And a Partridge in a Pear Tree

"I love presents!  Presents, presents, presents!"

Christmas 2011 was another successful holiday for everyone involved.  For Libby and Mary, it was a five-day marathon of presents, food and family that left everyone with a little bit of holiday shell-shock.  In layman's terms, Libby and Mary cleaned house.  The theme of the year was Disney Princesses and Little People.  Thankfully, Santa came through and brought Libby a set of Princess Barbies, so all is right with the world.  Mary, on the other hand, got a little bit of everything, but the Little People were definitely the hit for her.

Princess Barbies!

Christmas kicked off on Friday night with dinner at Grammie and Papa Yandek's with Papa's family.  On Christmas Eve, it was back to Grammie and Papa Yandek's for dinner with Grammie's family.  Of course, the hit of the weekend for the girls was the arrival of Uncle Tony and Aunt Nellie.  As soon as they showed up, it was if Mom and Dad didn't exist. At both gatherings, there were presents to open; those gifts would have sufficed in making it a successful Christmas.  However, it was only the beginning!

Oh really, another present for Libby?!?!?!

The girls also got to have breakfast on Christmas Eve with Grammie and Papa Hanna, which was a very nice treat, since Mom usually has to work on Christmas Eve.  The other new addition to the Christmas Eve festivities was the Dance Party.  Libby and Mary got the party started and made sure that everyone got in on the fun!

Mary rocking her new monkey hat

Christmas morning was spent at home opening presents from Santa--Disney Princess Barbies, Disney Princess Kitchen, Disney Princess Piano/Vanity.  You get the idea.  Again, all this would have been enough. But, not so fast, my friend!  After mass at St. Patrick's, it was back to Grammie and Papa Yandek's for more presents and more Uncle Tony and Aunt Nellie.  There was more Christmas Carnage there, before moving on to Grammie and Papa Hanna's for naps (the best Christmas present of all for Mom and Dad!), dinner, and, you guessed it, more presents!

Christmas Eve Dance Party with Dad and Uncle Tony

The holiday finally wrapped up on Tuesday night with another round of Christmas at Grammie and Papa Hanna's.  Since Uncle Jerry and Aunt Lauren were out of town, we got to do it all over again with Claire, Corinne and Declan.  More food.  More presents.  More presents.  And more presents.  And it all ended with Libby's very first sleep over at Uncle Jerry and Aunt Lauren's.  Another success!  In all, it's been a great couple weeks of Christmas Holiday.  If only it could be Christmas all year!

More Santa and Some Snow (Finally)!

Two goofballs in front of the tree

It's been non-stop Christmas for Libby and Mary.  In the span of one week, they had three different audiences with Santa Claus, each time doing their best to monopolize as much of his time as possible.  There are some kids who are scared silly by the sight of the big guy in the red suit.  Not Libby and Mary.  From the minute he walks through the door, Libby is all over him.  Mom and Dad have to fight to get her out of the way of other people's pictures, as she refuses to step outside Santa's personal space.  Mary isn't quite as enthusiastic, and sometimes even seems unimpressed, but she is certainly not shy around St. Nick.

Santa at Libby and Mary's House

After seeing Santa at Dad's Christmas brunch, Santa came to the house to see the girls on Wednesday.  Libby was so excited, she danced around the house singing Christmas songs while impatiently waiting for him to arrive.  Santa brought the girls each a Disney Princess doll, after Libby told Santa she wanted "Princess Barbies" and Mary wanted "a toy."  For his troubles, Libby gave Santa a bag of homemade cookies.  Libby's hoping he remembers that on Saturday night...

With Santa at Family Christmas Party

The next go-round was on Friday night at Mom's Family Christmas Party.  As usual, it was a great time.  Libby and Mary had plenty of time to play with cousins--Claire, Corinne, Declan, Moira, Fiona, Emma, Nicholas, Grace, et al.  They made Christmas pictures and ornaments, ate way too many cookies and got to see Great-Grandma.  Oh yeah, and Santa was there.  Once again, if you didn't know any better, you would think Libby was Santa's sidekick/personal assistant.

She's no angel...

