Preparing for Christmas

Wow!  Apparently we've been a bit busy since Thanksgiving!  One could argue that preparing for such a special holiday takes a lot of time, thoughtfulness and self-reflection. I wish I could say that is why we have been too busy to write.  I feel as though this year we have done a better job at remembering the real reason for this season and I hope to continue to be more intentional about this. 

Ben has definitely realized what Christmas is supposed to be about this year.  Much of this is due to being in Sunday school and a very Christian-based preschool a few days a week. They do an awesome job of bringing Jesus to the center of all things and because of this, Ben and I have had some great conversations . . . some that not many 4-year olds would be prepared for! What a blessing to have my little man know all about God and Jesus and how much we are loved by our Heavenly Father!

Sunday School program

And while Christmas is not all about the tree, presents and Santa, it sure is fun to see the excitement in Cooper's eyes anytime our tree lights turn on and the room is aglow with those tiny white lights!  This year will be so much fun with him and I'm so blessed to get to see the magic of Christmastime unfold through his eyes!



Helping Mom make sugar cookies!

And while last year we did not have our "White Christmas" it is looking like the snow that is here is here to stay for awhile. . . especially with our single-digit temperatures for the next few days! We were able to get out in it last week before the wind chill dropped too much!

Getting ready to gang up on Mom and throw some snowballs

We also realize that the "controversy" of Santa is one that many parents deal with.  To us, Santa is the physical reminder of all the magic of Christmas.  Waiting in line to see Santa helps build the fun anticipation that many of us remember as children and I don't think I am any worse for the wear!  Leaving Christmas cookies and then racing down the next morning to see if they've been consumed is just a fun tradition (and a good way for Mom and Dad to have some guilt-free goodies!)

Most of all, Santa is there to help us remember that it is okay to be young and believe in things that we don't always see.  Sounds a little familiar eh?!  Jesus IS the real reason for the season and even though we can't see him, that doesn't mean we don't believe!!! And while the magic of Santa Claus will one day be gone, our Saviour is always with us; and that is one thing we hope our children do not leave behind!



MERRY CHRISTMAS from the Bartletts





Santa's little helpers

After being gone for 5 days for Thanksgiving, I was so excited to get home and get my Christmas decorations out!  Matt does not "allow" me to put them out until after Thanksgiving so the  first opportunity I get, I am dragging Rubbermaid containers out of storage and ready to blast Celine Dion's Christmas album while making our home into a Christmas Wonderland!  This year, I had two VERY eager helpers when it came time to decorate the tree.  Now, the OCD part of me is still having issues with all of our ornaments hanging from the bottom half of our tree but the mother in me knows that this is the way it goes and I wouldn't dare dash their pride in how their tree looks this year!

After the decorating was done, the Santa hat went on . . . so did the "cheese"

Luckily my boys aren't afraid to ham it up a bit for the camera! 

This Christmas is going to be the best yet!!!

To Photograph or Not?

Lately I've been thinking about trying some amature photography.  I have a friend who sent me some information about an online class that she recently took and it has me intrigued.  But...do I have the eye for it or not?  I absolutely LOVE taking pictures of my boys and fiddling with them until I get exactly what I want. The down side is that it usually takes me a good hour and 150 clicks of the camera until I find 3 or 4 that I can actually use. Now, part of this could just be my boys.  They are so tired of their mom always taking pictures that they don't even try and look nice for the camera anymore!

Exhibit A:

 Ben has a mean stink-eye.  And he tends to pull it out towards the end of picture taking - this time was no exception!  I took the boys down to Sandy Hollow campground which is within walking distance of our house.  It was an usually nice November afternoon last week so I took full advantage of the warmer temperature and sunny skies. 

 Our "photography session" lasted about an hour and it was mostly just walking around, looking for good photo opportunities!  And just when I thought I had one, Ben would have his tongue hanging out (above) or a misplaced arm would be across a brother's face (below).

But then . . . the stars would align, and I would click at the exact right time and catch something like this one; and it would make the whole afternoon worth it!

And all I've done so far with these amature pictures is change the lighting and color on a few of them. Just think if I really knew what I was doing?!  Something to think about, I know I sure have!

Lovin' Our Cats!

Our K-State Wildcats are having an AWESOME year!  As of today, our team is 10-0 and #1 in the nation! About a month ago, we were lucky enough to make the trip over to Ames with our best friends (Cylcone fans) to watch our team in a stadium different than what we are used to.  We got seats on the hill so that we didn't have to try and wrangle four young boys in the stands for 3 hours!

