Christmas photo 2011

I bought the kids new outfits for Christmas Sunday...Sam got a new sweater and Izzy got a new dress.  No, Kalen did not get a new outfit but he still looked adorable today!  Kurtis actually dressed the kids last Sunday for church and put them in their Christmas Sunday outfits a week early...I decided to not let it bother me and had the kids pose for pics a week early.  We got some adorable shots but the picture below captures it all.

Let's be honest..this is probably the best depiction of life at our house lately.  My brother says that I have to make this our picture for next year's Christmas card and I tend to agree with him.  Who cares if I'm not in the picture; this one is perfect.  I love looking at it and laugh every time.  Not because Izzy is crying but just b/c Kalen is always picking on her and she is always upset about him.  Sam is always aloof and Kurtis is always trying to keep us all sane.  It is the most honest picture I can get of my crew.  I will throw in some really good shots too! 

slavedriver

after asking Izzy to hang up her coat and put her shoes away, she looks at me and says "am I your servant? why do you make me do all this stuff?"
Can you guess the things Mommy says to her kids when she's had a rough day? well, I suppose this is a lesson for both of us:/

my little graduate!

Today Samuel came home with a special certificate and announced that he had "graduated" from speech!  We found out a few weeks ago that he was being released from speech therapy at school but today was his big day.  He got to bring a friend from class to speech and they played games with his speech teacher.  Sam has been in speech for two and a half years and it was a rough journey.  He is a perfectionist and would often get frustrated at having to practice and didn't like being corrected on his speech.  He still is not perfect with it but with prompting, he can correct most of his speech issues without difficulty.  I'm so proud of my little man!  This has been a tough journey for us. Though Sam's speech was never a life-threatening or dire issue, it was still a challenge for Sam and for Kurtis and I.  I'm so thankful for his hardwork and diligence.  I'm thankful for a chance to be his mom and love him the way I do.  I'm thankful for a Father in Heaven who sent me this sweet little thing that is my son.  What a great little perk in my day! 

the new and improved Kurtis

For awhile now, Kurtis and I have talked about him cutting his hair-short--really short--bald essentially because of that thing that happens to men that they can't control, premature baldness.  My husband is not a vain man.  In fact, when we first dated, I practically told him what to wear most of the time because he was just clueless about his appearance.  But he does get a little touchy when you mention his hair.  Anyway, he really had postponed the idea of cutting his hair short so I was a little surprised last night when he said I could cut his hair to 1/8 of an inch.  So after the kids went to bed, I did just that.  I cut his hair; we both said we would need to get used to it and then we went to bed.
At 6:45 this morning, I wake up to "honey, I need you to come help me.  I shaved my head this morning and I need you to trim up the back."  Needless to say, I sat straight up in bed!  And sure enough, my hubs' hair was all gone.  So we fixed it up and off to work he went.  I have to say that I'm getting used to it.  It is something I didn't expect. But I think I'll get used to it and love it.
I should add that since we went to Disney, he has worn a very fetching goatee!  I love it!  I think it totally transforms his face and I just think he's so handsome.  Now with the hair (or lack thereof), he looks totally different.  But he's my man and I'm going stick with him through eternity!

Christmas quotes 2011

from Isabel when the Santa on TV asks the audience what they want for Christmas: "a baby" (and she doesn't mean the baby 'doll' kind) 
me thinking in response to this: "thanks Santa, no pressure here!"

Sammy in the van on the way home from school: "Mom, you know the best part about Christmas?  It is just fun for kids!  First, we get out of school for awhile and then, we celebrate Jesus' birthday!"
yeah, he's got his priorities straight:)

the things Sam says

Before we leave for church every Sunday, we load up in the car and say a prayer before pulling out of the garage.  Today Sam volunteered to say the prayer.  He did a wonderful job and even asked that we each enjoy our classes and learn something new about Jesus.  And then right before closing, he prays "and could you make church go just a little faster!"  Kurtis and I gave each other a side glance and smiled.  My son is such a darling.  But I'm not sure his prayer was answered in the affirmative this time:)

what I am thankful for

My youngest fella, Kalen was born almost two years ago on Black Friday (aka the day after Thanksgiving).  He was a scheduled c-section so I knew when his birth would occur.  Kurtis and I were up at 4:30 in the morning and on our way to Kettering while all the shoppers were preparing for the early sales.  Now, as I've had two Thanksgivings come along after Kalen's birth, suddenly this fall holiday brings new meaning to me.  I have three beautiful children, for which I am grateful.  I adore all three of my kids. But something about my little Kalen makes this holiday more meaningful.  He is a lot of work.  He is very energetic.  He is unbelievably funny.  And he is my adorable little man.  He brings a joy to our home that I don't think we realized was missing.  He is just a delight despite his more "stubborn qualities".  Today, I just want to acknowledge the gratitude I have to be a mother to my Sam, Izzy, and Kalen.  And I am thankful to be Mrs. Kurtis Eber.  I am blessed even when I'm frantic, frazzled, and frizzy!

