Happy New Years from the Reedells!!

HAPPY NEW YEAR'S TO YOU

A new year is beginning to peak through
softly beautiful and different like new falling snow,
each day unique and shaped just for you.
Your life adding something as each day does grow.
My wish for your new year is beauty
and softness with surprises thrown in for delight.
Love for each day bringing happiness to you,
making your life a scene of sparkle and shining sunlight.

-- Author Unknown

girls in their new car

After a bunch of days of bone chilling weather here in PA, Angela and Elyse finally got to go for an outdoor ride in their artic cat! They loved it... and can't wait to do it again... now the weather just has to cooperate!!

out with the "old" and in with the "new"...

We sadly (ok, it was mostly me...) drove my 2003 RAV 4 to the dealership and traded it in on a 2010 Dodge Journey on December 30th, 2009. It was strange to think that I'll be getting in a new car, after driving the RAV for almost 125,000 miles (and it was brand new when I bought it) ... but the time was now. I had a few problems with the car in the last few months and it required some expensive fixes, and with the high miles, we figured we might as well jump in. I did some research on-line and came across what seemed to be the "perfect fit" for our family. The Journey is a 7 passenger (three rows of seats, but the third row folds flat while not in use) all wheel drive crossover. We test drove it and decided that it was for us. The toughest part was choosing the color... but my love of red won, and now we once again have a red vehicle. So, while we are VERY happy to have a new car in our garage, I will always have a special place in my heart for the RAV 4!!!

my 2003 RAV 4 - hard to believe this car had 125,000 miles on it, still looked VERY good...

and my new car... 2010 Dodge Journey....

Here's to a great journey for years to come....

Merry Christmas!

The Nicest Present

Under the tree the gifts enthrall,

But the nicest present of them all

Is filling our thoughts with those who care,

Wanting our Christmas joy to share.
To you, whom we're often thinking of,

We send our holiday joy and love.

By Joanna and Karl Fuchs

Merry Christmas from the Reedell Family!!

it may be snowy outside....

but the pool sure did feel FANTASTIC!! We had the opportunity to stay over at mom-mom and pop-pop's house (since Angela finished school at the end of last week) and go visit Aunt Erin at the YMCA where she teaches. Due to the snowy conditions, many of the "older" people who take her class didn't show up today, so we basicly had the pool to ourselves. Angela and Elyse showed off their bikinis... and swam ALL over the pool. They are full blown fishies and were in the water for a full hour. We had a great time... and can't wait to go swimming again with Aunt Erin!!!

oh christmas tree... number 2..

Last year we enjoyed having a real tree in our sunroom that we decided to do it again. We have our artificial tree in our formal living room with all of the handmade ornaments... and the real one in the sunroom only gets white lights, red bows, and candycanes. It looks sooo beautiful especially with the snowy backdrop. And now it looks even more like christmas!!!

Snow, snow, snow... everywhere!!!

It happens sooo often that the forcasters "predict" a storm, they hype it, and then we get NOTHING. But this time, they downplayed the storm earlier in the week, and by the end of the week it was headed right towards us. It was a HUGE storm. It started snowing early on saturday morning, and continued throughout the day. The snow was fine, but there was ALOT coming down. By the evening time we had at least a foot, and it was still coming down hard! When we awoke on sunday morning, we had ALOT. It was hard to tell how much, since we had lot of drifting and blowing. According to the news stations, Philadelphia got 23.5" of snow... more than all of last winter combined. But it was beautiful, the sun was out and the snow glistened in the trees... what a perfect "almost winter" day.... Guess we have to wait and see what the rest of winter will bring...

some pics of our house and all of the snow....

nature's beauty...

the girls were spending the weekend at mom mom and pop pop's house... so I finally got some "snow time with them" when I went to pick them up on sunday... now I REALLY look forward to getting home and sledding at our house!!!

ready to dine in style...

we've been talking about painting below the chair rail in our dining room for a while... and this past weekend we decided to do it!!! The color is VERY dark in comparison to the off white walls that were there before, but it spices up the room nicely. Hope you like!!