Christmas week officially kicked off with some snow on Saturday/Sunday.  Of course, it was gone by Monday, but Libby was able to get out and play on Sunday afternoon.  She and Dad made two snowmen, shoveled, and made multiple snow angels.  After having their fill of snow, Libby and Dad went inside for cookies and hot chocolate.  It was easily one of the best days of the year!

Christmastime Is Here

Libby and Mary with Santa

The Christmas Season has officially arrived for the Yandek Ladies.  In the days since Thanksgiving, which was an enjoyable holiday in it's own right, the girls have done their best to get in to the Christmas Spirit.  It seems everywhere they go--daycare, Grammie and Papa Yandek's, Grammie and Papa Hanna's--there are Christmas toys, decorations, books, music and cookies: all the good stuff that makes Christmas Christmas.  Libby has grown quite fond of "How the Grinch Stole Christmas" and "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer," watching both a number of times.  Likewise, she has quite a few songs in her repertoire, and she will sing them for you almost on command!

Dad, Libby, Corinne and Claire Decorating Cookies

Both Libby and Mary helped decorate the tree...Libby put all her ornaments in one spot--it's very cute and not too difficult to find--and Mary has done her part by rearranging the ornaments from time to time.  The girls are enjoying all their Christmas books and all the other decorations throughout the house.  Libby will gladly tell you how she "decorationed" the tree or "decorationed" the playroom or "decorationed" the living room.  The girls also have two Christmas Countdown Calendars that they look forward to every day.

Libby Showing off Her Gifts from St. Nick

Of course, it wouldn't be Christmas without Santa, and the girls have already had their fair share.  While Libby met him on the Polar Express in November, both girls got to spend some time with him at breakfast on Sunday.  Libby tells Santa every time that she wants Disney Princess Barbies.  Hopefully, the big guy will come through for her, or she'll be extremely disappointed.  Both girls have done a great job with Santa, neither one acting shy or scared, which is good, since they will see him two more times this week!

Mary and Libby Playing in Front of the Tree

Speaking of Santa, the girls enjoyed their St. Nick's Day treats, as well.  Libby got a pair of Rapunzel Christmas socks which, for a while, she refused to take off, and candy cane full of Skittles, which is currently her all-time favorite candy.  Mary got a pair of Dora Christmas socks and a Little People Mrs. Santa car.  The were totally surprised when they found their gifts--very, very cute.  The other fun the girls had was making cookies on Saturday with Mom and Dad, Claire and Corinne, and Aunt Reen.  It was a marathon cookie-making day, to be sure.  Libby was a very good helper, especially when it came time to help eat the cookies!

The Polar Express

Libby with her special gold ticket.

Libby kicked off the Christmas Season on Saturday night with a trip to the North Pole aboard The Polar Express!  It was a special treat for her from Grammie and Papa Yandek.  Libby, Grammie, Papa, Mom and Dad boarded the train a little after six, and by seven, they were on their way to the North Pole!  Just like in the movie, Libby had her golden ticket punched by the conductor.

Libby giving her best HO, HO, HO.

On the way there, an elf read the story "The Polar Express" while other elves passed out chocolate chip cookies and hot chocolate.  Then, everyone practiced their "HO, HO, HO" while waiting to arrive.  Once the train reached its destination, there were lots of holiday lights, reindeer, elves, snowmen, presents, Christmas trees and Santa and Mrs. Claus riding their own train and waving to everyone on board.

Libby meeting the Big Guy.

On the way back, Santa himself stopped by the car to talk to each of the kids.  Everyone got a special present--his or her own bell from Santa's sleigh!  Libby pulled on Santa's beard and told him he wanted Disney Princess Barbies for Christmas.  Of course, she couldn't understand why she didn't get one THAT VERY MINUTE.  Lucky for her, I have it on good information that the Big Guy will be bringing her not one, but seven Disney Princess Barbies!

The Pajama Parade!

After Santa's visit, there were lots of Christmas Carols and a pajama parade for all the kids to show off their Christmas sleepwear.  By the end time the train got back to the station, everyone was a little hot and the kids were pretty much passed out.  It was a great experience for everyone.  Libby especially loved it, although her favorite part of the whole trip wasn't Santa Claus or the North Pole or the bell.  It was the peanut butter filled pretzels Dad bought in the Concession Car.  A girl after Daddy's own heart!

Taking a break...

