Christmas Eve

We had a lot to do on Christmas Eve, so we let the boys open one present...

cars racing launchers

We thought it would keep them busy while we packed for our trip...

But they required daddy's help - over and over again.

Jonathan hanging out with Uncle Chad and eating a WHOLE apple!

Sarah and Luke

The table laden with deliciousness: prime rib, roasted chicken, sweet potatoes, creamed peas, rolls, and creme brulee for dessert!

Luke making his O face

Luke is full of expressions and wasn't too sure at first about opening presents.

It didn't take him long to get in the groove!

Grandpa helping Jonathan open his Handy Manny toolbox - Thanks Matt and Sarah for one of the loudest toys we received this year! It's a favorite of the boys!

Andrew's new marble roller

Matt helping Andrew assemble the marble roller. It has been built many times and is another favorite toy!

This lovely noise maker is from Chad and Sondra. Andrew likes it. We, well not-so-much...Just wait until Luke gets older. We will remember this noisy little gem when shopping for him!

the doctor kit - we have all been examined many times!

Grandma and Grandpa bought each of the boys these cute fold-up chairs.

This may look like a medieval torture device, but it's really the Ab Circle Pro. Grandma asked Santa for it and he delivered. We just pray no one gets hurt on it!

Luke taking a break from it all.

We drove to Hutchinson on Christmas Eve through blowing snow, not a super fun drive, and thankfully it only lasted half the drive. We arrived to fun and food! We ate dinner and then we dove into the presents. We all made quite a haul! Grandpa wasn't feeling great. He had a fever all day and no energy, but he rallied by the time we arrived and hopefully we didn't wear him out too much! I tried to explain to Andrew to give Grandpa space because he was sick and had a bug. So when we got there, Andrew said to him, "You have bugs in your belly?!" Oh the literalness of a 4 year old!

Merry Christmas!

The Christmas fever is high around here and the only remedy at this point is some wrapping paper-ripping therapy! We wish you all a very Merry Christmas!

Christmas Letter

December 2009

Dear Family and Friends,

Once again, this past year has flown by! Everyone warned us that your kids grow up so fast, but you don't believe it until you live it!

We've had a great year, with only one trip to the ER. (With these two active boys, we consider that a successful year!) Jonathan cut his hand on some sheet metal back in March while crawling outside at the farm. He had 14 stitches put in and was a great patient. But I'll be very happy if we never have that experience again! During the healing process, Jonathan learned to walk and then run before the stitches were taken out, and he hasn't stopped since! His main goal is to keep up with Andrew and pretend he's 4 instead of almost 2. Jonathan has finally started to talk a little. He's been slow to speak, but he understands everything!

Andrew started preschool three mornings a week at our church and he loves it. His teacher is great, and he is always excited to go to school. They had a Christmas program earlier this month and the kids sang the cutest songs. I think this was the only day Andrew did NOT like preschool. He's not a fan of being in front of crowds and stood stiff as a statue for the whole program. We didn't know he could hold that still, but he was very brave! We hope he always has such a love of school and learning!

Both boys are into playing with cars of all shapes and sizes, but especially the Disney Cars. So, it's never quiet around here with all the traffic in the house! And they both love crafts, especially when glue and markers are involved! They are starting to play together, but they usually require some sort of referee!

Keith continues to work at MKEC, and likes his job. Every day is something new and once a week, he drives to Blackwell, OK, where he is the City Engineer. The company is feeling the downturn, but continues to be a great place to work. It is blessing to work for a company run by strong Christian men.

I stay busy keeping up with the boys and volunteering at the church. I joined a little Mom's Day Out co-op with a couple of friends this fall. Each Friday, two moms get a kid-free morning, while the other two moms watch the kids. We have all boys and one sweet girl that joins us when she gets out of kindergarten at noon. It's a little loud, but the moms watching the kids usually have time for coffee and a good chat!

This summer we flew to New Hampshire and met the rest of the Ayotte gang for a week-long vacation. We ate, relaxed, played games, shopped a little, and of course watched the cousins play together. The boys and I also travelled to Oklahoma to visit the Petersons. We didn't get much sleep, but we had a lot of fun! And we are getting ready to travel to Boston to celebrate a late Christmas!

You can check our blog to see pictures of all of our latest adventures: http://ayottefamily.blogspot.com/

We wish you all a wonderful Christmas season and a Blessed New Year as we celebrate the birth of the King and the Light that He brings!

