Baby Tyler's 1st Birthday

Okay, I guess I need to stop referring to Tyler as Baby Tyler now that he has hit his first milestone birthday - he will be ONE year old on Christmas Eve. That's right, last year we spent Christmas Eve at the Women's Hospital welcoming the arrival of the newest member of my sister's family.

After the Magic Cares show and hanging out with Mimi & Papa, we then went to Aunt Robin's to celebrate Tyler's 1st birthday. He loves cake - had a nice big chocolate piece all to himself. For opening gifts, he doesn't quite have the concept yet and loved the first gift he opened which happened to be our gift to Tyler. The boys had a blast helping Tyler try out his new toys before we headed home for the evening.

Happy Birthday Tyler! Next year, you will be running around with the rest of the boys without missing a beat!

Magic Cares Holiday Show

To continue the busy weekend, on Sunday we received tickets to the Magic Cares Holiday Show that was to support our local organization, CASA (which I actually interned at during my college years). The show featured 4 local magicians, with one of them being Don Baggett that had Connor rolling at the Boo at the Zoo. He was even talking about his act on the way to the show and he didn't disappoint by starting with the most talked about act first, the banana act. In addition, there was a "balloon" guy that blows up a life size balloon that he starts out putting on his head and dances to (see picture below). Later in the act, half his body is in the balloon and when his partner pops the balloon he had been making balloon animals inside. It was hilarious! I also enjoyed Brandon Baggett's show, although the boys got a little scared when the lights were turned out. The boys had reached their limit about half way through and were tired, but hopefully they will bring this show back again next year! I think we will definately go again!

Christmas Festivities with Family

Every year, usually the Saturday immediately before Christmas, we have a Christmas party with my mom's family (Grandma Darla). This is usually rotated between 2 or 3 family member's homes and includes a Chinese gift exchange. The Chinese gift exchange usually has a "spirited" theme and this year didn't disappoint (I got some Jamaican Rum). This year it was at Grandma Darla's - fun and chaotic as usual. The nine grandkids of my mom and all of her siblings range in age primarily from age 1-6 and then Shane at 11. There was chaos, laughter, tears, running, screaming, giggling, etc.

For more pictures click here....

Happy Birthday Daddy!

The week before Christmas, Daddy always gets to make the rounds for birthday celebrations. This year, Daddy and the boys started out the celebrations on Thursday by going to Papa Terry's for dinner and birthday cake. All the boys had a blast playing with Papa Terry's train set that was set up around the Christmas tree. Also, Connor made sure that he was prepared for the celebrations by making a birthday card for daddy at school that day. On Friday, we went to Mimi & Papa's for a birthday celebration. The boys loved playing with Mimi afterwards and were rather wild.

Below is a picture of daddy's birthday present from mommy and the boys - Yamaha Digital Grand Piano. The boys are really looking forward to hearing daddy play. Connor has already made special requests for "Santa Claus is Coming to Town".

Christmas Spirit Gauge

I attended an event the other day that included a Christmas Ice Breaker. The goal was to find someone who showed their Christmas spririt by doing one of the following items. The good news is that we do 10 of the 16 items....how does your Christmas spirit measure?

1. Has a Real Christmas tree ~ that seems like a lot of work...I love my prelit tree.

2. Opens Presents on Christmas Eve ~ we open a few presents on Christmas Eve with our loved ones

3. Loves Eggnog ~ Absolutely

4. Hangs Stockings ~ Absolutely

5. Has a Nativity Scene

6. Has Sat on Santa's Lap ~ I can barely get the boys in the same vicinity as Santa, let alone sit on his lap

7. Decorates Home with Outside Lights ~ Negotiated area...see #15, 16 and I have lighted trees on the porch

8. Travels Out of Town for Christmas ~ Our entire family is located here...Chris would love to one day take a vacation over Christmas and I always remind him of the John Grisham book "Skipping Christmas"