Not the Annoying Purple Dinosaur

Here, Libby tries to entice Barney to take a treat from her.  They actually get along really well.  Although, Libby has a hard time understanding that sometimes, Barney just wants to be left alone.  Even when he bites at her, she doesn't quite get the message....

Corinne and Libby cutting the rug at the Princess Ball.  Libby, Mom, Claire, Corinne, Aunt Lauren,  Aunt Reen and Grammie all went to the ball.  The girls dressed like their favorite princesses, got to meet their favorite princesses and all had a pretty good time in the process!

Mary has just started feeding herself.  It isn't the most effective food delivery system, but she seems to enjoy it.  Not sure if that's because she feels independent, or if it always leads to bath time...

Although Halloween is over and done with, Libby has managed to keep the Halloween spirit alive.  Everything else got packed away for next year, but the pirate gear is so popular, that we kept it around.  Libby will put it all on and walked around the house saying "Arrgh, Matey."  It's pretty awesome.

Mary has quite the fashion sense.  She loves sunglasses, especially ones that are way too big for her. 

Mary and Barney "playing".  For the first week or so, Barney wanted no part of the girls.  He would pretty much stay in the basement all day until the girls went to bed.  He warmed up to Libby first, since she will give him treats, pet him, play with him, and she doesn't try to smother him or screech at the top of her lungs EVERY TIME she sees him.  For those very reasons, it took Barney a little longer to get used to Mary.  Now, she follows Barney around the house with his "toy on a stick" and tries to get him to play.  Sometimes, he actually pays attention to her! 

Halloween Domination

Mom and Libby pose with the pumpkins.

After sorting through all the candy, we are happy to report that Halloween 2011 was a smashing success for Libby and Mary.  It was a week-long celebration of costumes, candy, family and friends that culminated in a night of trick-or-treats, ghosts and goblins, and lots and lots of candy!  It all started on Wednesday, with story time at the library.  The girls decided to dress as the Snow White twins, to rave reviews.

The happiest pirate you'll ever see!

On Saturday, the girls went with their official costumes for the season--Libby as Ariel and Mary as a pirate.  The day started with Rocky River Early Childhood PTA Halloween party.  There was a trick-or-treat village, snacks, crafts and a magician!  Libby had a ghost painted on her face and made a spooky necklace, while Mary pretty much ran around like a fool the whole time.  Both ladies thoroughly enjoyed themselves.

Is it Snow Whites, or Snows White?

Then it was off to Aunt Reen's store for their Halloween Scavenger Hunt.  The girls especially enjoyed this, since Claire, Corinne, Declan, Grammie, Papa, Aunt Reen, Aunt Lauren and Uncle Jerry were all there.  Again, the girls got to run around in their costumes and picked up some pretty cool treats and toys.  It was a busy morning for the girls, but they were troopers.

The 2011 Halloween Family Picture!

The girls kicked off Halloween with a pajama party at daycare.  They came home with so much candy, they didn't even need to trick-or-treat that night.  That did not stop them, however!  After a quick visit to Grammie and Papa Hanna's, it was home to costume up for the big night.  Grammie and Papa Yandek and Aunt Holly came over to help pass out candy and to trick or treat.  Of course, they brought all sorts of goodies, as well.  Then it was up and down the street for all sorts of good stuff.  Mary only made it halfway, before she had to turn around.  Libby made it all the way up and down the block before ending the night with a cupcake and "Finding Nemo" at her friend Henry's house.  Plain and simple, the Yandek Girls dominated Halloween.  Oh, and they got a cat.  Barney.  But that's a different story...

More Fall Fun

Libby helps Dad blow out the candles!

It's been more fun for Libby and Mary as the weather continues to change.  The girls had fun helping Dad celebrate his birthday.  They especially enjoyed having cake and ice cream with their cousins and going out to breakfast with Grammie and Papa.  Dad's favorite gift was easily the Cookie Monster t-shirt that Libby picked out for him.  (Clearly, she didn't remember that she bought Dad a Cookie Monster shirt for Father's Day two years ago.  Please don't tell her!)

Mary looking rather coordinated.

Unfortunately, both girls have had to deal with ear infections and sinus infections, which has made for a few sleepless nights...for Mom and Dad, who have had to take turns sleeping on an air mattress in Libby's room.    Sadly, these ear infections are becoming old hat, so the ladies are actually pretty good at dealing with them.  Translation: they still have a good time and make a mess of things.