Santa's Favorite Pets

Christmas isn't just for the kiddos... it's also for our furry friends!! A bunch of years ago we had taken pictures of the ferrets (before cats) and then the cats and the ferrets (the first year we had the cats) and haven't done any since then - probably "too busy with the kiddos"... but this year, I was told about santa having "pet visiting hours"... and off I went!! I first went over with Ollie the bunny, since he had NEVER seen santa... and he did great. It took NO time and he did perfectly, so I came home and switched animals and took the cats back with me for a second go around. While they were NOT as calm, they did great, and the pictures came out cute!! So, here are santa's favorite pets... enjoy!!!

The Santa Train...

What's better than a train ride? Well, a Santa Train ride of course!! Today we took a road trip to Hackettstown, NJ for an hour long train ride. We were entertained by some carolers, some elves singing music, santa's helpers handing out gifts, and of course Santa Claus!! We all had a great time, and HUGE thanks go out to grandmom for scheduling this fun day!!!!

The day ended up even being more fun since we got to go back go grandmom's house, have a nice lunch and the girls got to play with their cousins...

And Angela got some "cuddle time" with grandmom...

We love you grandmom!!!

love, Angela and Elyse

Visit with Santa....

So, we try to get the girls to smile for a picture with Santa... last year was a NO go for Elyse. So, we had just Angela on his lap and she did great. This year we were a bit hesitant spend the time waiting in line and then not to want to be anywhere close to him. But we gave it a try today! We picked up Angela from school, then headed over to Neshaminy Mall to visit with Santa. The line was pretty long, and they did away with the "beepers", so we waited for almost an hour. The girls were VERY well behaved... maybe bribing them with lunch at Friendly's after we were done helped.... and finally we were up... So, Elyse was scared, she didn't really want to sit on his lap. We ended up pulling a bench up infront of Santa, the girls held hands, and we actually got somewhat good smiles. It's always an adventure with these two!!!

And by the way, I hadn't intended on them wearing the same outfit today... they insisted... and if I had a dollar for each person who asked "are they twins"... I'd be rich right now.....

RIP Bob....

After 15 years by my (megan's) side, we are sad to report that sometime around December 6th, 2009 bob the crab gave up his 8 little legs for wings... He enjoyed "interacting" with the cats, kids, and ferrets (years ago)... and was an integral part of the family newsletter for the past 7 years. In fact he should have been "senior" editor. We will ALL miss you Bob... and now there will be never ending bowls of shrimp snacks whenever you would like....

MOMS Club Holiday Party....

Hard to believe that in 3 weeks christmas will pretty much be TOTALLY over.. guess that means we need to get "started". Well, tonight we had a GREAT time at the Bensalem MOMS Club Holiday party. We had special visitors like Frosty the Snowman (Scott dressed up...), Rudolph, Elmo, and of course Santa... everyone had a great time and left with smiles on their faces!!! And as always... enjoy the pictures....

It's beginning to look alot like christmas...

Traditionally I try to pull ALL of the decorations out on thanksgiving night... but this year we were all soooo pooped after a later dinner with the whole family... that decorating had to wait. On top of a busy day on thursday, we went to visit Scott's aunt on friday, so that day was out also!! So, on saturday we decorated the inside of the house. The girls REALLY enjoyed decorating the tree and "helping" me put "stuff" all over the house. So, now it is looking like christmas is coming... and it's hard to believe that in another 3 weeks (or just about) it will be "the day"... where is the time going???

Fun in the Leaves....

and boy do we have enough leaves for the girls to play with!! We have spent the last two months cleaning up leaves, and finally have gotten to the end of it.... We still have a HUGE pile along our fence (the lower portion of our yard) but they will stay there and will "act as a pillow" for the end of the sledding run... or at least it will slow the girls down before they hit the fence!!! But they had a blast jumping in this HUGE pile... hope you enjoy the pictures....

Happy Turkeyday!!!

First of all... Happy Thanksgiving!! We all have sooo much to be thankful for... and our day was filled with fun!! It's amazing I didn't take a single picture on thanksgiving... too much was going on!!! We had a crew of 21 people at our house for the holiday, including two guests from England. It was a great day of conversation, family, and of course the yummy food that we all enjoyed. Thanks to everyone for making thanksgiving such a huge success... and hope the rest of your holidays are just as great!!!

Winter Photo Shoot....

So, every year the girls' get their holiday pictures taken and every two years we do a "family picture". Well, this was "the year"... so off we went... we were pretty pleased overall... the last picture on this post is our favorite.... enjoy!!!

