Christmas Part 3

Today, we put Jeremy's Tomtom to use and traveled to St. Charles, MN! Ok, so we really didn't need the Tomtom, but it was fun to use it anyway. We celebrated Christmas at Jeremy's Aunt Mic and Uncle Marv's house.

Landon having fun playing before eating!

A beautifully decorated table!

This is the dog that Elke lives and breaths for. Her bff Rosco! Seriously, Elke LOVES him! How could you resist this adorable Vizsla with tinsel wrapped around his collar!

And, more presents. Another beautiful Christmas!

Merry Christmas!

Can you believe that Santa came to visit us last night, even in the midst of this crazy weather! Landon got the movie "Up", a Disc for his tractor and a Leapfrog reading book from the big guy! Daddy got a gift certificate to get his truck detailed, an itunes gift card and an ipod charger for his car. Mommy got a flat screen tv for her gym. Daddy explained that Santa couldn't afford to buy her the treadmill with the built in TV, so he got a TV that could be mounted on the treadmill (or in front of it) instead!

After opening our gifts from Santa, we headed up to Grandma Merrill's. Grandma made a delicious breakfast and we had so much fun hanging out with her and Mike! Landon got this beautiful table and chairs, among several other gifts.
This table was given to Grandma Debbie when she was about Landon's age. She used it, Jeremy and his brother used it and now Landon will use it. It is so cute!!
Daddy got a Tomtom. Now it's time for a road trip!
Mommy got this wood sled. It was Jeremy's Dad's sled when he was little. Tim even carved his name in it. Debbie had it all decorated up for me and I just love it!
What a perfect Christmas it has been! Merry Christmas everyone!

Christmas Eve with the Sabelka's

It is the Sabelka family tradition to get together on Christmas Eve. I am so blessed to have such a wonderful family. It is so nice to spend time with the one's you love, and yet I am so sad at the end of the night when it is all over! Landon had a blast playing with everyone, especially cousins Eryn and Nolan.

Landon sure is getting to be a pro at opening presents. Landon got lots of cool things including some new clothes, a puzzle, a tent (the kids are laying in the tent in the photo above), a semi with lots of cars, and his first remote control car. I hope I didn't forget anything. There were so many gifts it's hard to remember!

After we got home we settled in by getting ready for bed. Every year since Landon was born, I have read "Twas the Night Before Christmas" right before going to bed. Landon's Christmas present to me was that he fell asleep in my arms while I was reading the book. I couldn't have asked for a better Christmas present!

Washing dishes

Tent fun

You've seen the tunnel that Landon got for his birthday. Well, this is the tent that goes with it. This past weekend, we set up camp in the living room. Landon and Elke have been taking turns hanging out in the tent. While Landon spends more time in the tent than Elke (napping, watching movies, etc.), Elke does go in the tent to retrieve her rope that someone hid in there. I couldn't resist, I had to try it out for myself. Seriously, who didn't dream of having a tent in their house as a child. The only difference, we had to improvise and make a tent by draping blankets over furniture. Aww, memories!

Holiday Lights, Magical Nights

Last night we had a fun evening. We went out to eat and then went through the Holiday Lights, Magical Nights. We've never been through the display before, and thought this was the perfect time. Landon loved all the lights. In fact, I had him all bundled up, covered in a blanket, etc., because he had to have the window down to have a better view (I even washed my car right before so the windows would be clean). The display below was sponsored by Grandma Debbie. At the end of all the displays, Santa was there. Landon said hi, and accepted a bear from Santa. Can you believe that Santa even knew who we were!

Thinking outside (or inside) the box

This is what Landon does when I give him crayons. He colors for a few minutes and is then more interested in putting all the crayons back in the box. He sat by the table for a good 1/2 hour this morning, trying to get each and every crayon back in the box as neat as possible. Landon loves to try and figure out how something works. He loves taking things apart and trying to put them back together. He definitely gets this from his Dad's side, and from what I hear, this sounds a lot like Uncle Oliver!

Do these snowmen make my butt look big?

Ok, maybe the diaper, but not the snowmen! No, seriously, how cute are these jammies!! I love them!

Birthday present withdrawl...

Monday morning, coming down to reality after the Birthday festivities, Landon picked up a present from under the tree. He brought the present to Jer and said, "Open Birthday Present." Jer explained to Landon that his Birthday was over, and the presents under the Christmas tree are for other people. This was Landon's reaction...

