God Jul

"God Jul", or "Merry Christmas" in Norwegian.  I'm about 1/2 of a 1/4 Norwegian (still learning my math), but I sure do look it don't I?  Well my Oldemore (Great Grandmother in Norwegian) who you have heard about before (aka MaMoo) is 100% Norwegian, and has always carried on the Norwegian traditions for her children, grandchildren and now great grandchildren.  One of the most favorite traditions of my Mommy and her seven, girl cousins, was going to the Juletrest every year.  In case you are wondering, a Juletrefest is a Norwegian "Christmas Tree Party" where people dance around the Christmas tree and eat delicious cookies.  My Mommy and her cousins, and now my cousin, Maria, gets to wear very special Norwegian costumes that MaMoo wore as a child.  The dress that Maria wore to this Juletrefest is 94 years old like MaMoo!  I had so much fun at the "mini" Juletrefest with my cousins, Maria and Sal, as well as the rest of my family.  Thank you Aunt Vicki and Uncle Nils for carrying on this special tradition for us.

Looking at the pretty tree with my cousin, Maria.

Waiting with Maria and MaMoo to dance around the Christmas tree.

Dancing around the tree.

Still dancing around the tree.

MaMoo and my cousin, Sal.

My Latest Trick

In case you are wondering what I'm saying, it's my first name, last name, where I live and age.

Merry Christmas!

My second Christmas was so much fun!  I had such a great time playing with my new toys, singing and dancing to Christmas songs, eating lots of good food (mostly sweets), and spending time with all of my family.  I could get used to celebrating Christmas every day!

P.S. In case you're wondering why so many of us are in PJ's in most of the pictures, it's because we have a tradition where everyone wears PJ's on Christmas Day.  Well mostly the girls, but Mommy said I could wear them too. I picked special Thomas the Tank Engine Christmas PJ's!

Christmas Eve with Aunt Darlene, Uncle Mike and Sam.

Getting ready to go home for Santa.

With my new Hess truck.

With my new Kitchen.

With my new Barn.

Opening more presents.

With Mommy.

With my cousin, Devin.

With my cousin, Carly.

With my cousin, Amanda.

With Grandpa.

With my cousins, Michael and Morgan.

Opening presents with my cousins.

Waiting for Daddy and Uncle Kevin to open my truck.

Mommy says that I'm the greatest gift of all!

Happy Birthday Sam!

With my cousin, Sam (or as I like to call her, Ham).

Happy Birthday G'ma!

Happy Birthday G'ma!  Thanks for taking such great care of me all of the time, and always playing with me.  I'm so lucky to have you, and love you so much!

With Grandma (although, I'm not cooperating so much).

Happy Birthday MaMoo!

Happy 94th Birthday to my Great Grandmother (or as I like to call her MaMoo)!  I had such a great time celebrating MaMoo's birthday by going out to lunch with her at our favorite diner.  The funniest part was tricking MaMoo by pretending to share my goldfish with her, and then taking them back and eating them myself.  That trick works every time!

With MaMoo and Mommy.

What a Fun Day!

This was an especially fun day!  First, I got to celebrate Kathryn's 3rd Birthday at a gym party.  Then Rylee and Hunter came over to play.  The worst part was when it was all over, and Rylee had to go home. We weren't very happy!

My dream come true.

Opening Christmas gifts with Rylee.

Pretending to have a sleepover.

That didn't last very long.

Boys will be Boys!

I had so much fun celebrating an early Christmas with my buddies, Stone and Ryder.  Our Mommies kept trying to get us to sit on the couch for a picture, but all we wanted to do was climb on the table and have fun!  I still don't understand why they all looked so worried?

Ready.

Set.

Go.

Up.

Up.

And Away.

My buddy, Ryder.

My buddy, Stone.

Gma's Surprise Party!

We had so much fun at Gma's Surprise Party.  It was so funny to see how surprised she was when she walked in to the restaurant!  For all of the wonderful things that G'ma does for all of us, it was so nice to see her have a special day that she deserved.  We love you, G'ma!

With G'ma and all of my cousins.

With Mommy.

With my cousins, Carly and Amanda.

With my cousins, Ryan and Devin.

With my Aunt Liz.

With my Uncle Kevin.

With my Aunt Kara and Uncle Jeff.

Entertaining the crowd with Santa Claus.

Happy Thanksgiving!

I hope that everyone enjoyed their Thanksgiving holiday!  I'm so grateful that I got to celebrate with my wonderful family.  I especially had so much fun with all of my cousins who were home from college.  Also, a special thanks to Aunt Anne for my Thanksgiving outfit!  

Showing off my Thanksgiving outfit.

With my cousins, Amanda and Carly.

With my cousins, Ryan and Devin.

My First Carousel Ride

I had so much fun riding on the carousel!  If you would like to see, just watch the video below.

Happy Birthday Pa!

I know that I look like a ghost in this picture because of the flash, but Mommy couldn't resist.  I was actually looking at the camera AND smiling!  I had so much fun going out for dinner to celebrate Pa's birthday.  The best part of the night was seeing the "choo choo" when we left the restaurant.  Move over rocks, "choo choos" are my latest fascination!

With my favorite person, my "Pa".

Hi, this is Matthew's Mommy (don't worry Matthew gave me permission to write on here).  I wanted to share a cute story with you about Matthew and his "Pa".  From the time Matthew was born, his Grandfather has always said, "I love you" to Matthew and also used the signs for the phrase.  Well on October 7th, Matthew said "I love you" for the first time.  Guess who he said it to?.....Pa!  That's right, he walked right up to Pa and said "I love you".  It's incredible to witness the special bond between Matthew and his Pa, although it isn't surprising at all. 

Happy Halloween!

Mommy took me to New York City to visit my friends, Rylee and Hunter, to celebrate my second Halloween.  I had so much fun dressing like Bob the Builder with my construction hat and tool belt.  Rylee was a great Minnie Mouse, and Hunter was a cute tiger.  I hope that I can celebrate Halloween with my friends every year!

Bob the Builder.

Minnie and Bob.

Minnie and Bob with Tiger.

Having Halloween fun with my friends.