Rise and Shine!

Santa was very generous this year and we

rolled out of bed Christmas morning around

8:30 a.m. to find our tree surrounded by gifts!

(not too shabby - I thought for sure Reagan

would be tugging us out of bed at five...)

Bracken refused to let them go once

he got them unwrapped... 

 A Ballerina musical jewelry box!

 A Magical Princess Piano vanity complete

with makeup that turns into instruments!

(yes, you read that correctly.. there isn't

much this thing can't do...)

 A Cars Parking Garage!

 The Disney Princesses!

(what a surprise)

 The Chaos.

(I especially like this photo of Bracken...

he is either mid yawn or about to sneeze, not sure.)

 Reading a super cute Fuzzy Snowman book

(thank you Aunt Buffy!)

 Yes - she is eating a sucker for breakfast.

It's okay, it was cherry flavored so

we are counting it as a fruit.

Christmas Wishes...

I think this series of photos accurately

depicts the love we feel for each other here at

the Bull household this holiday season...

  (I especially like Bracken's backhand that he

administers to his sister's chin after she sneaks a kiss).

 

 

 

 

Merry Christmas to all of our family and friends!!

Christmastime is Here!

So... we disagreed for weeks about whether we

should get a real or fake tree...

I voted for fake. Real trees are more work and

shed their needles. Given that we have a 1 year old

who likes to put everything in his mouth I presented

a very strong case against the choking hazard, and won.

So... we went and got ourselves a fake tree.

It sheds more than any real tree I have ever seen.

(I shake out the tree skirt outside every afternoon before

David comes home so I don't have to hear about it)

Bracken helping with the ornaments...

 ...and right in the mouth.

 Reagan straightens a snowflake.

 Our new tree in all of it's shedding glory!!!

 New stockings, too!

(this was my first attempt at iron-on

lettering and now I am hooked...

does anyone need anything spelled in

glittery silver 2" letters?)

 My favorite part of our decorations...

our mirror covered with cards and photos

from friends and family!!

First attempt at 10-second delay family photo.

 Second attempt at 10-second delay family photo.

(it was 8 seconds too long for Bracken)

There we go.

School Days...

Reagan seems to be doing well at school these days...

she tells me about her new friends and the

cool stuff that they do for crafts. The highlight of her day

is typically what they had for snack or if she gets to be

"Star Helper" for the day. Another big thing is the

"Show and Tell Bag" (for obvious reasons).

For the record, Reagan has had the Show and Tell Bag

twice and both times involved a Disney Princess

(Ariel and Jasmine were the chosen ones...)

Oh, how I would love to be a fly on that wall!

She is the youngest, just barely passing the

age cutoff by 2 weeks, but certainly not the shortest!

Here is a glimpse into her secret life

in the 3 year old room.

These photos were taken from the

Bright Beginnings website by the teachers who are

ultra cool and tech savvy!

This is the rice box.

(much easier to clean up than sand...clever!)

Snack time with the ladies...

 Big Builders.

(no, you aren't seeing double...

two of the TRIPLETS who just joined her class

are in this photo... can you even imagine?!?)

 Story Time.

(yes, that is my daughter with the plumber's crack)

 "See my tiny head poking out the back?"

(this is what she says when she looks at this photo)

They made pumpkins into spooky spiders!

This is a popular car in the room... I imagine it

causes lots of kids to be sent crying to the

"Try Again Chair"

(this is what they call the timeout chair...

I guess it has a more positive, christian ring to it ;)

Random Reagan Photos

Because her princess dresses can't handle more

than a few washings (and they really took a hit the

last few weeks of potty training), I have decided

to let her wear the "good" dresses that she

likely won't fit into next year as play outfits.

This is Reagan caught doing her
"jump around the living room with my
tongue hanging out so far that you
can see my tonsils" dance.

(in this year's Easter dress)

 Enjoying spaghetti.

(in her summer dress from last year...

that is so tight we have to leave the back unbuttoned!)

 Helping to clean up after the

Gingerbread Extravaganza.

 Getting in some snow time with Daddy

in her new winter gear!

 Snow Bunny.

 Looking puzzled (though I am not sure why).

Gingerbread Fun

Last week we got all of our supplies together and

had our 2nd Annual Gingerbread House

Decorating Extravaganza!

 Hard at work.

(can you guess who's chubby hand

is poking out of the corner?)

 Stopping for a moment to pose with her creation.

(you may recognize the outfit from her "Beach Baby"

dance class performance last summer...it has become

a regular in her dress-up rotation)

 Done! (and delicious)

 Mr. B was a big help at the table.

(throwing things on the ground and reaching for

anything that is a choking hazard)

 He is licking his lips in anticipation and

cannot wait to get his hands on

this tasty looking house!

He's Got Skills.

Bracken is destined for athletic greatness!

War Wounds

Bracken: 0

Coffee Table: 1

We had a scare last weekend after Bracken went

crashing into the corner of the table... our first

emergency room visit as a family. It was so special.

Fortunately, though there was a decent amount of

blood and crying (most of the crying done by Reagan)

he walked away with no stitches...

just a little skin glue and a sweet cut that looks

like somebody tagged him with a right hook.

You should see the other guy.

Tough kid. The doctor called in 2 nurses to help

hold him down while she cleaned and glued him

back together again.  Not necessary - he laid

there smiling and cooing at her the whole time.

Quite the ladies man, this one.

Santa's Parade of Lights

 After reviewing my photos from the weekend

I realized I really only took shots from when we

visited my parents and took the kids to the
Christmas Parade in Breese.  Not coincidentally,

the less time I have with Bracken, the more

photos I take. This also explains why you don't

see the little guy...he was home with Grammie

and PaPa staying warm and toasty. 

Something catches her eye coming down the line. 

 She looks a little miffed as she gives

the passing tractor a faint wave after

receiving NO candy from him...

 We replenished our diminishing bead supply.

 The crew braving the cold:

Daddy, Reagan, Uncle Craig,

Aunt Laura, Cousin Calvin and Cousin Carly

This shot reminds me of the movie

"A Christmas Story"

and the parade scene...

"Can we go see Santa yet, mom?

Can we? Can we?"

Happy with her goodies...

I should have known that when Daddy had to

lift her onto Santa's lap rather than under her

own free will that we were in trouble...

Tears. Streaming down her face.

She was terrified. It was not good.

She was excited until the moment she realized

she was going to sit on his lap.

We should have just taken the coloring book

and went on our merry way.

(also reminds me of the movie

"A Christmas Story" when Randy screams on

Santa's lap and he replies;

"Uh Oh, okay. Get him out of here...")

Maybe next year.