Slowly getting back into a routine

We are having a bit of trouble getting back into our routine since Christmas came and went. We thought we were going to have a quiet Christmas with just Grandma and Grandpa Capozzoli but we were mistaken. The entire Von Gunten/Seybert clan decided to rent a house in Pinehurst for the Christmas week. They surprised us the Sunday before Christmas with pizza and beer. It was wonderful and great fun having Uncle Tye, Aunt Kelly, Abby, Uncle Trent, Aunt Heather, Caroline, Gaga, Papa, Grandma and Grandpa here for the holidays. We learned that we will be expecting a new cousin too....Aunt Kelly is newly pregnant with baby number two. Uncle Trent and Aunt Heather will be giving Caroline a sister in April. So this Christmas was filled with lots of fun and family. I will post pics soon....still trying to get back into the swing of a quieter house.

Santa's special present

Last night we went to the Children's Christmas Party at Kevin's work. This was the best run and most organized Christmas Party we have attended. It was wonderful! They had a cookie bar filled with all kinds of cookies and candy.....the kids went crazy. And the drinks....most of the drinks were tailored to children's tastes. It was great to see the children's excitement. There were several stations set up for decoration, coloring, face painting, ornament making....you name it....they had it. And the areas to run....that was the best part....the kids could just run and run and run and enjoy being kinds. We had so much fun. My parents were able to attend with us and loved seeing the excitement in all the children too.

We decided to have the kids see Santa once this year to try and keep the magic alive longer...since Santa now visits several malls and parties. I prepared William for our visit and he instantly responded with "Mom, I am going to take Santa my Christmas Letter!" Last week in Kindergarten, the children drafted letters to Santa and glued on pictures of their favorite desires. William chose a pixos starter kit and play-do. I thought it was great he wanted to take his letter. So then yesterday while we were getting ready, William came into my bedroom with a plastic grocery bag filled with all of his candy and states "Mom, I am going to give Santa my candy. I know he likes cookies so I am sure he will like candy. I am also going to take my letter to him." I was so touched by his thoughtfulness and kind heart....what a sweet boy he is turning into. We decided that Santa's special present needed a better presentation than the grocery store bag so we wrapped the candy in pretty tissue paper and found the prefect little gift bag for it.

When it was time for William to sit on Santa's lap, he was a bit nervous at first and Santa was so surprised and touched to receive a present that he did not know what to do. His elf helpers jumped right in and took the special present and put it under the tree. William find the courage and climbed right up on Santa's lap where Santa began to read his Christmas letter and talk with William about what he wanted for Christmas. We left the letter with Santa for him to read later. The Christmas elves took several pictures and were also touched by William's kindness. It was a wonderful moment and loving memory. Oh, and if you are wondering where Paulie was during all this....he was running around the room recovering from the tantrum he threw because we had to wait in line.

Fashion show

The photographer from our family photo shot really likes you to bring accessories for the kids....hats, scarves, sunglasses, drums - pretty much anything that would bring out great smiles. So I was preparing for our session last Friday and William wanted to get in the act and help out. I pulled out all of my winter scarves, hats and gloves. William loved trying them on and modeling them for Mommy and Daddy. I know that they are not the most masculine colors but he had such a great time that we had to take pictures for the blog. He ended up wearing a dark purple scarf with black fringe, a grey hat and black gloves the day of our shot. He thought he looked great and we did get some good smiles out of him.

Family Photos

We had our family photos taken this past Saturday by a professional photographer at a local farm. It was VERY chilly out, but we all braved the cold air and got some really great shots. Our photograph, Tina, was recommended by our friends, Erin and Aaron Roof. She did a great job capturing the boys and getting some very loving shots of Kevin and me and me and William. Hugging and snuggling with William was a special moment and I was thrilled to see it in the photos. Now I just have to wait for the arrival of our CD so I can buy, buy, buy....and frame, frame, frame!

Here is her link.....check out our photos - http://tinawronaphotography.blogspot.com/

A special treat

William wanted to create his own special treat this morning....be a chef. So we played along. His treat included the following ingredients:
Cereal - two kinds. Corn Bran and Frosted Flakes
Fruit Gummies
Grape Jelly
Peanut Butter
Yogurt - two kinds. Cotton candy and Kiwi
BBQ Potato Chips
Bread
Cheese - Colby Jack
Cheetos
Goldfish
Milk to gel it all together

It was tasty. Here is a photo of William eating his treat and then a photo of the actual treat. I videoed him eating it to get his thoughts on it. It is in the video section. Check it out. I think we are safe to say that he is not ready for culinary school at the moment....but is interested.

The Christmas Tree and William's Snowman

William came home with a stamp for being good in Art class....a snowman. The location of the stamp was interesting....his cheek. We had to take a picture of it for the blog. This is the best shot I could get.



While Grandma and Grandpa visited for Thanksgiving, they helped the boys decorate the Christmas tree while Mommy and Daddy went house hunting. William had a great time and was a big helper. Paulie just took ornament after ornament off the tree. Grandma and Grandpa left a few of the ornaments for Mommy and Daddy to do. Here are some pics of our finished tree and of us decorating the tree. Paul still loves to take the ornaments off....something I work with him on everyday.

Aaahhhh, isn't he the greatest

Yup, that would be my husband. You are probably wondering why I am thinking he is the greatest. Last Sunday I went Christmas shopping....by myself....for the last of the toys for the boys. I was away for about three hours. While I was away I didn't expect much to happen at home. When I arrived home it was a new house. My lovely husband had cleaned the entire house, vacuumed the floors, cleaned the hardwood floors, straighted up the family room and play room, and then proceeded to make dinner for us. He even helped put the youngins' to bed! At the end of the night I asked him what made he get so motivated. I love motivation like this! I think it is so sexy! Acts of service is my number 1 love language....if any of you know what that means. And it is NOTHING dirty. Get your heads out of the gutter!. His response: I am going stir crazy being locked up in this house for four days. I don't think he would make a good stay-at-home dad....but part-time housekeeper I'll take.