White Sox FanFest

We were very fortunate and received tickets from one of our friends that works at a Chicago radio station to the White Sox FanFest! Tommy was beyond excited. The FanFest was at a hotel in downtown Chicago, close to Millennium Park. So before we headed in the fest, we checked out the park with the boys. They both loved the bean! Once we got to the fest, the boys LOVED the kid game section. It was great because it wasn't too crowded so they could play games as long as they wanted and they won prizes too! Tommy won a White Sox jersey, AJ won a Frank Thomas bobble head, and I won us ticket vouchers for a game this summer by just spinning a wheel! We were so excited! After the fun and games we got in line to get an autograph from Paul Konerko, Tommy's favorite baseball player. He was so excited. This was serious business and we kind of lucked into getting the autograph by just checking out the area. They limit how many autographs the players do in a night, so we weren't sure if it was going to work out. We went down to scope out his room and they just announced that you would need wrist bands for Konerko, so we got in line for those, got them, and then got in line again for the autograph. Konerko signed a picture we blew up of Tommy on Halloween dressed up as Konerko. It was a pretty fast transaction as his line was very long, but Tommy was ecstatic that he met Paul Konerko. When we got in the car after we left the fest, Tommy said "This has been the best day of my life." It made it all worth it! Here are some pictures of our fun day in the city!

Tommy, Chris, and AJ at the bean

The bean

AJ and me

Family photo at the bean

Fast pitch game at the fest

AJ joining in on the action

The one and only Paul Konerko

Tommy's big moment

So proud!

Pinterest Snowmen

Are you pinning yet? I am! It took me awhile to get into Pinterest as I fully didn't understand it nor did I want to "pin" things that I knew I could never have. Kind of depressing to just look at pictures of things you can never have. So I decided to really only pin things that I can do or find interesting. I pin a lot of recipes, one that I will be trying out later this week! I also like to pin crafts that I can do with the kids. Remember my post about the hand print Christmas trees? Found that idea on pinterest. I also found these cute banana snowmen on pinterest. Easy and fun for the kids. All you need are some bamboo sticks, small chocolate chips, pieces of apples and carrots, pretzel sticks, and bananas. I got all the material ready and cut before Tommy dove into making his snowman. He enjoyed making it (and eating the extra pieces of chocolate)! It was a fun easy way to make a healthy dessert for them! So if you are not on pinterest yet, check it out! It's fun, but be careful it can become addicting! Here are some pictures of our snowmen:

The prepared ingredients

Tommy creating his snowman. Chocolate chips for
the buttons and eyes, pretzels for the arms, apple for the hat,
carrot piece for the nose, and banana slices for the body!

Yummy!

Snow Fun

So we didn't get the 15 inches of snow they were saying...maybe 2 inches? But still enough to have some fun outside. We built a snowman, made snowballs and I even ran them around the yard while they were in the sled...that's quite a workout! They loved it. I know this is bad of me, but I would love just a little bit more snow. We were outside playing and you can still see grass! One big snowstorm on a weekend would be nice...and then it can go away until next year!

AJ was very concerned about the snowman's hat

Snowballs!

Snow Angels!

Happy New Year

Another year has come to an end. They just seem to keep flying by so quickly! Here is a year in review for the Cullen Family.

Chris is still working hard for Whirlpool and enjoying his job and the new endeavors it brings him. He has also been hard at work earning his MBA from Indiana University. This has required him to wake early in the morning and work some weekends to complete course work on top of his regular job and family life. Sometimes I don't know how he does it, but he does and manages his time amazingly. I'm so proud of his efforts to support our family. Chris also spent time coaching Tommy's soccer league this past fall. Tommy and Chris both enjoyed this, it was a great bonding time for them.

Tommy still attends preschool 3 times a week. He has become so interested in learning how to read and solve math problems. I know this kid is ready for kindergarten next year. As for me, I'm not sure, but I have to accept that my job is to also let him grow and learn on his own. I know he will do great. He has enjoyed playing soccer this year too and is something he will keep doing along with adding baseball this spring. His love for sports grows everyday!

AJ turned two this year! He is talking more and more everyday too. We have noticed him talking in complete sentences lately. He is an active little guy and loves to play with brother Tommy. They have become such good friends, which warms my heart.

I continue to stay at home with the boys and feel blessed that I am able to do so. We have so much fun on a daily basis. Now, don't get me wrong, we have our moments too. But it is so neat to watch them grow into the little gentlemen they are becoming.

As a family we again took a vacation to Disney World this past spring. We had a wonderful time and created memories I will forever cherish.

All and all 2011 was a great year for us and I cannot wait to see what 2012 has in store. Here is our year in review:

January

February

March

April

May

June

July

August

September

October

November

December

Christmas

We had a wonderful Christmas this year. And it appears that both boys made the nice list this year!

On Christmas Eve morning, our elf, Malcolm, had to head back to the North Pole to help Santa fill the sleigh. But before he left, he wrote a note to each boy and filled everyone's stocking, including the dogs' stockings too. Then we headed to Mo and Papa's for the day. There we had a special visit from Santa! The kids were so excited. He gave each grandkid a reindeer to thank them for feeding his reindeer throughout the year.

Christmas morning we opened gifts. It was surprising this year because Tommy rushed through his presents. AJ, however, took his time. He would carefully take off the bow first, then rip the paper little by little. Then AJ would want to play with the new toy for a bit before he moved onto the next present. We had to stall Tommy for awhile so AJ could catch up! Tommy received an VTech Innotab from Santa this year. What a neat toy! Santa had searched and searched for the popular LeapPad, but had no luck. So we decided upon the Innotab which was a great investment for us. Tommy loves playing it. AJ received many Disney guys which he completely loves. He also received a Handy Manny work bench. AJ loves to "fix" things...I just don't know if I would hire him out quite yet! Tommy also got his much wanted real Lightening McQueen remote control car. He LOVES it, and so does AJ. AJ really gets a kick out of just watching Lightening race around the room and talk. It is a pretty neat toy.

All and all a wonderful Christmas. It seemed to come and go so quickly this year, but we made such wonderful memories with the boys. These memories I will cherish always.

The stockings filled and notes left by Malcolm

AJ waking Tommy up Christmas Eve

The dogs checking out the goods

Santa! AJ waited so patiently for his gift!

All the grandkids

Decorating cookies for Santa

Tessa's creations...too bad you can't see all the sugar she put on!

After Christmas Eve mass, they all behaved wonderfully!

My attempt at being a photographer. Yes, it's supposed to be
fuzzy! I read all about how to take these pictures and how
artistic they are. Chris thought I made a mistake posting this photo...

Santa came!

Santa left a few things behind while eating cookies!

Merry Christmas

From our home to yours, we wish you all a very merry Christmas

and a wonderful New Year!
Love,
The Cullens

My Two Santas