Isaiah Vs. Santa Claus

awwww Bella!



Santa pic 2008 ;-)



Right before Santa


We too Isaiah to see Santa on December 21. He saw Santa at school (pic to come) and according to his teacher was not too fond of him lol. He loves reading about Santa, and knows that he will be bringing presents to him and leaving them under his Christmas Tree. So, he was excited to see Santa at the mall...until we got up close to him. Mommy had to sit on Santa's lap with Isaiah!

Isaiah FINALLY sees Shamu!

Playing Carnival Games!


WOW Shamu is BIG!!

We went to Sea World on Saturday, December 20. Our annual pass expires on December 31, so we figured we would try to get there before the end of the year. This is the fourth time that Isaiah has gone. This is also the FIRST time that he actually saw Shamu! The first time he fell asleep before we got to the show, the second time Shamu refused to come out (according to the people at Sea World, they don't force the animals to come out and do the show if they don't want to), and the third time there was bad weather so they canceled the show! So, Isaiah FINALLY got to see Shamu and he really loved it!

Uh Oh!

Adding on to my love of baking...I decided to bake for the daycare's Christmas party. I made delicious peanut butter cookies with Hershey kisses on top. I did NOT give one to Isaiah, bc he is not a big fan of cookies, so he did not seem too interested in them. Well, this turned out to be a BLESSING IN DISGUISE!

The following morning I took him to his follow up appointment at the doctor. He recently had a double ear infection. Well, this was now cleared up, but we got the results of his allergy testing! Isaiah is allergic to peanuts, as well as egg whites. He has a very high allergy to both of these items, and must carry an epi pen with him. On the lower scale of his allergies are: shrimp, soy beans, cats, and dogs. We must constantly vacuum and keeps the animals out of his room. We do notice that he does sneeze a bit around them. The lowest items he is allergic to are milk and wheat. So, now his milk is limited to 2 cups a day at the MOST. He is also on prescription allergy meds, and his school had to be notified of his severe allergies, and they too must keep an epi pen for him. Very scary! Our next step is the allergist. We no longer keep ANYTHING peanut in the house!!!!!

Christmas Cheer

My new obsession is baking! I have found a new love! I have also come to find that I like to cook, but Paul really LOVES to do that, so I usually don't. But, I find so much joy in baking! I decided for Christmas to bake some items to give as gifts. I found this recipe from a friend, for chocolate chip pumpkin bread. It turned out delicious and I made it for Isaiah's teachers and for Paul's boss. I also plan to debut it at Christmas for my aunt and grandmother. I also made rice krispie treats for Paul, and tomorrow night I am baking peanut butter hershey kiss cookies for Isaiah's school Christmas party!



I borrowed the pic from a friend's blog, but mine turned out the same!! Here is the recipe...you HAVE to try it!

CHOCOLATE CHIP PUMPKIN BREAD

3 cups flour
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
2 tsp cinnamon2 cups sugar
2 cups canned pumpkin
1 1/4 cups oil
4 eggs
1 1/2 cups semisweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350° Grease mini loaf pans.

Combine dry ingredients in one bowl.

In another bowl, beat eggs, sugar, pumpkin and oil. Stir into dry ingredients until moistened.

Then add chocolate chips.

Pour into pans. Bake approx 45 minutes to 1 hour. (toothpick test to make sure they're done)

MERRY CHRISTMAS & ENJOY!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Happy Holidays from us to you!

Our 2008 Christmas Card

Our Christmas Tree!!

We put up our tree on Friday, December 12. It is a tradition to make cookies and listen to christmas carols while we do so, and Isaiah go to stay up late to join in the festivities! He wore his new christmas pj's and looked so cute! The funniest part of the whole night is when we lit up the lights on the tree, Isaiah kept blowing on them like he could blow them out! It was the cutest thing ever! The first pic is of the finished product. Isaiah's new thing is posing for the camera and shouting "CHEEEESE!" So, as soon as he saw the tree all lit up tonight he wanted a pic done!

Christmas Tree Farm

Isaiah went to his first Christmas Tree Farm here in Florida. Getting a tree is nothing like it is in NH, where you can cut down your OWN tree, but it reminds me of the way it was when I lived on Long Island. So, we went and looked for a tree, but did not purchase one here...The prices were outrageous, but Isaiah had fun searching for his perfect Christmas Tree. Check it out!

I PASSED!!!!

Today I took the state certification exam for school counselors. I have heard HORROR stories about this exam ever since I started my master's program about 2 years ago! With the way the economy is today, I figured I should go ahead and take the exam prior to graduating (I only have about a week left of school) so that I can be as qualified a candidate as possible. Not many counselor positions are open right now, and I love my job at the hospital, but I want to be prepared for when I do find the perfect position! I did not really prepare for it, as we have been so busy with the holidays and such. So, I was REALLY nervous this morning bc almost every person I know who has taken the exam has NOT passed it the first time. So as you can imagine, I was SHOCKED when I passed! YAY!

Happy Holidays!

Wow, I can't believe Christmas is RIGHT around the corner!!! We had a wonderful thanksgiving! We had a small celebration here with my brother, and then headed to Port Saint Lucie for some wonderful leftovers at Grandma's on Friday! Isaiah enjoyed playing with our cousins, Megan and James. I did do some Black Friday shopping, and hit Walmart at 430 am! Apparently, I should have gotten their earlier, bc I missed getting the big wheels power jeep I wanted to get Isaiah...so, if you see any deals LET ME KNOW!

ONE WEEK AND COUNTING UNTIL I finish my Master's program! I can't believe it is almost here. It has been a long road, but completely worth it! I have spent the past four months interning at an elementary school, and I have fallen in love with those kids! I will miss them dearrrrrly! Now onto the state certification exam!