Imaginations at Play

I found "Imaginations at Play" in Buford on the Internet and I had been wanting to try it out with Gracie and Bailey as it looked so much fun. We were so excited to have Grammy come with us to play. I packed a lunch and we were off. It was great that the center was so close to home and it was fabulous for keeping up with twins as it was completely child proofed which is a big plus. The center had different stations including a "grocery store, art center, backyard patio, music tree, toddler land, vet office, bubble tub, train table, beach and dress up stage." The twins had a blast running from station to station and discovering new things. I think their favorites were the grocery store where they were able to fill up cute little buggy's and the music tree where they played on various instruments. We made Grammy a little nervous when it was time to produce our first painting but luckily all the paint stayed off of our clothing! I am very blessed to have a mother in law who dives right into the fun with her grand babies. If you have little a one then check out the fun at http://www.imaginationsatplay.com

Gracie and Bailey in the music tree

Cooking up some burgers at the backyard grill

Bailey is on a mission with his grocery cart

Grammy and the twins making some art masterpieces

Bailey loving the dumping trucks in the beach sand table

Big Kid Changes

Last night I decided to change Gracie and Bailey's high chairs into "big kid booster seats." I have loved their Fisher Price space saver highchairs and I am so glad that they transform into booster seats. This morning when Gracie and Bailey woke up I showed them their big kid chairs and made a huge to do which included cheering and clapping. They couldn't climb into their chairs fast enough and Bailey started clapping. I recently have been debating about what to do with their room as they have always shared a nursery. I am starting to think about their big kid beds and I am having a very hard time deciding if I want to continue to keep them in their same room or if they need to have separate big kid rooms. It is hard to think about my babies being separated and so hard to think about saying goodbye to their nursery which I love so much. Please pray for our family as we continue with making our "big kid decisions!"

Celebrating our new big kid chairs at breakfast

Celebrating the New Year

This New Years Eve we had Preston's brother, Parker and his wife Nicole over to celebrate and eat dinner. We rushed back from Macon just the day before and I was so overwhelmed with unpacking from about two weeks and trying to figure out how to organize all the new toys/gifts. Somehow we got everything done and we had a fabulous time just hanging out with family. The Dawgs played and although the game wasn't very interesting we still had fun watching Gracie and Bailey cheer on the Dawgs. After dinner the boys played cornhole outside and Nicole and I stayed inside just having girl talk mostly about preparing for Mary Elizabeth's arrival. I love watching Preston and Parker when they get together because it is like they act as if they are literally 10 yrs old again. I think they stayed outside playing until about 2 in the morning! Throughout the night Gracie would point to Aunt Nicole's belly and say "baby" it was the cutest thing ever. She got a little mixed up and started pointing to my belly and saying "baby" and I definitely cleared that one up. It is funny as the new year approaches it seems that Gracie isn't the only one who is questioning us about a baby in my belly. I have alot of friends who had babies around the same time as I had the twins and they all are announcing that they are pregnant again. Just to clear the record...Preston and I are very content with our family of four at this point in time. When I told Preston about people questioning us who are announcing he said "honey they had one, we had two...ask them to ask you when they are announcing their third!" Point well said. At one time I did honestly think we would be expecting by this point in time but I am head over heels in love with having fun with my Gracie and Bailey and want to bask in this fun time for just a little longer. Last year was a blessed but hard, really hard year and Preston and I are enjoying every minute of our time together and being able to do so much more with Gracie and Bailey. With that said...Iam for certain that 2011 will be such a fun year for our family and I can't wait to see what the year entails for my precious family.

The boys "Parker, Bailey and Preston" celebrating a touchdown

Cutest lil Dawg fan ever!

There is a baby, "Mary Elizabeth" in THIS belly!

Just us Two!

