Gingerbread Fun Times

I had promised the kids that we would go sledding on the weekend. This was before I heard that the temps were going to be super COLD. On Saturday I picked up a gingerbread house to make up for not going. So on Sunday we sat down and had some fun. This is the result of a couple of hours of their hard work.

Christmas Concert

Last night we went the the kid's annual Christmas Concert. Let's just say we were not disappointed. The Tanner Kids did a wonderful job. Bella, I think, seemed more excited about the concert than Christmas. For the past week that's all she's been talking about.
Bella's class sang 10 Little Angels and If You Can't Wait For Christmas. There were moves and everything to go with the songs. Bella kept knocking off her neighbour's halo. It was pretty funny. Bailey sang Kling, Glockchen, Kling. I guess it's a German Christmas song. Riley, who is also in choir, sang Aussie Jingle Bells. The theme this year was Christmas around the world. It was a great evening full of entertainment.

Bella's Daily Thoughts

In the kitchen baking with mom and dad, Bella comes up to me and says:


Bella "Mom you make the best cookies."

Dad "What about me?'

Bella hesitates "Yeah you too....Kinda."

He Thinks He's Funny

Sunday we are getting ready to go out to do some Christmas shopping. The kids were getting dropped off at mom's place. Riley comes around the corner with two balls in his shirt. (they are suppose to be boobs.) He turns sideways and says:

"You can't hit me."

He starts to laugh.

"I'm a girl." Hands on his hips and bats his eyes. Runs away.

Riley's 8 & Start of The Christmas Spirit

Another successful birthday has come and gone. Riley celebrated his eighth birthday this past Saturday. He scored big with Pokeman cards, DS games, and money. It was sure nice to see a smile on his face. Here's Riley acting silly. He decided to put footballs in his shirt and do some poses for the camera. We put the Christmas tree and decorations up this afternoon. It seems every year we put it up earlier and earlier. It truly is the most wonderful time of the year and we want to keep that feeling going as long as we can. I will try hard not to play any Christmas music until December 1st.

Report Cards

I can't believe that we are almost at the end of November and that December fast approaching. Soon the Christmas tree will go up and the Big Guy will be making his yearly visit. Around this time the first report cards come out and I cross my fingers and hope that the kids are doing well in school.

Last night we went to the school to see what the kids have been doing these past few months. Bella, who usually is not shy, shut right down. Dwayne and I had to force her to show us what she does everyday at school. Even the teacher was a little surprised by the way she was acting. In the end she is adjusting well and her report card held no surprises. Bailey, of course, is excelling in everything that she touches. She came home with 5 A's and 3 B's. We are very proud of her. When it came to Riley's turn, Dwayne and I were a little worried. Some of the tests he has been bringing home weren't the best. He really has a hard time slowing down and his teacher even verbalized that when we sat down with her. She told us that if he took his time, he would excel. When we got his report card, we almost fainted. Though it wasn't all A's, (only 2 in Health and Music) it was a really good report. He can bring those B's up to A's in no time. So overall the kids are doing wonderful and the anxiety I have over how they are doing in school was put to rest.

Sick Girl

Bella has been sick for a few days now. It was the stomach flu. Poor thing. She has spent the last two nights in my bedroom on the floor so I could keep an eye on her. Sunday night she got really sick in her bed (I'll spare you the details.) and this way if she got sick again, I was there to act quickly. Sometimes I forget that she is still a little girl. Even though she's not in diapers or drinking from a bottle, she still needs her mom. The kids are very independent. But when they get sick, they become very dependent on you. She is feeling much better today. She'll probably go back to school tomorrow.