the Eber Christmas song

When I was pregnant with Sam, we were supposed to get an ultrasound a few weeks before Christmas that would tell us if the baby was a boy or girl.  I was so excited and wanted to have a fun way to tell everyone what we were having so I decided to make a fun Christmas card to send out.  I sat down and re-wrote "Twas the Night Before Christmas" to talk about Kurtis and I and in one line, I would say if the baby would be a boy or girl.  Well, we had a big snowstorm the day of my ultrasound and the hospital was closed so I wasn't able to find out the sex of the baby until mid-January.  Needless to say, everyone got Christmas cards at the end of January!  BUT this spawned a crazy tradition for our family that has become in its own way, something of much anticipation-the Eber Family Christmas song.
Each year, I take an old Christmas song (usually a hymn) and re-write it to tell of our family and what the past year has been like.  In 2004, it was "Twas the Night Before Christmas".  2005, "It Came Upon a Midnight Clear"  2006, "O Little Town of Bethlehem"   2007, "The First Noel"  2008, "Hark the Herald Angels Sing"  2009, "I'll be Home for Christmas"  2010, "O Holy Night"
I won't say what song it will be for this year.  You have to wait till Christmas but I'd like to share how I come up with the songs.  Each year I haul out my hymnal and look over the list of songs.  Then I hum each tune and think about what has happened for us that year.  It usually happens instantly-that "Aha!" moment where I'm singing the first two lines of our family song before I've even hummed through the entire song.  For instance, last year Kurtis graduated from grad school, something that we'd been looking forward to for 5 years!  The song was either going to be the "Hallelujah Chorus" or "O Holy Night" b/c graduation was truly a "night divine!"  It came so easily and quickly to me.  I'm so thankful for a chance to show a little creativity and share with loved ones.  I even had a friend tell me that it was one of the highlights of the season for them to see what song I pick and how I rearrange it.  I'm not a musical genius and I won't be gracing any stages anytime soon but I'm so thankful to be able to share my love of music and my family in one swoop.  I thankful for a loving Father in Heaven who gave me a gift of music and allows me avenues to share it with those I love.  I really enjoy creating these fun songs and hope that they will continue to bring joy during the holiday season!

what kind of mom are you?

I think as a woman and esp. as a mom, I am in a constant "compare and compete" mentality when it comes to my abilities.  If someone else's kid reads faster than my kid, I don't reflect it upon my child....rather I think "if I was a better mother I would help him/her to read better".  It's kinda sad really that I do this on a constant basis and I know that I do this and still do it anyway.....
But, this week has been a crazy week as a mom..I taught preschool this week for Izzy's class and loved it.  It was a bit nuts b/c I taught the day after trick or treating which just meant that the children were a bit unfocused and a bit more sugar-ed!   But despite this, I decided to teach these adorable four year olds a song on the handbells.  It was hilarious, totally unorganized, and everyone was unhappy about the color of handbell I gave them BUT I'm okay with that....I'm a good mom for trying something new and fun with them.
Our letter of the week was Ii and I convinced my husband to put up his tent in the living room and then covered it with white sheets and "snow" that I bought at WalMart.  It looked kinda "ghetto igloo" and was close to "melting" by the end of class BUT the kids loved it and it was memorable at the least.
I also helped worked the book fair at Sammy's school.  It was so much fun to help the kids pick out what books they want.  And unfortunately, a little sad to see their faces when we didn't have a book they wanted or they didn't have enough money for the Lego Star Wars Dictionary that was $25!  BUT Sammy was so happy to have some money to buy some books and was so excited that I was there to help his class.  Even Isabel and Kalen enjoyed the books that Mommy picked up for them.
So maybe it sounds like I'm trying to brag or convince myself that I am a good mom....and maybe I am.....BUT I've come to the conclusion that I am a good mom!  I won't always be able to compete with other moms and really I shouldn't try....because not many of them would teach seven 4 yr olds the handbells or build a ghetto igloo.  They probably would volunteer at a book fair so I'll give them that BUT I'm still the best for my little Ebers and......I'm okay with that!

the ghetto igloo!

Sam the Man!

Last night at dinner, Sam ate eight chicken nuggets and then went back to eat his brother's leftovers.  I said "Sam, you shouldn't be eating all that b/c you can't still be hungry."  Sam replies "A man eats when a man's hungry!"
I'm soooo not prepared for him to grow up:)

Final Boarding call

I'm going to share the last few photos of the kids at the airport on our way home from Orlando.  I have to share this last story.  When we got ready to fly out of Columbus, they asked us if we had Kalen's birth certificate b/c he was under two.  I said that I didn't have it with me and no one had told me that I needed it so I didn't think about it.  The man let us get on the plane and go our way.  At Orlando International, when it was time to check in, they again asked us for his birth certificate.  I again explained that I didn't have it and wasn't told I needed it.  Not to mention the fact that it is in Ohio and I am in Florida.  They wouldn't let us get on the plane with Kalen without his birth certificate.  At this point I was crying and freaking out a little bit.  The airline made us buy a ticket for Kalen and told us how to get a reimbursement when we got home.  So we made it safely on the plane but I'm still waiting for my refund!

