Christmas

Merry Christmas from the Taylor family :)

Mason woke up at his usual time - 6:30am & proceeded to head downstairs where Daddy was watching TV anxiously waiting for us to wake up. Mason & I headed downstairs & he didn't even notice all the presents under the tree until we told him to go & see what "Santa" brought him.

The first thing he noticed was the Schwinn Trike & hopped up & down squealing as he pulled it away from the tree to sit on it:

Then he saw his HUGE Mickey Mouse sitting in his chair & gave him a big hug :)

Between Santa, Mama & Daddy, relatives & friends he was one spoiled little boy! One of his favorite gifts that he opened was the fleece Mickey Mouse blanket that I had made him. The look on his face explains it all:

He screamed with excitement, then threw the blanket down on the ground, laid on top of it & didn't want to move or get up! He LOVED it!

After all the presents were opened, it was time to gather our stockings & see what "Santa" had filled them with:

There was coloring books, crayons, suckers, little toys, books, Goldfish crackers....he LOVED pulling everything out of his stocking & kept signing "more" when he was done.

Of course we couldn't forget about the Bulldogs....they too received goodies in their stockings from Santa & patiently waited as I pulled them out:

After all the gift opening was finished, we sat down for breakfast & enjoyed the Egg Bake & Caramel Cinnamon Rolls & had made the night before. YUM :) The rest of the day was spent playing with new toys, being lazy & hanging out together as a family. 

I was on call for the Christmas holiday & lucky for me it ended up being a quiet 24 hours! We are getting up early in the morning & heading to South Dakota to spend the rest of the weekend with my family & do our family Christmas!

Hoping you all had a wonderful Christmas holiday as well!

Twas the Night Before Christmas

So it is the night before Christmas & I can hardly believe this night is here! Seems like we were just sitting down to give thanks on Thanksgiving!?

I unfortunately had to work on Christmas Eve so I didn't get home until supper time. Mason had spent the day with Daddy & it sounds like they had a fun day together. We ate supper & then afterwards we gathered by the Christmas tree to let Mason open one gift. 

This is going to be a yearly tradition that I am starting. Every Christmas Eve I am going to let Mason open one gift which will contain new jammies, a book or movie to read/watch that evening & some snacky items to eat while watching the movie.

Since he is too young to watch holiday movies or eat late-night snacks I decided to get him the Twas the Night Before Christmas book instead to read to him at bed-time. As you can see, he was super happy about a) opening a gift b) getting new jammies & c) getting a new book!

After his gift was opened, it was bath-time & then he got his new jammies on & came downstairs to show them off to Daddy:

He is such a little ham :)

Mase & I headed upstairs to his room for bed & I read him his new book as well as the Christmas story from his little bible. We talked about the birth of baby Jesus & how tomorrow we would be celebrating his birthday & how Santa would be stopping by & that we would have gifts to open in the morning. Not sure if he understood anything other than "opening presents" but I told him none the less.

After Mase went to bed, then "Santa" came & delivered all the presents & neatly arranged them under the Christmas tree. From the looks of it, someone had been a VERY good boy this year!

Bubba made sure to keep a watchful eye so that nobody harmed the gifts :) 

I spent the rest of the evening making the egg bake & getting the caramel rolls put together for the morning & then around midnight I finally made it to bed. 

I am so excited for Mase to wake up in the morning & see all his gifts!!

Manners

I have been working with Mason to say & sign his "please" & "thank you's" & I know the girls at daycare are as well. It is important to me to raise a child with manners - especially a boy - so that he will grow up to be a gentleman - just like his daddy :)

So far he is nailing it:

He pretty much says both without being prompted now & just this last week he started saying "ess you" (bless you) after Shane or I sneeze. Not sure where he learned that one (probably from hearing us saying it to each other) but it is the cutest thing ever!!

Lunch with Blondies

This photo was taken Jan 27th, 2013:

It hangs in my locker at work & is one of my favorites of us three! I remember that day very clearly. I was 9+ months pregnant & had met Susan (L) & Stephanie (R) for lunch. We joked about making sure I eat a big meal because later that evening I was being admitted to the hospital for my induction with Mason & probably wouldn't get to eat much the next 24 hours.

Shortly after Mason was born Stephanie moved to Dallas with her husband. I was very sad about her leaving but knew it was for the best & we promised to keep in touch always. Susan is a nurse at St. Lukes so lucky for me I get to see her all the time!

