
You know Emily

and Max,

and Kedryn

and Brynn,
Comet and Cupid and Donner and Blitzen,
But do you recall, the most famous reindeer of all?
Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer
Had a very shiny nose,
And if you ever saw it,
You could even say it glows.
Blah, blah, blah, blah, blah …

We had a wonderful Christmas in California this year with my dad, sister Suzanne, niece Brynn & nephew Kedryn. This was the third Christmas without my mom and the first Christmas with us all together since her passing. The chaos & craziness of 4 little munchkins running around certainly provided diversion and prevented us from sitting down for a minute & dwelling on it. No time for sitting with these crazies. Nonetheless, her presence was there and she certainly was on our minds during the holidays as she is every day.

One of Emily’s requests from Santa was nail polish! Boy was she thrilled to find it in her stocking and Papa Dave was happy to paint her fingernails and toes!!

She also received a pretty lavender long sleeve Ariel shirt from Aunt Denise, Uncle Paul, Kyle & Alexis

And a beautiful doll named Marianne from The Oma & Grandpa Dale which Brynn quickly took an interest in

Another highlight for Emily were princess & castle decals for her room from Auntie SuzyQ & Papa Dave. SuzyQ & Brynn took the time to put them up for her and she was thrilled to walk into her new Princess Room!

Max’s only request from Santa was a marble track!!! He was over the moon to receive not only one, but TWO marble tracks!!! He couldn’t get enough of playing marbles!

Papa Dave showing Max & Kedryn how to use the new race car track. The boys loved it!

Brynn was happy to receive a pink Hello Kitty purse and a pretty scarf from The Oma! She actually wore the scarf while ice skating in Tahoe! It was more of a designer, decorative scarf than a winter scarf, but Brynn didn’t seem to care! She wore it with flare!

Brynn with her new panda pillow pet from Emily & Max which she named “Oreo”

Perlar Beads were plentiful and also a huge hit with the kids! Kedryn with a fish that I made for him which he named “Q” after his mama! Ahhhhhhhhh!

Papa Dave, Max & Emily with a gift of Petit Fours from Uncle Frank. The kids were anxious to try their first petite four.

We hope everyone enjoyed a wonderful Christmas with family & friends. Here’s to a fun & fabulous 2011!