Auntie Lauren

Soooo...I'm off work for the next 10 days.  I plan to blog, blog, blog about all of the things I've been wanting to for the last month.  Between Christmas preparations, a crazy work schedule, and sick kiddos, I've been falling severely behind. 

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One of the things I had to share is what I'm hoping will become another holiday tradition.  Last weekend we went over to "Auntie Lauren's" to make Christmas cookies.  Lauren let us make a complete mess of her kitchen.  Poor Lola, the black dachshund, was sprinkled with flour.  Lauren didn't even flinch when brother tossed his cookies on her living room floor or when Addy touched every single one of her Christmas decorations.  She's going to make an awesome mama (hopefully someday soon...hint, hint).

Stevy (Lauren's sister) was there to join the fun, which means brother's girl, Brenleigh was there too.  Miss Brenleigh is exactly one month younger than him.  Seriously, you can't deny this is one CUTE couple...

I don't know if it's the girlfriend or what, but brother is getting pretty big for his britches lately.  He's devoured all of the stage one baby foods.  He frequently gets up off his belly and on to his hands and knees and grins at us as if to say, "yep.  look at me now, fools."  He doesn't want baby toys, he wants the things sister plays with.  If she's singing to Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer in the car, you know brother is doing his best to harmonize.  He's too smart for peek-a-boo, meaning, he doesn't think we're disappearing..he'll try to reach and crane his neck to the direction you went.  Sometimes, the expression on his face almost seems like he's almost bored with being a baby, like it's really starting to cramp his style.  He's devastatingly close to being half a year old, people.  Anyway, that's a post for another day.

It was another one of those times where I'm taken with how great it feels to watch our best friends love our littles.  Stevy had brother belly laughing while Troy let Addy use him as a jungle gym.  Lauren laughed as Addy ate cookie dough and fistfuls of flour.  She smiled as Addy went crazy with the sprinkles (even when they ended up primarily on the floor). 

I couldn't be any more thankful for friends like them and an afternoon like that.  All that fun really takes it out of them...

   
Hope everyone's as ready and excited for Christmas as we are (case in point, we spent an hour tonight singing and dancing to Christmas Kidz Bop songs, and I caught Addy standing in front of our fireplace yelling, "Hurry up and come down my chimney, Santa!")!  More tomorrow...