Pure Christmas Joy

Two weeks ago, I told Joe that I didn't think I was going to do any Christmas baking. After he laughed at me and called me a liar, I realized he was probably onto something. Less than a week later, I was making out my Christmas Goodie List. I tried several new recipes this year and I'm pleased to say that I approved of all of them! I even have a new favorite. So for your viewing pleasure...

Baking Supplies: Upwards of $100
Baking Magazines for new Recipes: $10
Pure Christmas Joy: PRICELESS

Clockwise from the left: Peanut Butter Blossoms, Andes Peppermint Crunch Icebox Cookies, Gingerbread, Chocolate Chip, Plain Chocolate Fudge, Chocolate Fudge with Walnuts, Oreo Balls, Chocolate Billionaires, Peanut Butter Bon Bons. In the center on the left, Paula Deen's Creme de Menthe Frosted Brownies and Chocolate Cake Mix Cookies w/ Candy Cane Kisses.
This right here is heaven on earth, my new favorites.
Many people ask me - How can you possibly bake with 3 little ones running around? Quite simply - by ignoring housework and letting my kids watch movies all day and dragging toys up from downstairs. Here's what my typically "clean" house looks like after a couple of days of baking.

The kitchen/dining room
A closer look
And the living room where Nate watches tv and the girls are stringing yet more toys all over the floor.

A Visit From Santa & The Mrs.

On Saturday evening, the kids had special visitors! Santa and Mrs. Claus stopped by our house to check up on them to see if they were being good. When asked if they were good, Maddie said "maybe", Lexi said nothing and Nate said "yes!". It was a surprisingly great visit this year. When the awesome couple walked through the door, Lexi and Maddie were unsure. They didn't want to go near them, just wanted to watch from afar. Nate, on the other hand, wasn't shy at all! We got some great pics this year so I thought I'd share!

Here's a shot of the 3 kids before Santa came. Grandma & Grandpa brought up these great outfits last weekend and I thought they were perfect for the special occasion. Maddie's on the left, then Nate and then Lexi on the right.

Nate looking VERY handsome in his new duds!
Lexi
Santa & the Mrs. with Max
Nate didn't look very happy but don't let it fool you - he was!!
Maddie giving Santa a sideways glance
Lexi finally warmed up to the Claus'
So much so that she opened her gift while on Mrs. Claus' lap
With new toys in hand, there was no way we could get all 3 kids to look at the camera!

Lexi enjoying her candy cane from Santa

Santa & Mrs Claus listening intently to girls
A quick snapshot on Friday - Lexi
A snapshot of Maddie
A shot of me and Nate before the Claus' arrival

A Little Snow Fun!

For the first time in several years, we got a significant snowfall BEFORE Christmas! We ended up with somewhere in the vicinity of 10-12 inches. The kids are at an age where they love it - all 3 of them! Here are a few photos from their folick in the snow!

Look at those eyes sparkle!

Lexi
Maddie

Maddie
Shot of the trees out back
He was flinging snow and the wind caught it and brought it right back to his face! He didn't like it much!

And the winner is...

A couple of weeks ago, we did our annual Christmas card photo shoot. I always thought that by the time the kids were 3-4 years old, we'd get GREAT photos since they'd be able to listen and understand us when we gave them direction. Um, no. The twins are now 3 and Nate is 4...and we had a whole host of not listening issues. But here is the winner of our Christmas card photo for 2007. Followed closely by the runner up and then some of the other attempted shots.

The winner!

We had a tough time deciding between this one and the winner. But we decided that people probably want to see the kids' faces.
Lexi trying vehemently to give a good scowl...you know, since we'd told her to smile big.
I absolutely LOVED Nate's smile in this one.
Despite being told NOT to open the boxes....
Our little drummer boy...and girls.
We were doing the fingers to the dimples to indicate smiling...this was Maddie's rendition.
I kind of liked this one too but not enough for it to be the winner.

Painting, Reading and Dress-up, Oh My!!

The life of a pre-schooler

Last Monday, we had parent/teacher conferences for Nate. As I discussed in one of my previous posts, Nathaniel is doing great at school. He's talking a lot, interacting with other children and listening better during storytime. During the conference, we also had the chance to speak with his occupational therapist and we were surprised to hear that he's really improved since the end of last year. Nate can now cut a 5 inch line with the scissors without any help. He's also doing really well when it comes to writing within the lines (although the lines are made twice as large as normal) and will do practically any tactile activity that he previously wouldn't do. Granted, he still doesn't like it but at least now he'll do it without too much complaint and will do it for quite a few minutes.

As in the past, he still has his favorites within the classroom...pretty much anything dealing with numbers or letters will draw his attention first. At the beginning of the year, Nate resisted the changing of activities but with the use of a timer and given a choice of 2 unpreferred activities, he'll now change with just the verbal commands of the teacher.

And the best part of conferences? The cd of photos that was provided to us by Nate's teacher! I'm SO excited to have photos of Nate in his own environment! I absolutely love it.

The pictures you say? Of course, I'll share!! :)

One of Nate's unpreferred activities - painting. You can see the "ick" look on his face!

Drawing at the easel.
YMCA! Oh, sorry! Nate likes the construction hard hat!
Sharing a pillow with a friend to do some reading.
Playing with a friend at the sand table.
Ah yes, and my most favorite pictures of all. One of the red flags of autistic children is the lack of pretend play. You can imagine my excitement when I heard that Nate has been loving the dress-up clothes!! :) Joe wasn't quite that excited! But look at how cute he is! I can barely stand it. And not only that but him putting the dress-up clothes on is a big step in pretend play!
I love this one!!
Nothing like a princess dishing up some pizza and cookies!

3 Years Old

We finally got around to taking the girls' 3 year photos. What seems to be our new norm, Maddie was a camera ham and Lexi was pouting and difficult. We did manage to get a couple of her without the frown though. Check them out! Lexi's in the pink, Maddie gray.