Christmassy Blur

I love the month of December, but it always flies by so very quickly. Between shopping, celebrating, trying to stay healthy (not in our house) and all of the other things added in, the month has simply been a blur with no pictures to show.

We have...
* Celebrated a friends homecoming from Afghanistan.
* Spent a ton of family time watching Christmas movies and lighting fires in the fireplace.
* Skied, I don't think we have every skied this early in the season.
* Been to the Y more times each week then we can count between two sessions of soccer and basketball.
* Been sick and home bound.
* Been anxiously waiting for our big trip this weekend. Packing has begun, presents are ready and we have the holiday spirit and we are bringing it to NYC.

We are looking forward to...
* Spending the holidays with our family.
* Having two weeks off for vacation.
* Having a sleep over in Lowville with Great Grandma.
* Going to the SU game on NYE.

Happy Holidays and Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. I'll be back in 2014 with tons of pictures from our holiday adventures.

Leah's Christmas Program

 We went to Leah's Christmas Program at school today. It was all of 5 minutes long, but super duper cute and we loved every minute of it. The kids sang about 5 songs, did some prayers and a couple of poems. Leah was all smiles and she was very excited that Judi surprised the girls, snuck in and came to see them. Leah, Lindsey and Caitlin all go to Judi's so she said she wanted to see her girls. We were told that only two people per family were allowed so if you think you missed it, don't worry we couldn't invite you. Stay tuned for graduation, everyone can come.

 Leah and Caitlin

 Judi's girls

 Leah's boyfriend Michael (wink wink)

Leah and Lindsey with Miss Mary and Miss Sborro

Our WWNY-TV All Stars

We taped our annual commercial the other night and the kids did great. Both spoke and Leah was even loud enough. Maybe the stage fright is disappearing. Let's hope. Stay tuned for upcoming commercial times. We always get so excited to see them on the big screen.

Home Safe

We thought we lost this little guy this past weekend, but thankfully we found with some help from friends and family. As much as I often complain about him, I love him just as much.

Trimming the Tree

 The kids were extra excited to trim the tree this year. They had so much fun unwrapping all of the ornaments and looking them all over before we put them on the tree.

 Our final product. Kids even chose their pose for the annual picture.

Have to LOVE them.

Oh Christmas Tree, Oh Christmas Tree

 We set out on Sunday in search of the perfect tree, well not really, we really went in search of some fresh air, family time and yes a tree. We set out for Copenhagen where we usually go to get our tree, but we were too early on a Sunday so thank goodness for smart phones. We Googled "cut down your own tree in Lewis County" and happened to find a brand new tree farm. It was a ton of fun. They had 20 acres of trees, crafts for the kids, fresh cookies and hot cocoa. It was a great little find.

 Don't mind Leah sitting with a chain saw...yikes.

 We love family days.

Found, chopped and dragged to the truck.

The Polar Express Holiday Show

 The weekend of The Polar Express finally arrived and it was a total success. Both kids (all of the kids) did fantastic. We saw tons of smiles and enthusiasm all around. The show was great and got us all into the holiday mood. I was extra proud of Leah for being so brave and Seth was a natural as always. The surprise of the event was how beautiful Sophia sounded as she sang in a trio. Roland and I were so impressed with her beautiful voice.

Thank you to all of the people in our family who came to see the kids.

We truly appreciate it and loved seeing you all.

Happy Thanksgiving

 Let's just say that Thanksgiving ROCKED this year. The weather was beautiful, everyone was in fantastic moods and the day went perfectly. We had too much food which is just the way we like it. No one is ever going home hungry from our house.

 We were all able to Skype with Justin and that was the most special part of the day.

 4 generations of Mihalyi women together = pretty special

 Grandma Bonnie and Papa Charlton

 Poppy Tom and Grandma Barb

 I accidentally woke up my Gramp as I took this selfie.

 The master turkey cooker

 We passed the turkey hat to just about everyone.

