at his preschool. Here's my favorite Indian in his costume he made in class. He was so proud of his Indian costume. We spent Thanksgiving at Kure Beach and Forrest made sure that I brought this for the big feast day again this year. Every student in his class is given their own Indian name and this year he was "Shooting Arrow". The program was super adorable (We were all humming to the songs during the Thanksgiving meal) and I am so glad I got to capture some of the songs on video.

Happy Birthday to my David!

Today is my David's birthday. He went out for a ride this morning and is still not home. I got the kids up early and we went to the store and they picked out balloons for him, a card, his favorite breakfast (an omelet burrito and mango smoothie) and of course cinnamon rolls for the kids. Summer and Forrest both worked really hard decorating the card. They are currently sitting on the porch with all of their loot just waiting for him. It is so cute to see them so excited to surprise their daddy.

Tire Swing

I love my time with you in the afternoons when it is just you and me.

I love how you make me laugh everyday.

I love pushing you on the tire swing. Even when my arms get tired.

I love how it makes you smile when you swing and get dizzy. You like it!

I love seeing you sign "more" over and over.

I love it when you whine when I say it's time to get off. You're cute when you get upset.

I love being your mama.

I love that I am there for you.

I love you, forrest.

Maco Light Legend 5k Run

David decided to run in the Maco Light Legend 5k race again this year. He dropped his time by 35 seconds. Impressive. This is the race that runs through Summer's school campus along the old railroad that claims to be haunted. Quite fascinating for this part of town. You can read more about it here. Summer and I did the fun mile run and she felt very grown-up to be a part of this fundraiser for her school's fitness and fine arts program. After the race the kids jumped on the blow-up bounce house and ate lots of italian ice. Earlier when we got to the school parking lot the kids in the back of our car would start telling and pointing when they saw the bounce house. It was so cute to watch. The real treat was having my dad join us with our good friends, Sharon and Elmer. We loved our time with them and can't wait for next year.

Woot-woot!

Circus Boy

Forrest has been on a little bit of a naughty streak lately. He does things he is not allowed to do and then charms his way out of them. Yesterday he was in the shower and he knows that it is a BIG no-no to waste shampoo. David and I have both had numerous conversations with him about dumping shampoo down the drain. I went to get him out of my shower and noticed the plastic bowl we have in there that they play with was extra, extra bubbly. I then noticed my shampoo bottle (not the cheap kids shampoo) was laying on the shower floor. I picked it up and sure enough it was empty. I told him he was getting dried off and heading to time out then he replied, "Mom, i am trying to learn to be a good cooker! I was NOT being naughty I was just making soup." A good cooker? Where does he come up with this stuff?? He still had to go to time out but he did get a laugh out of me.

Today he got me again. I let the kids ride their scooters on the deck. They love to play "freeway" around the deck table. It doesn't bother me and they have fun.  I do draw the line however with bikes. Bikes are not allowed. This afternoon I looked down the deck from our window upstairs and saw Forrest riding like a crazy boy all over the deck. He was doing dangerous handstands on the bike (it has training wheels) and other stunts. I came down the stairs and told him to get his bike into the garage asap. He then looked at me and said, "Mom, I am practicing to be a circus boy. Circus boys HAVE TO practice and I am NOT being naughty." I kid you not those were his exact words to me. I died. I also grabbed my camera. I then had him explain to me what he was planning on doing for the show. That first picture is of him explaining in detail the dangerous stunt he was practicing. He was dead serious. He then said he couldn't continue talking and taking pictures because he needed to exercise like daddy and propped the back training wheels onto the 1 inch thick grass next to the deck. It was enough to get the back wheel so that it didn't touch the ground. Voila... he had a stationary bike. He was peddling crazy fast and was staying in place. Hilarious.

Bumblebee Summer

There's a new bumblebee in town... Watch out!

Forrest the Superhero

Forrest was a superhero this year. His cape and mask provided a full week's worth of entertainment. He had those things on all day long, everyday and would chase after pretend bad men to save the world in our house. I'm not just making this up. He learned to yell "superhero to the rescue!"