We actually drove over the night before and had just as much fun in the hotel rooms as we did at the game the next day. Our rooms were adjoining so once all the boys were in their PJs, chaos ensued before bedtime!  Aren't they fun?!?!

Tailgating in the rain

Blurry because he is JUST SO FAST!!!

Looking for Willie

Tuckered out after the game!

The boys were incredibly good the whole time and if we ever go again, we know the hill is the way to go!

Halloween...after the madness!

I'm obviously way behind on posting Halloween pictures...especially since these days if you don't have your children's pictures on Facebook by the time they go to bed that night, you are a "bad mom!"  Well, here it is two weeks later and I'm just getting around to it!

We had a Wild Kratt and a Wildcat this year!  Ben wore his Creature Power Suit from his birthday and Cooper wore a KState football player outfit we already had.

We got together with our good friends for some photo ops...especially since Ben and his friend's suit went together - they were the Kratt Bros! Then it was off to Trick-or-Treating!

We first stopped at Ben's teacher's house and that definitely got things started off right.  Cooper would not wear his helmet in the car but as soon as he realized that it was part of his costume and in order to get candy he needed to be in costume, he was more than happy to wear it!

Matt caught me a bit by surprise in this picture...but the others were blurry :(

Overall it was a great evening...my favorite Halloween so far with the boys!  As you can see, I was Cooper's super-fan!  We are still so excited our team is 10-0 and #1 in the nation!  Go Cats!!!

My husband is crafty too

Every year, Matt gets down and dirty when it comes to make the ultimate Jack-o-lanterns for the boys!  This year was no different!

It started with our annual trip to Pumpkinland!  And although we were literally in a drought the past few months, it rained A LOT the day before we went and it was a muddy mess. . . the boys of course didn't care, just their clean mommy was bothered by it!

The boys were beyond excited about the pony rides!  Ben was the biggest kid to ride during his turn and chose the absolute smallest pony they had.  Cooper, in true Cooper-fashion, chose the absolute largest one they had!

Bruce - the Great White shark from Finding Nemo

Nemo (but it looks a bit more like Marlin, Nemo's dad)

Ben decided he would like a great-white shark this year.  So we decided to do the coordinating clown fish so we had characters from Finding Nemo!  Matt helped Ben carve his and I was in charge of Cooper's.  So I drew my outline, and tried to figure out how to cut it!  Matt then came over to "help" us and proceeded to erase my design and cut out what you see.  Oh well, I'm much better at triangle eyes and teethy grins on my Jack-o-lanterns anyway! 

Feeling a bit crafty...for party's sake!

So we had Ben's 4th birthday party last month and I feel like this is one he'll remember!  He LOVES the show Wild Kratts these days on PBS so of course we planned the party around that. 

And while usually I like to do a few fun things for my boys' birthday parties...I couldn't help but go what is considered "all out" for me! 

Starting with this ^ craft!  I found this on a blog I follow and LOVED the look of it.  Since I try and at least make one thing each time (besides all the goodies) I had to give it a try!  Now I understand why the mom from the blog does not sell them on her Etsy site...it takes FOREVER to make!!!  In the end it was worth it because now it hangs in Ben's room as a cool decoration.  Luckily my best friend is also a master sewer because even though it only called for a straight stitch, that would have taken me forever to do on my own.

And I went a little crazier on the cupcakes this year rather than the cake.  I saw these on another blog and just had to give them a try. The messiest was the alligator but was probably my favorite!

 And no Wild Kratts party would be complete with a "Creature Power Suit"!  My friend Sara made these after I showed her just one picture of what I would like.  Ben STILL plays with his all the time and loves to change our the different "Creature Power Discs."

It was a great day to celebrate our big boy turning 4!

Art Splash 2012

A few weeks ago, I braved the heat with both boys to head to Sioux City for their annual Art Splash. It was a cool 98 degrees that Sunday afternoon but we sure had a great time!

The idea is that you walk around, looking at vendors to buy their or art or.... you buy tickets to allow the kids to make all sorts of different art projects.  Both boys got involved and had a pretty great time!

First time on a "public transportation" bus. They LOVED it!

Keeping cool in the shade and listening to some music

Finding treasures to glue onto a personlized teddy bear!

First ink - an alligator

Rock painting - he went with his favorite color

Stepping off the bus, ready for a nap!

Well-rested!