Elf on the Shelf Has Arrived!

Rudy watching from our dining table centerpiece

INTRODUCING..."RUDY!" (short for Rudolph, of course!) Our very own Elf on the Shelf has come to visit our home for the Christmas holiday. He arrived on the Sunday after Thanksgiving! Caroline was SO EXCITED to meet him.

First, we read his book and found out that we needed to give him a name. The first name that she picked was Rudolph, of course! Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer is her favorite this Christmas, so everything is about Rudolph! So, since Rudolph is a reindeer, we decided to go with "Rudy" for short...get it...short, like an elf! ;)

Each day Caroline wakes up asking to go find HER elf, Rudy! See, each night while Caroline is sleeping, Rudy flies back to the North Pole to visit Santa and give him a report on whether Caroline was naughty or nice that day! When Rudy arrives back at our house the next morning he appears in a new place in the house.

I'm not sure if she understands the concept of reporting to Santa, because we've had a few occasions where she has been a little naughty! I remind her that Rudy is watching, but the excitement of Rudy has worn off a bit and she doesn't seem to worry so much about him watching! ;) She does however look forward to finding his new "spot" in the house each morning!

Here's to the start of a new Christmas family tradition for years to come!

Hope you all are having a wonderful holiday season...here's to all the busy elves in our lives!

Love,
Caroline's Mommy

Happy Thanksgiving 2010

This year was our year to celebrate Thanksgiving with my family...The Wilders. We usually spend the week of Thanksgiving at the Outer Banks, but this year, we decided to stay in Richmond and have Thanksgiving at the house.

We all had a great time! We ate way too much, the guys watched A LOT of Football, and the girls got to do some shopping! All in all a fun time! Caroline especially had a FUN time playing non-stop with her Cousin Bella!

We are all so blessed and thankful for our family and friends...oh, and by the way, Caroline is thankful for "Bunny Rabbits & Reindeer!" Well, this is according to her art project that she created at school...was hoping for a Mommy & Daddy but I guess there could be a lot worse things to be thankful for than Bunny Rabbits & Reindeer! ;)

Hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving...the Holiday Season has now arrived...happy shopping and be merry!!

Love,

Caroline's Mommy

The Wilder Family at Thanksgiving

Our Family of 3

Grandma & Grandad with us

Grandma & Grandad with my Brother's Family

A pic of Brian & I taken by our little girl...not a bad photographer! ;)

Caroline with Cousin Allie

Caroline with Cousin Bella

Caroline dancing for the camera

Caroline Posing for the Camera

Peek-a-Boo

Happy 3rd Birthday to our Sweet Caroline

I guess I should actually say, "Happy Birthday, to our Sweet Birthday Cowgirl, Caroline!"

We called all our Cowgirl and Cowboy friends to come join in on the "My Little Pony" Birthday fun! And we did have LOTS of fun! We had crafts, LOTS of sweet treats, games, face painting, and of course the highlight, "Creamsicle" the pony! We even got a petting zoo for FREE!! It was LOTS and LOTS of fun!

Mommy & Daddy had such a special day seeing our Sweet Caroline having so much fun on her BIG DAY! It's hard to believe that she is 3 years old!! I know everyone says it, but, seriously, where has the time gone! She is such a sweet, loving, caring, smart, and of course the cutest little girl in the world! I know we are a little biased, but she IS our little girl!! :)

Caroline, we LOVE you BIG BUNCHES and you make us so proud to be your Mommy & Daddy...the BEST feeling in the world!

Enjoy the pics everyone...I think they capture Caroline's Special Day Best!!

Love,

Caroline's Mommy

Our Birthday Cowgirl...she's ready for her party to begin!

Caroline with her Cousin Bella

Birthday Cowgirl striking a Cowgirl pose for the camera!

Daddy with his Special Cowgirl

Mommy with her Special Cowgirl

The "My Little Pony" Party Decorations

The girls were so excited to see the Pony arrive...AND the Petting Zoo, which we didn't know we were getting...BUT it was FREE!!

Our Birthday Cowgirl riding "Creamsicle"...the birthday Pony!

Taking a break from riding...she had gotten a butterfly painted on her cheek from the face paint artist...so cute!!

Our Cowgirl riding again!!

And more riding!
Pics of a few of the pets from the petting zoo...by the way...Caroline took these herself!

Caroline LOVED all the animals!

Caroline posing with some of her friends...although you can't see her...she's hiding behind her Cotton Candy!

Caroline posing on her Birthday Pony, "Creamsicle" with all of her friends!

Mommy & Daddy with their Birthday Cowgirl & "Creamsicle" too!

Pops & Grandma B with their Birthday Cowgirl

Grandad & Grandma with their Birthday Cowgirl

Cousin Bella & Aunt Maya with their Birthday Cowgirl

Caroline LOVED her Birthday Pony!

Caroline posing with "Creamsicle"

Caroline saying goodbye to her Pony friend

Caroline...ALL SMILES...as her friends sing "Happy Birthday" to her

Caroline's "My Little Pony" Birthday Cake, well actually it was made of 48 cupcakes...yummy!

One of Caroline's favorite moments of the party...Cupcakes!

All of her friends enjoying their sweet treats!

Pinata Time...1-2-3 Pull! More Candy treats!!

Caroline striking a Birthday Cowgirl Sassy Pose

Present time!! And LOTS of them!

Caroline listening to her card from Mommy & Daddy...I Love her expression here...priceless!

Our 3 year old Birthday Cowgirl on her BIG GIRL Bike, her present from Mommy & Daddy

Out Sweet Little Witch - Halloween 2010

Happy Halloween!
This year Caroline decided that she wanted to be a Witch for Halloween. Well, let me just say that this decision did not come easily. For weeks leading up to Halloween, her costume choices changed almost daily. I waited until closer to the day to make sure that the idea of being a Witch was going to stick. And, obviously it did! She was so EXCITED!

She wanted to be a Sweet Witch not a Scary Witch. So I decided that the best costume idea would be to wear a colorful Witch-Like tutu to create a Sweet appearance. So, I bought the tulle and ribbon and created a fun tutu for her to wear...and she LOVED it! She walked out of the door Halloween night and announced to the kids across the street that she was a Witch! It was so cute to see the big smile on her face. And every Little Witch needs to have a Big Witch, right?!? So, I decided to put on my Witch's Hat and join my Sweet Little Witch in some trick-o-treating fun!

Caroline had LOTS of fun Trick-o-Treating! She got TONS of candy! There were a couple of scary houses that she wasn't too sure about, but for the most part, she had a lot of fun trick-o-treating with her friends. We knew when to call it a night when her feet started to hurt...most girls have had moments when their feet have hurt due to wearing such fashionable shoes...which was the case here! A girls gotta do what a girls gotta do!

Hope you all had a Happy Halloween 2010...now, what to be next year!!

Enjoy the pics of our Sweet Little Witch!

Love,
Caroline's Mommy

Our Sweet Little Witch

Every witch needs a broom!

Our Sweet Little Witch is ready to take flight on her broom!

Look at that smile...

A close up of our Sweet Little Witch

Caroline with a couple of her friends...they were all so cute!

Mommy Witch and Little Witch

Trick-o-Treating with some friends.

One tired Little Witch at the end of the night!

Two tired Witches at the end of the night!

Daddy with his Sweet Little Witch.