Where Have We Been??

If any of my "followers" still check in once in awhile they're probably wondering where we've been the last few months. Obviously we've been busy ;) Life with twins and four kids 3 and under has been quite the adjustment. Now that the twins are 8 months old I feel like I'm finally getting a better handle on all of this - better late than never, right?! The house could always stand to be cleaner but now that the girls are sleeping a little more at night I feel like I have a bit more energy most days to devote to that.

Our last update was in October. Here's a look at what we've been up to since then!

October 20 our little Hadley turned two! It's hard to believe she's that old already but at the same time she seems so much older than that. She's been speaking in clear, complete sentences for such a long time and has no problem telling you exactly what she's thinking or what she wants. We celebrated her birthday with a Minnie Mouse party - Minnie is a BIG deal around here!

This is one of the shots from her two year photo shoot. She had a great time being on her own with just Mommy & Rachel. Her little attitude really came out when she was all alone!

In October Elliot finished his first season of soccer. He played every Saturday morning for 6 weeks and LOVED it. He especially enjoyed the practices since everyone got to have a ball. He usually lost interest toward the end of the game. He loved to hold the coaches hand, lay down in the grass and flirt with the ladies from the women's soccer teams that came in to help coach. He did learn a lot though and is looking forward to playing again! Mommy had so much fun watching her little man play!

Halloween was a ton of fun this year! The big kids had a good time helping pick out pumpkins and digging the 'guts' out of them. The little girls got to have their turn inside a pumpkin. Adelyn thought it was the most hilarious thing EVER. Kailyn wasn't so sure and freaked out the first few times we tried. After she was able to lay a hand on her sister she liked it better!

(Kailyn is on the left, Adelyn on the right)

Hadley had her first Trick or Treating experience this year. She took her firsts on Halloween 2010 - this year she was running from house to house as soon as she realized they were filling her bucket with candy! My little pirates had such a great time although we learned the hard way that we should have brought the wagon with us! We were only going to do our block but they were so into it we did at least half of our subdivision & were gone for over 2 hours. They were quite the little troopers and collected over 5lbs of candy!!!

At the beginning of November my friend Jen's house was inundated with little kids. Imagine four mommies and 10 little kids 3 and under. Mr. Elliot was the only little guy there & he soaked up every moment of that. He loves any chance to see his "girlfriend" Lauren & is always asking about his other friends. It was crazy but it was so much fun to spend time together.

From left: Peyton, Maddie, Kyliee, Kenzie, Kailyn, Elliot, Leah, Lauren, Adelyn & Hadley.

The weather here was absolutely beautiful this fall - even into November! So, we took advantage when Mum-Mum & Papa were here for a weekend & did some family pictures. The kids LOVE going to the Riverwalk & seeing the Mississippi River (one of their favorite things to talk about).

                My little people!!

On November 11 Elliot fell while he was playing with Papa. He cried when it happened and then went on his merry way & played some more. When we all sat down for supper he started freaking out, screaming and favoring his arm. After some deliberation Petey & I decided to take him into the after hours pediatric clinic. Dr. Callahan took great care of him! They sent us for some x-rays but couldn't tell for sure if it was broken or not. They put him a splint for the weekend (picture right). He did get a cast the next week that he wore for a few weeks. It seems to have healed nicely at the very least! I know it was a pretty minor break but it still freaked mommy out to see him like that.

Elliot with some of his artwork from pre-school. We really, really love this pre-school. I love seeing all the fun things he makes at school! His box of artwork is quickly filling up!

Elliot had his first big kid program at school. The 3/4 year olds did a Thanksgiving chapel for their families. They sang songs and shared pictures they've made in class. It was so much fun!

Thanksgiving Day got off to a loud start. The night before all of us (including Mum-Mum & Papa) headed out for Schaumburg, IL. Our plan was to get up & head to the Museum of Science & Industry for Thanksgiving day but those plans were thwarted when the fire alarms went off at our hotel. Elliot was so scared of the noise! Thankfully it wasn't a big deal & the big kids got a chance to sit in a real fire truck for the first time! 

All of us in front of the enormous Christmas tree! MSI does a Christmas Around the World celebration  every year that is very neat. If you've never been I highly, HIGHLY recommend it. We were there ALL day & still didn't get to spend the time we wanted on a lot of things & had to completely skip some parts. There are so many fun things for the kids although Petey & I have enjoyed our solo trips here as well. It was such a fun day spent with our little family! We went back to the hotel after & enjoyed a yummy meal together.

Adelyn & Kailyn - my little santa babies the day after Thanksgiving. They were all dressed up and ready to meet Santa at the Woodfield Mall for the first time!!

The family waiting to meet Santa! The Woodfield Mall has an Ice Palace we got to go through first before seeing Santa. Inside a huge globe it actually "snows". Elliot thought that was absolutely fantastic!!

The kids Christmas picture. I had high hopes of getting a Christmas card out this year but it just didn't happen :/