9. Puts Cookies out for Santa ~ Absolutely

10. Likes to Sing Christmas Carols ~ Absolutely

11. Can Name Santa's Reindeers ~ Would be in big trouble with the boys if we couldn't do this

12. Likes to Eat Fruit Cake ~ Can't say that fruit cake makes the list, but I am open to all other traditional holiday baked goods

13. Has Kids that Believe in Santa Claus ~ Absolutely and this is the first year that they are very excited about Santa's role in Christmas. Connor loves to sing the song "Santa Claus is coming to town"

14. Has seen Christmas Vacation (or Christmas Story) ~ I have seen Christmas Vacation several times, Christmas Story is one that I have tried to watch but can't ever remember watching it (I think I always fall asleep)

15. Has a Christmas Wreath on the Door ~ This was a negotiated area related to Outdoor Lights above

16. Has Lighted Reindeer in Front Yard ~ This was a negotiated area related to Outdoor Lights above

Few more that I added:

17. Has a blow up Snowman or Santa in their front yard

18. Attends the annual Ritzy's Fantasy of Lights or 4H Fair Wonderland Light Show

19. Participates in a White Elephant or Chinese Christmas Exchange

20. Debates whether online shopping or Eastland Mall is the best way to shop

Connor's Camera Action

Connor has a new fascination these days - the digital camera. I wish we would have had these when we were kids...I remember my mom guarding the camera and the film with her life because you didn't want to "waste" the film (expensive film and expensive developing).

One day when Chris was occupied and mommy wasn't home, Connor decided to try out his camera skills. He made a good start to my home inventory pictures while also capturing some self-portrait shots and pictures of his brother. Thought I would share a couple of his pictures...

I think he has given us a great idea for his birthday present...and the good thing is that I can delete any of the "bad" pictures without costing a thing.

Brady's Christmas Program

Brady had his 1st Christmas program with his daycare now that he is in the 2 year old room. He is in Connor's former room where he had his 1st Chistmas program last Christmas, but with the change in schools Connor was not part of this year's program.

The kids started practicing the two songs weeks ago - Hide Behind Christmas Boxes and Reindeer Hokey Pokey. They dressed the kids up as Reindeers including tails and antlers. Brady didn't have very high standards to compete with - all he had to do is make sure his finger inserted into nose did not become part of the program.

He was very interested in knowing where we were and got some great smiles/smirks. They did a great job and the kids were just adorable! Check out the video below...

Connor's Learning

Connor & Brady on Playhouse Disney.com

Connor at School - Spindle Work

Connor at school working on a puzzle

Connor and Brady love playing games on the internet, Playhouse Disney to be specific. One of the games requires the child to type in their name before continuing, so there was a constant yell from the office to assist. I decided to teach Connor how to type his name and he caught on after only one lesson. Later that night, Connor decided to grab a piece of paper and show us that he can write his name (he has never done this before). I was so impressed that he was making out each of the letters - c, then, o, then double n, etc.

The interesting thing is that he was writing it going up the page to where when he was done, you could spin the page and the letters were all faced the right way reading down the page. I then asked him to write his name again and this time he wrote upside-down right to left. The letters were still all facing the right way for when you turned the page upside down it read correctly.

This was really impressive, especially since it takes some thought for me to do that. I am not sure if this is a common way they learn or what approach Montessori takes to teaching the letters. I know they want them to fully understand everything about each letter of the alphabet so maybe this is some unique approach.

Connor is learning so much these days - it is so amazing. Keep up the good work Connor!

"My Mommy Doesn't Cook"

On Sunday night, we were at my mom's house for dinner. While my mom was making dinner, Connor decided to strike up a conversation. He asked grandma if she was cooking dinner and then commented that his daddy cooks dinner. My mother, knowing the answer to this already, asked if his mommy cooks. He said, very seriosly, "No because she burns herself when she cooks. She does sometimes use that (as he points to the microwave)."

A few weeks ago, Brady received a sucker from school. I told him that he couldn't have it until after he ate dinner. We arrived home and as we pulled into the garage, he realized that daddy was not home yet. His immediate comment was "Daddy's not home - who's going to cook my dinner?"

