Christmas at the Medeiros House

We went to my parent's house on Christmas afternoon for lunch and more presents!!! Mom and Dad prepared a delicious meal. After lunch we visited while the kids played. Here are the boys in front of the Christmas tree. I forgot to have the kids sit for a group picture with their cousins.
It was fun watching all the kids and their excitement while opening their presents. A good time was had by all.
I got to open my birthday/Christmas gift from my parents. I received a photo printer and value pack photo paper with ink print cartridge. This was way better than a pair of shoes Uncle Larry. I can't wait to use my photo printer. Maybe Aaron will set it up soon. Then I'll start my scrapbooking. Thanks, Mom and Dad. Love you!
One of the gifts my Mom got from my Dad was two bulk packages of gum. She loves to chew gum. Mom looks so happy. She's a beautiful lady.
Eric the little Santa. He is too CUTE, just like his brothers!

Merry Christmas

Santa arrived at the Hayes household without any difficulties. Nicholas received a bicycle, Carter got a electric guitar / microphone stand combo, and a musical gumball machine was left for young Eric. The boys were very good and didn't wake Mom and Dad until 8:30 AM (Yippee!). All in all, it was a great Christmas.
PS - Happy Birthday Corgan!

Christmas Eve

Arriving home in the early evening from Paris, the boys took a quick shower and changed into their pajamas. When they came into the living room they received a Christmas Eve suprise, a neat rocker chair and a bucket of popcorn. No Eric, you can't have any popcorn. With such nice seats and snackfood it is time to watch a Christmas movie. How about, "Christmas with the Kranks"?!?!?!
After the movie finished it was time to make final preparations for Santa's arrival. A note was drafted and lovingly placed next to the special plate of cookies and milk. The fireplace screen was pulled to the side to allow Santa easier access into the house.
Nicholas went to bed without a single complaint. Carter was very excited and took a while to fall to sleep.

Our Christmas in Paris, TX

Saturday evening we went to Aaron's parents' house in Paris to celebrate Christmas Eve-Eve. All of Aaron's siblings, spouses and children made for a very full household for Mom & Dad Hayes. The Christmas tree had plenty of gifts underneath which made Nicholas and Carter especially excited with anticipation.
While patiently waiting for all the family members to arrive, Nicholas and Carter played with their cousin Corgan. Say "cheese" Carter!
Here Eric and cousin Emily are checking out the finer points of Grandma and Grandpa Hayes' carpeting. Emily is pretty mobile now and will be walking (running) before too long. Eric still needs a helping hand to keep from falling on his face when he sits up.
Here Grandma Hayes and Eric are sharing a moment. One of Eric's presents was a neat ball made of rings. Eric had an enjoyable time seeing just how much drool it takes to cover the entire ball.
It looks as if Kelly has swallowed a ball!!! Doesn't she look beautiful seven months pregnant with baby Caiden?!?!?!?

more pictures...

Here Aaron and brother Jason enjoy a relaxing conversation while the younger boys play.

Here is Corgan and his NANA. . Unwrapping presents didn't seem to take very long.
Remember kids....safety first! Check out our very own 007 year old.
The presents were opened, the wrapping paper thrown away, toys strewn about the room. Ahhh, wasn't that fun?!?!?

My Celeb Look-alikes

http://www.myheritage.com

Chrissy challenged me to do the celebrity look-alikes. It was fun. We also did Aaron and wouldn't you know Matthew McConaughey and Nicholas Cage showed up as a look alike.

Kids Christmas Party

Santa visited Carter's pre-school Christmas Party yesterday. Here is Santa with 2 of our 3 boys. See how excited they all are?


During the party Carter got to build and decorate a Gingerbread (Graham Cracker) House. Carter enjoyed the licorice roof. Nicholas helped with the demolition and frosting removal. I was able to help some of the other mothers at Nicholas' Christmas Party. Here is a picture of Nicholas working on his snowman craft project.
Here Mrs. Telschow is reading a story tied to the gift exchange. When ever Mrs. Telschow read, "right", the gifts would pass to the right. When, "left" was read, you guessed it, the gifts passed to the right again (just kidding). The story went on for quite a while before the kids were able to open their gift (each gift contained a 100 piece puzzle). Once all the gifts were opened, the children were trading with one another. As it turns out, Nicholas managed to conduct a couple of trades in order to get the puzzle that he had originally taken to school that morning.
And now for our interesting picture of the week. Our little boy is growing up so fast. Standing up at five months! Wow. Unbelievable, huh?

