Audrey's Birthday

We had so much fun celebrating Audrey on her 5th birthday. The night before we were out late at Andy's work Christmas party, but the lack of sleep didn't cause anyone to lack energy...especially the birthday girl. She was up bright and early, excited for her day to start! She got to open one present before school, since it was something she could take to school.

 

A new backpack! She's been struggling fitting all her paperwork, lunch, and water bottle in her old backpack. So, a new one was needed.

 

Off to school Audrey went! Her birthday fell on one of her short days, so I was allowed to bring treats into her class around 11 am. Since it was so early and my kids aren't really fans of cake or cupcakes, we opted for doughnut holes. My girls have recently been introduced to these and they love them. So, we brought doughnut holes for her class. Audrey was so excited to give everyone a birthday treat and for her class to sing to her. She was just beaming!

  

After school we had a little bit of down time. Ian took a nap, Audrey and I got to just hang out, and then soon Rachel came home from school. We were anxiously awaiting Papa and Grandma Michaelson to arrive as well. Audrey loves Chuck E. Cheese and had asked that we go there for her birthday dinner. So, the Mackays and the Texas grandparents joined us. Everyone had a good time at Chuck E. Cheese!

 

Once we got home from Chuck E. Cheese it was present time! Audrey was VERY anxious to unwrap the rest of her presents. She was definitely spoiled by her grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins. She's one lucky gal!

 

  

After all the presents were opened and the birthday girl had a chance to change into her new black sweater (a gift she requested specifically), it was time to enjoy some cake. Audrey asked for a pink cake inside and out. So easy to please! 

The super-smiley birthday girl blowing out her candles and making a wish:

I love the candid pictures of Audrey. She's smiling in every single one... She loved her day and loved getting attention. We're grateful that the Mackays and Papa and Grandma Michaelson were able to join us as we celebrated Audrey. She's such a good girl, with a sweet, tender spirit. Audrey does not lack personality or spunk either. Some are surprised when I say this. But when Audrey's in a comfortable place all barriers come down and her true self comes out. I love watching her when she's being herself. She loves to laugh, dance, and sing. I'm so grateful for her and for all teaches me.

Work Christmas Party

Every once in awhile Ernst & Young surprises us by having a family friendly activity. They did a family work Christmas party two years ago and we were excited to find out they were going to do it again this year. The girls still remember the last time and they were excited to go. It's just held at Andy's office downtown. There's food, pictures with Santa, and various activities inside. They also provide everyone with passes to ice skate at Discovery Green, which is kitty-corner from Andy's office. The party was on December 10th this year, which was a really busy week for us, but we knew we had to make it happen. As soon as we got there, we got pictures with Santa:

We ate some snacks (our kids never eat well at parties) and the girls insisted getting their faces' painted:

 

The kids and I went down to the lobby while Andy went back to the car to gather all the winter gear. I attempted to get a few pictures of the kids in front of the massive Christmas tree at Andy's work building:

 

Goofy pictures:

 

We then got all bundled up and headed out. Sometimes I'm amazed that we can ice skate outside in Houston. But this night, it was COLD!!! Ice skating seemed like a reality. We debated taking the passes and coming back on a warmer day, but we knew the girls had been looking forward to this for too long. So, we went with it. We probably spent about an hour outside. I tried my best to keep Ian happy while the girls ice skated with their daddy.

Ready to go:

Warming up in the kiddie area while Dad gets ready:

Out on the big rink with Daddy:

Enjoying the kiddie rink again while the big rink gets resurfaced:

Ian super happy Daddy's holding him during the break:

We always enjoy Andy's family friendly Christmas Party. We never bother with the adult one... :) Discovery Green is our favorite place to ice skate because they have double-bladed ice skates. It makes it enjoyable for the girls. I don't know if I'll get away with sitting on the sidelines with Ian next year, he may insist we join them. That will be an interesting venture...

Our Five Year Old

This cute girl turned 5 yesterday!!! She is such a important part of our family. Audrey has so much personality and love. She quite often looks out for others, whether it's her siblings or her friends at school. She has such a big heart. For example, if we go shopping while Rachel's at school and Audrey's allowed to pick something out of the dollar section, she always has to get something for Rachel too. The other day she brought home another bracelet from school with jingle bells on it. I asked her why she got to make another one and she said she asked her teacher if she could make one for her sister.

