A new Chuck E. Cheese restaurant opened up in Rochester. The first night my parents and my brother, Brigham, were in town for Christmas we went to eat and play. Everyone enjoyed it! Below is one of Andy's prizes from all the tickets he won! Unfortunately, his mouth is not big enough for him to comfortably wear them. But he looks cool anyway!
Nathan and Brigham had a competition going with this game. They both wanted to get the high score. When we left, Nathan's high score still stood.
Every year at our school, the Kindergartners make and decorate Gingerbread houses. Nate and Haley have done it, so it was Andy's turn this year. He had a lot of fun decorating it!
Costumes! I tried to save money this year by making costumes, it came back and bit me in the face! Nate and Andy are Gargoyles, a costume we found on Family Fun. They didn't turn out as expected, in fact they looked like Muppets. I spent twice as much money than I would have if I had bought them. Nathan said, "You're making memories, so it's okay." But then we ended up throwing away everything but the sweatsuits. Haley wanted to be an Angel and I found her costume for much cheaper than it would be if I made it, so she looks beautiful! Michael is wearing a hand-me-down costume from Andy. He's a dragon and he loved wearing it! When we went to the kid's school Halloween parade, people kept calling him a dinosaur. His reply? "I'm not a dinosaur, I'm a dragon!"
Daddy helped Andy with his.
Star Wars Clone Trooper
Carving of the Jack-O-Lanterns. Nate did his own this year.
Michael's pet is a penguin.
Nate's pet is, of course, a frog.
Haley's pet is a unicorn fit for a princess.
Grandpa and Grandma Taggart sent Nate and Andy remote control helicopters. They have miraculously lasted so far. They love to play with them and I'll often hear the "crunch, crunch" sounds that make me fear that they will not last very long at our house. But it has been a wonderful entertainment for them. Thanks G&G Taggart!
Grandpa and Grandma Taggart gave Haley an art set. She has always wanted one and was beside herself to have received one!
Michael's gift from G&G Taggart was a box full of trucks and cars! He loves anything with wheels and these were a hit!
At the area where Michael and I played, there was a huge barrel at the top and when it would fill with water, it would dump it all over the play area. The next picture is of Nate getting dumped on. He loved to wait until the barrel would get full and then enjoy being doused with water.
My kids are really into flashing the "peace" sign whenever their pictures are taken. Nate started the trend and now they can't say "cheese" without saying "peace" as well.
The kids in their Christmas Eve jammies, a tradition that we love to keep going.
