O Christmas Tree

We are headed north for Christmas but we are SOOOOO excited this year for everything Christmas.  Dalby shoulders' slumped when I told her we were going to Michigan this year.  I think she was disappointed because she thought we wouldn't get a tree here in Tennessee (which we originally weren't going to have one, but since we got a tree she hasn't stopped talking about seeing everyone in Michigan).  She has been talking about a tree since November.  As we were driving one day in early November, it was quiet in the back seat, which is normally filled with some sort of chatter, arguing or singing.  I asked Dalby what she was thinking....her answer...."I am wondering where we will get our Christmas tree?"  In the past Ryan and I have not gotten a tree because of our holiday travel.  This year we decided we would get a small tree to decorate.  It ended up bigger then we thought, not huge, but not table top size like I had originally pictured.  It makes us happy here and is a great source of entertainment.  We get up every morning and turn on the tree.  One morning, it was 6:30am(we have already been up at least an hour if not an hour and half by 6:30am) and Dalby came racing in,  "Momma, momma you forgot to turn the Christmas lights on."  As if we had gone the WHOLE day in the dark:)  Quinn and Charlie let me know I am slacking with one word, "Ites".  


The day we got the tree was an adventure.  We decided to get the tree early so we could enjoy it before we left on our trip.  So the first Saturday in December we headed out early.  All the kids were fed(at least once, 7:30am is usually morning snack time), dressed and diapered/potty and in the car by 7:30am.  Where might you get a tree at 7:30 in the morning?  Kroger.  We drove down the street to Kroger to pick out our "little tree".  We arrived and the little trees looked sad.  So we upgraded a bit to a mid-sized tree that required mom to sit in the back and hold the tree as it hung over the back seat of car seats(We think Charlie got a bit of tree in his eye but he survived).  We arrived home, dad trimmed the tree and we set it up to let the branches fall.  I climbed in the attic handed ornament boxes down and unpacked non-breakable and repacked breakable ornaments and replaced the extra ornaments in the attic.  During nap time we wrapped the tree with lights and that afternoon we decorated.  Everyone got a chance to hang ornaments and most ended up on the lower half, but the tree looks great!  It was a full day of decorating and I did a bit of baking too but then to top it all off Ryan and I had his company Christmas party that night.  So we had a tree bought and decorated, baking done, showered, dressed and the house semi-ready for our babysitter all before 5:30pm.  We were pretty impressed with ourselves!

Let's get a group shot before we go to Kroger to get our tree.

An attempt at "We are happy with our tree."  You can see why Ryan calls Quinn "Popeye"

A picture of our whole tree.  It comes a few feet from our ceiling.

 Hmmm..... what is he up to?  A look we saw often from both Charlie and Quinn.  You knew it was trouble when you walked in and saw them standing side by side in the Christmas tree corner.  The were particularly fond of the tree after we hung candy canes on the tree.  

 A sweet shot of all three as they admire a few presents we put under the tree.  They were presents for our trip so they were opened when Daddy got home.  Luckily we didn't have to guard presents along with the tree this year.  

 Merry Christmas!!!!!

Christmas cookies

The master at work....

Warmer...

Maybe we need to keep the house warmer... Quinn likes to walk around in her hat and Charlie in his boots....

School Pictures

This series of pictures is from the first day of preschool.  I thought they would help explain some of the mischief that is caused by one pink polka dotted 20 month old, who shall remain nameless.  Some days she can spend a lot of her day in time out and it seems her only regret after each time out is that she got caught.  Now don't get me wrong, each child visits time out but our polka dotted sister seems to see the guest room more frequently then the other siblings.  So, the first day of school pictures - first please notice everyone is dressed, shoes on, clean diapers, potty, hair brushed(I promise Charlie's hair gets brushed every morning) and we still had time for a picture:)  Next everyone is sitting.  Each time I try and take a group shot I always start with the sentence, "Everyone please go stand over there."  Why do I think that will work?  I have no idea!  

 We always start with one of Dalby standing and the other two somewhere in the room or Charlie headed for the camera.   

So everyone sitting....now for smiling and then if we are lucky everyone looking at the camera.....and here is the shot to keep...but I didn't know that yet...

We start to lose Quinn...for whatever reason she gets upset ...

and then frustrated that Dalby and Charlie are tickled...

 Oh wait...Dalby has cheered her up...maybe this is another keeper....

 and another....

 Oh no....here comes the hand...its reaching...

 contact...and look at the pride on her face...

 and then the blame and the satisfaction....

 Now she laughs because she has gotten her sister, brother and mother upset and

were done with this photo session!  Mission accomplished!