Audrey started out 2013 in gymnastics and has now switched to ballet and tap. Her favorite is tap. She loves making noise when she dances. Audrey loves music, whether she's listening to it or creating it herself. She loves to dance and watch herself. Many have noticed how she poses for pictures. She's definitely got her favorite poses. :)

She started preschool this year and is really enjoying it. It was an adjustment and some days she still gets a little emotional at drop off. But then she goes in and absolutely adores her teacher and has a great day! We have started reading lessons at home and are about 50 lessons into the book. She's becoming an awesome reader! She's getting so she's flying right through the lessons. She loves to be able to read like her big sister. Her math skills sometimes surprise us (thank you, Rachel). The other day I was trying to get her to eat more of her breakfast and told her she had to eat 10 bites. When her dad came in the kitchen she informed him that she was counting by 2s to get done faster. Smarty! 

Audrey still goes through several outfits in one day. She definitely has her favorite combinations and she LOVES skirts. She does dress-ups, but most of the time she just puts things together from her own wardrobe. She definitely has to be the one to pick out what she wears at the start of each day. I have learned it's not worth making suggestions. She also loves having her hair done and picking out her hair accessories for the day. Right now she's into styles on the side, whether it's a side bun, side ponytail, or side braid. And lucky her, she looks cute with whatever she comes up with!

This little girl is also my shopper. She loves to go to Target and Costco and anywhere in between. She loves looking at new clothes and shoes. This mama has to say no quite often... Audrey enjoys going to the library and picking out books and movies. She also loves just playing with her sister and her sister's friends. They play really well together and I love watching them. 

I am so grateful for our Audrey Rianne. She has a very special way of making me feel needed and loved every single day. Happy Birthday, sweet girl!

Meeting Joshua

This past weekend was quite an adventure! We drove up to Dallas to meet baby Joshua, Paul and Cristy's little guy. We drove into a crazy ice storm. It was a very stressful drive once we hit Dallas. But we were blessed the whole time we were there and traveled around safely. Andy definitely is an awesome driver!!! We were planning on attending Joshua's baby blessing, but church ended up being cancelled. So, we just made it a fun weekend to see Paul's family. 

Here are a few pictures of us meeting Joshua:

Aunt Cristy and her mom put together a fun activity for the kids, making gingerbread houses. The older 4 kids enjoyed decorating their houses:

 

 

The 2 almost 2 year-olds enjoyed supervising and sampling:

 

Ian and Jacob had a lot of fun together, while Aaron, Ashlyn, Audrey, and Rachel enjoyed playing with one another as well. We really enjoyed ourselves (when we weren't in the car driving around Dallas).

We didn't put our gingerbread house together until we got back home. Here's the finished product:

It was so much fun to spend time with Paul's family and meet Joshua. We are hoping the next time we go visit, the drive will be less stressful... :)

Sinterklaas

December is full of celebrations for our family. The first one is a visit from Sinterklaas. It's a Dutch tradition that we have continued since moving back to Texas. The girls get really excited and I think next year Ian will catch on as well. It's fun to have memories and traditions from Holland. The tradition usually occurs on the evening of December 5th. Sinterklaas leaves toys and treats for children on their doorstep that evening. We keep it fairly simple, since Christmas is just around the corner. Once it got dark our children put their shoes out on our doorstep and waited for a knock. We kind of combine 2 traditions here. In Holland, they leave their wooden shoes out for weeks before December 5th and each morning they get a little something. We figure it's asking too much to have Sinterklaas come to America every night, but we do expect one visit from him on December 5th. Here's a video right after the knock:

This picture tells you a lot. Audrey's already opened her present and is ready to take off her pajamas and put her new ones on. Ian and Rachel are just getting started...

Ian opening his present:

Rachel opening her pajamas:

Everyone got new warm pajamas, a chocolate letter, and yummy cookies called kruidnoten. Yay, for Sinterklaas!!! 

  

Audrey already enjoying her chocolate letter:

Ian scores because he gets 2 letters in his package. We thought it was a fluke last year, but have discovered that's just how it is. Lucky him!

