Dear Santa...

Isabella's letter to Santa - Dear Santa - I would like sheep, cow, angel, shepherds, the wisemen, and the stable this year! Yikes, where on earth will Santa find room to put all those pieces in his sleigh?

Noah's letter - Dear Santa - This year I would like a Brett Favre bobblehead, Brett Favre football, and a Brett Favre t-shirt. Much easier to transport those items from the North Pole.

Saturday we went to the Mall of America to deliver the children's letters to Santa. Macy's has a direct mailbox to the North Pole. We did a little shopping but it was hard to get anything done with all the people. We had lunch at Twin City Grill, which is always fabulous!

Sunday was St. Nick's Day and Noah and Isabella were pleased to find "magic socks", chocolates, and fruit in their shoes.

Snow..Snow..Snow

The clock strikes 3:00. Auni drops off Noah and Isabella. Out come the snow pants, boots, waterproof gloves and out go my kids. Today I barely got a "Hi, Mommy" before I heard the words, "Can we go outside and play in the snow?" Of course I let them! Playing in the snow for the first time of the season was such a highlight I remember from my childhood. Against my better judgement, they wanted to make snowcones with the snow. Typically we use the blender and "clean" ice but a little dirt never hurt anyone, right?

After about February 10, the snow will be old news and we will be awaiting the robins and green grass peeking out from underneath the snow. So for today we are going to enjoy the newness of the snow and look forward to sledding, ice skating, and walks in the newly fallen snow! Enjoy the season!

Holiday Lights

Every year since our children have seen other homes with Christmas lights on them they have begged us to put them on our home. This year we added a few more twinkle lights than last year and eventually they will probably win and we'll end up with lights all over the house! Joseph, Mary, and baby Jesus are Isabella's contribution. She received them from Santa last year. This year she is asking for the wisemen, camels, sheep, cow, stable, and shephard boy. If anyone has an idea where Santa can purchase these "white" nativity figurines, he would appreciate an email!

The Roe Family Christmas Tree

Every year the day after Thanksgiving we drive out to Little's Tree Farm and cut down our family Christmas tree. This year I almost instantly saw the most beautiful tree ever! The only problem was that it was about 15 feet tall and I believe our ceilings are 8 feet! After much trimming we got it down to what we believed would fit into our family room! Once we tried to fit the tree into our house, we still had to trim the top. It was worth it!

This year Uncle Timmy, Auntie Jess, Maddie, and Olivia went out to the tree farm with us to select their tree. Maddie loved the experience but I think Livi could have done without it! She is not much a nature girl but she was a good sport!

Happy Thanksgiving!

For the second year in a row, we hosted Thanksgiving at our home. Chris' brothers and their families along with grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, and my sister came to celebrate all we have to be thankful for. Chris' mom (Nanny) does most of the cooking but Chris and I lend a hand where ever we can. Uncle Timmy cooked the ham this year. It was a day filled with lots of food, games, conversation, and imaginative play.

School Days

Last week I was able to go to mass with Noah and Isabella. Noah was song leader so it was important that I come to be with them. Noah has great spirit when it comes to mass and it's very precious to see. After mass Noah had to go back to class but I joined Isabella outside for recess. She was excited that I could push her in the swing before I had to go back home. I wish I could go to school every week and spend a little time with them. It was a great day!

Farming

A couple weeks ago we went down to Leroy to help take the corn out. Well, I should say Chris and Noah helped and Isabella, Nanny, and I went to Rochester. Isabella did sneak in a tractor ride Sunday morning with Daddy and Noah.

Buca's

Last Friday night we went to St. Paul to go out to dinner with two of the children Chris and I nannied for years ago. Liam is 22 and Kayla is 21. Roland is 20 and was already back in India where he is studying Hindu. It was great to see them after so many years. Kayla is back in London now studying for a semester and Liam is on his way to Peru to teach English, music, and math. They have grown up into very bright young adults! We went to Buca's in St. Paul, which is an Italian restaurant. I think we all had too much pasta but it was a good time.

Happy Halloween!

Yes, another Halloween has came and went. Noah and Isabella were so excited for Trick-or-Treating this year. Each year we walk a few extra blocks and visit a little more houses than the previous year. Noah had wanted to be Guilligan from Guilligan's Island but with the weather being so cold he decided to be Brett Favre. This costume totally suits him since he is a total football freak right now! I am getting tired of A pass/B pass going on in my family room! His football skills have improved a great deal, which does mean less things getting knocked over! Isabella dressed up as a Southern Belle. This was a perfect costume for her since she is always in a dress anyway! She is already planning her next years costume!

Nanny and Bop Pa came over on Saturday to see the kids in their costumes. Nanny was a pregnant Nun and Bop Pa was a monk! Too cute!

Happy 6th Birthday, Isabella!

My little girl turned 6 on October 20! I can't believe that she is already in kindergarten and 6 years-old! We had a tea party for all her little girlfriends at school. We had 8 little girls dressed in more ruffles and glitter than any one house should have at a time! My whole house was full of pink glitter when they all went home! They had a blast but I do believe I spent too much time preparing. Chris reminded me that the girls are 5 and 6 years-old, not 12! Oh well, it sure looked pretty and I loved doing it! She had a family party this past Sunday. I am officially caked-out and on a sugar-free diet until further notice!

Fall 2009

As everyone living in Minnesota knows, this fall has been terrible! Usually we spent a great deal of time outside but this year we have had almost 5 inches of rain in October and lots of very gloomy days. We did manage to sneak in a Sunday afternoon outside in the leaves! Despite the fact that the Vikings were playing, I did get Noah to come outside for 5 pictures, no more! We are hoping for a very warm and sunny November!