As CEO of the house (clearly) I made the executive decision to send our Christmas cards along without the holiday letter included. I had 6 different cards people. 6. In 4 of them the letter wouldn’t have fit. Sad panda for those recipients. Throwing it up on here not only lets everyone read it, but it resurrects the blog. Woot Woot! Never mind I can stuff it full of pictures. Of the cutest kids. Ever.

Liam-Ferg is quickly approaching the age of 2. Oh how joyful that age is! He is CLEARLY a mommas boy. And boy does he know how to push my buttons. For better and for worse. If I’m at home he is clinging to my leg or stuck on my hip. Yes I’m a sucker. But honestly I can say with 100% certainty he is my favorite son. Liam’s favorites from 2011:

• His first birthday
• FINALLY learning to walk at 17 months. (Kid learned to walk the day before he was supposed to start therapy. Stubborn much? (Or see momma’s boy comment above)
• Cars, trucks, trains, balls, bugs, animals, dinosaurs, hammers, sand boxes . . .100% boy. And. We. Love. It!!
• First trip on an airplane. Rode a giant slip n slide.
• Copious amounts of food shoved in ears and up his nose.
• Learned how to take the bottom half of his clothes of. Trouble at nap times.
• Helping Dad in the garden.
• The act of trick or treating.

Lily aka Lilliana Beaverhausen, or Beaver for short, turned 4 in September. She hates the nickname I’ve bestowed upon her, but let’s face it, she might as well get used to my antics now. It’s not going to get any easier for her.

• Still our little peanut. 32 lbs. At age 4. Half crazy curls half straight hair-which she twirls when she’s tired and often gets her finger stuck. Like pull out the scissors to free her stuck.
• Is ecstatic that her sisters are in school all day. When asked if she missed them her reply was, “No way! I get to hang out in their room whenever I want!”
• Playdates and preschool.
• Loves writing and coloring. Also obsessed with sticker books. Borderline unhealthy obsession.
• Either found jumping on the furniture or hanging upside down off of it.
• Gum addict.

Abby-Our little Bagels started 2nd grade! She is a rambunctious 7 year old who loves playing with her little brother and invoking silliness upon everyone in the house. Highlights from her 2011 reel:

•  Tonsil and adenoid’s removed in June. She did fantastic! Back to her crazy self within a few days. Which means we have extra codiene on hand
• Played soccer and participated in Girl Scouts.
• Accelerated reading group at school. A good book is about the only thing that holds her down for more than 2 minutes.
• Wii extraordinaire.

Emma will be 9 on Sunday. 9!!!! She is a big help around the house. Especially in the kitchen. Loves it. Also loves to throw her attitude around. Mom and Dad have to keep that in check. All the time. 2011 happenings . . .

• Started 3rd grade. Big leagues now. Upstairs, planners, switching classes . . .loads of fun!
• WAY interested in science. Her teacher remarked that all Emma wants to read is nonfiction.
• Also extremely interested in ghosts and haunted house stories. She and Jared can argue the validity of these stories all day long. Wanna come switch me places to see for yourself???
• Soccer and Girl Scouts
• On the competitive poms team at the dance studio in our ‘hood.
• Finally the year to remove her extra tooth. Emma is our little “baby” and needs restraints to get a shot. You can, therefore, imagine what it was like for her with the oral surgeon. Needless to say, we now know that our insurance covers all forms of anesthesia for dental procedures.

And on to the less impressing people . . . Jared continues to work for Blue Cross Blue Shield as a Unix administrator. I have no idea what this means, but he does a fantastic job supporting our family and my shoe habit. My day is spent playing with my little people, the gym, and volunteering at the elementary school. A lot. Both of us continue to enjoy serving in our church callings and exploring Chicago in our spare time. Despite the fact that mother nature knocked our power out for a week-during the hottest week of the year-and sent us an insane blizzard, we love it here!!

We appreciate all the opportunities we had this year to spend with friends and family. It was nice to travel and see so many of you.

May 2012 bring you PEACE and JOY!! Merry Christmas!

Getting the in house IT guy on it!

Nevermind April is almost here, it’s cold. And blah. With the girls on spring break last week we decided to take a break from the painting, rearranging of furniture and just plain general chaos to head to the Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum.

They had a blast. We met Pedro the Polar Bear

Learned about reptiles and animal skins from Obi One Kenobi. Lily’s face? Seriously soaking up that info:

Crawled around with the birds:

Went on a butterfly hunt. They literally dive bomb around your head. Like kamikaze pilots:

Finished off with a greasy Chicago dog and drippy Italian beef sandwich.

Play Where’s Waldo. Your frame of reference:

and the UN summit . . .

Even though we never finished finding all the decor for his walls, it was still my favorite room in the house.

I honestly can’t say why he has a ‘W’ in his room. No one calls him William. Except for maybe Lily, and that’s only cause she can’t say her L’s. He’s “Wee-Um”

Shoulda gone with an ‘F’ for Ferg.

Maybe in his new room.

The stuff that blew through last week was out of control.

Jared and I ventured out during the night of the blizzard. He got some video. I basically got blown over.

Don’t let this depress you.

Slowly creeping up the side of the house.

The next morning . . .

That’s right. It’s really as high as the fence. This is not snow accumulating throughout the winter. This is one snowstorm.

Blazing a path. Is that really up to my waist you ask? Why yes indeed.

Where are you Abby and Lily?

No BBQs for awhile

We can jump off our roof and be perfectly fine

Poor Jared.  I think it took him 4 hours total. With a snowblower.

Go big or go home, I guess.

Consider this video me making up for not posting many pictures throughout the year. Grab a box of Kleenex and some popcorn.

Liam’s first year video

For someone who spent the whole first year pretty much hating the camera he sure turned on the charm on his birthday. Pics from the big day:

Look at those teeth!!! And those ears!!! But *sigh* look at those eyes!!

Ferg checks in at about 21 pounds, 28 inches. Both 25% for weight and height. Head on the other hand is in the 90%. Could very well explain why he isn’t walking. The boy is unbalanced.

Little Liam loves apples, pears, green beans, sweet potatoes, cheese, and all kinds of meat. Especially ribs. Daddy couldn’t be prouder.

Liam screams like a girl-go figure, we can’t escape from that-but he plays like a boy. I can’t believe how different boys and girls play. Everything is loud and crashes and is thrown. He’s always opening things and trying to figure out how they work. He gets into the vents, opens the toilet (gag). The girls NEVER did these things. We barely had to baby proof the place.

Finding some formula. Shoulda known. He was too quiet.

Anyway, back to the birthday.

Let the record state that the girls decorated his cake. This picture would do nothing for my business.

Happy Birthday Lil’ Man!!

We’re so proud of her and enjoyed spending her baptism with family!

*And in case you’re wondering-because I know you are dying to know-Abby occupies the tea party (by tea party I mean pinkies and tiny sandwiches not protests and signs) name of Cornelia Phinneas Beecher, Lily is Josephina Margorita, and Liam (shush don’t tell Jared) is Worthington Albert Rutherford, the 4th.