Happy 2nd Birthday Landon!!

Happy Birthday to Landon!! This Birthday has turned into a weekend of partying. Ok, not really, but we have found several ways to help Landon celebrate. Here is what we did today. Since Eryn and Nolan were hanging out at Grandma's today, we picked them up along with Auntie Jo Jo. Then we headed to McDonald's for Happy Meals!
While Landon has ate McDonald's before, this was his first experience at McD's. I was not super excited about any of them playing with the toys, but I got over it. All I have to say is two words - HAND SANITIZER!
After a nice long nap, it was up and at 'em. Landon had a lot of toys to play with. This afternoon was filled with hershey kisses (see photo above), homemade pizza, and another round of cake! Oh, and singing Happy Birthday about five more times!
The perfect cake. Locally made cake with a raspberry filling, and a side of frozen yogurt!
Whew, back to reality (and our healthy eating) tomorrow!!

Party time!

Last night was Landon's 2nd Birthday Party. What a blast!

There were so many fun pictures, it was hard to narrow down what pictures to put on the blog. Here are just a few of my favorites!

Snow Day = Birthday presents

Today was a snow day! We received 12+ inches of snow, and the winds are blowing over 50 mph. The entire state of Iowa is under a blizzard warning. I didn't even attempt to go to work today. In fact, the Depot along with many other businesses were closed today.

During breakfast this morning, Landon started to sing Happy Birthday. We've been working on singing Happy Birthday because the big party is just a few days away! Here is Landon's rendition!

After singing Happy Birthday, I decided, what the heck why not open a birthday present! A new toy to play while we were stuck inside without any power. Ok, that's not true, we had power. See post below! Landon opened a gift that Jeremy and I got him. Here is him opening his new firetruck, I mean tractor!

2009 Blizzard

So we just got the most amount of snow that we have seen in years. 12+ inches, and right now the winds are blowing about 50 mph. The entire State of Iowa has been in a blizzard warning from noon on Tuesday until midnight tonight. Jeremy the brave soul, got up somewhere around 4:00 am, to try and plow his way out. I made no attempts to go to work, in fact, the Depot Outlet is closed. Most businesses in Decorah and the surrounding area are closed.

To top it all off though, we had finished supper last evening and were snuggling in to watch the weather, when everything went black. We lost our power. Jer dug out the flashlights and began walking around the house. What he discovered is that it was only us that lost our power. The yard light by the shop was still on. So, Jeremy got all bundeled back up and headed out to get the generator. He got it all hooked up and we had power again within the hour (I didn't miss much of the biggest loser finale!). We didn't bother calling Hawkeye REC because we were set for the night and there was no need for them to send out a crew just for our sake. Jeremy, I know, was awake much of the night checking on the generating and insuring that Landon and I would stay warm. What a fantastic man! Aside from not being able to do laundry, it really didn't effect us much at all.
REC came around lunch today. They said that a fuse blew on top of our transformer. There were a lot of close branches, and the strong winds may have blew the fuse and caused the power to go out. I thanked the guys for traveling out to hook our power back up. They are so brave for traveling out and about in some of the most terrible weather conditions. They knew Jeremy, so they gave me a hard time, and then I sent them on their way with a huge plate of goodies!

Now, the weather can calm down a little bit, because I have a lot of catching up to do at work tomorrow. It was fun while it lasted!!

Holiday baking (icing recipe included!)

Today was as my sister put it on facebook, "It's baking day. Christmas music, sisters, toddlers, and sugar!! What could be better?" Agreed!

After a fun filled morning, Landon decided to skip lunch and take a nap instead!

And, just a small portion of the finished products. Doesn't it all just look amazing!! The kids had a blast decorating the cut out cookies, as did the adults.

Ok, I am posting this frosting recipe for two reasons, one, just incase I lose it, I have it for next year, and two, because it is the BEST EVER!

Royal Icing
Ingredients
3 cups confectioners' sugar

1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar

1/4 teaspoon almond extract

2 egg whites, beaten

Directions
In a bowl, sift together confectioners' sugar and cream of tartar. Using electric mixer, beat in 1/4 teaspoon almond extract and 2 beaten egg whites for about 5 minutes or until mixture is thick enough to hold its shape. As I mix the colors add just a small amount of water so the mixture is not too thick. Yum-O!!