Winter Fun

What a busy week! I had my first snow day with my guys this week, and it was so great. We stayed in our jammies until noon! Nicholas loved looking out the window and seeing Todd running the snow blower. They are so darned cute together.

We also had a firehouse Christmas party on Saturday. He had the greatest time running around with the other kids in his little Santa hat. He made a gingerbread man with Grandpa, and ate pizza, ice cream, and cake. (No wonder why he was running around with the other kids!) Unfortunately, though, we didn't make it 'till Santa. He was just too pooped out, which was a bummer, because we were anxious to see how he'd react to Santa. Oh well!

We also got our tree this weekend. It's definitely a Nicholas-sized tree! But, with the construction, we really don't have much room. We, of course, haven't put it up yet, but hopefully this week sometime we'll get it up and decorated. I think it's going to be a cute little tree!

And speaking of the construction... we are feeling a little frustrated right now because we were supposed to get sheetrock on Friday, but guess what?! No sheetrock! We're keeping out fingers crossed for this week! Patience, patience, patience...

Home Sweet Home

Well... the siding is finally done! You know that page in Highlights Magazine that says "What's Wrong With This Picture?" I must admit, I can't help but think of this when I look at this picture. It's not exactly what we were planning, but we love it anyway. We are still waiting on shutters, which are on order, but the front of the house, where the door and new window are, was supposed to be all stone. Apparently, it can't be applied in cold weather, so we would have had to wait until spring. Yeah... there was no way that was happening. If I had to look at that Tyvek wrap for one more day, I was going to lose my mind as it was! So... hopefully someday down the road, we will conquer that project. I think it would look great, but for now... we're very happy with our new house! Insulation is in, and sheet rock is planned for the end of the week. I was really hoping to be in for Christmas, but unfortunately that's probably not going to happen. Oh well... what's another couple of weeks?! This is certainly a lesson in patience!

All is well in Nicholasland, although today was a tougher day than most. He was SO cranky and difficult to please today. Todd and I are exhausted. We actually had the discussion of "when can we start time out?" tonight. Seriously, how do you stop a 1-year-old from having a temper tantrum? Right now - it's all about the power of distraction.

We are having fun getting ready for the holidays, although it would be nice to find some time to decorate the house a little more! Hopefully we'll get our tree sometime this week. Man, that puppy will have to be nailed down, tied up, and wired to the walls! He's into everything these days! He is loving my dad's Santa collection, too. We're not so sure the real thing will go over very well, though. We'll just have to wait and see I guess.

Nicholas had his first real cookie this week - Arrowroot. He LOVES them! (Duh... thery're cookies for goodness sake!) I swear he gets cuter every day!

Gobble Gobble!

What a difference a year makes! Last year at Thanksgiving, all Nicholas did was sleep! This year, he was running all over the place, and even had a real turkey dinner. What a great day we had. We started off on the DeBisschop side, and finished the day on the Cutler side. He saw SO many relatives in one day! It was so much fun watching him warm up to everyone. He is so shy lately when he first sees people. By the end of the afternoon, though, people got to see the real Nicholas - screeching at the dinner table and all!

He looked so darned cute in his sweater and little dress shoes! We certainly have much to be thankful for this year.

Oh, by the way... Nicholas's new favorite thing is dancing. My parents have these dancing flowers at their house, and he can't get enough of them! He is just too funny...

Our Little Genius

It's official. the boy is a genius! I swear he understands everything we say. For instance, tonight I was on the phone with Todd and he was telling me about how he and Nicholas were dancing today. So I said to Nicholas, "Do you love to dance?" And he started dancing right there in the kitchen! Then, he walked into the living room and pointed to the iPod. It totally freaked me out! Oh, and by the way, this kid has the moves! He does this sort of disco move where he puts both pointer fingers in the air and bounces up and down. It's so funny. I have to get it on video.

So, all of this growing up business is making me so emotional lately. I need to know if anyone out there knows how to make him stop! I want him to stay like this forever, and never to grow up. I swear he's perfect just like this, and I'd be happy if he'd stay like this forever. Any ideas?

Anyway, since I just posted the other day, I don't have any new pictures to post. So instead, here are some oldies but goodies. As if I wasn't emotional enough...