Putting up the Tree

We got the tree up last weekend before Brendan left - which was good since it was his only weekend home in December. I'm going to have to get the tree by myself next year so I really enjoyed having a strong man around to carry it in! The kids had a great time decorating. It was probably the most successful tree decorating that we have had so far. They were all interested in putting the decorations on the tree and Aidan and Emmy lasted the whole time. We also pulled out all of the other Christmas decorations which meant, of course, that there were big plastic tubs in the middle of the living room for about 4 days. The favorite item is the Little People Nativity Set. Baby Jesus goes missing about every other day and we have to go on a hunt. Aoife has put him in some very interesting places including the refrigerator and the dog crates.

Aoife and Bryna's Baptism

While we were up in Massachusetts we Baptized Aoife and her cousin Bryna in a joint ceremony. Brendan and I are Bryna's godparents and we were so happy that we could have the ceremony together. I definitely now know why infant baptism is such a good idea - Aoife was NOT going to be held and sat down on the ground in front of the baptismal font and played with Brendan's iPhone the entire time - until her head was needed for the actual Baptism.
Here's the only picture of the entire ceremony that turned out - it was dark and my flash wasn't set right. :(Aoife, Bryna, parents, and grandparents With the other kids:Aoife in her gown - it belongs to Brendan's mother's family and was first used in 1919!Nora and EmmyMe and AoifeEmmy and her cousin Mary:Me and Brendan with Aoife - the phone was the only thing keeping her from screaming her head offAoife with us and Nora and DanMe and Brendan with Bryna, Amanda and Justin

SOOOOOO busy!!!

Wow - it's been busy!!! Getting ready for Christmas is kicking my butt - although most of it is self induced - I have to admit. I spent the past few days making cookies and decorating sugar cookies. Here are a few:Here's the cookie platter I brought to our Squadron FRG Christmas party today:Here's a cake I made for my neighbor's son's 12th birthday. Honestly, I don't love it but it's what he wanted and he LOVED it. I guess it's more important to please the client!The kids have 4 more days of school before Christmas vacation - seriously - why oh WHY do they have Friday off???

Today's cakes!

All of a sudden I've gotten a bit of traction with making cakes! I had two for today - dinosaurs for a 6th birthday and pink lemonade for a baby shower. They were very different but both were really fun to make!

Edaville Railroad

We visited Edaville Railroad while we were up in Massachusetts. It has a train, lots of Christmas lights, fun displays for the kids, carnival rides and SANTA! We had gone before - but it was 3 years ago and Emmy was tiny! This time it was a little warmer and also more crowded. The kids had a great time and it was a great way to kick off the Christmas season!Aoife loved the train ride!Aidan with the giant Santa:After the picture with Santa - getting candy canes:Aoife would NOT sit on Santa's lap. She's really strong and when she doesn't want to sit somewhere she arches her back and flips off your lap - I didn't want to put Santa - or us - through that. Emmy and Aidan weren't going to miss their chance to put in their gift requests with the big guy! The expression on Santa's face in this picture is priceless!

Marshfield

Brendan's parents live in a seaside town in Massachusetts. They live their year round but like any beach community, the population decreases in the winter. It's a beautiful place but sort of forlorn and desolate in the winter. The birds were the only other things out on my walk that day.

South Shore Science Center

When we were in Massachusetts we took the kids over to the South Shore Science Center. The place itself wasn't that interesting - I thought that there would be more animals than frogs and turtles. The best part was walking the paths through the woods. The kids loved crunching the leaves and running around. It's funny to think that they've never lived in a place where they could just go and run in the woods!