Dear Santa...

Tonight during dinner Bronwyn was talking about how excited she is for Christmas and how much she loves Santa. Then she folds her hands in her lap and closes her eyes and says, "Dear Santa, I love the snow and I love to make a snowman. But he never comes to life. When you fly over can you please sprinkle some pixie dust so that he can be real. I love you Santa!"

Too bad this is one wish I don't think can come true...

Polar Express Train Ride

"The thing about trains...
It doesn't matter where they are going.
What matters is deciding to get on."

We took Bronwyn and Hayden for a very special trip this year down to Durango to board the Polar Express Train! Danny and I were so excited about the trip and waited till the last night to tell the kids the surprise. They were definitely excited but I don't think they realized what was truly going to happen. We had over a 7 hour drive down to Durango where the magic happens. We made the trip, checked into our hotel. grabbed some dinner and then we were off for our ride.
The train ride is based off the book, The Polar Express. We waited in the train station until they opened up the doors and we got to go outside as the train arrived. Once it pulled up the conductor came out onto a platform and the main character of the book comes out too. Here's a video of the excitement!

On the train we were all served hot chocolate and cookies from the chefs that ran our car dancing around. The conductor came through and punched all of our tickets and Bronwyn decided that hers read, "believe". All the music from the movie was playing!


























The train took us to the North Pole where we got to stop and open up the windows and see all the buildings. Santa was also there! Afterwards, Santa got on the train and held up a special sleigh bell from his reindeer. He announced it as "the 1st gift of Christmas" and walked up the train aisle and stopped and handed it to Hayden! It was so amazing! Hayden was absolutely thrilled! There is just no way to describe the magic of the moment. Once all of the other kids aboard the train received their bells we took the trip back to the station while hearing the story read and seeing the book and then singing Christmas carols.


















Once we got back to the station we got to see some of the reindeer and then headed inside the train museum for pictures with Santa. We had bought Hayden a pocket watch from the gift shop before boarding and it really kept his attention every second. While waiting for Santa he managed to break the clasp and the lid from the watch fell off. He was so distraught and cried and cried. I calmed him down and told him we could replace it after we saw Santa. He seemed okay but once he saw Santa and started walking up he went into the most emotional cry I have ever seen and told Santa he broke it and asked for him to bring him a new one for Christmas. It was so sad and so adorable. Santa and the photographer turned the tears around and had the kids laughing so much for the photo. It was really sweet to have them in their pajamas with Santa having such a fun time!









This whole trip was so much fun! Danny is already planning to do it again next year. I loved that we could do something so special to the kids. They watch the movie all the time and often act it out when the are pretending. I will cherish this memory!

Time for Trick-Or-Treating!

Halloween Day brought prefect weather and not too chilly of a night! The kids headed out for treats with their cousins Alex and Logan. They have so much fun going out together each year. Bronwyn and Hayden were Cinderella and Prince Charming. This was Hayden's 1st year to really understand the concept and get what it was all about. He loved being with the other kids and was very, very polite. He actually tried to stick around and chat with a lot of people! I got lots of compliments from other parents out on Hayden's costume. They loved that he was Bronwyn's Prince. At some houses the person handing out candy would even call someone else to the door to see them. And Hayden was hamming it up! He even gave some people a special bow as he left! After we decided the kids had enough loot we headed back to our house and all the kids passed out all of our candy. They loved giving handfuls to every trick-or-treater!

Jones Halloween Party!

We had such a fun time last year throwing a Halloween Party for the kids and our family that we wanted to do it again this year. Tons of food, fun games for the kids and the haunted house again in the basement! Everyone seemed to have a great time. Here are some pictures from the night!

Trick Or Treat!

Click on the thumbnail to see my silly Hayden!

Leaves Fall All Around

As much as I am not a fan of the trees in our front yard and where they were placed, we do have the most leaves on our lawn this time of year and it always makes for fun. We went out to do a little raking and Bronwyn and Hayden loved making a big pile of leaves and running and jumping into it. They never wanted to stop! Here are a couple of the action shots!

Annual Trip to Anderson Farms!

I absolutely love this time of year and the fun things that we do to enjoy it. My favorite of all is our trip to Anderson Farms. I love seeing how much the kids remember and also the new stuff for them to see each year. This year we went with my parents, my brother Danny and his family and also Danny's brother James and his family. We started off as usual with breakfast at the Cracker Barrel. Afterwards we headed out to the Pumpkin Farm. The weather was perfect and by getting out there early we got ahead of the crowds. The kids all had fun running around and getting onto everything. There is so much for them to do. We all got on my favorite part of the trip, the wagon ride to the pumpkin patch! We unloaded and went in search of perfect pumpkins for both Bronwyn and Hayden. Afterwards we go back to the farm and the kids played in mazes and the train, rode ponies and roped cattle! We had such a fun time!

PUMPKINS!









Cousins and the Cornucopia!
Logan, Alex and Drew!











My picks of the patch! ;)











Our family at the giant cornucopia!










Copy and paste this link to see a few more pictures from our fun day!
http://s82.photobucket.com/albums/j255/tjones_2006/October%202011/

Time for the Circus!

Going to the circus was extra exciting this year! Only Bronwyn and I went last year and I was really excited for Hayden to be able to go and really enjoy it. We all went along with my parents to see the show. The seats were got were perfect, they were up a little but we had the 1st row seats and the kids were able to stand up as much as they wanted since there was no one in front of us. As soon as the show started the kids both looked so thrilled. Bronwyn kept turning around and giving me the most ecstatic look that was worth every penny I spent! Hayden was so fun to watch! He loved clapping and cheering for every act. So glad we could take them out for such a special night!