Our feast, it was delish and we just finished the leftovers last night. I really need to cook turkey more often. Thank you to everyone who came, brought a dish and helped to make Thanksgiving extra special.

Turkey Trot

We started a new tradition in 2012 and kept it going this year minus a few people because of the cold temps. We ran the Turkey Trot for the YMCA. Let's just say that Seth ran the entire thing and Ro and I tried our best to run as much as we could. Seth finished 4 minutes before us and in the top 100. We are very proud of him.

Long Overdue Play Date

Leah has been asking me for forever to have Noey for a play date so last Wednesday was the perfect opportunity to have all of the Voss girls over to play. They were fantastic. All five kids played inside and out and never argued once. It was a great way to kick off the Thanksgiving vacation.

Welcome Home Lee

 We were absolutely thrilled to have been able to take part in a huge surprise this week. Lee was able to come home and we all helped to surprise not only Jake and Linds, but Seth and Leah too. It was utterly priceless and so emotional. We are so thankful that Lee is home safe and sound and we look forward to our families spending time together before they move this summer.

 I'm really not sure who was more excited...Jake and Linds or our kids. The excitement in the room was off the charts.

Welcome Home Lee, we are so happy that you are back.

Farewell Snaggle Tooth

Finally, after two long months of a freaky looking snaggle tooth, it is gone. Seth looks so stinking cute and he currently has his baby face back with the loss of his front tooth.

Charlton Wackyness

 It isn't often that we all get together so when we do we are bound for some laughs and a good time. Sheryl and Rachel brought home a lovely turkey hat and some super stylish mustaches so we all tried them out over the course of the night.

 If the weather cooperates you may see me sporting this gorgeous hat for The Turkey Run on Thursday. I'll most likely look like Phoebe from that hysterical episode of Friends.

Thank you Bonnie and Big Ro for a wonderful evening!

Chopped

 Leah and I had a mother/daughter chop off your hair morning and it felt GREAT. I was tired of fighting with Leah about brushing her hair every morning and I was tired of my long long heavy hair so we made an appointment with Brianna and we are both very happy with the outcome.

I think she looks as cute as a button!!

Stage Notes Jr.'s New Additions

 Last year Seth, Sophia and Jake joined Stage Notes Jr. and had such a wonderful time in Kids on Broadway. This year we have some sibling additions to the crew. The kids had such a great time at their mini rehearsal this Sunday and Leah already asked when she can go back because it was so fun.

Come see these wonderful kiddos on Saturday, November 30th at 2pm and 7pm @ IHC.

Pirates & Princesses

 We surprised the girls and took them to a Disney show on Sunday. They both put on their fancy dresses and brought along their Doc and Sophia dolls. The excitement meter was through the roof.

 The show was fantastic; very fast paced, tons of music and dancing. The girls loved every minute.

 I enjoyed my girls day with my girlie too.

Love you Bean.

Thank You Pepsi

 Some pretty amazing Syracuse basketball tickets fell into Roland's lap so the boys took the opportunity to head to the game. The weather was even so warm that they were able to go down early, tailgate and make another trip to Varsity Pizza. It was basically a dream come true for Seth.

An extra bonus for Seth was meeting Otto and having a photo opt.

Bring On the Musicals

Tis the season to start a new musical. Seth has joined Stage Notes Jr. once again and will take part in the upcoming show The Polar Express in November. He had his first rehearsal on Sunday and came home singing. After some peer pressure from her brother and friends it seems that the singing bug has hit Leah and she asked to join in on the action. I texted Ticia on Monday to ask if it was too late for Leah to join and she said YES. Leah and I practiced the two songs last night over and over. Needless to say I now know "Frosty the Snowman" and "Santa Claus is Coming to Town" pretty well. Come check out a fantastic show on Saturday, November 30th. I'll be the parent crying since both of her kids will be on stage. Cross your fingers Leah doesn't chicken out.