December

We had a really festive and full month before Christmas!  Layla and Grady were so pumped this year.  

It was such a fun and crazy month!  MANY more Christmas pictures to follow.  

They will probably keep on flowing through January :)

We kicked off the month with a dance clinic and performance for Layla.  It was a very cute performance and very short!!  I love the short and sweet recitals!

 

Reindeer after the performance!

 

Trip to the mall with our cousins! 

 

Our annual visit to the miniature Christmas train

 This was our day with TWO big extended family parties.

 

A wonderful day of parties followed by a LONG trip home due to snowy roads.  

We stopped at Culver's for a snack when we got home.  

 

Christmas with college friends

 

Holiday Build and Grow at Lowe's

Decorating daddy's office with Layla's artwork

 Greeting Santa downtown and Christmas tree lighting

Layla's letter to Santa.  Written phonetically :)  

Dear Santa, I have been a good girl.  I would like a Sofia Castle 

and I would like a stomp rocket and a game.  Love, Layla

 

Snow fun!  We still have a little light when Layla gets home to hit the snow outside!

 

My cookie helpers!

We had a wonderful visit with my mom friends and our families.

Thank you Jessie for this photo!! 

 

Gingerbread house making!

 Our silly elf painted daddy's nose red and left red noses for the kids!

 

 

Layla's class party

Our elf, Liam Elfie, was a crazy guy this year!

 

 

 

Delivering letters to Santa

 Christmas light scavenger hunt 

Cookies for Santa

They were SO excited for the Christmas festivities to come!!

Layla at 5 1/2

Time is once again flying.  Layla is halfway.to.six. 

How in the world is this little girl going to be six in six months?!?

 

Here are the results from an interview with Layla at 5 1/2:

 

 

 

Layla had a big month in November.  She won "Student of the Month" in her classroom and had her art entered into the district art show.  Layla was so proud of herself about the art.  She barely blinked an eye at the "Student of the Month!"

Layla at the art show!

 

Layla and her beautiful sun art

Grady wanted to pose too!

 

Layla still loves her crafts too! 

Here Layla and Grady were working on some Christmas ornaments.

 

And she sure loves her cousins. 

Layla and Liam are really good buds. 

 

And the child loves to see any sign of growth. 

I keep telling her no more sleep for her...and then the

growing will stop.  She always checks to make sure I am joking :)

 

Layla was a huge help the day before Thanksgiving.  She helped me make the stuffing, rolls and the apple dumplings.  She worked the toaster like a pro.

 

Layla has started writing a bit more too.  She has found more confidence putting her pencil (or more likely a marker!)  to paper.  Her phonetic writing is pretty cute to read.

 

Below is a small sample of her work from "Teddy Bear Week" at school last week.  Layla wrote down that Big Papa (my grandpa who passed away almost three years ago) gave her the bear.  Ryan and I cannot remember if he did give it to her.  But Layla honestly probably remembers better than us.  I was just so stunned that she wrote of him without us prompting or helping her recall him.  I hope the memories continue to stick.

 

And that is Layla in a nutshell at five and a half. 

We are lucky to raise this sweet and sometimes quite spunky little girl!