Halloween

We had a really fun Halloween... I must say though that this has been one crazy week. I went out of town for a couple of days and got home with the laundry basket completely full. It's been non stop for me in the laundry department and I'm tired. David ripped the carpet off of our stairs yesterday morning and went right to work on restoring the wooden steps. I took the kids trick-or-treating last night in our neighborhood while David filled the holes and handed out the candy. It was quite a sight but he made it work. Forrest loved cruising in the wagon and Summer ran from house to house. Our neighborhood is a fun one on Halloween night. Lots and lots of kids and parents running through the streets. It's adorable. The kids have already started talking about what they want to be next year. I love their ages right now. Every holiday is just magical for them. I know that will change someday so I am enjoying it so, so much right now. Now I need to figure out what to do with all this candy in the house. I always forget how delicious Kit-Kats are. Seriously, so good. Here's to another fun Halloween and hoping that David gets the stairs done soon. My fingers are crossed.

Happy Halloween!

Hint

You get just one guess what Forrest is going to be for Halloween...

Legos

My Forrest is REALLY into legos right now. He loves being creative. Every time he sees a picture of something he likes, he will say with determination, "Mama, I'm going to build that with my legos when I get home". I took these pictures of him yesterday afternoon when we got home from preschool. It is the littlest things I love about this boy. The expression on his face whenever he's serious. The way he sits on his little chair, with his feet hanging out on the side. The way his face brightens up when he finishes putting something together. These are the things I want to document and never forget.

Forrest is always carrying a lego man around these days and of course loves all of the little pieces to put together. All of the little pieces are found in this wicker basket. It happens to not really be a big basket but it is my kitchen basket from when we first moved in this house. It was used as a snack basket in the pantry. I love that it still has lots of little chocolate stains in it from the years of chocolate snacks being in it. It fits forrest's lego collection perfectly inside. Forrest takes it with him everywhere we go. So cute.

Hello Kitty Jammies

About a year ago, Summer and I were running through Walmart and I was in a hurry to check out. While we were standing in line, Summer saw an enormous tacky Hello Kitty display. She promptly begged for the shiny polyester, horribly ugly, Hello Kitty (did I mention polyester?) pink nightgown. I told her no, no and again no. She of all children did not need a new pair of pajamas. I promptly reminded her of all of the adorable pj sets she had at home... The cute toile pajamas with her monogram on them or how about the pink cotton ones with "mommy loves me" on the front? She wasn't having it.  So I hesitantly agreed. It has been a year and those have been her favorite jammies. They got a hole in them and so I gleefully threw them away. Summer saw them in the trash and began to cry. I told her that they were just too small now and that it was time to say good bye. She was so sad, so I told her, "Ok, let's go to the store and you can pick out a replacement pair." Well, yesterday we found a (slightly less tacky... but not much) pair. She wore them to bed last night and was in heaven. She even slept in her princess shoes... I am not kidding. I asked her how much she loved them and she put both of her arms out and said, "This much!" I need to put blinders on her when we go to Walmart from now on. Heaven help me if I ever bring home the matching trash can and drapery set!

Tea Party

Summer knows how to throw a great party. Her stuffed animals and dolls thoroughly enjoyed her tea party. They ate, sang, and read stories together.

Go Huskies!

My little Huskies have become quite good soccer players. I put them on a soccer team in August and they go to practice every Wednesday evening. The kids call their daddy "Coach David" which is so cute to watch. They get so excited every time Coach David tells them its time to go practice. We love watching them play. The Huskies had their first game of the season this morning. Our routine is to have soccer games on Saturday mornings and then hit the local cafe for lunch. It's been fun.

Hula Hoop

This morning while getting Forrest's school bag ready, I went outside to find Summer with her pink hula hoop in her pink princess high heels. She was playing while she waited for us to load in the car. This is just so her. I love it. Adorable.

My Summer

While your brother is at preschool... I'm loving my time alone with you, Summer. I wish you could stay six years old forever.

Mama Bird

The first image of the bird is not mine. I wish i knew who captured that picture. Isn't it the cutest thing ever? It melts me. That's exactly the stage of life I feel I am in. My little "birds" still under my wings. I know this season of life will change but I'm not in any hurry. When I saw that picture of the mama bird it reminded me of the time when my little babies hung on my each of my hips. Sadly they've grown a bit too big for that. The picture above is of my Summer hanging out with me. She's the sweetest girl around. It's for real. She's on break from school for the next two weeks and I am so thrilled to have this time with her. My little birdies are growing up too fast.