Libby dressed for her first day of "Swim School."

Last Saturday was supposed to be the first day of "Swim School" for Libby and Mary.  However, because of the ear infections, Mary had to stay home.  Libby and Dad had a great time kicking, splashing, blowing bubbles and jumping in the water.  As with all things, Libby loves being the center of attention.  She was easily the loudest most outgoing member of the class.

Shortly after this was taken, Mary floated away.  We haven't seen her since.

Of course, the big news is that Halloween is right around the corner.  The girls will be donning their costumes--Libby as a mermaid and Mary as a pirate--for a number of upcoming events: story time tonight, Halloween party on Friday, PTA Halloween Party and Aunt Reen's Giant Eagle Halloween Party on Saturday, and the big day on Monday.  Libby has been practicing her "trick or treat", so we'll see how all that plays out.  If she can make it past the "Scary Guy" down the street, she should do just fine...

Words, Words, Words

Libby hamming it up in her rain gear.

As Libby has become quite the communicator, Mom and Dad were laughing about her grasp of the English language.  She actually does extremely well for a two-year-old, especially with some of the difficult phonetic pronunciations.  However, she still is just a two-year-old.  Therefore, there are still some pretty funny words that Libby uses quite often.  These are the favorites:

"Jelly choops" = jellyfish
"Choops" = fish
"Orn-ging" = orange
"Famote" = remote control
"Fumpty-fumpty" = rumbly-tumbly
"Pie-der" = spider
"Swim soup" = swimsuit
"Swiperdabox" = Swiper the Fox

Running through the leaves.

While Mary hasn't quite got to the first-word stage, she is developing some of her own personality traits.  She is much more of a wrecking ball than Libby ever was.  Mary gets into everything and leaves a swath of destruction in her wake that would make even General Sherman proud.  Mary's favorite hobby, however, is putting a blanket or towel over her head and running around at full speed.  It's cute and very funny, until she barrels into a piece of furniture and cracks her skull on the hardwood floor.  At this point, if you called Mary "Wrecking Ball" or "Crash", either would be appropriate.  However, Mom prefers to call her "Destructo."  That works, too.

Pictures from a Fun Fall Week

Libby and Mary had a great time running through the pumpkin patch at Gale's Garden Center.   Seriously.  That's all they did.  They ran around and around and around.

On Thursday, Libby, Mary and Dad took advantage of the beautiful weather and went to the zoo.  Here, the ladies are checking out the "stinky camels."  The girls saw all sorts of cool animals: rhinos, reindeer, elephants, monkeys, zebras, giraffes, lions, baby black bears, polar bears, seals, and on and on.  It was definitely a fun Daddy-Daughters Day!

Saturday saw a trip to Mapleside Farms for Pumpkin fest.  Here, Mary gives Dad the stink eye for taking her picture while on a hayride through the corn fields.  Everyone had a lot of fun, although it was very crowded, very hot and very muddy!

Here, Libby does some apple picking at Mapleside.  She did a great job picking out just the right apples!

No explanation necessary...

Mom and Dad tried to take advantage of one last nice day to get some cute Halloween/Fall pictures of the girls.  Unfortunately, it's next to impossible to get both girls to look at the camera at the same time.  This picture would have been awesome had Mary cooperated.  Well, it's still pretty awesome.

The girls thoroughly enjoyed playing in the leaves.  They threw them up in the air, ran through them, made leaf angels and did all sorts of other fun stuff!

Bands, Books and Cookies!

Libby and Mary sporting their rain gear!

Over the last few weeks, Libby and Mary have found themselves making the Grandparent Sleepover Circuit.  When Mom and Dad went out of town for their anniversary, the girls stayed the weekend with Grammie and Papa Hanna.  They had a great weekend with them and Aunt Reen.  The following weekend, Libby and Mary spent the night for the first time ever at Grammie and Papa Yandek's house while Mom and Dad went to a wedding.  Again, they had a great night.  It was somewhat surprising, since they shared a room.  Might this be an omen of things to come?

Reading some books!

