HAPPY 3rd BIRTHDAY, ELLIOT!

Dear Elliot,

How is it even possible that you are already three years old?! It feels just like yesterday that I sat down on the computer to type my letter to you for your second birthday, and here I am doing it again for your third. And oh how you have grown this past year! You are definitely not a baby anymore (and you will tell that to anyone who calls you one), but a full on boy who runs, jumps, sings, speaks in full sentences, asks questions and is constantly absorbing the world around you. 

You are such an active little boy, always running around, with a sweet and beautiful soul. While you can be as wild as any other three year old boy, you are also so loving, You take me in to your arms, hug me tight and request kisses or snuggles at least once a day.  My heart melts when you say "I lov yu, mommy!" You are a true lover boy and I hope that it will always be that way. 

You are very kind and always concerned about others, especially when they are hurt or sad. I pray that you hold on to your kindness forever as the world surely will try to steal it. A gentle heart is so much more worth than money or fame. 

You are our silly boy who tells funny jokes (no one understands yet) and you love making silly faces, which is the reason why we call you the class clown. Most of the time you are as happy as can be and you want to do everything by yourself. But if something doesn't work out, you quickly cry. You can be very emotional and you don't try to hide it..you just let it show. And there is nothing wrong with that, so please don't let anyone ever tell you otherwise.  

You are my constant companion who loves spending time with me and you ask me nearly every hour when daddy will get home from work. You have become our little shadow and make us endlessly laugh with your dancing or funny little sayings ("It's foffy outside"- foggy). You are also very rambunctious and love to pick fights with your sister or wrestle with Daddy on the floor. It seems that running, throwing and kicking balls come very natural to you and I wouldn't be surprised if you become a sports star one day. You love to run around the house playing chase and kick those soccer balls any time and anywhere. I hope that you stay active and try out new things all the time but make sure to give your best at what you do. 

As much as I miss the days that have passed, I am loving the moments now. Every day is a new adventure with you and because of you and your sister, life gets never dull. I am excited to see what lies ahead for you this year while you grow and learn new things. Life as a three year old surely is more fun and adventurous...

Happy 3rd birthday, sweet little boy! We love you so very much and are blessed to be your parents.

Love,

Mommy and Daddy

Early Birthday Celebration

Elliot will turn 3 on December 13th but since Derrick will be out of town for a business trip, we decided to celebrate our boy's birthday a bit early. So when Elliot woke up this morning, he discovered decorations and gifts all set up on the table for him. Even though it is a December birthday, we always make sure that his birthday is as special as everyone else's, which means putting some Christmas decor away and birthday decorations with balloons and banners up.

Our little boy was so surprised and happy and ready to open his gifts:

Elliot loves to play with Duplo and was excited about a new Duplo firetruck, more train tracks to add to his train set, and a construction set. He also loves to race his little remote control car. He really appreciates all the gifts and a special thank you to all his grandparents. 

His wish was a Paw Patrol cake and since we don't eat much cake, we decorated some cupcakes and the birthday boy was delighted about having Chase and Co on his cupcake and decorations. 

He truly enjoyed the cupcake and frosting:

Instead of having a birthday party for Elliot, we bought tickets to ICE at the Gaylord Opryland Hotel in Nashville. ICE is a holiday attraction with scenes from Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer brought to life in magnificent sculptures hand-carved from more than 2 million pounds of ice. So we bundled up in our snow gear (it helped that temps that day were only 36F/ 2C) and off we went.

Inside the exhibition, the temperature was a balmy 9F/ -13C) but luckily, each guest got to wear a fancy blue parka over their clothes to stay warm (it was a bit difficult to move around in all these clothes, hence the stiff poses).

Amelia was most excited about the two-story tall ice slides:

 

Funny fact: Because of the extreme cold temperature in the exhibition, most phones and cameras stopped working half-way thru. Luckily I used my Nikon first and had my phone as a backup for the last few pictures (albeit a bit unclear due to the cold air): 

The last scene was a a full nativity in stunning, crystal clear ice, which was narrated and lit up.

This ICE exhibition was very cool (literally) and definitely worth seeing but after roughly 45-60 minutes, we were all ready to warm up with hot cocoa. Despite the fact that it was only 36F/2C and sunny outside, it felt like spring. 

Afterwards, we took the kids to Rainforest Cafe at the Opry Mills Mall for a late lunch/ early dinner and it was so fun. This restaurant looks like an indoor rainforest, complete with lush vegetation, tropical rainstorms, trumpeting elephants and entertaining gorillas. Both kids loved the fish tanks and animals.

