My name is Olivia, and I am a bloglifter...

Yes, I have bloglifted all of the following photos from my sister and mom. I don't know why I never take my camera anywhere, or if I do remember to take it I don't get it out to actually take pictures. Wait, I do know why. Just getting out of the house with my three children (and hopefully a diaper and wipes for Eli) is usually all I can do. If, by some miracle, I do take my camera I don't often get a break from wrangling my kids to take it out and snap any photos. So, that is why I have to have a post with nothing but cute pictures of my kids that other people have taken!

Eli and I at the bottom of the sledding hill.
The sun was shining, the temperature was pretty mild, and the kids were having a blast. Eli and I just sat at the bottom of the hill watching.

Noah and Mia making it down the sledding hill WITHOUT a sled.
You may (or may not) be surprised to know that Noah was the first to just throw himself down the hill without a sled. It worked quite well and soon all of the kids were doing it.

Me and my sisters.
As the years pass by it seems that the times we are all together happen
less and less often, so we really do cherish the time we spend together.

Elijah's first New Year's Eve.
Elijah woke up a little bit before midnight and was able to enjoy the festivities. This is quite possibly the cutest picture I have ever seen of my little baby boy!

Elijah with Grandpa McNeil.
A testament to the fact that he loves to laugh and smile.

Eli and Evan. (and me and Patrice!)
These two boys are less than one month apart in age and I am so excited that they can grow up friends and cousins. Rick and I both had cousins our exact age and we were and are best friends with them. I feel so lucky that my kids have such fun cousins to grow up with.

Grandpa, Luke, and Noah working with Lucy.
We got a horse earlier last spring, and this fall Grandpa got the boys out to start working with her. They brushed her, got a saddle on, and even rode on her a little bit! Quite amazing for her first time. I grew up riding horses a lot and am exited that my boys can do the same.

Christmas and more

In addition to Christmas, there have been a few other fun things going on around here I thought your might like to see.

Noah is always busy! He loves to be a "worker boy", especially helping his dad and grandpa outside. Yesterday he put on his boots, gloves, and hat and went into the garage to get some wood to start a fire. I thought that he was so darn cute all dressed as a "worker boy".

First of all, please ignore the fact that I look like I am 70 years old. I blame the low lighting and the fact that this picture was taken after midnight, but the truth is...I am just old! Anyway, this is what happens when you stand on a chair in your slippers, holding a baby, with children below you while trying to decorate a Christmas tree. I was attempting to get off the chair when I lost my balance and crashed head-first into the entertainment center. Since I was holding Eli in my arms I couldn't break my fall with my hands. And since Noah was below me, I couldn't just step off the chair onto my feet. Instead I went head-first into the edge of the entertainment center and landed on Noah in the process. Needless to say I had a HUGE headache and an enormous goose egg (with a canyon down the middle). I had just gotten my hair cut that day, and I was excited to show it off, but for the next week everyone that saw me was only interested in the gash on my forehead! I am hoping that it won't leave too much of a scar, but Rick has assured me that even if it does he will still love me. He will call me scarface, but he will still love me.

The week before Christmas, Elijah turned 6 months old. I can't believe he is halfway to one year old. He continues to be such a happy baby, but has gotten so spoiled that he SCREAMS like he is going to die if I am not holding him. He doesn't even like his dad to hold him if I am around. He can sit up pretty well, although he often takes a tumble when he starts looking around. At the doctor's visit I found out that he is too skinny! It was quite a surprise to me, and anyone who has seen the rolls on his legs. He was only in the 25% for weight, the 50% for height, but his head was still at 70%! I sure hope his body catches up to his head someday.

I posted a Christmas slide show below, so take a minute and check-out our Christmas pics!

Christmas Photos

If you are like me you have already seen a dozen Christmas Morning slide shows, but it really is the best way to share lots of fun photos! We had a great Christmas, and I am already looking forward to next year. It seems to come and go faster and faster every year. I love to have so much time to spend with families, and especially to have Rick home to have special time with us. I hope all of you had a great Christmas too!