We were blessed that Preston was able to take from Christmas Eve to the day after New Years off this year. It was SO nice having him with us for this time. Not only for the help as most people are probably thinking but just to have him with us to talk to and have fun with. As a stay at home mom sometimes it gets a little lonely when the only two people you see all day can't exactly have conversations with you. I loved the time that we were able to spend together reconnecting. My sister Paula and her husband Chad very graciously volunteered to keep the twins for a night so we could get away. This was our first time being apart from Gracie and Bailey. We decided to visit Savannah since it is close to Macon and Preston had never been before. Preston arranged for us to stay at the Hilton Desoto as his work is affiliated with the real estate loan and so he wanted to support one of their properties. It was BEAUTIFUL and we had a gorgeous view from our balcony of the cathedral. The hotel was about six blocks from River Street and I loved walking back and forth through all the squares as each one was unique. We enjoyed taking a trolley tour, an evening ghost pub tour, and loved dining at Rocks on the Roof. The most yummy part was enjoying warm Pralines. It was pretty chilly but with a quick purchase of a hat, mittens and a scarf we were able to enjoy the beauty of city. Of course I missed my babies like crazy but Paula said that they had so much fun and acted like big kids with their big cousins. It was reported that Gracie wouldn't have anything to do with anyone else except her cousin Molly Kay! Preston and I loved our visit and since it is such a quick trip from Macon we are looking forward to returning as a family of four in the Spring!

Preston grinning after I got suckered into letting a nice man make me a flower and serenade me, I thought I would just be paying him a $1 for a pic but little did I know Preston only had a $5 bill. He gave me strict instructions not to talk to anyone else!

Don't you just love these streets!

Pictures from our hotel balcony

Enjoying some yummy seafood with no crying babies!

Granny's Christmas Celebration

Okay, so I know you all are probably getting tired of these Christmas posts but I can't leave out any of our celebrations and yes I do have the most spoiled twins on the planet! After our breakfast on Christmas Day we traveled to Macon. The rest of the cousins and family arrived on Saturday and we celebrated Christmas at Granny and Grandpa's house. Since it was the third time celebrating the twins knew exactly what to expect and Bailey was banging on the presents before any of the other cousins. We had such a fun time celebrating with family and getting to see Gma and Gpa Grace. The twins as usual were swept away by their big cousins and we hardly saw them at all. The newest addition to the family, Lacey...Andy's Christmas puppy also joined us and the kids could not get enough of her. She looked pretty worn out by the end of the day and she could hardly keep her eyes open.

Christmas in Macon

Gracie found Granny's candy basket

Bailey playing with the polar bear ornament

Andy and his new puppy, Lacey

All the cousins anxiously awaiting to open presents!

Christmas Morning

After a late Christmas Eve night Preston and I came home and I took a look at our beautiful home all clean and ready for Christmas morning. I wished that I could somehow capture the beauty of all the Christmas decorations and presents that were wrapped and most of all the quietness and cleanliness of our home. I knew that after the twins discovered all the things that "Ho Ho" as they call Santa had left for them then our house would never be same. Last year Gracie and Bailey were too little at only 4 months to really understand anything but this year was so much fun and I believe that they really understood alot this year. We talked to them about Jesus birthday and they definitely understood the concept of Santa and presents. I was very impressed that they respected both of the Christmas trees and not a single ornament was broke this year. With one year old twins I debated whether or not to even put up one tree but they did great. Christmas morning we had Preston's family over to watch the twins open their Santa presents and we had a fabulous Christmas morning breakfast with mimosa's. We started the tradition last year and I love that we have already started making our own traditions with celebrating the holidays. The twins were a little in shock when they walked in the room to find all the family with cameras and video camera's but they quickly discovered all of their surprises. This Christmas could not have been any more perfect as my heart was filled with so much joy watching my sweet Gracie and Bailey enjoy the day.

The house all ready for Christmas morning

The twins loved their new big wheels that Santa brought

Gracie and Bailey quickly discovered their new table and books

Bailey loved his first Golf lesson with Daddy and played with his clubs all day long

A million new toys and he still chooses Aunt Kara's phone

Gracie couldn't get enough of her new rock, roll and ride bike

Twas the Night Before Christmas

Each year we celebrate Christmas Eve at Preston's parents home. We start the evening with reading from the book of Luke and then a Christian "Twas the Night before Christmas" poem is read. This year the family made the decision to only do gifts for the children which included our newest addition Mary Elizabeth who is due in about three months. It was so much fun to watch the spirit of Christmas in Bailey and Gracie's eyes. Grammy and Daddy Bob went "way over the top" and definitely spoiled the twins with so many presents. They opened a race car set first and I think they honestly would have been content with only that one gift because they became so excited over it. They received big wheels, movies, books, a play kitchen and lots of toys. Grammy made a wonderful dinner with lots of yummy treats that we enjoyed. It is almost indescribable to explain the joy that the twins had while celebrating with the family.

Gracie and Bailey all ready to celebrate Christmas Eve.

They loved their new singing school bus.

Enjoying Aunt Kara's yummy gingerbread cookies.

2010 McFarland Family Christmas Eve Celebration