Shaving and a play date

One of the gifts we got for Levi was a shaving kit. I passed it in Walmart and quickly turned around to go back and get it. Levi loves to grab Matt's razors and pretend he is shaving. Luckily, we never had any bloody accidents b/c I always caught Levi before it got messy. So this is Levi's first shave.

Yesterday Levi's friend Carter came over for a play date. Oh my gosh they had so much fun! They ran and chased and ran some more! There were toys from the front door to the back door. I didn't mind though b/c they had such a blast and it was worth it to see them both so happy. This gave me an idea of what it will be like when Jax is just a bit older and running around with Levi. I am in big trouble!!

Sorry Mandie...I couldn't resist this picture. As soon as I took it Carter said he needed to go potty. Thank you for letting him play with Levi.

This is just b/c I think Jax is perfect and I wanted to put a picture of him up. This is another one of his Christmas presents. He loves his Lightning McQueen car!

Christmas Fun

This year we stayed at home for Christmas. We have been in this house since 2007 and never spent one single Christmas day here. So this year was the year! It was different being by ourselves but Matt and I really wanted to spend time with just the kids. No tv, work, or projects! It was fun and we made some great memories! Here are some highlights from our weekend.

I bought Matt a rock climbing calendar for next year. That's not all I got him though!

My new jewelry box! I've had my other one since th 5th grade. Seriously!

My new boots! Love them!!!

Isn't he just so stinkin' cute?? I could just squeeze the poop right out of him. Jax spotted me with my camera.

Now he decides he wants to walk over to me to get my phone.

Jax opening his first present. It was pajamas from Grandma!

Levi loves cars and everything about them!

Levi was a pro at opening presents. Much better this year than last year.

We went to Chick Fil A on Christmas Eve. Levi was scared of the cow so this was a good as it gets. At least I look cute!

Levi passed out watching Thomas the Train when we got home from Chick Fil A. Who wouldn't though? That movie is so boring.

My pork shoulder was so yummy! We had bbq for Christmas lunch/dinner. That's how we do it here in Texas.

We went to the mall to visit Santa but it was crazy expensive to get pictures. So we walked around for a little while and tried to get Levi to ride a train. He didn't want to ride it by himself so that was a bust too. We drove around looking at all of the pretty lights in our neighborhood. Levi loved the lights! We made cookies with Levi too to leave out for Santa. Our whole Christmas weekend was just about being together as a family. Even though it was just us we still had fun and Matt and I couldn't have been happier. We hope everyone had a great Christmas as well.

*Fixed Video* Levi's Alphabet Song

If you can't view the video in the email go to http://youngfamily1204.blogspot.com/ to view it.

Updated stocking holder

Thanks to Tanna and her wonderful suggestion I went back and added red ribbon around the frame. Now the stocking holder pops and I'm lovin' it! I used double sided tape to hold the ribbon in place. I didn't make the ribbon big and chunky like the matting from PB b/c I didn't want to squish the picture I put in there. But you could do whatever you like. Now let's compare again:

$29 at Pottery Barn

Or $2 at Dollar Tree:

You can click the picture to see closer.

Pottery Barn Knock-off

I have been looking for stocking holders for years now. Last year I taped our stockings to our counter top. Ghetto!! I just couldn't find any that I liked that were reasonably priced. So this year I was determined to not tape our stockings. So my inspiration...Pottery Barn! Pottery Barn has these stocking holders for $29 each. Pretty but no thank you for that price!

So I went to my favorite store the Dollar Tree with an idea in my head and crossing my fingers that it would work. Dollar Tree has ugly stocking holders that are silver and gold that have a plastic Santa, angel, or snow flakes on top. All I wanted was the base. You can buy 2 stocking holder bases at Target for $8. Still too much for me! Then I found a silver 3 x 5 frame that said "Honeymoon" all over it. I knew at home I already had silver spray paint that would easily cover up the honeymoon on the frame. I only bought 1 frame and 1 stocking holder just in case my idea didn't work.

I rushed home super excited that this was going as planned. I took the ugly plastic Santa off the base and spray paint the frame. There were holes on the base where the Santa was attached so I put clear tape over the holes and then spray painted over the tape. You can't even tell. Sounds ghetto but you really can't tell there is tape there and it covers the holes. I glued the frame to the base and I was finished. Make sure to glue the frame upside down so you can change out the picture. It will cost me a whopping $8 for 4 stocking holders and at Pottery Barn these would cost me $116 for 4. Hmmm....what should I choose??

Now each year I can put updated pictures of us in each holder. I am going to go back and get more this week so I can put the rest of our stockings out. I know my version doesn't have the pretty red matting but that's ok. I'm actually going to go to a different Dollar Tree and see what their selection of frames are. Maybe I can find a frame with matting but if not I'm still happy with what I made. Notice my Dollar Tree hurricane too? Pretty! That cost me a whole $3 to make.

Pay no attention to the burnt out light in the kitchen. I think the wiring has a short in it.

Our Christmas tree

Goodbye fall decorations....HELLO CHRISTMAS!! This weekend we put up the tree and made the house ready for the big day. These horrible cell phone pictures do not do the tree justice. No we do not have an angel on top. I can't find one that I like and Matt hates the one that we have used in the past. The fence is to keep tiny little Jax's fingers away from my breakable decorations. Matt made this when Levi was just a baby and it worked great. Now it's time to use it again. So far so good! Merry Christmas to everyone!

What I am grateful for

I am grateful for so many things in my life. I am blessed every day by my Heavenly Father to have the best life possible. I am first eternally thankful for this guy:

Without Matt I would be lost. He is patient, caring, understanding, loving, giving, righteous, daring, fun, smart, determined, and best of all hot! The list could go on and on. He is perfect for me. He makes me want to be my best self and loves me for who I am.

I am thankful for my boys Levi and Jax. Levi is determined in every way. He gets that from Matt for sure. Levi has so much energy and wakes up every day loving life. He is high maintenance and cries a lot but I still love him. Jax is the complete opposite. Jax is laid back and cool. He only cries when he is hungry or tired. He loves his older brother so much and wants to keep up so badly. My boys are just that...mine!! I am so grateful that Heavenly Father sent them to me.

I am thankful for my parents. They have put up with a lot between all of us 5 kids. I'm surprised they haven't gone crazy yet. I am thankful they raised me with my beliefs and standards that I have today. I am thankful they taught me how to be a good person. I am thankful that I am stubborn just like my mom. Can't you tell she is a firecracker? Look at the red hair. That says it all!! Matt tells me that I am just like my mom so I'm pretty sure that's a good thing...right Mom??

I am thankful for my friends that I can count on and rely on for anything. I wish certain people lived closer (you know who you are) but that's ok. It makes the times we do get to see each other just that much more special.

I am thankful for modern conveniences. I love air conditioning, washing machines and dryers, blow dryers, cars, flat irons, clothes irons, tvs, computers, I could keep going and going. I hope you all have a Happy Thanksgiving and are grateful for all you have.