Monkey Time

They spent the entire afternoon playing with these things. Definitely a great present choice. Thanks Uncle Michael.

Christmas time in Leander

This year was the first year we decided to stay home for Christmas. It was a hard decision to not be with our families over the holidays but we knew Kaylie was old enough to understand (kind of) Santa and we wanted her to be in her bed Christmas morning. To make up for that we decided to go to Leander a few weeks early to celebrate with the family.

I know this sounds weird but I really loved having it early. It seemed so much more relaxed than past years. I think it was because it didn't have the "Christmas day, everything has to be perfect" stigma to it. If we forgot something (like Elias' present from us...oops) we could run to Toys R Us on our way to my mom's house and pick it up so no one would be the wiser. We bought exactly what we had left at home and returned that one when we got back. I know, I know...pretty smart of us! Just glad we thought about that.

Everything went so well. We had a blast. Kaylie is at the age where she really enjoyed opening presents and then playing with them after. She was so good at appreciating everything she got and has had a great time playing with them since. With this being a year of transition when it comes to her toys and making sure they are age appropriate we were pleased to see what she was wanting and enjoying playing with.

Having both Kaylie and Eli opening presents made things exciting. I am truly loving the age the two are at. I feel so blessed to have been able to enjoy this time with them.

My mini photo shoot

In an attempt to get a good picture for this years Christmas card I took Kaylie out to Grandma Chris' beautiful back yard to run around in and play. I have to say I learned a lot from this. I got some great pictures but was not able to put them together due to lighting issues. Some were darker than others and some had issues with shade. The tree pictures were great with the exception of the dotted shadows on her face. I feel like she was a good teaching tool for me. Since she was moving so fast I didn't get to look at my pictures until that night. It ended up working out fine but at first I was bummed. I also took the chance to work with photoshop with these. It allowed me to get rid of the red ring around her lips. I was pretty proud of some of the pictures I touched up. I definitely realized I will benefit from a lighting class. On a completely unrelated side note...this was the first time for her to wear a head band. Until now she would not let me. I loved it!!!