Christmas Bows

Ohhhh, what's this green thing? Do you know what flavor it is?
Hmmmm............. can I eat it?
Patooee. It doesn't taste so good to me.
Mom and Dad finished wrapping all the Christmas presents while my brothers and I played on the floor.

Eric's First Haircut

Eric hair was growing way too long in the front . My friend Huong cut Eric's hair while he was sleeping in his car seat which made it easier for her. I saved some of his hair for keepsake. His hair has changed from black to a beautiful brown color and it is so soft. All done and still sleeping. Must be a really good dream.
When he woke up from his nap Huong trimmed the hair around his ears. He was being a good boy for her. He did really well for his first haircut. Thanks Houng, see you in 6 weeks. Eric is so HANDSOME!!!
Carter played with his friend Luke while Eric had his hair done. Huong and her family are leaving tomorrow for a 3 week vacation to Hawaii. I'm jealous. Pout, pout, pout. Someday I'll get to stick my toes in that beautiful sand.

5 Months Old

Guess what? I'm 5 months old today. Yep, my shirt is wet from the drools caused by teething. Mommy loves it when I play with my saucer for 10 - 15 minutes. My brother Carter likes to play with me when I'm in the sacuer.
My favorite veggies are squash and sweet potatoes. My favorite fruit so far is pear. YUMMY!!
I rolled from my tummy to my back the other day. I'm pretty sneaky about it though. Mom has tried to camcord me but hasn't been successful yet. Don't like rolling much but I'm still working on it. When I'm laying on my back on the floor I like to do my crunches (it is good for my abs).

I love sitting on my Bumbo chair. I'm able to hold and play with my toys. But when I want out of it I stretch up. Today I ALMOST figured out how to get out of the chair.

Happy Birthday to ME!

This evening my family came over to our house to celebrate my birthday. My Mom made a delicious Thai soup. It was so good and perfect for this cold weather. Susan got me a YUMMY birthday cake. Carter was asking for cake before we even started to eat dinner. He is a cake lover. Aaron got me a really nice iPod. I can't wait to use it. The boys got me the "Loving Angel" from the Willow Tree collection. Nick got me a special gift. Last week at school they had a Holiday Store for kids to shop for family/friends for Christmas. He bought me a beautiful bracelet all by himself. He was so excited to give it to me. And I LOVE it. Nick is my little sweetheart. My Mom & Dad got me a gift which I unwrapped to find it wrapped up in Christmas paper. On the Christmas wrapping paper it said DO NOT OPEN UNTIL CHRISTMAS. Dad said it's goes with the other part of my Christmas present. Okay, now I'm getting really excited about Christmas. I also got some really nice gifts from my sisters. I love spending time with my family. Thank you guys so much for everything. I want to thank Aaron's parents for the lovely Nativity set from the Willow Tree collection. I look forward to getting the complete set. Thanks to everyone that called me today. I had a wonderful birthday!!

Buddy the Elf Arrives

We always know when it is December 1st as that is the day Buddy the Elf makes his annual visit. Buddy will be found hanging around the house, keeping an eye on the boys to make sure they are being good. The boys wake up each morning and look for Buddy as he changes to a new location each night.

The boys enjoyed watching Eric's reaction to the singing Reindeer. The Reindeer's cheeks glow red and he sways and taps his feet as he sings the song Sleigh Bells Ring.

Eric is now sucking on his fingers. It's cute to hear the little noises he makes. But it sure makes his the front of his shirt soggy.

Look Mom, I can stick my finger in my mouth this far.....

See, I'm okay Mom. Love you.

Christmas Tree Lighting

Saturday evening I took the boys to the Christmas Tree lighting held in North Richland Hills. There were plenty of activities to do there like roasting a marshmallow, small train rides for the kids, ice scuplting, fun crafts, bounce houses, pictures with Santa and of course the tree lighting with some fireworks. We met the boys' Aunts and cousins at the event and had a lot of fun.
It was really cold but the boys came prepared with their hats and gloves. Good thing Aaron and Eric stayed home where it was warm.

Thumbs up everyone!!

Group picture with the TALL toy soliders. I bought each of the boys a really cool winding light up toy, some cotton candy and fresh kettle corn popcorn. Nicholas LOVES popcorn. He wouldn't let go of that big bag. When we got home he did share it with the whole family. Carter is holding a bag of popcorn for Grandma Medeiros. She is also a popcorn lover.

Saturday Family Gathering

We had our monthy family get together at the Hill's house. It was nice to see everyone and catch up on the latest news. Regretfully, I only took a few pictures so here they are. The kids had a lot of fun playing with their cousins and making a big mess. Hmmm, where is Corgan? Oh, he is with Nana.

Eric doesn't seem to recognize Michael Tom.