Gingerbread house building

Dalby and I built a gingerbread house at preschool today. It was fun and she was excited! I am not sure if the house or Dalby got more icing. She decorated the house, the cone and the plate, so much so we had to double plate her creation. We were a sight leaving school. I had the babies big tote on my shoulder, Quinn in one arm, the gingerbread house in another hand while pushing the single stroller and Dalby walking with me. We didn't park as close to the school as I would have liked so it was a trek to get the car. All worth it, we made it home safely and I didn't even have to hold the gingerbread house in one hand while we drove, like I did the apple turkey.

Thanksgiving

This was Thanksgiving morning. This was probably the last happy moment for all three at the same time that morning..... Each of them took a great nap but getting to that point was a bit rough. Post nap we had a MUCH better day!

A picture for Santa...

We are going to mail this to the North Pole....

Ready for the weather

Quinn was begging to put the boots on this morning. Charlie has a pair too and loves
wearing his....but they also like their shades. Very stylish too when the boots and shades are worn together too:)

A Fall Day

Quinn spotted a plane and Charlie and Dalby were finding and creating leaf meals for me.

More summertime

Chocolate chip cookie, lemonade and sunshine.... In the background Mr. 4:15am slept thru the treat....

An attempt

An attempt to take everyone to the park by myself... Was ok but only because the little walkers are a bit hesitant. Once they get there legs under them I have a feeling playground trips might be a bit difficult.

Quinn and Charlie's First Birthday

Quinn and Charlie had their birthday way back in April but I am making an effort to post some old pictures(notice the November 2010 baptism photos). I haven't downloaded the pictures in a very organized fashion(organization is not my strength these days) so the blog catch up will not be in any particular order.

The birthday was great fun and quite simple. Dalby and I made our favorite kind of cupcake at this house...chocolate with homemade vanilla icing. We took everyone outside and let them eat their cupcakes. The video is long and is actually two videos put together. The second part of the video has me laughing quite a bit so I turned the volume on the video way down. From the looks of the video you wouldn't think Quinn enjoys sweets or cupcakes these days....not true....just as anything in their lives Charlie jumps in no hesitation, no thought and Quinn takes a minute to warm up to the idea. Dalby enjoyed the cupcake but did have a bit of worry that it wasn't her birthday....until present opening. Once we began opening presents and she realized she would get to do most of the unwrapping our problems melted away. Charlie and Quinn enjoyed watching Dalby's excitement and then rolling in all of the paper! (The present opening video is more for the grandparents as it is not exciting footage.....:))

November 2010 Baptism

Charles Blaine Luttenton and Quinn Christine Luttenton were baptized on November 7, 2010. It was a busy few days getting everyone's outfits(adults included) ironed and everyone showered/bathed for the big event. It was particularly complicated since the baptism was only a few weeks after my October 20 surgery, which meant not only was everyone caring for the children but I also required extra attention and I couldn't assist as much as I would have liked. After the baptism we had family over for brunch. All parties behaved wonderfully, outfits stayed clean long enough and we all were glad to be home sipping mimosas.

This was the best shot we got of all three. I was hoping to get a shot similar to this one....

Charlie was given a pocket watch, a family heirloom that will be treasured. It has been in the Luttenton family for a long time and was handed down as follows: Charles Ansterburg father of Mary Rodgers mother of Margaret Luttenton(Ryan's grandma) mother of Charles Russell Luttenton father of Ryan Charles Luttenton father of Charles Blaine Luttenton......

The only family picture we got was of the 5 Luttentons. Unless we pre-plan a group shot these days we never manage to grab a photo.

Winnie the Pooh

The "Winnie the Pooh" movie is such a sweet and fun movie! We all loved it! It was a great first movie theater movie for Dalby. Popcorn, candy, previews and entertainment...all past her bedtime....is there anything better at four years old?

Marin Dalby's Birthday Bash

We had a great time at Dalby's birthday this year! We invited some friends over to play in the water and eat sandwiches and cake. The party was on a weekday morning(Dalby's actual birthday). It isn't ideal for everyone but summer weekends get so busy and if you want to do any sort of outdoor activity in TN these days, mornings are a must! We set up the pool. (Ryan got the pool out and luckily figured out how to modify the air compressor to pump up the pool because I didn't think about the fact that the pool needed to be inflated....). We brought out the pink lemonade, Uncrustables, Goldfish and muffins and the kids played. Bridget, Blake and Millie (the older kids in the pictures) had fun with the younger ones and also created their own fun soaking each other throughout the morning. The cupcakes and the toppers were a hit with Dalby. She loves Daisy Duck. Ever since her last birthday she has talked non-stop about having a Daisy Duck cake. Ryan and I did consider and research making a Daisy Duck cake but as the party approached and we reminded each other of the time consuming process last year and the fact that it was Daisy Duck versus Mickey Mouse....we decided Etsy would be a great resource for cupcake toppers. The "streamers" were an idea I got from a blog. We are going to do that again to decorate for my mom's birthday in September. A fun morning and great afternoon naps were reported from all party goers parents - success all around!