Well that was almost 2 years ago since that picture was taken & we have continued to keep in touch since that day. Steph had texted me earlier in the week to let me know her & her husband would be in town for the holidays & wanted to know if Susan & I could meet up for lunch with her. I of course jumped at the chance to see her & Suz so we all decided to meet for lunch at Spin! Pizza. 

We had a great time catching up, eating good food & having a bit of gelato for dessert - YUM! Steph also surprised us both by letting us know she was going to be having a baby - a little boy :) So very happy for her & her husband & can't wait to meet her little guy in April!

We of course had to pose for the same photo taken two years ago - this time with Mason. Gosh he looks SO big - ugh!!

So very thankful to have these blondies in my life - all three of them :)

Adios Viviana

This lovely lady pictured with me is Miss Viviana. I have worked with Viviana since I started at St. Lukes Hospital in 1999. This week she is retiring after 40 years at the hospital & I am going to miss her oh so very much :(

After working at the same place for 40 years you tend to know ALOT of people so when I was asked to be on the planning committee for her retirement party I knew it was going to be a difficult task coming up with a place to house so many people...especially in the middle of December with office Christmas parties going on. 

We finally settled on Casa Agave at the Legends & they were kind enough to close 1/2 the restaurant just for our party giving us access to the bar. We had over 125+ people RSVP & that many & then some ended up showing up to the event.

It was a "surprise" party for Miss Viviana & it wasn't easy keeping her from finding out but we pulled it off & she got the surprise of her life when she walked in & saw all those people there for just her!

Everyone had fun mingling, eating, drinking & saying their "goodbye's" to Miss Viviana all evening long. Our boss spoke to the crowd on her behalf as well as one of our long-time physician's thanking Viviana for all her years of dedication & service to St. Lukes Hospital & how she was going to be missed by everyone. 

He then presented her with a beautiful ruby & diamond necklace that everyone contributed to & she was shocked by everybody's generosity!

Afterwards there was cake (YUM) & the mariachi band started playing & the entire crowd was serenaded!

There were lots & lots of photos taken that night & we made sure to send them all to Viviana so that she would have them for the memories! 

Adios Miss Viviana - you will be greatly missed :(

Santa Express

Today we ventured down to Baldwin City to the Midland Railway & hopped aboard the Santa Claus Express. A co-worker of mine told me about this awesome little adventure & with Mason's love for trains I thought it would be a super fun thing to do. 

Grandma Mountain ended up coming with us & we all made the 30 minute road-trip down to Baldwin City to see Santa & take a train ride to Norwood, KS & back.

There were a total of 3 passenger cars which were all authentic & dated back to 1928. Unfortunately the windows were drafty & there was no heat other than a few propane heaters set up so it was pretty cold on the train. The cars were all decorated for Christmas & Santa had his very own special passenger car which was made in 1898! While we were waiting to see Santa there was a storyteller reading Christmas stories & singing carols.

Everyone took turns going back to see Santa & unfortunately we were one of the the very last to see him. We were 1.5 hours into the trip & by this time Mason was tired & hungry - not a good combination! So unfortunately his picture with Santa & Mrs. Claus ended up looking like this:

 

Priceless!

After we saw Santa, we sat back down, got our hot cocoa & sugar cookie & by this time Mason was in better spirits. We were almost back to the train depot after our snack & realized we hadn't taken any pictures yet! So here are a few pics with a couple of selfies thrown in:

Other than being a bit cold, we had so much fun & I am so glad we checked this awesome excursion out! We got into the car, warmed up & weren't 10 minutes down the road when I look over & see this:

Poor Mase was wore out! He got a good snooze in on the drive back home & then we all went out for lunch at our local BBQ joint in town. Such a fun day & good quality time spent with Grandma Mountain!

Choo Choo

One of the big presents "Santa" was giving Mason this year was a train set. He is crazy about "choo choos" right now so I had done a little bit of research on what kind of train to get him & came across the Polar Express Train on Amazon. It wasn't a huge train, was reasonably priced & would fit perfectly under the Christmas tree so I went ahead & ordered it.

It arrived on the front steps yesterday & I had assumed that Shane put it away so Mase wouldn't see it. I had visions of putting it together on Christmas Eve, displaying it under the tree with a big red bow on it & Mase would see it Christmas morning......silly me.

