The eve of the eve...

Annual Cookie Exchange with Erica =)

Ella got in on the action.

Ella picking out nail polish. I wanted to throw this in just b/c it shows what an absolute girl she is!
She could spend hours looking at colors and dutifully putting them back...

Ella and Mommy at the cookie exchange.

Favors.

All of the girls in front of the tree.

Decor...

More Decor...

Halloween with our bee, Olivia-stein, Ariel and Sebastian Vajda.

Buzzing bee on the go. I wish I had a better shot of her gold/glittered mary janes.

Precious picture of E-Pa, Ella and Gram taken on the lake in Glencoe.

It's officially the eve of Christmas Eve of 2o10. Wow. This year went by faster than the last...this time last year, we were surviving the work/life balance of working parentdom and raising a 6 month old. This year, I feel like we really hit our stride. I am in continued awe of my daughter and husband; our team work is stellar! I just couldn't do it without Scott. Oh, how he puts up with my crafting, my random ideas, my hobbies, my hot mess self.

Here we are, with an 18 month old little lady. She is just hilarious. She is now saying SO many things, running like the wind, trying her best to use the bath tab as a slip-n-slide, telling the dogs to go "AWAY" and asking for things she should not be but asking in the sweetest voice, with the "pleases" growing more and more loud until I cave. Sigh. She also nods her heads when she says "please" which comes out a "peas". I love it. These little things make my heart burst at the seams with happiness and love for my little doll. She is quite the sass, too, but I'm kinda proud of that too because I believe she will have the passion and integrity to stand up for what is right and to voice her opinion when the situation calls for it. I fear, however, that she will inherit her mother's inability to pick her battles which can negate this quality at times. She is a constant reminder to me of the woman I want to be and with her help, I think I am getting there.....

There have been so many things that I haven't posted about! Let's see...what did I miss?

Halloween? Yes, pictures above.....we did our annual walk the neighborhood with the Vajdas. Ella is still a little too little too understand the full situation that is Halloween. Hopefully by next year, she will be marching up the front steps to get her own snickers.

We have had parents in town, parties we have gone to, parties we have hosted and here we are at Christmas! We are staying in Chicago for Christmas again. While I get a bit wistful on days like today, when I think about my family on the east and west coast, I then remember that we have our own little family here in Chicago and I get really excited about sharing this time with just Scott and Ella. Starting our own traditions. It is a small and intimate Christmas, but I can't wait. Uninterrupted days of Scott and Ella time are headed my way and I cannot wait...

We will be going over to celebrate Christmas Eve with the Vajdas and will also head to the Walnut Room at Macy's to have a little lunch. This tradition was started the first Christmas we all spent together, when I was pregnant with Ella. It was so pretty and such a fun memory...

On Christmas, we will wake up, unwrap presents, I will make gorilla bread (thanks, Paula Dean!), and get ready for church. I will make a ridiculous amount of food for dinner and then work it off while taking in the lights of the north shore hoods. Ella will hopefully stay awake this time!

I wish all of my sweet readers the best Christmas. I am so thankful to have some of the sweetest and most thoughtful people in my life. Here's to a fabulous 2011!

Love,
NF