Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year

Christmas eve was quite festive at our home. Family and friends came for dinner and we had our annual white elephant gift exchange.

Katie was at her antagonistic best with her brother. She took his toys, stole his dinner and she basically did whatever she could to get him to have a melt down. She was very thorough. It didn't help that he was overly tired.

Katie received lots of girlie princess toys from Santa and Peter received lots of great boy stuff. Of course they only want to play with one another's toys. Figures.

I found this dress, 10 minutes before guests arrived, in the back of Katie's closet. Forgot we even had it. Thank goodness I found it because it fit perfectly.

Little Miss Sassy Pants

Hoo boy...if these past few weeks are any indication of how this year is going to go, then we are in for a wild ride.

Lately Katie's favorite words are "No, Mommy." She says it tentatively, like she's just trying it out, but trying it out she is. Today Katie covered her ears and told her brother to "be quiet!" Seriously, where does she get this?

And there is just no safe way to turn your back on this little girl. She is into everything. If she's not in sight, you can be sure to find her jumping on Mommy and Baba's bed, climbing onto the stairmaster, in the fridge getting some eggs for mommy, climbing on one of the gifts under the tree to get one of the breakable ornaments up high...you get the picture.

Katie's brother was never this naughty. We are completely unprepared for the likes of little Katie Lou and she knows it. So wish us luck this year, we are certainly going to need it.

Big Time Two Year Old

Katie turned two this month. The amount of energy she has is unbelievable. Whenever we leave the house, she has to hop all the way to the car. She chatters nonstop, much like her brother. In fact, she repeats everything he says. It's pretty adorable, and it almost always makes him laugh.

She is so lovable, running up and giving us all spontaneous hugs and telling us she loves us. It's hard to get mad at her for all the mischief she gets into. I have learned not to leave the refrigerator door open because Katie loves to bring me eggs. Usually one gets dropped (or thrown) when I try to retrieve them from her clutches. Her other favorite thing to do is to casually walk up to Peter, grab one of his toys and either throw it or run for her life. So hard not to laugh. Most of the time they just sit and crack one another up. That's my most favorite sound.