My Christmas Candy!

So here are some pictures of what I have been doing this week.  I like to make a ton of chocolate every year for my customers that my company does office cleaning for.  I also like to make extra for all the Holiday get togethers that we do in the following few weeks, so this year I cut back a bit and did 15 lbs, instead of around 22 lbs.  It took me about a day and a half.  I made 2 batches of the peppermint bark, 300 buckeyes, 2 huge bag of white covered pretezels, and 3 packages of the chocolate covered oreos.  This year I found some peppermint oreos, and WOW those are amazing when you cover then with chocolate.  Since I'm obssesed with photography as well, I thought it would be fun to take some pictures of my chocolates before I gave them all away.  Just looking at these pictures makes me hungry for it, but we already ate are share of it at my house.

I thought I would also throw in this picture of these roses.  Alisha's boyfriend got her these, and over a week later they were still going strong.  We called then the roses on steroids.  Of course I needed a picture of them as well.  I just can't help myself.

The Megan Show

I have been really slacking lately of just videoing Andrew. He is growing up so fast, and I feel like I'm missing these cute moments. So I'm going to do my best to try to capture that again. Andrew and Megan came down the other night and put on a performance for me and my husband. Megan put on the outfits incase you are wandering why Andrew is sporting a vest without a shirt. They are to sweet.

On this video I captured what is going on a lot of the time at my house. Megan has such a way of making Andrew laugh. It cracks me up, to watch him crack up. Only Megan can get him so excited. I think its because she is willing to act as stupid as she needs to, to get him to laugh. There is only so much I'm willing to do.

Christmas Is On It's Way!

So we got our Christmas decorations up last week, and I'm finally getting around to posting some things.  Here is Andrew helping daddy with the outside lights.  Or ast least he thinks he is helping.  Usually he slows us down when he wants to help, but one day he will be able to really help us doing things, and hopefully he will still having the willingness to do so. 

Every year everyone gets a new ornament.  I like to pick something that is fitting for my kids at the time.  I got Andrew a firetruck because he talks about firetrucks at least a few times a day.  Megan lately has been into shopping.  She is turning into a real girly, girl.  I also got Alisha an ormanent with a girl sking.  Alisha and her boyfriend are planning on doing a lot of snowboarding this winter, so I thought it was fitting for her.  I also got her boyfriend an ornament with a boy sking.  Cain got a santa clause on the beach building a sand man.  Every year I get Cain one with santa clause because that was one of the first things he became obsessed with at Christmas time when we were first married.

We got out the nativity set from Kyrgyzstan.  My daughter got this when she was over there on her mission trip.  It was so great to pull that out this year and tell Andrew about it. It has Mary, Joseph, baby Jesus, a camel, and the Yurt.  Alisha bought this from kids in one of the orphanages, who make these, along with other things to keep the orphanage running.  I love it because it is safe for my son to play with, and he loves it!

Andrew has become obsessed about the tree and the ornaments on them.  I had to move all his favorites to the top of the tree to prevent him from grabbing them off.  He had a meltdown when he realized he couldn't get his firetruck off of the tree anymore, but he is now onto the train that my mom gave us to put under the tree.  Andrew turns it on all the time, and he gets all the way down on the ground and just watches it.  He will ask me several times a day to do the same.  So we just lay there and watch the train go round and round. 

An Andrew Update!

So I know it isn't even Thanksgiving yet, and I have put on my Christmas banner and background, but I have been so excited about the holidays this year.  I think it's because Andrew is understanding more of what is going on, and it is going to be a fun year!!!!!

So while I'm on here I thought I would just update on Andrew a bit.  All I can say, is WOW what a difference a year can make.  Andrew has come so far since last year with his talking.  Before we got the tubes in his ears last Oct. he was barely saying a few words.  Now he is saying sentences.  We have whole conversations all the time.  I feel like I'm really getting to know my son now, because he can tell me what he wants in words instead of signs.  I have to say though, he is pretty funny!!!!  The things that comes out of his mouth just cracks me up.  Like yesterday, my husband and him were playing with something and he asked my husband to fix it.  My husband's response was, honey it is broken and I can't fix it.  The next thing out of Andrew's mouth is Papa fix it.  Which is my dad, and if anyone knows are house, if we can't fix something we are calling my dad for help.  How a two year old knows how that works already is beyond me.  Nothing gets past Andrew.  We have to watch everything we say and do. 