We get home from work/daycare & there is the box laying on the kitchen table & of course Mason sees it immediately & yells "CHOO CHOO". If looks could kill Shane would be a dead man. I asked him why he didn't hide the train & he thought it would be nice to put it together that night so he we could enjoy it longer. I was not a happy camper but there was no way we were going to be able to hide the train after Mason had already seen it so I caved. 

The boys ended up putting the train together & I don't know who was more excited - Mase or Daddy?!

 

 

Finally it was all set up & the boys gave it a test drive around the tree:

Once it was successfully running, Mason & Bubba sat there forever watching it go round & round - SO cute!

It is a perfect little first train set for Mason. It has a light on the front of the first car & the remote control moves it forward & backwards, has a bell, whistle & a button that has the voice of Tom Hanks & says "All aboard - the Polar Express".

 

Ok - so I am secretly glad we ended up giving it to him a few weeks before Christmas because he has thoroughly enjoyed playing with the train every single day.

After the tree is taken down, I am going to move it up to his room so he can play with it throughout the year & will continue to display it under the tree at Christmas time. So glad "Santa" got this for him & that he loves it!!

Girl's Night Out

Tonight this Mama had herself a much-needed girl's night out! 

Every year around this time, my group of girlfriends we refer to as "the Elite" meet up for an evening to do our annual holiday dinner & gift-opening gathering. This year we decided to meet down on the Plaza & the restaurant of choice was Kona Grill. 

Unfortunately, 3 girls from our group were unable to join us but we somehow managed to have a good time without them - even though their presence was missed.

We started off the evening by having a celebratory holiday drink & toasting to a wonderful year together:

We had made reservations earlier in the week & ended up waiting a LONG time for our table so a couple of us in our group had complained to the manager & we ended up getting a round of appetizers for FREE! I guess it pays to complain :)

Deb & Camille

Jen, HT & HK

The majority of the table had ordered sushi & I am not a huge fan of sushi but I ordered some anyway thinking I would try something different. With the help of my girlfriends, I ended up ordering the Shrimp Tempura Roll. I'm not going to say that I am now a lover of sushi but what I had was actually really good & I would definitely order it again! So I am glad I gave sushi another try!

After dinner we headed on over to HK's Aunts' house. Her Aunt lives in Omaha but has a condo that overlooks the Plaza that she stays at every now & then so when Heather is in town she stays there - SO nice! This was our view from her living room window - Plaza lights & all. SO pretty!

Everyone brought a yummy dessert to share while hanging out at HK's place. I had brought a Heath cheesecake made by my dear friend Stetson which was absolutely dee-lish. We all filled our plates up & gathered around the kitchen table for some fun & serious conversation. 

We decided to forego the gift giving this year due to a lot of things - finances, last minute plan to gather together, several of the group not being there, etc. which was ok with me. The important thing was that we were together celebrating another year of friendship & had a wonderful time!

I love these ladies oh so much & am so thankful to have them all in my life! Looking so very forward to the memories we will make in 2015!

Operation Christmas Child

This video was shown today in church & I couldn't help but sit there watching it in tears:

Operation Christmas Child - have you heard of it?? It is the world's largest Christmas charitable project known that uses gift-filled shoeboxes to share God's love & word with needy children around the world.

The organization Samaritan's Purse has collected & delivered more than 113 million gift-filled shoeboxes to children in over 150 countries. More than 500,000 volunteers worldwide are involved in collecting, shipping & distributing these shoebox gifts. Before shipping, the volunteers take each shoebox & include a little book inside of it called "The Greatest Journey" which is a 12 lesson discipleship program to help children know & follow Jesus Christ.

While watching this video, I was in awe that these kids were SO excited over a small little box packed with simple things that we here in America take for granted. I had never heard of Operation Christmas Child before today & am sad I haven't participated in this wonderful charity before. 

An anonymous person in our church donated all the plastic bins for our congregation to use & we were to take as many boxes as we wanted & fill them up. I took two boxes - one for a boy & one for a girl. I chose the age group 2-4 years old & then set out to fill them up with fun & much-needed items for a child. 

Here is a picture what I put in the little boys box:

It included: Play-Doh, crayons, a coloring book, stickers, Matchbox cars, a bouncy ball, suckers, 2 little story books, toothbrushes, toothpaste, bar soap, a washcloth & a little stuffed animal. There was also an information page you could fill out with a picture of yourself, a questionnaire & your address to include with the shoebox.