All my boys posed next to a plane at the airport!

Technically, we could have counted Kalen as a carry-on.  He fit!

My mom wearing one of our souvenirs.  She was so happy to see the kids.  She doesn't like it when we fly!

The last days of Disney

We spent one day at the Animal Kingdom and loved it.  We were having a hard time finding Donald Duck and Sam was so upset about it.  We made a vow that we would not leave Animal Kingdom until we tracked Donald down!  It was a high priority.  The very first thing we did was the safari ride.  Unfortunately none of my pictures turned out very good b/c I didn't know how to set my camera to "action mode" so the pictures are all blurry!  However, we saw a lot of giraffes, three cheetahs, and an ostrich tried to ram our safari truck b/c we got too close to her eggs.  It was actually kinda scary but the kids loved it!

Thumper was awesome and Kalen smiled quite a bit.  You can't tell but he is laughing in this one.

And we were able to find Donald and Goofy together!  Goofy was very affectionate and was following me and hugging me.  Donald got jealous and was hugging me as well.  Sam thought it was hilarious that Goofy was hugging his mom!

Sam challenged Lilo and Stitch to a dance competition and then started break dancing on the sidewalk.  Lilo and Stitch declared Sam the winner for this move!

Needless to say, Isabel was not pleased to get her picture taken with Pooh bear so she ducked out of pics with Eeyore and Tigger.

Tigger did not appreciate me calling him a "troublemaker".

This dinosaur ride had all kinds of warnings that this was not a ride for little ones. It would be scary and loud but Kurtis insisted on Sam and Isabel trying it.....we should have heeded the warnings.

The ride below was essentially the Dumbo ride only with triceratops!  Sam and Izzy saved me a spot while I took a picture!

This is Kalen waiting to see the Nemo Musical. It was a cute show but since I'm not a big fan of Nemo, it didn't really do much for me.  But the kids liked the songs and when the actors came down off the stage.

Our last day was spent at Magic Kingdom.  We finally made it on the Dumbo ride after a very long wait!  And went to Philharmagic again!  Then we headed off to Tomorrowland.

one elephant



two elephant



This was the Buzz Lightyear ride...Kurtis did not like it as much as the Toy Story Mania b/c I outshot him.  He blames it on Isabel steering their car....yeah, whatever!

We loved this ride.  It started to rain off and on when we were in line to meet Buzz Lightyear and so at times we were just hiding in shops and once, we were on the peoplemover and it stopped for a minute while the rain poured.  Really though, to only rain on the last day was fine by us:)

We waited FOREVER to meet Terence and Tinkerbell!  It was crazy!  But it was indoor and it was raining!

Isabel just could not wait to meet Ariel!  She invited her to come to our house.  She was just adorable at this point.  The professionals at Disney took a picture of Isabel hugging Ariel and it made me smile.  She really didn't like hugging any of the other characters but this one was so important to Izzy!

We actually took this picture as we were leaving but I love it anyway!

We had such a great time and the memories were just awesome.  My kids were so happy and I was too!  I'll never forget this vacation!

oreos?

I have to take a break from the Disney reenactment to share this photo from yesterday.  My Kalen is just a doll.  Who ate all of the oreos?  Really?

Downtown Disney

We took a day off of going to parks after we went for two days straight.  It was so nice to sleep in a little and for everyone to relax. Plus we promised Sam that after the Princess dinner, we would do a "boy thing".  And BOY, did we ever?!  At Downtown Disney, there is a restaurant called T-Rex Cafe.  It was awesome.  They have a meteor shower every 20 minutes complete with lightning and thunder.  Isabel wasn't a fan of that part but everything else was cool.  I took many pictures.  All of the dinosaurs/animals in the restaurant are animatronic and make sounds/move. Also, the room called the Ice Cave changed colors from blue to purple to pink.  It was fun.  After lunch, they had a Build-a-Dino store attached to the restaurant (yes, it's a Build-a-Bear affiliated store).  Again, Sam was in heaven! 

this was an entrance to the World of Disney store



this was another entrance to the World of Disney store and the Stitch spits on you...yes, he got me!



the ladies' room

the men's room

one side of the table-not enjoying the meteor shower

the other side....so happy to eat with the dinosaurs!

made out of legos!

really!

made out of legos!

MADE OUT OF LEGOS!!!!

The lego store was mega-expensive and most stuff you can get at WalMart but the stuff built around the store was VERY cool!

We spent the rest of Wednesday back at the villa, napping and swimming.  It really was a fun time.