Christmas Day - 2011

It's official, Santa came to visit the McCormack boys!! More presents under the tree, the stockings are stuffed and the cookies and milk are gone!! Just in case there was any question at all, the boys checked to make sure the reindeer ate the carrots we left them. As much as I hoped for a white Christmas, there was no snow so we couldn't look for any tracks. We did find a note from Santa and a couple of lil' bitty cards from Dobby. I was happy to see the boys were more excited about the toothbrushes in their stockings than the candy.

As you can sort of tell in the picture below, it was still dark outside when the boys started unwrapping gifts.....and the unwrapping doesn't even start until mom and dad each have a camera in one hand and a cup of coffee in the other.Such a funny picture that I could not resist........typical??

I love to see the joy and excitement on their faces as they unwrap their gifts. This to me is what Christmas is all about.

Christmas can mean so many different things to so many different people. At Christmas I am just so blessed to be able to be around friends and family that I love and care so much about. I know the true meaning of Christmas and one day so will my boys. I know I also go overboard in the gift department but I just can't help myself. I grew up in a single parent household with 4 other siblings and a mom who worked her butt off just to get food on the table and a roof over our head. Now that I am a mom I am so grateful to be able to fulfill my boys Christmas wish lists.

Speaking of spending time with family, before eating Christmas dinner with the family on Sunday, Papa Joe took Lucas and Landon into their backyard to shoot an air soft gun. At least I know for sure my boys will know how to shoot a gun safely. I think Papa has been waiting for this day for a long time and now will be counting down til the day he takes the boys to the shooting range.

We all had a wonderful Holiday Season and the boys are still enjoying playing with all their new toys. The last week they have just wanted to stay at home everyday and play with their toys. Lucas did finally agree to go have a special day with Grandma Judy and go to a friends house for a playdate. We also went to see the new Chipmunks movie with the Armstrong's. I am sort of sad to see the kids go back to school next week but also look forward to some much needed "me" time.

Until next year, we wish you all a very safe and wonderful New Year.

Christmas Eve - 2011

We spent the day on Christmas Eve just hanging out around the house as a family. We watched one of our favorite holiday movies, ELF. Before we went to Grandma Judy's house for Italian Beef, we all got to open one present. Jammies! Even the 2 Mommy White Dogs got new p.j.'s for Christmas this year.

Look at those two cute puppies!! ;)

After dinner we exchanged gifts with Grandma and Papa, Aunt Erin & Uncle Chris and Aunt Ang. The boys were so excited about the Nerf Guns from Uncle Chris and the Soccer Balls and Nets from Aunt Erin. They could not wait to get home and play with all their goodies.

They both got Lego sets from Grandma & Papa as well as remote control cars and a book with 25 crisp new dollar bills.

We tried to leave Grandma & Papa's house early so we could get home and get everything ready for Santa. Lucas got the cookies, Landon got the milk and I got the carrots for the reindeer. Lucas left a note for Santa and Landon left a napkin so he wouldn't leave a mess.

Lucas also left a note for Dobby, our Elf on the Shelf, that said how much he was going to miss him. Landon and Lucas were both sad to say goodbye to Dobby, til next year.

'Tis the Season

The boys are getting so excited for Christmas and so am I. With a little over a week to go before the big day, I am already done shopping and have even done some baking. The boys wake up each morning and rush to see who can find Doby, our "Elf on the Shelf", first. Some of our friends have naughty elves but our little guy is nothing but polite. We have found him swinging from the rafters and driving Spiderman's car but he is not much for pulling pranks on us.

We once again are forced to find indoor activities to do, as no one at the McCormack house is real fond of the cold weather. The boys love to get into costumes and dance around the house.

We all love to read and one of our favorite things to do in the winter is curl up by the fire and the Christmas Tree and read or color. Both boys love helping make cookies but soon loose interest when it comes to baking time.

