January

 

January has been a pretty quiet month around the Bryan home.  We've been enjoying the snow, Tessa has been looking forward to her swimming lessons (aside from horseback riding, Tessa's next favorite activity is swimming), we've been planning our garden for spring, we finally got our greenhouse, we've been designing our root cellar, and spending a lot of time as a family. I love our little family, and I am so grateful for all the time we are able to spend together!

 

 

Mastering the back float (all by herself)

High fives all around...her swim instructor is wonderful!

 

My girls....





All about Tessa

Our little girl is not so little anymore, she's almost five

She loves horseback riding

She is a swimmer

she likes helping mama bake

She enjoys her pre-k class

she is learning how to read (still can't believe this one)

She is our little miss independent

She is always asking questions

This girl is a big time bow hunter just like her daddy

Tessa is our country girl, and she loves Jesus very much!

We are so proud of you Tessa Mackenzie, and we love you very much!

 



 

Both girls love to color!  They will spend hours (no exaggeration) at the table coloring.  Tessa has been trying to teach her little sister how to write and spell.  It warms this mamas heart to see these two playing so sweetly together.

Our littlest Seahawk fan!

 

 All about Jayda

She is the life of our house



                                       She is now 20 months and growing strong and healthy
                                                           We call her our little ham

She loves to color

She talks all the time

She giggles constantly

she's a climber

She's loves to snuggle

her favorite toy is her baby (she sleeps with her every night)

She has decided to start using the potty chair by herself

She loves her big sister

she's a big fan of animals

We love you Jayda Faith!





 

 

Oh Yeah!!!!

We are in full Hawks mode here in our house!

 

Christmas!

I'm finally getting around to our Christmas post!  Christmas always seems to come and go so quickly.  I hold onto it for as long as I can.  Then the chimes of the new year remind me that I can't leave the Christmas decorations up all year.  We slowly begin pulling them down and packing them in their boxes until next year.  While I'm always sad to see the Christmas season end, I also look forward to a new year beginning.  It's a bitter sweet

 relationship.

 

We had a special Christmas this year enjoying family, friends, the Christmas Eve candle light service, opening presents, eating lots of yummy food, and (most importantly) celebrating the birth of our Savior.

There are so many fun ideas out there for homemade gifts.  I had a hard time choosing. These little guys were so much fun to make. I'm always looking for ways to use our old baby food jars too.

 

I guess my dad was a little tired from all the festivities

 

My dad wasn't the only tired one

Enjoying Lunch out with my girls

It's Christmas Time....It's Christmas Time.....

We celebrate Christmas in our home the whole month of December.  Many holiday activities have filled our days this year.  We had two Christmas fundraisers for Tessa's school, a Christmas school program, a church bizarre, play dates, class parties, lots of baking and cookie decorating, crafting galore, Christmas stories, Christmas music, shopping, the nightly advent calendar, Christmas movies, spending lots of time with family, and the most important of all....teaching our girls the true meaning of Christmas.  Tim and I have really struggled this year with trying to find a balance between Santa Claus and Jesus.  With each passing year it seems as though society is drifting farther and farther from the true meaning of Christmas.  It's really quite sad when I really pause to think about it.  Christmas was never meant to be a "merchants" holiday, but that's exactly what it's turned into.  Most people don't even know who the real Santa Claus was and how his whole life was centered around Jesus.  While we want to let our girls have fun with make believe, we also want to instill in them the truth.  It's a hard balance to find, and we're still working on it. 

 

With all of that said, here are a few pics from the month of December.  I haven't yet downloaded Christmas Eve/Christmas Day pictures.  Those will follow at some point.

 

Our little Jayda Sassy Pants

Big sister changing little sisters diaper

My big girl...getting ready for her Christmas program 

 

Tessa's pre-k Christmas concert

 

The girls' favorite part of the cookie making process....the beater!

 

Beautiful animals...aren't they!?!?  We get the joy of having these Elk in our backyard.

 

We joined Tessa for a day of cookie decorating in her class

 

Decorating cookies at home is still her favorite though, which makes this mama smile.