Andrew has still been struggeling with certain sounds when he is talking because of the submucous cleft in him mouth, and we still go to speech therapy once a week, but aside of that, he is talking non stop.  Of course along with the power of speaking comes the power of being bossy.  Andrew thinks because he can tell us stuff now, that we have to do what he says.  He is learning that the world doesn't revolve around him, but he certainly has a big head about himself.  Infact, when we are shopping he wants everyones attention around him.  I get on average going to the grocery store at least 8-12 comments from people on how cute he is.  I think that has gone to his head a bit because if people are not noticing him he starts getting very loud with either his screaming, fake farting sounds, or him just yelling hi!  Shopping hasn't become a very exciting experience these days.  I'm trying to teach him that everyone is not his friend, but he is far from getting it. 

Andrew is still a little boy filled with excitment and joy.  He is rarely in a bad mood.  Infact, that is the question I get asked most of the time.  Is he always happy like this?  I of course have to tell them yes.  Andrew is also very smart.  His understanding of things blows me away.  He has down most concepts that most 3 year olds don't get.  Infact, yesterday at speech the therapist had a book she was looking at with Andrew and at the back of it, it had lots of opposites, like up/down, push/pull, in front/behind, curly hair/straight hair, and on and on.  Anyways the therapist kept asking him to point to the picture of the word that she was saying, and he got every single one of them right.  Me and her were in amazement.  Then he also pointed out all the shapes, which I didn't even know he knew.  Then she said I'll stump him, and there were two arrows pointing left and right.  She asked him to point to the right arrow and he got it right.  Then she asked him to point to the left and correct again.  We thought that has to be a fluke, so then she asked Andrew to show her, his right hand.  He then again got it right.  We both thought that there was still now way that a two year old gets that.  Who knows, maybe he does.   I just can't wait to see what he is going to do one day. 

All I do know is that I'm very thankful for my little boy.  God has been so good to us, to allow us to raise him.  I thank God everyday for him, and that we were able to get him from the struggeling place that he was in.  One thing that amazes me is that Andrew is already starting to understand that he was adopted.  He says all the time that mommy and daddy got on a plane and went to Kyrgyzstan to get me.  Of course his words are not perfect when saying that but I know what he is saying.  It amazes me that he even puts any of that together.  We keep telling him, and I guess it is working.  What a wonderful little boy he is.

Alisha and Megan's Birthday Celebration!

So lately I have become a little obsessed with the Cake Boss on TLC.  I'm so fascinated with how they can make such amazing cakes, but the one thing that all the cakes on there have in comman is that they use fondant on the cake to decorate it.  So since I always make my kids birthday cakes, I thought I would try something new this year, and put fondant on it for the icing.  I have to say that it was quite a process to make the fondant, but it was a ton of fun.  So since I'm also obsessed with photography, I have a few pictures below of my cake.  I knew once the party started for my girls I would forget to take a picture.  So I'm glad I did it the day before.  Then I came up with an idea for the party.  I had some fondant left over, and it stays fresh in the refrigerator, so I kept it and I let the kids decorate their own cupcakes with the fondant.  I have to say though that the fondant became quite yucky after they were playing with it for awhile, so I don't think anyone actually ate the fondant at that point, but they had fun doing it anyways. 

Fun with the Fondant!

Josh acting like the fondant is pizza dough!

Finally Time to Sing and Eat the Cake!

Laney you look great in the cake!

Kelee your to cute!

Gift time!

Alisha got her ski jacket she was needing!!!!

And Megan got her Mario Kart for her DS that she needed!

Baby is getting tired, so it must be time to call it a night!

What a great day! 

For the girls Birthday this year, we redecorated Megan's room, and Alisha got a new bed with new bedding for it. I'll have post pictures of both another time.