The Russells (and then there were four): 2011

* I forgot to mention in my last post that Tim and I were given two very unique gifts this Christmas from Lauri and Craig. They got me a gas can (now why would they do that?), and gave Tim his Steelers license plate cover back. We thought it had been stolen from our driveway seven months ago, but little did we know, the Hargroves took it at one of our family get togethers in May. Too funny!!! Now we are plotting our great revenge.

One of the highlights of my Christmas break so far was going to visit my Nana & Pawpaw in Abilene. Pawpaw is out of the hospital and doing better! He has good days and bad days with his energy levels, but I know he is glad to be at home. The twins had a great time hanging out with their greatgrandparents and opening their presents from them. One of the presents was an Elmo potty video in which several children share their words for going potty. Tim and I got a great laugh on the way home listening to children shout peepee/poopoo, weewee/woowoo, piddle, tinkle, doodoo and doodie from the back seat. Hilarious!!! They also got a mini laptop, a letters/number game, and a new Magna Doodle. I got to sneak in lunch at my favorite - Town Crier and the kids did really well. We put them in booster seats in a booth and think that just might be the trick to quiet, less chaotic meals. Thank you Nana & Pawpaw for the wonderful gifts and for letting us come and visit!! We love you so much!

Tim went to visit his mom and brothers today and brought back a ton of gifts for the family. Grandma got the twins new p.j.s, an electronic dog, counting maracas, and two rolling toys. Grandma - you did a great job on the toys. They love them! Thank you so much! We love you!!!

Recent funnies - Tayden has started saying, "Oh, Man," anytime he drops something - cutest thing ever!!! Brooklyn's diapers had Diego on them and she calls them her go-go diapers.

Blessing - Tim has been offered a new job that will allow him to work from home!!! He applied for the job before taking his current job, but they weren't hiring at the time. He had a second interview last week and received his offer letter right before Christmas. They will reimburse for home office expenses and he can work from the comfort of our home office. What a blessing!!!! No more driving home at 2:30 in the morning. He should get finished around 9:00 so that he can hang out with us before bedtime. God is so good!!!!

We are all feeling a little under the weather with the sniffles. Please pray that we get better quickly so we can enjoy the rest of our Christmas break. The kids have enough new toys to keep them busy for months and months. Thank you so much everyone!!!

Opening presents from Nana & Pawpaw

the laptop

Pawpaw and Tayden

Sitting on Pawpaw's new scooter

Precious picture - Tayden looking at his Pawpaw

Letter / Number game

Brooklyn drawing on her Magna Doodle

Tayden and the Magna Doodle

Nana and Tayden

Nana and her greatgrandbabies

new dog from Grandma

the maracas

laptop from Nana & Pawpaw

On Thursday, we took the twins to visit Santa at Southlake Town Center. The line wasn't bad at all - it took longer to find a parking spot and navigate all of the traffic. While we waited in line we pointed Santa out to the babies and talked about how we were going to visit him. When it was our turn, I warned the "elf" that she should take the picture quickly because it could get ugly very fast. I handed Brooklyn to Santa first and she wasn't overly friendly, but didn't fuss. Tayden, on the other hand, started crying as soon as I set him in the sleigh. The elf quickly took her pictures and as soon as I picked Tayden up the tears stopped. Poor little guy!!! Our scanner has been acting crazy, but I will post the Santa photo very soon - it is priceless!!!

We still haven't heard back from the doctor regarding Tayden's MRI results. I called the office twice on Friday and the first person told me that it is standard protocol to make a follow-up appointment, and that they were booked until the end of January. The second person was much more helpful and had the scans in her hand. She was sending them to the doctor at that very moment and said that if there had been a problem, the radiologist would have contacted them immediately - which was somewhat comforting. She told us that we should hear back from their office on Monday or Tuesday and shouldn't need to come all the way back for the results. Please keep praying that we get a good report.

Last night we went to SueSue's for our traditional tamale dinner. SueSue's house was beautifully decorated for Christmas and she had quite a surprise for us. She has been wanting to remodel one of her bedrooms to be a playroom for all of the grandchildren. She had a grand reveal - and it is AMAZING!!!! She did such a great job!!! The kids loved playing in the room and hardly came out. Tayden sat at the little table and played with the wooden food all night long. After eating a delicious dinner we opened presents and played LRC (Left, Right, Center), a new game that my mom had bought. It was a lot of fun! The twins each got a glo worm from the Heaths, an aquadoodle mat and two new Polo shirts from the Hargroves, and SueSue got Brooklyn a beautiful doll, and Tayden a Little People garage. When we got home we let the kids played with their new toys and read The Night Before Christmas.

We all slept in and then got up to see what Santa (Ho Ho as Brooklyn calls him), had brought. When they walked into the living room, Brooklyn said, "WOW!" They had a great time checking out all of their goodies and played with them for many hours. After eating pancakes, we let them open the gifts from Tim and I. These kept them busy for a few more hours. It is hard to say what their favorites were, but Tayden definitely loves his broom, puzzles, and garage, and Brooklyn loves her baby dolls. They both also love feeding Cookie Monster his cookies. One of Brooklyn's dolls "eats" bananas and "drinks" a bottle. At first she wanted me to hold the doll while she did the feeding, but by the end of the night she was holding her like a pro. She even took her to bed at night night time. I could here the baby eating and drinking for a few minutes before Brooklyn crashed.

It has been a great Christmas! We loved spending time with family and carrying on traditions that have been important in our families for years. I never imagined how fun it would be to relive my Christmas memories through the twins. Watching their faces light up and seeing things through their eyes is truly precious and makes me feel like a child again. We are truly blessed with a wonderful family, great friends, and two awesome children!!! I hope you all had a very Merry Christmas!!!