Making cookies at Memme's

It just wouldn't be Christmas without making sugar cookies. Memme thought Charlotte would enjoy making her own. Boy, was she right!

Step 1 - Roll the dough and cut out the cookies.

Step 2 - Brush the cookies with egg whites.

Step 3 - Add sprinkles! The more the merrier.

Step 4- Hooray, look at all those sprinkles! Ready to go in the oven.

Step 5 - Take cookies out the the oven and admire your masterpieces! Are they cool yet?

Step 6 - Mmmm, tastes delicious!

Step 7 - Don't forget the milk!

The newest addition to our family...

Don't worry, I'm still pregnant (34 weeks and counting!). Introducing "Holly" Honda - our new minivan we purchased in early December. I took her to Va Beach last week for her first roadtrip. She drives great! I can't believe I'm so excited about a minivan but they are truly designed with families in mind. It has more storage and room than I've ever seen. The automatic sliding doors are the best part. Dave will be selling his car (Anyone want to buy a 2001 Nissan Maxima?) and will drive Subie. I've really liked my Subaru Outback, but it's just not big enough for two carseats and all the other junk you have to carry with kids. We have room to grow in Holly so she should last us a long time :) Anyone need a ride to soccer practice?!

You gotta love my dad - he washed and detailed the car for me while we were home. I like black cars, but they do show dirt more than most other colors especially in the winter. Thanks again, Dad!

Charlotte just being cute and waving to Poppy!

She preferred sitting on the front steps and watching all the action. She'll join the family tradition of washing cars soon enough.

Google Reader

Has anyone else discovered the power of Google reader? I recently learned about it from the Mommy Making Money blog (I've added a link at the bottom right). This blog is written by a mom in one of my stay at home mom groups. She posts fabulous and practical tips for saving money. For the locals, she posts all the good deals at Giant, CVS and other stores each week.

Anyway, if you're like me and frequently check several different blogs, you need to utilize Google Reader. You can add all your favorite blogs and Google lets you know when there is a new posting to those blogs. You can also read the blogs and see pictures right from Google Reader. Another cool feature is the "starred items". If you're in the middle of reading a blog post but get interrupted by your toddler, you can star the post and easily come back to it later. Brilliant! I'm loving it so far. If you have a gmail account, you're all set to go. Just log into Google and look for the "Reader" link up top.

Okay, there's my tip for the week.

I have a ton of pictures to post but Dave is using our home PC to write a brief that's due tomorrow. Geesh! Charlotte and I are headed to VB tomorrow for a few days. We'll be back on Thursday.

Tagged Twice!

After looking at blogs of my friends this week, I realized that I'd been tagged by Courtney and Megan to do something called a "Meme". Never heard of it but it seems like chain mail for blogs. I'll give it a shot.

The rules:

Link to the person who tagged you.
Post the rules on your blog.
Write 6 random things about yourself.
Tag 6-ish people at the end of your post.
Let each person know he/she has been tagged (or let them get tagged by reading your blog).
Let the tagger know when your entry is up.

My 6 random things...

1. I'm not a morning person. I guess most people would know this about me. Like Megan, I don't like to talk when I first wake up. I need my time to slowly ease into the day. That quickly had to change when Charlotte was born, but it doesn't mean I like mornings. I'm good to go after a shower and cup of joe.

2. I love organization. I don't have a perfectly organized house, but nothing gives me more satisfaction than going through a dresser of drawers or closet when I have a spare moment. Purging old stuff is my favorite activity. I feel so much better after donating, selling, or free-cycling a big load of junk. The onslaught of toys, baby gear, children's books, and all the other stuff you need with kids has made me a little nutty. I'm always trying to find a new way to keep it organized.

3. I love a bargain. We recently bought a new car - more on that later. I spent weeks shopping around the area for the best deal. I wouldn't be satisfied with the purchase until I knew I got the best price. We got a pretty darn good deal on our new minivan (2008 Honda Odyssey EX-L), but I agonized and haggled with dealers for days. I inherited my bargain hunting skills from my mom and haggling skills from my dad. I must have called my dad at least 50 times last week to ask his advice. Thanks, Dad! Who doesn't love to save money, right?

4. I wish I was a better photographer and had more time to take a few classes.

5. My favorite meal is corned beef and cabbage. Dave isn't such a fan so I don't make it often. It's one of the best winter meals in my opinion. Brings out a little of my Irish roots.

