12.27.2010
12.26.2010
"Twittering" on Blog
How sweet is this??? Brian planned meals for this coming week AND went grocery shopping for me today!
12.25.2010
All I Want for Christmas is You
Well, Christmas has been an interesting one this year. We were supposed to go to Brian's sister's, but their whole fam came down with the flu. So we had to postpone it until next week. In a way, we were glad to not have to drive through the snow storm that day. (8 inches on top of what we already had)! But at the same time, it left us with a Christmas without family. Our first =0( Anyway, it was too last minute to prepare anything so we loaded the car and headed out to a Japanese Buffet for a Christmas Eve dinner. Gotta make the best of it right? I'm just glad we weren't the only ones there! With full tummies, we headed to church for a Christmas Eve service, came home and went to bed.
Our Christmas morning
A new toy? They do love me!
We all love having Brian home most of the week, especially Ethan who has been SUPER attached to him. He started calling Brian "Daddia" (???) and wanted to be held ONLY by him or sit ONLY in his lap. I just shrugged and say hey that's what he wants and snuck off to go do my own thing ;0) It has been a low-key week with the family...which is nice but borderline boredom (since we wanted to leave town). You know us Billmans, we can't be confined in the house for too long. Ethan has been a trooper with the snow, cold weather and not being able to go out as much. I tried to suit him up at least once a day so he could go play in the snow (with Brian). We went to the museum one day, drove around and looked at the lights one night. So I think that helped. It was also a motivation for me to get out of my pj's and get a move on. So how long is it going to take for all this snow to melt now?
p.s. Surprisingly our Christmas tree survived with only one broken ornament...and that was truly an accident. I prepared myself knowing that it was bound to happen sooner or later with a 2-year-old so I wasn't too upset. He left it alone for the most part though.
We all love having Brian home most of the week, especially Ethan who has been SUPER attached to him. He started calling Brian "Daddia" (???) and wanted to be held ONLY by him or sit ONLY in his lap. I just shrugged and say hey that's what he wants and snuck off to go do my own thing ;0) It has been a low-key week with the family...which is nice but borderline boredom (since we wanted to leave town). You know us Billmans, we can't be confined in the house for too long. Ethan has been a trooper with the snow, cold weather and not being able to go out as much. I tried to suit him up at least once a day so he could go play in the snow (with Brian). We went to the museum one day, drove around and looked at the lights one night. So I think that helped. It was also a motivation for me to get out of my pj's and get a move on. So how long is it going to take for all this snow to melt now?
p.s. Surprisingly our Christmas tree survived with only one broken ornament...and that was truly an accident. I prepared myself knowing that it was bound to happen sooner or later with a 2-year-old so I wasn't too upset. He left it alone for the most part though.
Christmas Letter '10
2010 – Oh, The Places We Went!
What’s a better way to start the year off than with a family vacation to Ft. Myers, Florida. It was Ethan’s very first plane ride and boy, was he a busy body! We were relieved at our arrival and only had one thing on the agenda: relax. And that is what we did! Our little explorer had the time of his life: roaming the beach front, chasing birds, collecting sea shells and even eating some sand. Blah! Despite the cold water, we still enjoyed the southern warmth. But like all good things it must come to an end.
Summer came and we took another trip to the Atlantic. This time we headed to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina with Brian’s parents. We hit the beach first thing every morning and went swimming. Ethan, on the other hand, didn’t quite share the same enthusiasm. He was terrified of the waves and was found happily playing with his sand toys instead. At night, Brian and I walked the shops along the boardwalk and enjoyed music by the beach as we reminisced about the summer we met in FL. It was wonderful! What a great vacation and it was even better with Dave and Linda along!
After spending so much time away, it was time to buckle down and get some house stuff done. August was spent painting the basement and remodeling the master bathroom. We got a new bathtub/shower installed so now there is no more caulking…EVER again!
A month later, we flew out to see my parents in Colorado. This year we wanted to take advantage of the great outdoors so we went when it’s not cold or snowing. We hiked in the mountains, walked around the lake, and climbed all the stairs at the famous Red Rocks Amphitheater. Ethan also had a blast at their house and was quite entertained in their vegetable garden. Believe it or not after this trip, he has now been to seven states before the age of 2. Pretty impressive huh?
Ethan turned 2 in November and we could hardly believe it! He is all-boy who loves to run, jump, climb and get dirty ALL day long while laughing and giggling. Whew, thankfully his energy level and intensity have settled down quite a bit! “E,” as he calls himself, is also talking a lot more now. Every so often we would find him reading and jabbering to himself and to Ikaika. Ethan’s bed time is the best part of the day ever since he started cuddling with us. Those are precious moments and a rarity in this household! It has truly been a fun year with him!
Not only did Brian turn the big 3-0 this year, so did I. From what we’ve heard, the 30’s is better than the 20’s. I hope they’re right! My parents came out for a quick Thanksgiving/birthday weekend celebration and what a special treat for us all, especially Ethan. He got to see them twice this year!
We have had a wonderful year, and we hope you have too. May our Lord, Jesus Christ be glorified in this Christmas Season! Wishing you many blessings in 2011!
What’s a better way to start the year off than with a family vacation to Ft. Myers, Florida. It was Ethan’s very first plane ride and boy, was he a busy body! We were relieved at our arrival and only had one thing on the agenda: relax. And that is what we did! Our little explorer had the time of his life: roaming the beach front, chasing birds, collecting sea shells and even eating some sand. Blah! Despite the cold water, we still enjoyed the southern warmth. But like all good things it must come to an end.