Las Vegas Baby!!

wow... what a whirlwind trip!! We left wednesday morning, headed to Las Vegas, and arrived around 10:30am (their time). The flight was beautiful... made it very easy to take pictures out the plane window of the snow on the rockies, the vastness of the grand canyon... and then see the "nothingness" of the desert we were flying into...

We stayed at the Luxor, which looks like a HUGE pyramid on the Las Vegas Strip. The weather was beyond perfect the whole time - low 80's and BRIGHT sunshine!! We even got tan while we were there.


Some pics along the "strip"....These pics (below) are of New York New York... and the Venetian... two of my favorite casinos.... the designers deserve HUGE applause for all the detail that went into making these such a HUGE success!!! We enjoyed seeing several shows, Circqe Du Solei Mystere (was beyond incredible!), and a David Space Comedy Show (he rocks in person just like in all his movies!!).

We had several nice dinners, but the BEST by far was at the Eiffel Tower Restraunt. We were seated at a table overlooking the Bellagio (I think we were around15 floors up in the air) and every 20 minutes there was a beautiful water show. We also did a full day tour of the Grand Canyon, Hoover Dam, Lake Meade, and a quick stop in Dolan Springs. That trip was breathtaking... just seeing the shear size of the canyon... wow... it was over 4000 feet to the bottom, and they have NO rails or obstructions, so it's a clear view... We then had lunch at a cowboy ranch, then went on a hike to a secluded section of the canyon. Only half of our group went (there were 10 of us in the whole group...) and got some magnificent pictures... no words can describe the beauty of the Grand Canyon!!!

Beyond all of that fun, we put MANY miles on our legs walking ALL over the city, including checking out "Old Las Vegas" also known as Fremont Street. This was the "original Vegas" before the glitz and glam that is here now. That area is MUCH more laid back and just gives you the feeling of "stepping back in time". That is with the exception of the arched "ceiling" they put over fremont street, that shows a light show every evening on the hour... complete with millions of LED ligthts and music... It's another you must see to believe it!!
We even fit in an early morning run on the strip, some gym, time, and of course lounging by the pool with drinks in hand....

These are a few "last shots" of Vegas on our "last evening there"....

and yes, there are slot machines even in the airport...

we got home yesterday (sunday) and are now attempting to "get back to reality"... but it was fantastic trip, and there are MANY pictures to check out... I took over 700, so I put together several (ok, 11 of them!) collages so you can see then all clumped together as to what the pictures are!!

Oh, and MANY thanks to my parents' who watched the kiddos for us while we were away... and aunt erin for toughing it out at the "sleepover at her apartment"...

Happy Halloween!!

Whew... hard to believe Halloween is already past!! Well, this year was nice and warm, just like many of the past, but this year was also quite wet... The day was filled with showers, then breaks, then more showers. When we headed out for the trick or treating, it was mild and NOT raining, but about a half a mile away, it started raining nicely... then harder, and then finally we got home. The girls had a great time and didn't care that they were wet... they got PLENTY of candy... and can't wait for next halloween already!! Hope you had a great halloween also!!! Oh yeah, Elyse was still Turtle Tuck (from Wonderpets) but Angela decided to go for the "princess look" instead of the pediatrician last minute... they were too cute....

And yes, that is Ollie the bunny in a "witch costume"... the cats hid well enough but Ollie didn't realize what he was in for... but he was good sport... and an EXTRA cute witch too!!

Halloween Spooktacular at Sesame Place

Each year after the "regular season" ends at Sesame Place, they decorate the park for halloween and it's called the "spooktacular". We usually get to go a few times, but this fall was SUPER busy and so we finally got there on the LAST day Sesame was open. And it was even more SPECIAL because grandmom Reedell was with us!! Everyone enjoyed the day despite the rainy weather... at least the temps were warm, so even while being a little wet, everyone had smiles on their faces!!! Hope you enjoyed your halloween day too!!

grandmom and the gals at 123 Sesame Streetand at big bird's mailbox

It's pumpkin carving time...

the girls were VERY excited when we went pumpkin picking about a month ago... and it was "finally" time to carve in on friday night (halloween eve). So I cut the top off, and then the girls dug in. They kept saying "there's more pumpkin guts in there, keep working"... it was tooo cute. So, they cleaned it out and got to see our frankenstein jack o lantern the next morning... it was LOTS of fun.. maybe next year Angela will be able to work on her "own" pumpkin... we shall see!!!

