A Very Merry Cochrane Christmas

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Joy spent Christmas Eve with our family for the second time, a tradition that I hope continues.

Joy, Mom and I

Christmas Morning, every year Mom and Dad would take our picture coming down the stairs before we opened our stockings. The past few years we got bored of taking smiley pictures, so we feign surprise instead.



This year we each got a wig and an instrument from Santa...silliness ensued.

Mom and Dad groovin'

Brian and I rockin' out

Modeling our new hoodies. Thanks Brian for my awesome hoody!!

I hope that you and your families had a Merry Christmas!

Winter Wonderland

Yesterday morning Natalie declared, "I want to go out and play in the Winter Wonderland!"

She has so much fun playing in the snow!

Mamma Mia!

Bree gave me this CD for my birthday and it has been in my car playing ever since. Recently I hooked the kids on the upbeat music and they like just as much as I do. Natalie is so blase when it comes to music, and she sings along to these songs. She and I will ride around town and I will hear a little voice say, "Mamma Mia please, and turn it up!"

Up Next: A Brown County Christmas.

My aunt Melissa gave this CD to me one christmas, and it is great. Today David asked me about it so tomorrow morning as I take the kids to school we will be laughing at the 12 days of Christmas. The traditional version is not exactly funny, but the country brown county one is hilarious. It starts out:

On the first day of christmas my true love gave to me a coon crossing possum trot creek!

It only gets funnier as the days go along.

Happy Thanksgiving

We had a great thanksgiving, I hope you did too.

Family Photo

Bree, Anna-Jane and Kyle

Anna-Jane walking around the house. Look at that determination!

I'm Thankful for...

FAMILY:

My Mom

Without her life would be pretty dull. Family night would not be as frequent, tasty or fun. I'm thankful that God chose her for me. She is my friend, teacher, companion, motivator and confidant.

My Dad

When all else fails, call Dad! My dad has come to my rescue many times in my life, especially when it comes to my car. He is a great dad because he makes sure that every day is filled with laughter. He is my encourager, advisor, buddy and amusement.

My Brother

When I was little I wanted to do was whatever Brian was doing. I may not want to do everything he does, but I am still a fan of everything he does. He has been a great brother I couldn't have asked for a better one! He has been my playmate, protector, inspiration, comforter, partner in crime, supporter, teammate and big brother.

Then and Now

My Job

I'm thankful that I have a wonderful job with two great bosses who support me and yet give me a lot of freedom within my job. Gillian, David and Natalie are a joy to be with, I love everyday that I spend with them.

Joy

My wonderful roommate who sometimes makes me wonder why she chooses to live with me. She and I have been friends for 11 years. She is a true blessing in my life. A true friend is someone who knows all your idiosyncrasies and still loves you.

I hope everyone has a wonderful Thanksgiving!

Halloween

Since the end of summer the kids and I have been looking forward to Halloween. We have been making decorations for over a month. Last year I put together a party for the four of us and we had a blast.

At the corn maze the kids and I each picked out a mini pumpkin so we could decorate them at the party. We drew on them and spiced them up with Glitter glue. Natalie has a heavy hand when it comes to glitter glue.

This year I took some extra time to decorate the cupcakes and make them look spooky. Gillian created the witches hat cupcake.Gillian eyeing her cupcake.

Yummy
Happy after eating a cupcake.


Stick 'em up!


During a performance Natalie gave.

Gillian as a princess, David as a police officer and Natalie as a ballet dancer.

It was a great Halloween!

A Corny Day

Today the kids, my Mom and I went to the Crazed Corn Maze. With last year's experience under our belt, and a backpack full of snacks I thought we had a better chance of actually finishing this one. Well we didn't quite finish, we got 5 out of 10 punches. I thought that was a solid finish and I was proud that this time we left the maze the same way that we entered.

About to enter the maze through the barn door.

Natalie peeking through the corn

Momma and I enjoying a breather

David being silly as usual.

It was such a beautiful day!

Instead of a sand box, they had a corn box with dried corn kernels. Gillian making a corn angel.

It was a great day in the hot sun. We had motivation to leave since we were headed to Marie Calendars for lunch aka "The Pie Place".

Gillian wondered aloud, "Do you think Martha Stewart and Marie Calendars are friends?" I love hearing their interesting thoughts.

Saints Day

At the kids school they celebrate Saints Day instead of Halloween. The Preschool teacher makes it a big celebration. All the kids pick a Saint and make a crown for their saint. Natalie chose Saint Elizabeth. Instead of the normal snack they have angel food cake and whipped cream. A treat for snack is such a big deal for a 4 year-old.

Natalie modeling with her crown.

I love her poses these days!!

Posing with our sparkly creation.

Today Natalie was dancing around in her Halloween costume. After a little performance she pulled down her straps and said, "Ladies wear their dresses like this when they are going somewhere fancy."

Mornings with Natalie

My mornings at work are spent hanging out with Natalie. She makes my job extremely entertaining.

Modeling her new outfit from the basement store, her favorite.

Natalie took this picture, she really loves using my camera.

My little buddy!

Dress up


David was playing a football game, CU vs. Georgia. So Natalie was the cheerleader and I told her that at CU games the cheerleaders do push ups when a touch down is scored. Here are her push ups, so cute.

The second half of a push up.

Toga!

Slow dancing with beary.

She loves to pretend she's on TV, so here she is singing along with the music. The TV is out of the frame but she is looking at herself in the reflection.

I'm truly blessed to have such a fun job!

Jane vs. The Tooth Fairy

This is our favorite book right now. We had borrowed it from the library a long time ago and loved it. It had been hard to find so I was ecstatic when I found it at a little bookstore. Jane vs. the Tooth Fairy is very sassy and fun. All three of the kids and I love it.

The kids laughing at the silly book.