Yes, I will admit it, I don't do any cooking. Not even my fair share - I have opted for laundry and bill-paying duty instead. Something with more then 2 steps or 2 ingredients makes my head spin. Hearing my friends talk about trying new recipes just doesn't excite me, except for the possibility of trying the results or passing the recipe on to hubby. My co-workers have even witnessed my lack of comfort in the kitchen - I have been officially signed up for chips and soda duty for all future food pitch-ins.

I want to believe that we are preparing the boys to be a great husband to their future wife by not following the typical stereotypical roles. Perhaps one day, I will find my way into the kitchen and dabble in making a yummy dessert. Anything else just doesn't sound worth it! The picture below was taken by hubby when he found me in the kitchen operating an appliance - he couldn't resist due to his shock and concern that it would be awhile before it happens again.

Tinkerbell...Really?

Okay, for many months I have hoped for a time when my boys would be interested in movies. Any attempt to watch a movie has been short due to attention span, too much of a plot to follow, or too scary (Jungle Book and Lion King fell into this category). I never understood how they can watch cartoons on Saturday morning for 2-3 hours, but their attention span faded 20 minutes into a movie.

Well, the day has come that they have watched a full length movie from beginning to end! Yeah - now I can start thinking about family movie nights, taking them to the movie theatre, and let's not forgot the possible 2 hour break to get other things done. The movie of choice - Tinkerbell! They have watched and requested this movie at least 4-5 times in the last 2 weeks. I did manage to sneak in Madagascar and Polar Express, but Tinkerbell is the #1 choice and the only one that they actually sit for without interruptions.

At a Christmas dinner, a friend of mine was telling us about how her 4 year old watches hours and hours of baseball, football, and hockey. He can name the teams, give play by play commentary, and knows the penalties in the game. I made the announcement "My boys watch Tinkerbell...it's because they think the fairies are hot!".

Breakfast with Santa

Today, we ventured out for an early morning breakfast and visit with Santa sponsored by my employer's employee organization. I have always heard great things about the event and the best part is that Santa gives gifts especially picked out for the kids.

Last year, we went to dinner with Santa and the boys would not get within 50 feet of the big red guy. This year, we got a seat pretty close and the boys were able to watch all the other kids sitting on santa's lap and receiving presents while they ate their breakfast. This was perfect motivation for them to talk about what they were going to discuss with Santa and to get in line. We got to the front for our turn and the boys became all talk! We were able to hold them close enough to Santa for a picture (can't wait to see the picture). They then received a present from Santa with their name on it, which was just awesome for them. (This is where the group does a great job - I'm sure they had a blast shopping for all the kids). Connor got a large Hot Wheels Speed Racar and Brady got a VTech Learning StoryBook.

Upon leaving, the boys also received a personalized snowman ornament and a goodie bag of chocolates, candy canes, hot cocoa, and an orange. Can't go wrong with those kind of treats! We had a really nice time seeing some friends from work with their children and visiting with Santa Claus.

Thanksgiving Weekend

Thanksgiving weekend was a nice extended weekend spent with family and fighting sicknesses throughout the Seaton household.

We started out with Brady sick on Weds. evening which went away very quickly, so we assumed it was something he ate at school. On Thanksgiving, we went to my aunt's that we hadn't been to in awhile and got to visit with family that we don't normally see. We then went to Mimi's where the boys had a blast running around with their cousins. Feeling stuffed from all the food, we went home and relaxed with the boys.

Black Friday was a quiet day of mommy and the boys at home since daddy had to work (we debated venturing out, but never got the nerve). As soon as daddy got home, Christmas decorating was in high demand by all. Saturday, Chris ended up with the sick bug all day so it was a quiet day for daddy and Connor (he refused to get dressed for the day) and mommy and Brady ventured out (a little). That evening, we had a birthday party for our cousin who turned 1. Sunday, mommy enjoyed the privilege of getting the sick bug (no shopping, no yoga, nothing). Sunday night, Connor woke in the middle of the night sick.

It is now Monday and I hope all the sick bugs have left the Seaton Place and moved on to someplace else. We are ready to enjoy the holiday season!