We were in Chicago but it seemed more like we were in our hotel, The Trump. It was the most luxurious and relaxing vacation we've had a while. We got a steal of a deal on our stay and it was worth every bit of it. We did venture out at least once a day but it was so much cozier in the hotel. Snow was falling, the pool was fabulous, and our room was so nice and big that it made it hard to get out. We started our stay off with a brunch at Frontera Grill. I had to make the reservation almost 2 months out but now I know why, the meal was fabulous!

Magnolia checks out the view in our room.

The Billy Goat Tavern was right around the corner & a great place to stop for a quick bite.

We swam every morning. The views from the pool were breathtaking.

Magnolia wanted to drink from an "umbrella" glass every night before bed ( "barilla glass" in her words). Took me a minute to figure out what an umbrella glass was...
Magnolia and I had fun in the spa locker room after our morning swims with all the fancy scrubs & lotions. We also did a few minutes in the steam room (which she said smelled like mint) and the sauna (which she said smelled like toast). Oh, and putting the hairbrushes in the blue water was super fun too.

We felt so spoiled by our trip. It was wonderful.

So wonderful that we are promising to do it again next year!

Magnolia & George on Christmas Eve Day. Guess who's coming tonight George!
Yeah, Daddy's home early! And the elves came and brought us all new jammies! As suspected, George ate an enormous amount of wrapping paper. Leaving a cookie out for Santa and an apple for Magnolia's favorite reindeer, Dancer. Christmas morning George checks out what Santa brought him. Magnolia's favorites; her violin, her saxophone, and her doctor kit. Magnolia got to feed George his dinner for the first time. She did a great job! And we had a super fun time at our Gingerbread Decorating Party! We had a wonderful holiday. I'm sorry it went by so fast. Candycane, the elf on the shelf, had to go back to the north pole last night until next season. Magnolia was very distraught over this and told us a few times how much she missed him. I decided to refrain from telling her there's only 364 more days until next Christmas. :)

I hope you all had a wonderful holiday!

We're heading out of town for a few days. Just the four of us. Checking into a nice hotel with a pool and having no agenda whatsoever. Be back soon!

...are my two front teeth. Yes, they have arrived! Finally. It took 3 months, a lot tears, drool, sleepless nights, and gnawing on anything in sight. It has been the bloodiest battle I've ever seen getting those teeth to come through. I never knew it could be so awful. He's not happy about it either. He won't let me go near his mouth and God forbid he smiles for me so I can document a final gummy smile. I took about 50 shots before giving up. Even without a smile, that face still melts my heart.

In other news we've been very busy around here but who isn't? It's the craziest time of the year and I've finally fallen in love with it all over again. Here are some bullets to summarize:

*Elf on the Shelf arrived from Papaw and family. What fun he's been and Magnolia named him Candycane.

*I love red with lime green this year.

*For the first time I brought in a lot of cut evergreens in from our yard, Blue Spruce, Austrian Pine, and Cedar. I put them in vases and love all of the green.

*I dyed a wool blanket red, cut it and other old woolen blankets up for pillows and stockings.

*I successfully made 8 gingerbread houses for our 2nd annual Gingerbread House Decorating party. (Last year I glued graham crackers to the sides of small milk cartons)

*We went to see Christmas Lights this weekend, saw real reindeer, and ate hot doughnuts as snow started to fall. Could it get any better than that?

It's been a super fun holiday season. Magnolia & George bring me so much joy!

I'm looking forward to these last days before Christmas, having George home for a long vacation, and our mini holiday in between!

George turned 8 months this week! He loves to laugh and wrestle. He loves to stand up but won't crawl. He loves to drink from a cup. He's been cutting his top two teeth for two and a half months. He thinks it's hilarious when I do sign language. He laughs his head off every single time. What a corker. He's so much fun. I just love him to pieces.

***My three girls would have been 5 years old today. I will always miss them and the lives they will never have. I am so grateful for the two amazing gifts they gave us. xoxjamxoxo

We've been so busy around here. Fun busy though. We've been decking the halls indoor and out. Shopping is almost done. Christmas cards ordered. I can't say I'm excited about the Christmas cards. Just look at those two elves. Stinkers! Impossible to get a good picture anymore. Magnolia jumps out of bed every morning excited to open her advent calendar. She always helps George open his and then eats his chocolate. She also took charge of the candy canes on the Christmas tree and hid them under the table in the living room. This morning I found her with two ice skate ornaments around her ankles.
Aunt Emily came this past weekend. I snapped this picture of George sitting on her lap as soon as he woke up full of smiles. St. Nick brought both Magnolia and George candy canes, chocolate Santas, and new pajamas.
We had our first snowfall yesterday. For the first time Magnolia really loved the snow. We played together in it while George napped. I pulled her around the yard in her sled. I took a corner too hard and she did a face plant right in the snow. She didn't even complain. She was so happy...and tired. After I parked the sled she just sat there until she dozed off. I had to grab my camera for that sweet face and those rosy cheeks.

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving in St. Louis. We went out to the family farm where it was beautiful and the food delicious! We got to meet our newest niece, Madeline, for the very first time! Madeline was born prematurely and is doing fabulously well. She is beautiful and perfect in every way. She's 4 months old and 4 months younger than George. I know they are going to be great friends!

George & Madeline

Magnolia & George play before everyone arrives. Magnolia gets some back scratching from her daddy. George's 1st Thanksgiving! George & Nani

George looks out the picture window with cousin Will looking in.

We hiked into the woods after our big meal.

Magnolia with George III and his cousins, Powell & Ed

Magnolia with Nani.

Elizabeth & Madeline

The day after Thanksgiving all of the girls went to The Ritz Carlton for the Teddy Bear Tea.

It was so much fun. I think I loved it as much as Magnolia, if not more.

They got their faces painted. They decorated cookies. They sang Christmas carols. They sat in front of a roaring fireplace on big down pillows to hear a story read to them while eating candy canes. But most importantly, they had endless cups of hot chocolate poured for them with bowls of marshmallows to top it all off.

Girl talk.

She really did have a lot of hot chocolate.

Cate, Magnolia & Charlotte

Look at those tea sandwiches and sweets!

It sure was a fun way to kick off the holiday season!

On our last night we had a pizza party and then when on a horse drawn carriage ride through the spectacularly lit Tilles Park. It was beautiful evening. The lights and ride put George into a peaceful slumber and Magnolia was in awe of it all.

What a fabulous time we had!
Thank you St. Louis Families for making it so much fun!

We miss you all.