Family 2014- MERRY CHRISTMAS

We just wanted to wish you a MERRY CHRISTMAS from our family to yours!!

 Christmas is such a special time. We are praying this Christmas brings you and your family good health and lots of sweet memories with friends & family!!!

MERRY CHRISTMAS 

from the Tennison's, 

(for the last time this year) 

party of four! 

Tennison Crew

Kees Crew

Daddy, Hadley, Layton, Michael 

Thanksgiving 2014 {2yrs old}

{Our Thankful Thanksgiving 2014}

This Thanksgiving was wonderful! We enjoyed lots of yummy turkey, desserts and family. We started the morning off at Steve and Denise's and had a great lunch with the Tennison side! The girls watched the parade on TV and loved all of the balloons. After lunch, the girls (and Momma) then napped {Hadley on my chest, which is the most wonderful feeling ever} We then headed over to Coppell for Thanksgiving take 2! Melissa's in-laws, the Fox family, invited our family over and we had one large Thanksgiving meal. It truly was a wonderful day! The girls had fun running around and loved all the extra hugs, holding and kisses shared by both families. 

We hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving, too! Here are a few favorite images to show just how big our littles are getting! 

honk,  honk

Preschool 

Dancing in the leaves at the park! 

Baby Talk- 29 Weeks

Hello, Third Trimester! Please slow down, time! 

How Far Along: 29 weeks 

Size of Baby: The size of a squash;15 inches {wow}

Sex/Name: Ally Ann

What you're doing this week: We are finishing decorating for Christmas, shopping for family members, going to a Moms of Multiples Christmas breakfast with Santa, and a Christmas light parade in downtown McKinney!

Cravings: Sweets! With the twins, I wanted nothing sweet. This pregnancy is very different in that aspect.  Can I just add that being pregnant during the holidays is the BEST!

Sleep: Still great! I have a wonderful maternity pillow that I sleep with each night.

Fetal Movement: She loves to move in mornings and the evenings when I sit down. I can see movement when watching my belly- which is really neat and creepy at the same time! :)

How are you feeling? Great! This has been a wonderful pregnancy! Can I just throw one thing out there?? I didn't know or realize that carrying twins was hard. With it being my first pregnancy, I didn't know any other way, and just assumed that carrying twins was similar to just one. To me, just the simple fact that you would be larger with twins, right?

MAN, I was w-r-o-n-g. Carrying one baby has been fabulous.  I am still comfortable sleeping, driving, getting dressed, and completing every day activities are still easy to continue doing. I know as I make my way into the 30 weeks of pregnancy that I'll slow down and things will become more difficult, but running after twins while being pregnant, I'll take all the easy I can get! 

Click Here to read about my weekly update at 28 weeks with the twins. 

Delivery: Baylor McKinney, last week of February! We are going to try for a VBAC.

(vaginal birth after cesarean) It's been on my mind for a while and I think God has placed it there for a reason! We are going to go in with an open mind and are fine with a c-section if need be. With lots of prayer, we are going to give this a shot!

(my recovery with a cesarian with the twins was hard (maybe because there was two in this belly? And the blood loss that lead to the blood transfusion, eek!) Knowing that I will have two littles who need me, after Ally Ann arrives, makes me want to do what's best for them, too!) To read our birth story with your twins, click HERE.

Nursery colors/plans: Gold, white and a touch of pastel pink! We have decided on nursery plans and I am so excited to start putting it together. I'm in no rush, so we are planning on decorating after the holidays! I can't wait to share pictures with you. 

Here are a few images of the pregnancy thus far! 

22 weeks

23 weeks

24 weeks

27 weeks 

Fall Fun/Happy Halloween *late- better than never!

Fall Fun/Halloween 2014 

The Dallas Arboretum has an amazing pumpkin display for little ones 

(and lets be honest, it's amazing for adults to see, too!) 

Layton *Pumpkin head* and Hadley

Layton & Hadley {24 months}

Kisses for Momma

Pumpkin Patch petting zoo by our home

The girls were Go-Go Girls/Dancers for 

Halloween this year! 

We took them trick or treating in our home towns adorable downtown Square! I love the small town feel of our big city, McKinney.  Every holiday the city does something family related in the square! The girls were a little spooked by some of the faces and masks, but over all did great walking up to the strangely dressed strangers and getting candy. They kept pointing and saying, "ooooooh". Next year will be a blast. They'll truly "get" it! 

{Ps- I had made go-go boots for the girls to wear... total Pinterest fail on this Mommas part. 

They ripped them right off.}

Gram and Grumps came along for the fun, too! We went back to their neighborhood country club to let the girls jump and go down a blow up slide. We were shocked that they climbed up ALL by themselves and went down the large slide.  

Hadley loved flipping to her belly and sliding down

After "Scare in the Square" and slide fun, we headed down to our neighbors, Chuck and Ashley's, home for a Halloween cookout! They have two large, fake, black spiders *thats a little creepy* on their home. Every time we drive by, the girls call out, "Itsy!" We sing Itsy Bitsy Spider, too! It was my way of keeping them from getting scared. The entire time that we were at the cookout, the girls pointed out the, Itsy Bitsy, spiders. 

This age is a blast! They are too cute, and we just love watching them grow! To view our little Pumpkins from last year, click HERE! 

We hope you all had a wonderful Fall! 

Layton and Hadley turned TWO!

Pumpkins at the Park turned into Pumpkins in the Backyard! The weather was dreary and chilly so home we came. 

I really loved the idea of a park party...next year! 

The girls had a blast at their 2nd birthday party! They ran, played, and were passed around by all of their favorite people in the world.

Danielle and Tanya

Pumpkin decorating (super easy craft for kids!)

For the 'Thank You' gifts- I removed the labels and added "stems"/pipe cleaners. There were markers provided for the kids to draw pumpkin faces on the front of each bottle. 

I plan on framing all of their bday party invites to have for each years party. 

Wrapping bottles of water makes for
such a great pop of color!

Pink and Pumpkins was a perfect theme!

Lunch was easy and yummy! 

Everyone enjoyed hotdogs with the option of chili and cheese, chips, fruit, veggies, and a yummy corn dip that Michael made! 

A coffee bar was set up last minute due to the chill in the air and MAN did everyone enjoy it. Michael's Dad, Steve, brewed four pots of coffee. It was a hit!

Steve, Grandmother, Daddy 

Layton, Mom, Lynley, Aunt Joanie, Melissa, Hadley

Yum, Yum! 

Am-ee (Grammie), Layton, Lala, and Hadley 

Maegan, Ashley & Lindsey 

Harper and Kayla

Amanda and Becky

Adam and Adelyn 

Friends and family came... left... and then came back! We had a full house until midnight.

 I love hosting in our home. It's one of my favorite things todo. While the girls took their afternoon nap, Melissa, Lynley and I made a second trip to the grocery store to grab items to grill/ yummy dips and sides to eat for dinner. That evening we had a bathtub full of babies, pack-n-plays set up all over the house, and friends sitting around the fire pit. It was a wonderful night!

 We are blessed with an amazing group of family and friends who live near by! 

A last minute cookout on the patio with friends was the perfect ending to the great celebration.