After a few bites of chocolate, everyone slept good in their new cozy pajamas. We love celebrating Sinterklaas!

Thanksgiving

We enjoyed Thanksgiving week up at my parents' home. Things had kind of blown up at work for Andy, but finally late Sunday afternoon it was determined that we'd be able to go. The girls had the whole week off of school, so it's nice to be able to take advantage and enjoy a whole week up there. We ended up driving up pretty late Sunday evening. We debated waiting until Monday, but the weather was going to get colder and we didn't want to deal with icy roads. Plus, Andy kind of needed to be on his computer working Monday and Tuesday. So, it all worked out in the end. The first couple of days up there were really cold. We spent a fair amount of time inside. Grandma always has little projects and new toys for the kids to discover and enjoy. Ian, however, favors his papa. Here's what happens when Papa tries to escape for a little nap:

One afternoon while Ian was napping all the girls headed to the grocery store to pick up anything and everything we might need. :) The girls were thrilled that Grandma's store had little shopping carts. They felt like there were at the Children's Museum, but it was even better because it was the real deal and it wasn't super-crowded.

 

Rachel would bundle up and go outside to rake up leaves and then play in them:

 

While Rachel played outside in the cold Ian, Audrey, and I enjoyed the warmer temperatures inside:

Another afternoon everyone got to help Grandma with Thanksgiving preparations:

The Mackay family joined us later in the week. By then the weather had warmed up a bit and the kids had a lot of fun playing outside. There were enough bikes for everyone and they all enjoyed racing down the driveway:

We enjoyed a wonderful Thanksgiving feast, as always. Andy and Craig helped my dad with a few projects. I think a favorite project of everyone was gathering up the leaves. Lots of fun was had as the kids stopped riding down the driveway and started riding down the little hills on the lawn down to the piles of leaves. I missed the dads doing this, but supposedly they had a lot of fun riding the kid bikes into the leaves as well. On Saturday morning Ian woke up just not himself. My mom and I took him into Longview to an urgent care place. Everything checked out, but they still gave him some meds. Just gunky stuff... On the way back from Longview, Grandma stopped and bought a little car. Ian cried the last 20 minutes home because he wanted to be in the back, in the play car. Luckily he survived and enjoyed the car before it got dark that evening.

On Sunday we all packed up and headed back to Houston. It was definitely an enjoyable Thanksgiving. Lots of fun is had by everyone. The kids enjoy playing together during the day and the adults have fun playing games in the evening. We're hankful my parents live somewhat close and we're able to make these little trips a few times a year.

Audrey's Dance Recital

Audrey has chosen to take ballet and tap classes this year. She loves to dance and loves her classes! Her favorite is tap, but she also enjoys ballet. I was a bit worried paying too much money for anything, since gymnastics kind of bombed out last year. So, we decided to do the YMCA this year. It has been perfect for her. She loves her teacher and the small, simple setting has given her the opporunity to gain confidence. Next year we may try the dance studio Rachel went to. We'll see... I don't know if she's ready for the big stage yet. For now, she's enjoying dance at the YMCA. Here she is at her Christmas Dance Recital:

I had done Audrey's hair in pigtails and then we got there and one of the mothers had made a bow for each of the girls. So, I quickly turned her pigtails into a ponytail and we used that bow. :) Audrey was in a  really small class, which was nice. Here are the 4 girls:

The videos are fun to watch. Audrey's watching her teacher the whole time and taking cues from her. There's also a few times when she makes sure others are doing what they're supposed to be doing. For only having 10 dance classes at this point, I think she did a great job!

Audrey's recital ended up being on one of those crazy work Saturdays for Andy. And the recital was at 2 pm. So, I actually put Ian down for a nap and got a babysitter for him. Nice babysitting job, to sit at someone's house while the baby sleeps! :) Andy met us at the YMCA for the recital. I was worried he was going to be late, but he got there just in time and then he had to return to work right after the recital. Luckily he came through with flowers for the dancer:

Audrey had reminded her daddy several times that he would need to get her flowers. You see, she still remembers Rachel getting flowers when she had a dance recital. Audrey was also thrilled that Aunt Natalie and Chase came to watch her perform. I have a feeling dance is going to be Audrey's thing.