Toddler Christmas 2012

This year we got a taste of Christmas magic through the eyes of a toddler.  (Can I even still call her a toddler anymore?)  

It's just the three of us until March.

1.  She believed this button really turned on the tree lights at the zoo.

2.  Family!

3.  It "snowed" at the San Diego zoo.

4.  Guilty! She must have climbed up there to eat the crackers a million times.

5.  Serving up some pizza in her new apron.

6.  Santa came and brought this freaky looking doll that she asked for.

7.  Little Santa hanging at the Catamaran before brunch.

8.  Taking her sweet time opening her stocking.

Sharing her stickers with Uncle Jay.

Walking  to brunch, hand in hand with her favorite guy.

Wishing you a Happy New Year!  There is so much to look forward to in 2013!

Scenes from the past {Christmas Edition}

Christmas 2009- Just Married!

This Christmas involved lots of drinking and fun with friends.  Every photo I have turned out terrible (must have been the drinking), including the one below..

Taking down the tree- Jeff and I enjoyed our first married Christmas, maybe too much?!

Christmas 2010- Leila's first Christmas

Leila had no clue what was going on...

She willingly posed by the tree at 3 months old.

Christmas Eve at the Haley's-
Leila is dresses to impress and Aunt Val is sporting our Grandmother's favorite vest.

Christmas 2011-  New Traditions
This year Leila met Santa for the first time, our Christmas Eve celebration moved to Val and Stefan's, and Christmas morning with a toddler proved to be a lot more exciting than waking up with a hangover...

Leila (15 months) and Santa at Fashion Valley Mall.

Kicking off the Christmas Eve festivities.

Still able to fit into her Santa hat.

Christmas morning-about to see what Santa brought!

Wishing you and your loved ones a very Merry Christmas! This year we are excited to experience the magic of Christmas through the eyes of a two year old.  Let the celebrating begin...

Salt dough ornaments {New traditions}

Last Christmas I attempted to make salt dough ornaments with Leila.  I was proud of my accomplishment, but they are so easy to make, I decided to step it up a notch this year.  I saw these adorable Santa hand print ornaments on Pinterest (of course) and knew they would be the ornaments we made this year.

Aren't they adorable?

They were super easy to make too!  The most difficult part was keeping these two friends entertained while Amy and I kneaded, rolled, and cut out the dough into the shapes we wanted.

I used the same recipe I used last year to make the dough.

Salt Dough Santa Claus Ornaments

This recipe makes 12-16 toddler hand sized Santas.

Ingredients:

4 cups flour

1 cup salt

1 1/2 cups water

sturdy cardboard

parchment paper

Acrylic paint- skin tone, red, white, black/brown, blue, pale pink

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees F.
2. Combine the ingredients in a bowl.
3. Knead the dough for 15-20 minutes (knead on the counter, it's easier)
4. Separate dough into equal sized portions and set aside.
5. Roll out one portion of dough onto a small piece of parchment paper.
6. Trace your child's hand onto a piece of cardboard and cut out carefully.
7. Dust one side of the cardboard cut-out hand print with flour to prevent sticking.
8. Cut around the cardboard hand with a knife.
9. Use a straw or similar object to make a hole at the top (base of the hand) for hanging on the tree later.
10. Poke holes with a skewer around the perimeter of the ornament to prevent bubbling.  Poke all the way through the dough for the best results.
11. Place parchment paper and ornament on a baking sheet.
12. Bake at 300 degrees F for 20-25 minutes or until golden. 
13. Let them cool completely before painting. 

Salt dough Santa Claus Ornament painting guide:

(As you can see in the pics above, I also made stars for Leila to paint herself since she is not ready for the detailed Santa painting.  Read these tips on painting with toddlers...no muddy brown if you follow my instructions!)

1. Start by paining the section just above the fingers using the skin tone colored acrylic paint.  (You can see in my close-up picture that the paint I used for the face cracked.  I did not use acrylic for the skin tone which was a big mistake.  Regular washable paint just doesn't work as well.)
2. Paint the hat and the thumb red leaving the tip of the thumb unpainted until later.
3. Let these two colors dry.  (You may need more than one coat.)
4. Paint the fingers and sides of the ornament white.  Leave a little bit of the skin tone paint showing for the mouth.
5. Paint the fur trim on Santa's hat and the tip of the thumb white.  I definitely needed more than one coat of white paint.  For best results let it dry between each coat.
6. Use pale pink for the cheeks and mouth, blue for the eyes, and black/brown for the pupils,
7. Mix a bit of pale pink with the skin tone paint for the nose.
8. Let them dry completely overnight.
9. Add a ribbon or ornament hook and wrap them as a gift of hang it on your tree. 

