Kicking off the Holidays!

What better to get you in the holiday spirit than the sight of an enormous cow in the local parade? Forget about the big impressive balloons, glittery floats, and music-playing marching bands...no, no, our favorite was the cow.

The other day, we were stopped at a light near a Wendy's. Keelyn thinks every fast food restaurant is a Chic-fil-A, and with every ounce of excitement in her body, she yelled from the back seat, "Found it, Found it, Mommy! Lay, Lay!" Apparently we are on a constant search for them, you know, just in case we need some nelade.

This was Keelyn's first year at the Christmas parade because last year it was negative below too-cold-for-a-baby degrees outside, and we skipped it. I think she was impressed.
After the parade, the kids played in the leaves by the capitol building for a few minutes, while I took pictures of them in their cute little matching dresses. My kids love to match. Love it.

Drew was throwing leaves on them, and they both loved feeling them blow by.

I really love how in each of these individual pictures of the girls, they have their tiny hands placed against their thighs so you can see just how perfect their little miracles of fingers are. Seriously, I am so thankful for their perfect little tiny fingers.

That evening we had our friends the Hansen's over for dinner. Kate and Hailey have been play buddies since they were babies, and the girls do a great job including Keelyn in their play now too...though the little one tends to get a bit defeated trying to keep up with them once in a while. She really needs some friends her own size, but she adores the big girls. Anyway, we made pizza...see how well Keelyn follows instruction while the big kids eat the toppings?

My attempt at a group picture. This was the best of about five. Hailey is a goofball.

Sunday morning my grandmother flew in to stay with my mom for the next few weeks. The kids have been looking forward to this for a long time, as have I, and it is just so wonderful to have her here. We spent the day visiting with her, but I'll have to post a photo later because none of them were post-worthy. Except this. This was post-worthy. Dontchathink?

And, finally, the only thing that seems to excite Keelyn more than the sight of a Chic-fil-A is her Unlce Cooper. She has these little cadences she repeats, particularly when we are in the car and she needs to entertain herself. One of them I hear regularly goes something like, "Cooper, school, eight, nine, ten, eleven, Cooper, school, eight, nine, Cooper, school." When I was explaining to Hailey earlier in the week that she'd get to see Cooper this weekend on his school break, Keelyn piped up quite annoyed yelling, "Me! ME!!" And, I absolutely love this picture of her enjoying a giggle with him, after running wild around the house and turning somersaults all over the living room floor, high on Cooper Kool-Aid.

What a weekend.