So nice to see we are getting our money's worth out of this years Halloween costumes. ;)

Last weekend was unseasonably warm and the boys enjoyed getting outside and riding bikes. We are all hoping for some snow and a white Christmas, but since we are not traveling I'm sure the weather will be beautiful.

Last Saturday Landon and I went and watched one of our favorite little girls perform in her dance recital. Landon was so excited to take flowers for Gracie, he would not let me touch them.

Last weekend we had Christmas with the Whetman family. Lucas and Landon were so excited to finally get to open a gift! The boys had fun hanging out with Danee, she really played well with Landon.

Landon and I got to spend an afternoon with another one of our favorite little girls, Isabel. She is the sweetest and happiest little thing I have ever seen.

Love our Belbel.

Seasons Greetings!

Football and Fun

So I consider myself pretty fortunate in that Steve does not watch that many sporting events on t.v. Of course when we first started dating that was not the case as we were both enthralled in the Chicago Bulls and Michael Jordan and even went as far as taping games and watching them repeatedly. Since Jordan retired neither one of us has watched much basketball or any other sport for that matter. Well Lucas has discovered football!! He loves to watch any game he can and tends to dislike the teams that mom and dad are rooting for, meaning he really dislikes the Chicago Bears and the Denver Broncos. However he does like the Utah Utes, and the Wyoming Cowboys but is also a big fan of BYU!!!! Sorry to say it, not sure what we did wrong. We have tried telling him he cannot be a Utes and BYU fan but he disagrees. If he is not watching football, he is throwing a little football around the house, playing football outside with dad and brother, playing football at school or playing his newest Wii football game. Then there is Landon who just goes with the flow - or whatever older brother is doing.They even play football in costumes!

I like that when they play football at home they are usually on a team against dad and therefor get along great. Below is a picture of Lucas feeding Landon so that he will finish his lunch sooner and be able to play more football. ;)

Lucas and I enjoyed a mommy/son date at Jungle Jims one afternoon. We both had lots of fun playing the games and trying to find which ones would give us the most tickets for a prize.

Lucas found some of my red lipstick.......what a little "Joker".

Below is a drawing done by Landon. Can you tell which figure is the male?

Thankful for Time with Family

We were fortunate enough to spend Thanksgiving in Wyoming with my family this year. Since my mom had recently moved into her new apartment, we decided to stay in the hotel that my niece Jenika and her boyfriend Sharjeel manage. The boys were so excited to be able to go swimming over the holiday that they did not complain a bit.

Thursday we had a delicious Thanksgiving dinner that my sister Terri and her husband Paul prepared. My brother Robert and his wife Shelly came into town Wednesday night and so we were able to spend some time with them as well. Lucas and Landon were more than happy to celebrate Christmas a little early with my family.

Lucas and Landon got to spend a lot of time with my great nephew Braeden and great niece McKayla. I was so happy that they all got along wonderfully.

Thursday evening my sister Terri came to our hotel and some of us adults were able to play a fun game of Curses while the kids danced in the conference room and played a mean game of War. My sister Tonia came into town on Friday with her grandson A.J. and stayed in the adjoining room next to ours. My fun little niece Kathy was able to spend the night in Laramie on Friday as well and we all stayed up way too late swimming, eating and just hanging out. Saturday my nephew Kent came over from Cheyenne to visit and Lucas, Landon, Steve and Braeden had fun playing football with him outside in the freezing cold; while us ladies stayed inside getting manicures from Kathy.Landon loves Grandma Janice's dog Taby, or any dog for that matter. He also had fun playing with Uncle Bert's dog Kota and Aunt Tona's dog Barley. This mom thinks this little boy needs a dog of his own. ;)

Saturday night we went swimming again and had grandma, Aunt Terri and Aunt Tina over to the hotel to watch all the kids swim and to eat and be merry a little bit more. We had such a fantastic visit and are so thankful for all that my niece Jenika and Sharjeel provided for us. We hope to repay them when they come for a visit to Utah.

Landon was well prepared with drinks for the ride home and Lucas.......well not sure what he was eating, but something with cheese.