Next year I'll be making ornaments again!  With inspiration from Pinterest, I'll be tackling something new for our homemade Christmas ornament tradition.

What are your holiday traditions?  Have they changed since having children?

Quality time

Once a week Jeff and Leila head out on an adventure together, just the two of them. They hop on my very girly pink bicycle, cruise down the boardwalk, and walk to the end of Crystal Pier.

This weekend I decided to tag along.

(I spaced on bring my camera, so these phone photos will have to do.)

She was Daddy's girl the entire morning. I don't blame her though.

He's the one that let her sip from his soda...

Look! They both make the same "I just had a sip of Diet Mountain Dew" face.
Climb up the railing...


Pick her up when she asked...


...and made it fun!

Quality Daddy-daughter time.

Old traditions

I'm a sucker for traditions. My all time favorite is Friday night pizza. This has been my family's tradition for as long as I can remember...since Diet Rite came in glass bottles. Occasionally our new little family of three continues this tradition (with Aunt Val of course!)

Pizza night!!!





Happy Friday!

New traditions

Starting a new tradition is as fun as continuing old ones.

Last weekend a bunch of friends met up at December Nights in Balboa Park. It's a great free event in a beautiful and historic park for all ages. Imagine food, drinks, Christmas lights, palm trees, singing children and adult choirs, carnival rides, and a ton of people in a festive mood.





It was a great time! The International Cottages had the best food and vibe by far, but the Spreckles Organ Pavilion gave me that fuzzy feeling. (Or was it the spiced wine from Hungary?)

Definitely heading back next year, because really, it's not a tradition till you do it more than once!

Cookiepocalypse

Cookiexplosion.
Sugar high.
Holiday weight gain.
A dream come true.



Call it what you'd like. I'm calling it our new tradition. I'm hoping Betsy is up for making ten varieties next year!

Check out Betsylife! for details on these amazing sweet treats.

Ho. Ho. Ho.

Jeff and I planned to take Leila to see Santa last Friday. Being the rookie that I am, I did not expect that we would have to shell out $22 to get a picture with Leila on his on lap. I also probably should have known that I was not allowed to take my own picture unless I paid for a photo package.

Forget it, we agreed no picture. Maybe no Santa for that matter since the line was a few families deep.

I went back to shopping and Jeff took Leila walking around the mall. I didn't think twice about what they were up to. I was way too busy buying a new pair of jeans! (Thanks in part to last month's challenge.)

When we got into the car Jeff said he had a surprise. He showed me the picture he bought of Leila. I about died it was so perfect!



Not for a second was I upset that he took her to see Santa without me. They did just fine without me. Imagine that?!?!




Did I mention that Jeff taught her what Santa says? "Ho. Ho. Ho." just like the Santa in A Christmas Story. Hilarious!

I've got that holiday feeling

You all know what I am talking about. So many people feel the exact same way this time each year. I am feeling festive!

I love everything about the Christmas season. The decorations, the music, the gift giving, the baking, the warm fuzzy feeling after one too many glasses of wine, and the traditions both new and remembered.

This is the first year we put our tree up in November. We purchased it at a local nursery. (It is so important to support small businesses when you can!) I am a big fan of our fresh tree. Honestly, the smell is faint compared to past years, but I love it's unique shape. It seems like each year we get the "best tree ever"!



Jeff and I were both given ornaments from our parents each year as children. We tell each other the same stories each year as we unwrap and hang them in just the right spot on the tree.

This year I laughed when Jeff said he had to take a step back after each ornament placement, take a sip of wine, and make sure he was happy with his choice. I laughed because I do the same thing! No wonder we end up drunk at the end of the night.

Leila help us put up a few ornaments this year. She liked throwing them on the tree but preferred to hand me the ornaments to hang. There were a few I had to pry out of her hands at the end of the night!



She's been great with keeping her hands off the tree. I set up two little spots of Christmas decorations that she can touch and play with. Check out her showing me the picture of her and Santa. (Posted pictures to come.) Adorable!



I am excited for all the fun holiday events this month. Kicking it off at Balboa Park's December Nights this evening!

Cheers!