Big Girl Room

This year we decided Everlee was ready for her BIG girl room. She was too big for her toddler bed, and was becoming more responsible and independent. We wanted to create a space where she could grow as a young lady. We also wanted to give her an area of privacy so she could have an area to play with her toys on her own, with friends, and also with Mommy and Daddy. We found a white sleigh bed and dresser which gave her plenty of storage for the toys she didn't use quite as often. We created a bookshelf to house her favorite books and photos of the family. Since this was her room, we wanted her input when it came to the color. We should have easily guessed she would say "blue". Luckily, the fabric Mommy picked out months ago correlated with the blue paint swatch.

Everlee adapted to her new room with ease. At first, she wanted to play with the train table and dollhouse Santa Claus brought instead of climbing into bed but it didn't take too much convincing when she realized there was a much larger bed awaiting her. It is hard to believe she has reached this stage in her life in what seems to be such a short amount of time. It seems like only yesterday we were putting her crib together, waiting for her arrival. I hope this new stage won't go quite as quickly.

Ribbon board and dresser

The dollhouse Santa Claus brought Everlee. She has spent

hours playing with the dolls and putting the whole family to bed.

Everlee's sleigh bed which has nice large drawers to hide

all her unused toys. MiMi also made the bedspread and pillows.

Daddy painted a tree on the wall to help go along with the

Owl accents used to decorate the room.

The plaque was from Friended so Everlee would always

remember to be brave, smart, and strong.

A shelf full of books is always a must.

Blue Bell Revealed!

Everlee's one Christmas wish was for a "Blue Bell". She started talking about this bell right after Halloween and never wavered. We made sure to write Santa Claus a nice long letter, and she explained to Santa's helpers specifically what she wanted with each faithful visit. We were all excited Christmas morning when Santa Claus had hung the bell from the tree. I think, Mom and Dad, were more excited than Everlee.

Merry Christmas!

Although every Christmas season seems to be our favorite, I think I can honestly say this year was the best. Everlee was really into the Christmas spirit and she seemed to notice every sign and symbol. She even made a statement that "it smelled like Christmas". We practiced our favorite holiday traditions of trimming the tree, visiting Santa Claus (numerous times), decorating our Gingerbread house, looking at Christmas lights, and watching our favorite holiday movies. We continued our yearly tradition with visits to Maryland and Pennsylvania. Even though the trips are long, we can never seem to get enough of family and friends. This year we even had the chance to see our cousin Scott's Llama farm. It was pretty interesting to see Llamas up close and personal. Along with our traditional celebrations, we included a few new traditions along the way. We had a surprise visit from Owl the Elf and we went to the Smithsonian Museum in D.C. to see the holiday decorations and dinosaurs. Everlee's favorite gifts this year were her dollhouse, train table, blue bell, mermaid Barbie, and her new Big girl room. We were fortunate to celebrate Christmas several times this year but we always remembered to take time to be thankful for the things that truly mattered. Friends, Family, Health, and Happiness!

Visiting with Santa

Our Gingerbread House

Smithsonian in D.C.

Owl the Elf

This Christmas season we had a very special visitor from the North Pole. On the first of December a cute little fellow appeared at our home hidden in one of our stockings. Everlee noticed him right away, and decided to name him "Owl". Owl was an Elf from the North Pole who would visit us for the month of December. He flew home every night to inform Santa Claus about Everlee's behavior. When Owl returned, he would land in a new spot in the house which had to be sought out by Everlee. Everlee jumped out of bed every morning calling, "Owl, where are you?" It never took her very long to find his new hiding place. Next year, we will have to encourage Owl to be a little more creative when it comes to his hiding spots. Owl hid in the stockings, the tree, the chandeliers, the ceiling fans, the bathroom sink, the pot rack, in a suitcase, and even Everlee's Play House. Owl even managed to visit us in Maryland and Pennsylvania when we were traveling for the holidays. He was a very faithful Elf. Everlee soon discovered, Owl flew much better when she gave him a BIG hug and kiss each morning. Although, it was hard to see Owl return to the North Pole, we are excited to await his arrival next year.