Since we were blessed with yet another mild December day on the 31st, we decided to take advantage of the time off, unseasonably warm weather, and the last day of our pass for a family fun afternoon at the zoo.  Make a mental note… for a really good visit to the zoo, try going on a mild day in the off season, shortly before closing time… hardly any people were there and the animals were quite active.

We rung out 2011 with a date day in DC for Scott and I on the 30th and then a good ol’ family fun day on the 31st. (more pics and details on those to come in a later blog post). As we spent time reflecting on 2011, Scott and I both found ourselves commenting on how grateful we are for our life. We don’t deserve this life of comfort and good fortune.

It’s been a LOOOOONG time since I’ve posted about Shopping for Sudan, but as 2011 comes to a close I thought I’d say thanks to those of you that participated with me in Shopping for Sudan. In 2011 you raised $47 dollars to help the people of Sudan. It may not seem like much but it’s a lot to the people who receive it. Furthermore, we are still matching the amount raised and so a total donation of $100 was made on your behalf.

The most favorite Christmas cookie for the circus fam to make is sugar cookies. Messiness + sugar = pure bliss for the circus crew!!   This year we enjoyed rolling and cutting the cookies with our cousin Eli.   It was also the first year that the youngest circus crew member got to participate in the cooking making fun. And by participate, I of course mean, eating.

When I uploaded my last video to you tube, I got side tracked with a little trip down memory lane as I then watched other videos the circus fam has posted to you tube in the past. And I came across this gem. A few things I noticed while re watching the video. 1. My oldest son used to have that cute 4 year old voice you swear you’ll never forget but inevitably do.

When I saw the sign on the side of highway advertising a Live Nativity, I was instantly interested. I’ve never seen one and thought it would be a great experience for the kids. When talking to a friend I found out more details and made plans to bring them. It was a simple production, put on by a small community church on a cold winter’s night on the side of a busy highway.

We decorated our gingerbread house this weekend…before Christmas this year—astonishing, I know. The big 3 had a fabulous time. Unfortunately, our youngest found the experience quite confusing and a tad frustrating. “Why, oh why, aren’t they letting me eat that candy?” I might have snuck the lil guy a few pieces of candy while they were busy working. The kids were quite proud of their work.

Scott took a vacation day on Thursday so he could spend the day with our oldest daughter. First they went with the other kids in her Kindergarten class to see a performance of The Night Before Christmas. Apparently the sets were gorgeous and the play was very well done. Such a treat to go to a live theatre AND to get to see it with her school friends and Dad. I think it was also a treat for Dad to get to see her with her school friends, it’s an aspect of her life that he doesn’t get to see very often.

The latest and greatest tooth pulling episode at the circus was done angry birds style. Simply tie tooth to bird Pull back and  The result is one very happy, very adorable , toothless grin!

I was an elementary school teacher for 3 years. We used butcher paper all the time for bulletin boards. I’ve also seen it cleverly used at restaurants in place of a tablecloth to give a space for the kids to doodle while waiting. Never… in all my years did I really stop to think why it was called butcher paper.. or what the actual intent of the paper was for. Scott and I got the idea to get the kids a roll of butcher paper to keep on our dining room table.