Summer came and we took another trip to the Atlantic. This time we headed to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina with Brian’s parents. We hit the beach first thing every morning and went swimming. Ethan, on the other hand, didn’t quite share the same enthusiasm. He was terrified of the waves and was found happily playing with his sand toys instead. At night, Brian and I walked the shops along the boardwalk and enjoyed music by the beach as we reminisced about the summer we met in FL. It was wonderful! What a great vacation and it was even better with Dave and Linda along!
After spending so much time away, it was time to buckle down and get some house stuff done. August was spent painting the basement and remodeling the master bathroom. We got a new bathtub/shower installed so now there is no more caulking…EVER again!
A month later, we flew out to see my parents in Colorado. This year we wanted to take advantage of the great outdoors so we went when it’s not cold or snowing. We hiked in the mountains, walked around the lake, and climbed all the stairs at the famous Red Rocks Amphitheater. Ethan also had a blast at their house and was quite entertained in their vegetable garden. Believe it or not after this trip, he has now been to seven states before the age of 2. Pretty impressive huh?
Ethan turned 2 in November and we could hardly believe it! He is all-boy who loves to run, jump, climb and get dirty ALL day long while laughing and giggling. Whew, thankfully his energy level and intensity have settled down quite a bit! “E,” as he calls himself, is also talking a lot more now. Every so often we would find him reading and jabbering to himself and to Ikaika. Ethan’s bed time is the best part of the day ever since he started cuddling with us. Those are precious moments and a rarity in this household! It has truly been a fun year with him!
Not only did Brian turn the big 3-0 this year, so did I. From what we’ve heard, the 30’s is better than the 20’s. I hope they’re right! My parents came out for a quick Thanksgiving/birthday weekend celebration and what a special treat for us all, especially Ethan. He got to see them twice this year!
We have had a wonderful year, and we hope you have too. May our Lord, Jesus Christ be glorified in this Christmas Season! Wishing you many blessings in 2011!
12.17.2010
Wintery Bliss
My winter guilty pleasure drink: hot chocolate with Peppermint Schnapp. Might as well make the most out of winter right? ;0)
Running through the House Screaming
...after Kaika. Yup, we're back to normal. After a week and a half of illnesses sweeping through our house, I think we're all finally okay now. I started feeling guilty with all the TV/cartoons we watched, but there's so much I could do to entertained a sick child when you're sick yourself. Anyway as you can tell, we don't do so well in the house that long so I took Ethan to Monkey Joe's today. I can tell he was just SO happy to go somewhere & play and I was happy to get back to our normal routine again. He's eating well and sleeping well which led to a happier toddler. Less whinny and less attached. And I'm less frustrated knowing that my only goal of the day (make dinner) can actually get accomplished. The sun's out today too so that helped a lot even though it's FRIGID cold out. I was feeling majorly depressed yesterday and was so, so, so out of it. But things will be okay after all.
12.10.2010
Down and Out #2
But this time it's Brian. Apparently, he caught whatever Ethan had but worse. He tried to go into work this morning, but only to turn around and come back. I've never seen him so sick, especially since he's the type who never acts sick or stays home because of it. Brian ended up spending most of the day in bed and rest as much as he can while I tried to entertain Ethan at home. Ethan's still not quite 100% so unfortunately a playdate today was out of the picture. We did run a couple of errands and went to the mall just to get him out of the house...and keeping him from screaming & barging into the bedroom to jump on the bed (because Daddy's home). He has been extra handful today - just whinny/needy and not understanding the whole "sick" concept so it has been a challenging day. Along with that, I'm trying my hardest not to catch this stomach flu or whatever these two have. So far so good, but I think I am coming down with a cold though. Yuck! Please be praying for our family.
12.09.2010
Down and Out
So yesterday morning I went in to get Ethan only to be hit with a horrible STENCH. So I thought he might have been sick and had a really bad, bad diaper. But as I inspect closer, I realized I was wrong. Instead, I saw that Ethan had apparently thrown up all over himself...in the middle of the night, rolled around in it and went back to sleep (???). His pj's, blankets and bears seemed to suggest so. I was so confused because I didn't hear anything coming from his room all night. Anyway, I got a load of laundry going and spent the rest of the day just cuddling on the couch with him. I must say I enjoyed that, but that's when you know he's REALLY sick. Poor kid!
Alternate napping location
12.05.2010
"Twittering" on Blog
Note to self: Do not use the oven's "self cleaning" mode in the winter when you can't open the windows and doors. I'm ready to pass out from the fume!
12.03.2010
White Stuff from the Sky
So today we have our first official snow. And being the awesome mom that I am, I bundled both of us up to go play outside. I know, shocking isn't it since usually I don't want anything to do with snow (other than watching it from the inside) ;0) But I couldn't say no to that excited look in Ethan's eyes. So outside we went and we had fun! Minus the fact that Ethan won't keep his mitten on and Kaika kept stealing and flinging them around. Anyway, I'm proud to say that for the first time in 6 years I finally own a waterproof gloves and boots. I supposed they're winter necessities.
12.01.2010
"Twittering" on Blog
Having a rough week and feeling kinda blue, so I prayed for the sun. And it came out! Just in time so I could take Ethan and Kaika for a walk. It lifted my spirit, thank you Lord!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)