The little girl's box was identical except for the stuffed animal. Here are the completed & packed boxes:

After I closed them up, I prayed over the boxes & for the child that was about to receive them & we delivered them to church the next Sunday where our Pastor prayed over all of them as well. I really hope these little boxes put a smile on the little child's face that is receiving them & that they enjoy all the things I put in there!

This was so much fun to do & it makes my heart full knowing that it is going to make someone so very happy! I can hardly wait until next year to be able to do this again!!

Update:12/23/14
Today I received an email that both my boxes were being sent to Mexico. In my boxes I included a picture of our family, shared a little bit about us & included my address so I am hoping the family contacts me & we can keep in touch.

Rock Chalk

Tonight is a much needed "date-night" for me & the hubby so we got us a babysitter & headed to Lawrence, KS for the home season-opener basketball game at Allen Fieldhouse. 

My friend Lori has a girlfriend with season tickets & lucky for us they were unable to go to this game so Lori asked me if we would want to go with her & her husband. When she said the seats were 4 rows up from the court it was an immediate YES!

We got to the game about 15 minutes before game-time so we grabbed a quick bite to eat & made our way to our seats which were AMAZING! It is a much different experience being that close to the court than sitting up behind the student section! 

Lori & her husband Bill showed up shortly after we did & we all had SO much fun hanging out watching the game together! These two are a super fun couple & we have already planned some future get-togethers this winter - including another KU game :)

Shane & I both LOVE going to KU basketball games & have talked seriously about buying season tickets next year. There is nothing like seeing a basketball game in Allen Fieldhouse - the fans, the players, the high energy, the game - it is awesome & so much fun!

I am looking forward to the upcoming basketball season & many more "date-nights" in Lawrence with this die-hard KU fan!!

Rock Chalk :)

Playdate

Today we had a playdate with sweet little Miss Ava Jean & her Mama Jen. We all met out at the Great Mall & our 1st stop was Monkey Bizness. While the littles spent the afternoon playing, the Mama's were able to do some catching up which was nice since I haven't seen Jen in awhile.

After much "monkeying around" we sat down for a snack & then headed over to the train station to check out the choo-choo's. These two were fascinated by watching the trains go round & round the track & it was so cute watching them together:

Before we left we stopped in to the aquarium store to check out all the fish. We also got a chance to pet the baby bunnies which the kids loved doing. After a few hours of hanging out it was getting to be nap-time for the littles so we decided to get going. 

It was so fun getting to hang out with these two girls & we will for sure be planning many more playdates in the future with Miss Ava Jean & here Mama!

The Great Mall

So we have discovered a wonderful little place to hang out this winter when it is cold out & need to burn off some energy. 

The Great Mall.

Now I wouldn't call it "great" as it is pretty run down & hardly any stores left in it anymore but there are a few fun kid-friendly things to do while there. There is a fun place called Monkey Bizness that has huge inflatables for the kids to bounce around in, a play area with nothing but slides, an area for them to climb upward on & then slide back down - all for $4 - super cheap entertainment for a few hours & it wears Mason out.

After spending a couple hours at Monkey Bizness we then make our way over to the Great Plains Train Station where Mason could sit for hours watching all the choo-choo's make their way around the tracks. This kid is CRAZY for trains right now so it is a lot of fun to take him here! There are many different sets of tracks with little villages & landscaping set up around the entire track & the trains go round & round all day long. So neat to see - for "big" kids too & the best part = it is FREE!

We were there when they were all decorated for Halloween & when I took this pic I never even noticed the creepy "zombie-like" body coming out from underneath the trains in front of my child - lol :)

After we get our fill of the choo choo's we head on over to the aquarium store where they have tons of salt water fish tanks set up & all kinds of pretty colored fish swimming all around in them. They also have a few parrots & bunnies that are fun to see also. This little visit is FREE also :)

Since it is an inside mall & usually never busy we let Mason run ahead of us which is another cheap & easy way to wear this kid out.

So we were at the Great Mall for almost 4 hours & our little outing cost us $4.00. We had one worn out kid once we left who napped for almost 3 hours - WIN WIN! 

We will definitely be spending a lot of time here in the upcoming cold winter months!