Love,
Tanya, Keith, Andrew and Jonathan

Little Lambs Christmas Program

Andrew's the one in the middle looking scared to death!

Jonathan loved the program and clapped after every song.

Still scared!

Ahh, it's over and mommy and grandma are comforting our poor scared little boy.

Cookies and apple juice

Posing with the balloon sheep after the program

Back on Dec. 4, Andrew's preschool had their Christmas program. We were a little worried about it, because of how the first Sunday of Advent went with his Sunday School class the week before. (see previous post) But they practiced all week at school and he sang us all the songs, so we knew he was ready. He even told his teacher about his previous performance, and she didn't believe him. I confirmed it was all true, and so she encouraged him all week and bribed the kids with Skittles if they practiced well. My kind of lady!

Then the morning of the program came. Keith stayed home that morning so he could go to the program and he took Andrew to school. We thought it would be a special treat, but it was the beginning of the end. We messed up the routine and we should know better than to do that! He went to class kicking and screaming, literally. His poor teacher was shocked to see him like that, but she managed to calm him down.

By the time the program started, an hour later, he was a frozen statue on stage. Every so often, it looked like he was about to cry. It was a painful for me to watch. I just wanted to run up to that stage and rescue my poor frightened baby! But he was super brave and stayed up there for the WHOLE program!

Afterward, his teacher told me that next time I'll need to come to the dress rehearsal to watch him perform and get some smiling photos! Hopefully the next program will go better!

1st Sunday of Advent

So the first Sunday of Advent, the PreK classes sang a couple of songs in front of the congregation. We didn't really prep Andrew for it, but we did practice the songs. He knew them and the motions. But that morning he didn't sing at all. And as you can see, his shirt was climbing up over his face and by the end of the songs, you could only see the top of his hair. Nice. We did not expect our loudest child to have such stage fright!

Oh, Christmas Tree. Oh, Christmas Tree...

Wow, I haven't posted any updates in a LONG time! We put up our tree right after Thanksgiving. The boys were very excited to help, so the tree isn't decorated exactly like I would do it, but I'm learning to let go of the little things. *deep breath* They keep redecorating and some ornaments are - gasp - touching each other. I don't even bother fixing it anymore. I don't have the time or energy to fix it each night just to have it "fixed" again by them. It's sort of fun to see what new arrangements Andrew comes up with each day!

We are Thankful for Friends!

Jill and Jonathan

The last time the Petersons visited, it was raining and Jill did some quick thinking and came up with a campfire on the porch. They all remembered and insisted they play that again, complete with loud singing and marshmallows.

Inspecting the roasting sticks

Brenna trying on Andrew's Indian head dress he made at preschool for the Thanksgiving Feast.

Sydney laughing at Andrew

We decided to celebrate Christmas early. In all the years we have exchanged gifts, this is the first time we've been together to open them. It was so fun to watch the chaos!

Sydney opening her Unicorn book. This picture does not accurately capture the screaming and excitement!

Brenna is a serious gift opener.

Jonathan got some Chuck and Friends cars and the Fold 'n Go Fire Station.

Great minds think a like! Jill and I got each other the new Pioneer Woman Cookbook.

Andrew reading his new Mater Saves Christmas book and Sydney reading her new Jewel the Unicorn book.

Jill and I enjoying some face to face conversation for a change and Jonathan didn't want to be left out!

Jonathan and Cory hit it off great! Especially when Cory agreed to read to him.

Attempting to capture our four kiddos.

First a silly face...

Anarchy

Oops. We lost Jonathan and we're losing Brenna!

OK. Fine. We'll take two smiling and looking at us!

Andrew got this great big semi with lots of little cars inside. It's so big that Jonathan thinks it's a ride-on toy.

Last Friday after Thanksgiving, the Petersons came over for supper and play time. The kids played together great. We actually had adult conversation at the table while they played. In all the times we have been together, this was the first time with limited fighting and quality adult time! We knew this day would come, but didn't know when.

And since they have gone home to Oklahoma, Andrew talks about Sydney and Brenna every day. Most days it goes something like this:

Andrew: "Sydney and Brenna are never going to come to my house again!" followed with a big sad sigh
Me: "Yes, they'll come to play some time, we just don't know when."

Andrew: looks at me with sad eyes and shrugs his shoulders and moves on to something else

So, Petersons, instead of moving to Virginia, maybe you could move here?! We loved seeing you and we miss you!