One year ago today...

Hard to believe that we've been in our "new house" for a whole year already!! I still remember the excitement I felt when we walked in and said "welcome home". So, it's a year later and we still love our house and LOVE walking in the door!! Here's to MANY happy years in our loved house!!

Trick or Treating with the Mayor...

While Angela was at school, Elyse and I headed over to the Bensalem Township Building for trick or treating. Every year the Bensalem MOMS Club goes over and meets with the Mayor for some pictures. They also had tv cameras taping the dressed up kiddos... So, it was a fun day for elyse and I... hope yours was just as good....

Trick or Treat at Scottsville Pre-school...

Is there a doctor in the house?? Well, we've got one in the Reedell household... or at least she is "playing one" for halloween. This year Angela is a pediatrician, and a VERY cute one at that!! She was VERY excited to go to school, where they were having a "costume parade" before they started their "halloween festivities"... But she had a GREAT time... hope you enjoy the pictures....

the weather is perfect for an outdoor photo shoot!!!

After having a TERRIBLE weather weekend (in the 40's and rainy...), today seems like the best fall weather possible. We have bright sunshine and perfect temps for a fun day outside. And of course this involved bringing the camera out and our "hams" smiling away, coming up with "ideas" of where they wanted the next picture taken!! I LOVE our new backyard, it has soooo many possibilities for GREAT pictures... LOVE it... and luckily for us the girls LOVE having their pictures taken too!!!! Here is a collage of my favs... plus my fav of the girls together... sooo cute!!

the Reedell Girls - Elyse 2.5 years old and Angela 4.5 years old

a little elbow grease and it's "new" again...

A few years ago one of Scott's friends had given us a few pieces of bedroom furniture after his father had passed away. We were HUGE fans of dark wood (dark walnut to be exact...) furniture, so this was RIGHT up our alley!! Anyway, the cedar chest was in GREAT shape, except the top fabric cushion area was a little worn. So, fast forward through a bunch of years of kids and cats crawling all over the place and now it's worse. So, over the weekend mom Reedell took me down to the "fabric pile" in the basement and we picked out a few pieces that would "probably work". I brought them home and found that the linen one would be perfect. I put it all together and it looks fantastic!! And to make the story even better, Scott's grandfather had brought that linen fabric over from Poland years ago and it had never been used... so I'm happy to have a piece of the Reedell history as a part of our bedroom furniture. So, after putting the chest back together, sanding down the inside (to restore the GREAT cedar scent), touching up any scratches, and then polishing it, it looks as good as new!!

before picture.... after pictures....

tot-r-cise

So, as of late, Elyse has definately been reeping the benefits of being an "only child" while Angela is in school. Today we went to tot-r-cise. This is a program held at the parenting center at St. Mary's hospital (here in langhorne, Pa)... and everyone had a blast. It's an hour long class full of music, dancing, fun, and friends... Elyse made some new friends, and played with some of her moms club friends too... it was tooo cute. Can't wait to go back again soon!!! And as expected... her are some pics!!!

gotta love outdoor storage...

so, when we bought this house I hadn't thought about the fact that it didn't have a storage shed outback... but after being here for almost a year, we found out it would be VERY helpful to have one!!! So, I chatted with my parents' and asked them if they wanted to buy us an 'early christmas present"... so we'll have a bow on it on christmas morning from my parents'. But Scott and I put it together over the weekend, while the girls were at mom mom and pop pop's house (thanks for the child free weekend.... it was NICE)... and it's all filled up. I also spent most of sunday organizign the garage, cleaning up, mowing, weed wacking, and cleaning up our leaves... but it looked fabulous... at least until more leaves fell, but that' sok. We love living in the woods, and it comes with the territory!!! But here are some pics of "our fun"... Happy Fall!!!

I'm seeing polka dots...

no, you are NOT seeing things, the girls playroom is now covered by polka dots, pink, blue, yellow and green!!! It's been white since we moved in, then princess stickers were put up (the removable ones, that I never really liked... but they broke up all the white, so it was "ok" at the time), and finally I found some time to do some painting... and think it turned out pretty well. And of course I was just finishing up and Angela came down while I was taking some pics and needed to "show off" some of her dress up headware... so enjoy....