Our New Toy

We've been on the lookout since last year for a trampoline. Finally, the one I liked went on sale, so we got it last Sunday for a great price. Ryan and I have quickly realized that it's not as easy as it once was, as we feel the insides of our bodies shifting with every jump. It's been a lot of fun so far (and great excercise) - I just hope it warms up again soon!

Cousins

The girls can't get enough of Eli - can't wait for Destin!

Ryan The Snowman

Meet the newest member of the family, "Ryan the Snowman." Yes, that's his name. We gave the girls all kinds of names to choose from, but Alyssa was adamant, the snowman's name would be Ryan. When I told her people might get confused since her Daddy's name is Ryan, she informed me that his whole name could be Ryan the Snowman. So, here he is...

Lainey actually did not help with the snowman... that might be why she was so resistant to being in this picture:

Alyssa had so much fun making a snowman that she wanted to keep building more. So she and Ryan built a "snow fox" to keep Buster company in the backyard. Believe it or not, they built it almost three days ago, and it's still standing. For once Buster didn't destroy something! (and by the way, I hate to think how much poop is mixed in with that snow - note the brown spots)

The girls had a great time playing in the snow. Our yard was covered in snow angels, and we had multiple snowball fights.
Here's some footage from a snowball fight. It was Ryan & Alyssa vs. me and Lainey.

Babysitting Eli

Unfortunately for the Kueblers, Kari was REALLY sick yesterday and Mike was out of town. Fortunately for us, we got to watch my nephew Eli and he even spent the night last night. The girls had a wonderful time, and Alyssa even told me she wished Eli could live with us.

Here are some pics of Eli with Lainey - they had a great time playing chase with Buster and playing with little animals together (while Alyssa was at school):

We attempted to have Eli sleep in Alyssa's room with the girls, even though he's never slept in a "big bed" before. He did great for a few hours, until he either had a bad dream, or Alyssa rolled over on him.Yesterday, the three of them even formed a band. Maybe this is a glimpse into their future with Lainey on drums, Alyssa on lead vocals, and Eli on guitar and backup vocals:

Sledding 2.0

I took the girls sledding on Wednesday, and this time Lainey got to go (last time she was sick). I picked up Alyssa from school, and we went straight to the hill. We had a lot of fun and had the hill all to ourselves.

Here is Lainey's first ever trip down a big hill:

And here is Alyssa almost running into me and Lainey:

Alyssa's First Basketball Game

Alyssa had her first basketball game today and she did great! I've posted some videos from the game below. The first one is of the player announcements - very cool.


ALYSSA'S FAST BREAK. What the video doesn't show is the red-headed boy on the other team just handed Alyssa the ball for no reason. So, we were joking that her strategy is to flirt with the boys on the other team so that they'll turn the ball over to her. Oh yeah, and dribbling is overrated :)


TAKING IT DOWN THE COURT. She still needs some work on dribbling, but her skills have definitely improved since the beginning of the season. And, at least she dribbled this time!

Now, for some nicer family moments...

The girls helped me make some Christmas cookies earlier this week. They had a great time putting on the sprinkles. Alyssa worked on one snowman and decided she wanted it to be all white. So, she picked out all of the white sprinkles and added it to the cookie - I didn't think she would ever finish! Lainey is ready to start adding sprinkles!

Creating their masterpiecesFriday, before going to the zoo and visiting Santa, I took the girls to the museum. There are days when the girls do nothing but fight constantly. Luckily, Friday was not one of them. They played great together, and Alyssa really looked out for her little sis when bigger kids came around. We all had a great time!

I didn't even have to push Lainey around in the stroller!

Ryan showed up right before it closed and got to go down the slide with the girls. Alyssa was definitely the champion slider.
After the museum, we headed over to the zoo to see Santa. If you have not seen the video in the previous post, then you should check it out. Then, come back and look at these nicer family moments again. That way, Ryan and I won't seem like totally evil parents. After the zoo, we went next door and checked out the trains. Alyssa did a great job with the scavenger hunt!