Christmas Decorating

Last night we had fun going to the tree farm to pick out our Christmas tree. I really like Spruce trees but this year I gave in and we got a big plump "regular" tree, as Sydney put it. Since we own our own house now, and have lots of room, I figured it would fit in perfectly. (The house we lived in before only allowed fake trees, but I always broke the rules and got a small real tree. The landlord never found out!) But even after we picked it out, cut it down, tied it to the car, and got it home, I was actually a little skeptical that it wasn't big enough. Below is the picture of the tree.

Without decorations.

So we all took turns picking out which decorations we ourselves would get to put on the tree. Sydney kept getting frustrated because Madeline was taking all of the ones she chose, and putting them up herself. Madeline has a bad habit of wanting to do everything. I don't know where she gets it from. :) But Kassie was the smart one. She hid her ornaments so Madeline couldn't steal them. Sneaky and smart thinking, I wonder where she gets that from. :)

The tree fully decorated!

When we went to the store to get more lights for the outside, Andy really wanted this penguin he saw. Of course Madeline's favorite animal is the penguin, so he used her to get me to cave in so we could get it. I am not really a fan of big decorative things in the front yard, but alas, I thought it was cute too, so we got it.

Isn't he cute!

Anyway, you can't really see well in this next pic, but tonight we put lights up on our stair railings, and along our roof. The roof lights are blue icicle lights. If you click on the pic, you can see it better. And you can see the penguin by the downstairs window. That is the extent of our decorating this year, so far. I have a feeling we might be adding more, that is if Andy has any say in it...... :) I am just truly excited because this is our first Christmas in our new home!

Click to see the icicle lights.

And last but not least, this is the pic we took right after we finished the tree, and right before the girls crashed because it was 2 hours past their bed time! Merry Christmas!

Thanksgiving 08

The ABC's of what I am thankful for :
Andy.... my husband. The best partner I have ever, and will ever have in life.
Birth control.... see the letter "C"
Children.... mine to be exact, whom I love dearly, and remind me everyday why God gave them to me. I tell you He does have a sense of humor.........
Dad, or in my case stepdad... the best one I have ever had!
Eggs Benedict.... my favorite breakfast.
Family.... who is always there for you. Even when you tell them to relax and let you do everything yourself, they always end up helping out. Friends..... the ones who are close, and miles away. The new ones and the old ones. Friends are friends no matter where they are, and will always be in my heart.
God.... the one and only.
Health.... so far so good.
Ice Cream.... Coldstone to be exact. Yum!
Jesus.... he sacrificed his life for me.
Ketter.... I love my last name.
Love.... without it, life would be nothing.
Marriage.... the most important promise we could make.
'Net.... what I love to surf everyday.
Orange spice tea.... I love this tea.
Poker.... without it, I wouldn't have an income.
Quiet Time.... I don't get it much, so when I do I am extremely grateful.
Roses.... my husband loves to give them to me.
Shawna.... my mother, the best one ever!
The Food Network.... my inspiration daily.
Umbrellas.... without them, going out in rainy Washington state would be very wet.
Victoria's Secret.... somehow that store always makes me feel special, even when I feel fat.
Wii.... I love Wii Fit, Wii Sports, Mario Kart Wii.......pretty much everything Wii related!
XBox.... another gaming console. I love Tiger Woods on this system.
You.... I am thankful for you.
Zzzzzz's.... I need to get some after today.
I guess what I am trying to say is, I am very thankful for all of the wonderful things God has given me in life. I am one very lucky, blessed, loved girl. Thank you, Lord.

Three years ago, I had all our family (both sides) over to our house for Thanksgiving. That started our tradition to host Thanksgiving. It is so wonderful, because if you know me, I love to cook! Especially for a lot of people. I would own my own catering business if I could. Also, I love seeing all the family. Even though we all live close to each other, we rarely ever all get together. So, it is really special for me to do Thanksgiving. Anyways, here are some pics of us today.
Happy Thanksgiving!

Sydney and Madeline with Aunt Karen (Andy's sister)
Kassie and Aunt Wyndee (my sister)
Madeline with Grandma Connie & Grandpa Rich (Andy's Parents)
Wyndee and her boyfriend Ben
James (my brother), Wyndee, Dennis (my stepdad), my mom and me
The Happy Ketter Family!

and last but not least, the girls saying
Happy Thanksgiving!!!!!!

Froggy Fun

Today as Andy was digging out an old flower bed in our front yard, he found some frogs. Oh my goodness, the girls went crazy for them. They all wanted to hold them, until it was their turn and then Kassie and Madeline didn't really want to. Chickens!!! Sydney was all about the frog though. They named the only one that would sit still in her hand, Hopper. Here are some pics of them. Check out Kassie expression when Sydney is trying to give her the frog to hold. It's hilarious!

The girls looking at the frog.

Sydney wanted to keep it, of course.....

Kassie did, but then didn't want to hold it.

The frog scared Madeline when it jumped on her arm.
It was froggy fun!

Sydney's 2008 School Picture

This is Sydney's 2008 4th Grade Picture. I think her face is maturing so much, which got me thinking about her school pics from years past. I looked at them and I was astonished when I saw the age progression of her face. Its so cool to look at. So I will share that with you. Really it's neat! Enjoy!
Sydney Kindergarten 2004
Sydney 1st Grade 2005
Sydney 2nd Grade 2006
Sydney 3rd Grade 2007
And just a FYI, Sydney didn't go to the same Preschool as Kassie and Madeline, so she didn't get Pony Pictures, so unfortunately I don't have a Preschool pic for her.

Kassie's 2008 School Picture

This is Kassandra's 2008 1st Grade Picture. After I posted Madeline's Pony Pictures the other day it made me remember Kassie's Pony pictures so I am showing those to you too. And since I posted all of Sydney's school pics, of course I will do the same for Kassie! Again I love to see the age progression.
Kassie Preschool 2006 Pony Pictures.

Kassie Kindergarten 2007

Madeline's Pony Pictures

Freshly arrived for your viewing pleasure.
These are Madeline's Preschool Pony Pictures. The Preschool she goes to does pony pictures instead of the traditional school pictures. After she took the pics, she got to ride the pony a little bit. When she got home that day and for about a week after, she asked me for a pony. I remember the first time I rode a horse too. I begged my mom for days for one. Hee hee, I can see where she gets it from! Hope you enjoy!


Also, I should have Sydney's and Kassie's school pics soon to post too.

Election Day

Happy Election Day! I hope everyone got out there and voted (or in our case, mailed our vote in) for the candidate of their choice. I did and am very happy I did!

I have to admit that since I was a little girl, I have loved this day. I always sit in front of my TV and watch as the results come in. It's so exciting to me. I love watching history happen!

Oooh, some more results are in, gotta go!