Mani's With Papa

Yes, Papa of his own free will decided to give a 5, 3 and 1 year old manicures. He shopped for the the perfect colors and even bought a sparkly top coat. My father actually did all the painting and finishing himself, he was quite the perfectionist. The girls were super patient (even Emma), they LOVED getting their nails painted by Papa. He absolutely relished in his three little granddaughters jumping for joy over bright pink fingernails!

These pictures were so darn sweet I just had to post them all...

Book Worm

ALWAYS with your nose in a book.

Your absolute love for reading makes me so happy!

Dinner with the Bangor Girlies

While home, I was able to meet up with a few my UMaine friends. We enjoyed dinner, drinks and many hours of catching up. Thanks for a wonderful night ladies! It was SO fun to be together again. Looking forward to our visit this summer!

Shawn and I before and after a bottle of Shiraz!

Making "Frosty"

The girls and I are trying to take advantage of all this beautiful white stuff for a few more days. The temps in Virginia Beach hit 70 last week, so I doubt will be building any snowmen when we get home. Here is our snowman that Lily proudly named "Frosty". She is truly in love with the snow and all these new found outdoor activities. I guess they do have a bit of Maine blood in them!

Christmas Day with Dad

Another relaxing day with family. Thanks for the special day Dad and Barb!

Enjoying Christmas Snow

Christmas Morning with Mom

These pictures say it all. A relaxing morning with family. My Mom and Barry were great and we loved sharing our morning with Auntie and Cailyn. Although Daddy couldn't be with us, my family really made this Christmas a special one for me and the girls.
Here's a snapshot of our day:

• 3 excited little girls anxious to see what Santa brought
• Opening LOADS of presents
• Web caming with Daddy
• A very surprised sister (she got a new remote car starter!)
• A yummy breakfast of pancakes, bacon, eggs and the Prager cinnamon rolls
• A relaxing afternoon playing with new toys
• Sledding in all the new snow
• Mom's famous lasagna dinner
• Hanging in the basement and eating way too much candy with Grampy

Cyber Christmas

Daddy couldn't be here with us physically this Christmas, but we did get to share some of our morning with him on the web cam.

Our Christmas Eve in Maine

A wonderful day....

• Sitting on Santa's lap and riding the "Polar Express" with Grammy
• Attending Cailyn's Christmas program
• A yummy dinner with family
• Sprinkling reindeer food outside
• Putting out cookies, milk and carrots for Santa and his reindeer
• Writing a "note" to Santa
• Hanging our stockings
• Seeing the tree filled with beautifully wrapped presents
• Being WAY too excited to sleep

Winter Wonderland

Almost 2 feet of snow today! I love being home for the Holidays. We'll definitely have a white Christmas this year!

Celebrating with Cailyn

So happy that we could celebrate your birthday with you this week Sweetie! The indoor picnic lunch and Princess Birthday Party were both a blast! We love you.

Lunch with Santa

This year Lily is absolutely in LOVE with Santa. She just can't seem to get enough of him. Unfortunately, I didn't have time to take her to see him in Virginia, so when a friend of my Mom's offered to take her to a special lunch with Santa, we jumped at the chance.

The event was hosted by the local Elks Club. They did a wonderful job decorating and preparing food for the children. Lily was in heaven....peanut butter and jelly, cheese puffs, brownies, ice cream, cake....it was a sugar feast! After lunch they played some Bingo and the kids won prizes. Lily loved looking for the numbers and letters and was so anxious to yell out "BINGO". After the games were finished, there was a children's sing along to welcome Santa. Lily was so joyous singing all festive songs and her face actually lit up like a Christmas tree when he walked in.

Due to time constraints (my niece's birthday party was starting), Lily wasn't able to sit on Santa's lap and get her present. However, she did get to give him a hug, talk to him for a few minutes and tell him what she wanted for Christmas. She absolutely melted my heart with her enthusiasm. I wish Jeff could have been with me to see how happy she was to meet the big guy in person. Thankfully we saw Santa at the mall later in the week and she was able to pull up his knee and chat with him for a while. Here are some pics and a few videos.

Be sure to pause the music on the right so you can hear Lily tell Santa what she wants for Christmas.

Happy Birthday Mom!

My step sister, Samantha and her daughter, Taylor were in town for a night so we celebrated my Mom's birthday a day early. We also opened a few Christmas gifts and enjoyed a nice meal to celebrate the Holiday season with Sam. The kids all played together well and Mom and Barry loved having all their girls together for the Holidays. Before bed we sang Happy Birthday and gobbled up some yummy chocolate cake. Then Lily, Cailyn and Taylor cuddled up on the air mattress and we all watched some Christmas movies. It was so nice to see Sam and Taylor and get caught up. It was also nice to actually be with my Mom on her birthday.

Happy Birthday Mom!! Thank you so much for everything you're doing for me and the girls (Jeff too). You're and angel! We love you!

FOUR

Happy Birthday Sam! We love you Buddy!

Happy Birthday Grammy Prager!

Hope you had a great day! We miss you!

Bowling With Papa

Tonight we spent the evening bowling with Nana and Papa. Lily and Emma had never been before, so they had a ball learning how to roll the balls and see all the pins get knocked down. Lily had her favorite ball, which she called "pinkie" all night and Em loved resetting the pins, usually before we even finished the frame. We took a break during the night to enjoy some yummy pizza and beer battered fries. We had a great night despite Emma's cold and the -23 degree weather. (Yes, it really is that cold up here. With the wind chill it hit -46 degrees!)
Enjoy the pics....

Sister Shopping Trip

My sister and I braved the weather and took a 2 night trip to Bangor to finish up our Christmas shopping. The storm blew in a mere 6 to 8 inches (nothing for us tough Mainers) so everyone was still out and about enjoying this festive time of year. We managed to get all our shopping done, as we literally shopped until we dropped. However, we also were able to enjoy some great food without any interruptions, sit in the hotel hot tub (I know, that makes 2 for me) and sleep in. I even got a run in! It was a wonderful sister retreat, thanks for a great time April and a special thanks to my Mom and Barry for taking such good care of the girls while I got a little R&R!