Jingle all the Way!

Last week Andrew had his very first Christmas program at his school.  Actually, it was his very first program ever.  We were beyond excited about it.  He had been learning Jingle Bells at school and would come home singing it all the time.  His 2 year old class were the first to perform and they sang three songs.  They were too darn cute for words!

I was so nervous and excited all at the same time.  I would never have believed Andrew would have stood up there the whole time without running around or acting silly, but he did!  I was so proud of him!

 

For those of you thinking I must have found some pants that fit him?  Nope.  These are 24 month so the length is great but they are safety pinned! Lol!

 

This picture would have been awfully cute, if it wasn't for my big, colorful arm taking up half the picture!  My mom took this one- and happened to capture him smiling.  I was so mad I got in the way!  We made sure mom and I both brought our cameras and daddy had the video camera charged and ready to go!  We got there 40 minutes early to make sure we got a seat up front!  Some All of the other parents surely thought we were crazy, but I could have cared less!

 

It was just so much fun seeing Andrew perform with his little classmates.  This is one of the reasons I love that he goes to a day care center.  We don't really think of it as day care.  They have such a structured day, and Andrew comes home singing little songs (with actions!) and telling us new things every day.  Every day they have story time (which Andrew will now sit and listen to!) and then a craft that goes with the story.  He just loves school more and more and he talks about his teachers and friends all the time.  Everyone there genuinely loves and cares for the kids, and I feel so good knowing he is in such good hands every day.

 

This is Andrew's sweet little friend, Lilly (my best friend, Alissa's daughter).  I love that Lilly is at his school (in the preschool program) so she can check on Andrew for me!  Isn't she a doll?

 

This is Andrew saying "Cheese!"

This is a short video of Andrew's class singing Jingle Bells- it is so adorable! You'll notice Andrew is more fascinated with his jingle bells than with singing!  It is so funny because he knows every word to this song!  I think he was just overwhelmed with all the attention!  He was having fun though!  (Email readers have to click the link, it'll take you straight to it)- You can also pause the music at the bottom of the blog:

Photo and video editing at www.OneTrueMedia.com

We have had a busy last weekend before Christmas!  My mom and I did some last minute shopping at the mall on Saturday and took Andrew with us because Craig had a school event.  Andrew was actually very good, considering the crowds and how long it took us to get around with a giant stroller full of bags!

 

This cracks me up- this was us on the way out of the mall.  Towards the end we had to take Andrew out of the stroller to make room for all the bags!  Doesn't it look like he's going to tip over??

 

Ga Ga got suckered into buying him an ice cream cone, which he devoured instead of his lunch!  That's what grandma's are for, right?  (At least, that's what my mom says! Ha!)

 

Andrew rode the train 3 times!  We just couldn't believe it, because this past Easter he had a fit when he rode this train.  He was scared of being closed in, but this time he loved it!  He'd keep saying "again?"  But when we showed him Santa he said "No, Santa...NOOOOOOOO!"  It was pretty funny.  What is it with little kids being scared of Santa?

Relaxing at Gymboree while Ga Ga and Mommy shopped!  Thank goodness for these TV's!  The person who thought of that idea was one strategic thinker!

 On Sunday we headed to the new Bass Pro Shop, which I thought Andrew would love.  They have such neat things to see, including a large amount of stuffed real animals, which freaked Andrew totally out.  I wanted to get a picture of him next to the big bear, but he was having no part of it ("No, Bear...NOOOOOOOO!")  That is his new phrase when he doesn't want something.  I think he thinks he needs to make sure we know he means NO so he says it twice!

He and daddy did have some fun though.  This isn't quite like Ralphie's Red Ryder, but close enough!
I didn't get any pictures of him with Santa.  Maybe the fact there were several large stuffed reindeer right beside his chair- or the fact that Andrew is still a little unsure of the big guy.  I was totally hoping to persuade him to sit on his lap- Bass Pro offers a free photo with Santa!  You can't beat that deal.  Oh well, so the day didn't turn out exactly as planned.  It was fun anyway!

After our trip to Bass Pro, our friends Kevin, Alissa and Lilly came over for pizza so the kids could exchange their Christmas gifts.

 

Lilly gave Andrew a fun Thomas bath toy!  He wanted to take a bath right then!

 

Can you tell the kids were thrilled with getting their pictures taken?  It was way past their bedtimes but they were still having fun playing and didn't want to be interrupted for a picture!

Well, it sounds like a bad winter storm is headed our way, just in time for Christmas travel.  We are thinking about loading up a few days early and heading to Ga Ga's, just to make sure we get there!  Luckily it is only about 20 miles away.  We hope all of you have safe travels and a very Merry Christmas!

The Lord has done great things for us, and we are filled with JOY!

~Psalm 126:3