On Sunday, Libby, Mom and Dad made cookies, just for funsies.  It's not even October yet, but Libby made some pretty sweet Halloween cookies--ghosts, pumpkins, witches and moons with orange frosting and purple and black sprinkles!  Everyone sampled the goods and then sat down and watched the Browns win!  To close out the weekend, Libby, Mary and Dad read some books together.

Gettin' her groove on to "Hang on Sloopy"!

As Libby gets older, she is starting to develop interests.  Among them are dancing, music and marching bands.  On Friday night, the fam went to the Rocky River Homecoming Parade.  While the parade didn't get washed out, everyone got soaked running back to the car.  But that was just the precursor to Tuesday night, when Libby and Mary got to "March with the Band" at Rocky River High School.  Libby walked around and checked out all the instruments and "played along" with "Hang On Sloopy."  Mary, on the other hand, had a ball running around the field.  Libby has also discovered "Dancing with the Stars."  It's great, because she compares every dancer to a Disney princess, based on the color of the dress.  She dances around the living room and does her best to copy the steps.

Mary marching the field.

It's amazing how quickly Mary has taken to walking.  She took her first steps exactly one month ago today, and she is really doing a great job moving around on her own.  Her balance is good, she has adjusted to wearing shoes, and she can get a pretty good head of steam going.  She is definitely more mobile than her sister was at the same age.  Finally, congrats to Libby and Mary for their first trip to the dentist today.  Both did a great job!

Mary's Big Party

Mary's Monkey Cake

In keeping with tradition, Mary had her own big first birthday party, similar to Libby's a year and a half earlier.  Unlike Libby's, however, it was on the hottest day of the year (or so it seemed) and it was at the Yandek House instead of a rented location (which will never, EVER, happen again).  While it was extremely hot and Mom and Dad were pretty much wiped out by the end, it was a nice day for everyone!  The theme of Mary's party was monkeys, as that is her go-to stuffed animal (and one of the many things her Papa calls her!).  Mom did a great job on the cake, although keeping it from melting was a bit of challenge.

Mary 1 -- Birthday Cake 0

Unlike her sister at her party, Mary had no issues digging into her cake.  And she had ice cream, too.  Lots and lots of ice cream!  There was a craft table for all the kids to make cool stuff, a monkey pinata over-filled with goodies, monkey balloons, toy bags for everyone, and lots of cold beverages for the grown ups.  The hit of the day, however, had to be the bounce house the Uncle Jerry brought over for the day.  The kids definitely enjoyed that!

Mary amidst the carnage!

Mary got lots of cool presents from everyone, too.  While she didn't open them until the next morning, and she had plenty of help from Libby, she loved all the new clothes, toys and stuffed animals.  The whole weekend ended with Claire and Corinne coming back on Sunday for a pancake breakfast and then a trip to Kiddie Park!  The only downside?  Mom and Dad are still cleaning the house!

To Rochester for a Wedding

So for the last couple days, the Yandek Family was in Rochester, NY, for Uncle Tony and Aunt Nellie's wedding. Although there were lots of wedding-related things to do, Libby and Mary did get to enjoy some of the sights and sounds of Rochester. The Museum of Play was a big hit for both girls.
While they were there, Libby got to see some colorful fish, meet Mama Bear, go for a train ride, ride an old-fashioned carousel, check out Sesame Street, go on a pirate ship, and do all sorts of fun things. Meanwhile, Mary was happy to crawl around in the baby maze and smile at herself in the mirror.
After the museum, everyone went to a park on Lake Onterio for a fun afternoon. The girls played at the park, Libby rode another old school carousel (this one had pigs and rabbits and giraffes and other neat animals besides horses), walked on the beach and got to enjoy some Abbott's Frozen Custard.
The girls also had a good time just hanging around the hotel, as all sorts of family and friends were staying there, so it was one big party. Libby played a lot with her new friend, Xander, and she even got to do some grown-up stuff like go to the rehearsal, the rehearsal dinner and the wedding reception, while Mary was pretty much limited to going only the actual wedding.
Speaking of which, Libby did a GREAT job as the flower girl! She walked down the aisle all by herself, and she did it nice and slow like everyone hoped, but no one thought, she would. She decided to walk all the way to Dad at the front of church and waited with him and Uncle Tony while Aunt Nellie walked down the aisle--it was very cute. And when mass was over, she walked back down the aisle with Dad and his partner. More pictures to come!