6. I love being a stay-at-home mom. I feel fortunate to be able to stay home with Charlotte and all my future kiddos. I know it's not for everyone or within their means to stay home. I've always assumed I would stay home with my kids when the time came, but it was hard leaving a field (forensics) that I loved. I was lucky enough to work part-time for the past two years, but I officially retired in October with no regrets. I can't imagine not being able to watch Charlotte learn and grow every single day. I love waking up in the morning and getting to decide what we should do that day. My house is my sanctuary and I love being able to stay home on cold or rainy days if I want. I feel so blessed every day.

Phew, glad that is over. It wasn't as painful as I expected.

I'm tagging:
1. Erika (Two Popsicles)
2. Katie (Four Bright Eyes)
3. Kathy (Meet the Kaisers)
4. Courteney (Kelly's Korner)
5. Mimi (Defining Sienna)

Danielle, just like Susannah, I'm sparing you since I know you have way to much on your plate at the moment. Sara, having a baby tomorrow let's you off the hook too :)

Santa Claus is coming to town...

I hope everyone had a Happy Thanksgiving! We stayed at home this year and had a great four day weekend. On Saturday morning, we got pictures taken for our Christmas card. Charlotte was very cooperative and we got some good shots. I won't post them on the blog until they're all in the mail so you'll just have to wait! We decided to hop on over to the mall to see Santa since Charlotte was already dressed. Last year was a bust and there was no way Charlotte was going anywhere near Santa. This year she seemed excited to meet him. We waited in line for 20 minutes, eager with anticipation. I thought for sure it would be a go, but last minute she changed her mind. Oh well...there's always next year.

Memme and Poppy came for a quick visit this weekend. Memme made Charlotte this beautiful Christmas quilt. It's made of all flannel fabric - so soft and cozy. She also brought us some new Christmas reading material. Thanks, Memme!

We pulled out the decorations and trimmed the tree. It's become a tradition to put up the tree on Thanksgiving weekend so we can enjoy it the whole month. I know it's not in sync with Advent season, but Charlotte's too young to understand Advent anyway. Charlotte enjoyed pulling out all the ornaments and examining them. So far, she's been pretty good with the tree so no gate this year. It's hard to believe it's December already and I'm 31 weeks pregnant. We're in the home stretch now. I'm still feeling good and the baby is doing well. Charlotte tells random strangers that she's going to have a baby brother!

Miami

We had a great "get-away" weekend in Miami. On Friday night we went out for a fancy steak dinner in South Beach. Saturday morning we slept in (duh!) and visited the Univ. of Miami campus where Dave went to school. We had lunch with one of his swimming buddies. It poured for a few minutes that morning, but then the sun was out for the rest of the day. It was very hot and muggy! It definitely didn't feel like the middle of November.

Saturday afternoon was the wedding on the beach. Dave works with the groom and they've become good friends over the years. This picture is with all his other lawyer friends from the firm. It was perfect weather for an afternoon wedding on the beach. Just gorgeous! Incidentally, the guy sitting next to Dave is the one who hosted the poker game at his apartment the night I went into labor with Charlotte. He said we're going to have another poker game the Friday night before my due date with Nugget #2! If you don't know the story, I was having contractions most of the evening from 9pm-midnight while we were playing poker. Dave was winning so I wanted to stay - he ended up winning $250 bucks! When we were leaving at midnight, my water broke in the parking garage. Charlotte was born at 7:40am that morning.

Relaxing with a beverage in the little "cabanas" near the reception. It doesn't get any better! No drinks for me, sadly. Sorry I didn't include any pictures of both of us. None of them came out well enough to put on the blog. I'll try to post a belly shot soon.

My sweet little girl! I was so happy to see her when we got back on Sunday afternoon. A big thanks to Memme, Poppy and Brian for taking such good care of my baby!

This is why I haven't been blogging...

Twilight Movie Trailer

I picked up this book ("Twilight") on our way to Miami last weekend and I finished it last night. For me, that's a really quick read. I haven't gotten much done in the past week because of this book. I thought I would see what all the hype is about and now I'm hooked. I made Dave pick up the second book at Barnes & Noble tonight on our way to a party. I'm hoping to see the movie soon, but I'll wait for the crowds to die a bit.

For those of you who don't know, Dave and I went to Miami last weekend for a wedding WITHOUT Charlotte. It was my first time leaving her overnight. My parents came up to stay with her. She did FANTASTIC! She asked for me a couple times but was perfectly content to be with her favorite buddy, Memme. She wasn't even that excited to see me when I got home. I missed her terribly, of course. I'll post pictures tomorrow. The "New Moon" is calling my name.