A momma's boy hopefully for ever and ever:

It was a full and fun day and we celebrated our little man big time. He enjoyed his early birthday and is proudly telling everyone that he is "thee" (3) now. But in the end of the day, he still is little and wanted nothing more than cuddle with me before bed, which makes this mommy very happy. Happy birthday, Elliot!

Night in Bethlehem and Nikolaus

For 3 nights in December a nearby church hosts "A Night in Bethlehem" event. Since it rained on Sunday evening, the kids and I went there last night after dinner. Once parked, you enter the city gates to find a marketplace to do some ancient Hebrew crafts and to experience a live nativity with animals and characters telling the story of the birth of Jesus.  The decorations, costumes and set-up were very kid-friendly and we had such a fun time. 

Amelia and Elliot each got their own treasure box and filled them with handmade crafts: dolls (made from cloth strips), clay figurines, and a dreidel as well as a bag filled with gold, myrrh and frankincense. 

Inside the tent was also a pen set up with a 2 month old Joey and 2 piglets. Amelia was even allowed to give a bottle to the kangaroo: 

And then we headed outside to see the live nativity and more animals: goats, sheep, a donkey, an alpaca, a calf, and a camel:

Elliot's favorite animal was the camel and Amelia loved feeding the pygmy goats. My favorite was the camel too, it even gave me a kiss on the cheek. 

 

Nativity scene (with and without extras):

Warming up with hot cocoa before heading home:

I'm glad the rain stopped for a few hours and we were able to go to this event. It was so well done and not crowded at all. The kids loved all the animals and crafts and we talked about with what children played when Jesus was born and how the people lived. It was nice to focus on the real reason of this season and to bring the bible story and our Savior to life so that the children have a better understanding of why we celebrate Christmas.

Today, December 6th, we are celebrating a traditional German holiday: Nikolaus. On this day in 346 Nicholas of Myra, a Greek Christian bishop, died and we remember him for his miracles and secretly giving gifts. The children put their polished boots out the night before and St. Nicholas fills them with small gifts and sweets overnight while checking up on them to see if they were good, polite and helpful last year. 

It seems, that Amelia and Elliot have been very good this year as their boots were filled this morning:

It is only the 6th day of December and we are having already so much fun and love what this season has to offer. It is truly the most magical time of the year.

O Tannenbaum

The last month of the year arrived quickly and with that our tradition of opening our Advent calendars,which came all the way from Germany (Thank you, Opa!). The kids were so excited and giddy to get that first piece of chocolate out:

Additionally, on December 1st each year, we celebrate our cat's birthday. Surely, she could do without the party hat but she loves the extra treats and her new box of catnip. Happy 8th birthday, Indy!

Me and my birthday cat:

Amelia's teacher also made stockings for each student and every day, if their behavior is above the line, they get one treat (think pencils, erasers, crafts, etc) for their stocking. It looks awfully cute and the kids are excited about filling them up:

It was also time to take down the fall door decoration at school and so Amelia and I put together a Christmas door design. This little girl did an awesome job helping me make those paper chains and was so proud to show it to the other students:

On Saturday morning, our Elf on the Shelf, Eli, showed up in our house and brought us a traditional breakfast from the North Pole. Lots of sugar, candies and cute new drinking cups: 

This was also the day, we put up our Christmas tree. It was the perfect morning to do so as it was nice and cold out. So we bundled up and went to our local hardware store to pick out the perfect tree. 

 

After nap time, we all decorated our Tannenbaum:

And voila, the finished tree: It may be more colorful than I would normally prefer but it is pretty nonetheless and the kids love it, which is most important. Elliot was most happy about the train under the tree. 

 

While the boys stayed at home and watched football that night, I took Amelia to a local high school to watch Elf the Musical (based on the movie Elf). The students did an awesome job (especially the boy who played Buddy) and adults as well as kids enjoyed the show. My girl and I savored spending one-on-one time with each other (she sat on my lap for over an hour!) and I think I found someone who will enjoy watching Elf with me over and over again. 

The weather was pretty frightful today and instead of going to watch our town's annual Christmas Parade, we all sat on the couch together, drank hot cocoa and watched a Christmas movie while the fire warmed us. Wearing pj's all day long and having a low-key day was just what we all needed before another full week is upon us. I hope you all enjoyed this 2nd Sunday of Advent as much as we did.