Christmas 2010

We had a nice quiet Christmas this year. The kids opened their presents on Christmas day, and we relaxed at home while they played with their new toys.

Here are my three babies although two of them do not look like babies anymore.

When Pam and I were growing up, it was a tradition to get a doll every year for Christmas, so of course Lily had to get a doll. I thought that I was really buying it to make myself happy, but she LOVES it! She sits in her chair holding it and looking at it. Today Joshua asked what was in her hand, and it was a piece of fuzz from the doll's hair.

I don't know if you can see Ben's face in this picture, but he is very excited about his Buzz Lightyear.

Joshua opening one of his presents

Joshua's school had a Christmas program where his class sang "I Want a Hippopotamus for Christmas." They were very cute, and we were surprised that Joshua seemed to enjoy being the center of attention. We really thought that he would freeze when he got on stage and saw all of the people in the cafeteria. It was very crowded in the cafeteria, and we were in the back, so the pictures did not turn out, but the kids did the song again in the classroom, so I was able to get some more pictures. Here they are performing their song for their families.

Santa came to visit the kids in their classroom and brought each of them a gift. Mrs. Gill told them that they could not open them until Christmas which was very hard and a lesson in patience. Here is Joshua's class with Santa.

Joshua with Santa

Santa brought candy canes for the brothers and sisters and let them take pictures too.

Here is Benjamin with Santa.

Joshua having a snack at the classroom Christmas party

And here is a picture of Lily-Anne just because she is so cute.

Decorating the Tree

It took me a while to get the decorations up, but we finally did it. Here are the kids decorating the tree. We kind of have a "Charlie Brown" Christmas tree. Some day we will buy a new tree, but I think that we will wait until we get back to The States. I love that we have a place in the new house where we can put the tree in front of the window.

We have been in Guam a year and a half, but I still think that it is crazy that the kids are wearing shorts and a sleeveless dress at Christmas time.

Lily-Anne helping

Joshua looks so big in this picture. (Yes, he is in his underwear.) I can't believe that he is big enough to hold her like this, and look how much she loves it. I LOVE how much the kids love each other. The boys are so protective of Lily, and she always smiles when she sees them or hears their voices. The first thing that Joshua does when we pick him up after school is give her a hug and kiss.

Lily-Anne's Two Week Pictures

These wonderful pictures were taken by a friend of mine who is a photographer. Amanda offered to take these pictures of Lily-Anne as a baby present for us, and I love the way they turned out. I can't believe how much she has grown since these were taken. She is only 5 weeks old now, but she looks so much bigger already.

This dress is the one that I wore home from the hospital when I was born.

I love this one because she is smiling at the camera as if she knows Amanda is taking her picture.

This is her take home dress and her very girly bedding.

Here she is wearing the dress that she wore home from the hospital, and the dress that I wore home from the hospital is laying next to her.

Halloween

I was so happy to find these Veggie Tales costumes online. The boys had a great time trick or treating in the neighborhood with all of our neighbors.

These were the best pictures that we could get with all three of them.

I think that Lily-Anne did not feel very safe in this situation.

This one was better. The boys are not looking at the camera, but at least Lily-Anne is not crying.

Lily-Anne Faith Press

Here is our beautiful Lily-Anne. We are already in love with her.

First Day of School

Joshua seems to be settling into school. We were worried that he would be shy and afraid to play and make friends, but he seems to have made quite a few friends and is having a great time. I didn't get any pictures of him in his classroom because the parents didn't go to the classrooms on the first day, but here are some pictures of him leaving the house.

Benjamin looked a little sad as he watched Joshua leave, but he has played fine by himself. It is amazing how quiet it is in the house with only one kid.

Blue Starfish

These blue starfish are beautiful and they are all over the place out here. I have been meaning to buy an underwater camera so that we could get a picture, but Matthew and Benjamin found this one yesterday while they were snorkeling. They brought it to the shore so that we could get a picture.

Joshua's Birthday

I haven't felt much like blogging lately. I am doing pretty well as far as pregnant women go, but I am still huge and trying to endure the heat and humidity that comes with living this close to the Equator. I think that it is safe to say that I am hot and tired most of the time, so blogging isn't exactly the first thing on my mind. So here are a few pictures from the last couple of months to catch up.

Joshua's Party

Here are the pictures from Joshua's exciting birthday dinner. Matthew was out of town, so we went to a restaurant where it would be easier on the boys and their loud boyish ways.