Who knew we had Baby Jesus (or baby Maggie) here?

Laney has grown very attached to a baby doll that we have owned for um, like 3 years! She never really cared about this baby until the past three weeks where the baby has taken on a life of his/her own. Why his or hers? Well, for the first few weeks, the doll's name was baby Maggie. Maggie went everywhere with us but particularly enjoyed the car rides, the exersaucer, being breastfed by my daughters (seriously!) and sleeping with Laney.

But last week, baby Maggie had a name change. She is now known as Baby Jesus. I am not sure how this change came to be but as we were getting ready for school, Laney said I can't forget about baby Jesus. Since she was going to her church preschool, I just figured it had something to do with an activity they were going to do that day. Oh, no...she meant baby Maggie.

Baby Jesus
Baby Jesus is naked and has a boo boo on his left arm and head.
I am sure the tape is helping it heal.

Laney's artwork from school

Another piece of artwork that came home with her.
Notice the name in the corner?

Yup, baby Jesus does artwork!

This is what we do on a cold day!

As I was downloading pics from my back-up camera I noticed this picture from last week when Reese and Ryan were over. I heard some crazy laughter from the living room and this is what I saw. Hearing the kids play mommy/baby always gives insight to what I, as a mother, say too often. Such as Laney saying "you are back talking. Go to time out."

Lovely :)

Who is who? Fun for the weekend

This might be easy as I think my kids look nothing alike.

What do you think?

Fun for Friday

Yesterday we got about 5 inches of snow, enough to delay most of the school districts around us. So when the schools are on delay, the girls' preschool is canceled. Although the girls were bummed about missing school today Ella was excited to go play in the snow. And play she did! We bundled her up and she played outside for over 45 minutes.

Jason asked if she does driveways too.

Using her summer toys, Ella loved making a snow castle

Still shoveling
And in case you are wondering, all of these pictures are taken inside. Heck, I hate the cold but don't mind taking pictures of the kids while they are outside :) Ella thought it was funny to see
me taking pictures through the glass door.

I am such a wimp, I know!

Laney's face when I asked her if she wanted to go outside with Ella.

She quickly changed her mind

Teamwork

They were very determined to build "something"

I entitled this one "A girl with her shovel." :)
I guess I need to clean my windows as these pics are kinda blurry.
Kelly, you said you like to clean...wanna clean them for me??

Once I saw the girls were making snow angels I literally
ran upstairs to catch this shot. Ella was of course done by the time
I got the blinds up, but Laney was still working on her angel.

Let me in!!!
Laney likes to play in the snow for about 10 minutes (must get that from me) where as Ella will stay out there for over 45 minutes.

Not the best picture but I loved the path
the girls made with the shovel.
We might never see that shovel until the snow melts :)

A fun work project for me

I rarely ever talk about work on my blog (ok, NEVER) as I figure work is work and really not that exciting. But for those interested, I teach patients who just had surgery, have congestive heart failure, suffered a heart attack or really anybody with heart issues, how to eat better and make lifestyle changes. I truly enjoy my job (and most importantly my coworkers) but on a day to day basis I don't feel like I make a huge difference. Sure I run into maybe 2 out of 10 patients who really want to make changes and inspire me to educate them, but for the most part I think the patients are just like "lady, be quiet so I can go home and have my fried chicken." Boy, I wish I was joking about that!

A few weeks ago our marketing department asked me to be one of the dietitians involved in the Go Red for Woman annual event. I have had some involvement in the past with this event but this year, there was a new challenge! Five Indiana women who are ready to improve their health were selected to participate in the Go Red Better U Heart Healthy Makeover Challenge presented by St.Vincent Heart Center of Indiana. Myself, along with another dietitian at work, were asked to counsel these 5 women in nutrition. Along with us, the women also got to see (free!) a cardiologist, personal trainer w/ free gym membership, facial treatments and an open forum to discuss their challenges along the way.

This group of 5 women are as diverse as they come (young vs old, smoker vs. nonsmoker, worked out when younger vs. never worked out). The different backgrounds, different stages in life, and different stress levels of the ladies have led to this being a fun challenge for myself and my fellow dietitian. Boy do I miss seeing outpatients! Outpatients are in a stage of life where they are ready to learn and soak up information where as those in the hospital just want to get out of the hospital, feeling better. Nutrition is not seen as that important (little do they know if they don't eat right, they are right back IN the hospital).

I met with two of the ladies in December of 2009. They have started a blog to keep themselves accountable and document what has been challenging. I encourage you to cheer them on with me! I applaud anybody making positive changes in their lives and these five ladies are doing it!

The Go Red for Women luncheon in February is their big reveal. I can't wait to see these ladies and see who was able to reach their goal, and who is on their way to making lifestyle changes. I love being a dietitian when you see people who want to learn, want to change, want to be motivated and want YOU to help them. These patients inspire me :)

http://indygoredbetteru.blogspot.com/

--link is also located on the left tool bar

Jumping around in style

He's a poser until about 40 seconds :)

Our 5th and final Christmas Celebration

We ended our crazy Christmas whirlwind with Christmas at my parents' house. We were going to continue celebrating Christmas night but waited until the 26th so we all could regain some strength from the present fatigue of the 25th :)

I enhanced this picture with the warm setting and liked the affect.
The sun is obviously fairly bright by mom and dad but the warm setting seemed to tone it down a bit.



I only mention like every other day that I love that Jason cooks.
What did he want for Christmas from my parents?
A pressure cooker (love that!)

What did Laney like about the pressure cooker?
The box

My sister, Cindy



Laney and her new painting smock
(notice how she still has the purse in her hand)

Ella, Matthew and my cousin, Angie
This picture reminds me of how quickly time goes.
Angie was in our wedding when she was 7.
Look at her now; all grown up and driving!!
She is talking colleges.
I bribed her with tons of Miami gear if she goes there!

Wow!
Out of 20 attempts to get a family pic this was the best one.

We turned around and Laney was in the kitchen, sneaking a cookie. I found you Laney!

Mama and her two girls!
To use one of my own phrases....this is a framer!

Another day, another birthday cake :)
My mom had a gathering for Laney's birthday on the 26th.
It was such a fun time and a great way
to carry on the holiday season.
Thank you, Mom, for putting this together.
Laney loved having more cake (ok, we did too!).

Do you think she loved the gift from Nana and Pappy?



I had to include this picture because it just makes me laugh.
This is one of the many faces Ella gives us when
we ask her to smile.

We thought we would get a picture for my Great-Grandma Kay
of all the ladies. Then I realized I was holding Matthew and he
doesn't fit into the lady category :)

Laney and her new favorite buddy, Cindy.
Cindy asked Laney if she wanted to sleep with her. Of course
Laney said yes. Well, Laney fell asleep at 7PM and woke up at
8 AM (I "think" she was tired).
I was in the room next door and at 8 AM, heard Laney tell Cindy that it was time to get up, go sit on the couch and be quiet.
Laney had so much fun with her Auntie Cindy.

Love this picture.
It's always a wonderful feeling when your camera
captures exactly what you want it to (and it's in focus).

When I was little we always visited the live nativity scene located about 10 minutes from our house. It grew into a family tradition! This year we took the girls to the nativity scene. Laney loved seeing the baby Jesus but they weren't as into it as I hoped they would be. They had to be bribed to even look at the donkey let alone touch it.

At least my mom and dad cooperated for pictures





After MANY attempts, this was the best!

It was one of the best Christmas' we ever could have had. The kids did splendidly considering how tired they were, and I was happy we got to see so many family members! To say we are blessed is an
understatement, and we thank God
everyday for what we have been given.