Portraits from Magenta Photo Studio ~ April Fools Day 2012

Sophia's First Communion!

Good Friday at Tony and Eva's Place

Griffin holds his baby cousin.  Same nose!

After embarking on an Easter Egg hunt with their cousin.

12/18/2011 ~ Sunday

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Chillin' in their jammies this morning.

Griffin and Dad playing Angry Birds on Lily's Ipod

Oh the important lessons to be handed down to our sons.

Lily's device, getting removed tomorrow and replaced with a new variation.  (Ignore the pizza dough!)

Paul assembled a few things so the kids can use it right away on Christmas morning.

This puppy is surprisingly tricky to assemble.  Definitely a two parent job when it comes time to pull the elastic rope around.

12/11/2011 ~ Harley Comes to Aurora

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Meema's visit continues and Harley pops over this morning to hang out as well.  We all went to watch Griffin play hockey and boy was he thrilled.  He shot past us at the glass and was clearly showing off as he rounded the net at warp speed.  He kept looking back at us and grinning and pumping his fist.  So proud of him.  Many goals and Meema was doing her best hockey Mom impersonation by cheering loudly. 

Claire decorated a graham cracker with candy cane pieces and little silver nonpareils that Harley thought were ball bearings.  Lily had the chance to build her Gingerbread house today but she still managed to take a little time out to tease Harley about his exposed Grinch boxer shorts as he napped on the couch after an Xbox bender the night before. 

12/10/2011 ~ Meema Comes to Aurora

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My Mom came to town for the weekend!  I persuaded her to decorate my Christmas tree with the kids.  Griffin had me add a hook to his ornament, then he went and selected a spot on the tree while I added the next hook.  Lily decided to unbox and add all of her hooks up front, and then add all of her ornaments to the tree.  Claire spent her time attempting to break the candy garland of my youth by decorating her playhouse with it.  When she broke off a few of the toy lifesavers, she proceeded to deliver them to herself in the toy mailbox, over and over again.  Very little ornament breakage this year.  We just had a few chards of glass that came out of a box of ornaments from Nonna so I had a brief yelling session at the kids to run and get slippers on so I could pass the vaccuum and nobody would have to spend the next five days of their life bellowing to me about the shooting pain that the microscopic chard of glass (98% unreachable by tweezer) was sending into the heel of their foot.  Crisis averted.

We had a ham dinner and then we hunkered down for some Christmas movies and most of us passed out on the couches after a long debate about whether A Charlie Brown Christmas is boring as hell, or a classic.

Grif gives a horsie ride to Claire.

Lily gives a horsie ride to spaghetti cat

The tweaking of the branches, aka, the bain of my existence.

Happy Little Elves.

Up with the Angel

Lily adds ornaments to the bald spots

Decorated with Love

Loved this ham but ended up so dehydrated from the salt that I needed to apply blistex all night long!

Gingerbread Santa from her Meema!

The first two to drop off

Densely populated movie viewing area

Sweet sleeping Goddess

My sleeping Prince

11/27/2011 ~ Studying for Spelling

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Everyone was gathered in Lil's room while she and Paul were going over her spelling words.  I took a minute to snap the moment.  This is typical Lamanna mayhem.  All kinds of different things going on in one very small space. 

Claire reads a book, Griffin plays with his light up toy from the Santa parade and Lil studies for spelling with Dad.

I thought the boys were going to buy a little light up bracelet and they came back with the child of a light sabre and disco ball!

11/24/2011 ~ Christmas Card 2011

60         I ordered our Christmas cards!  They haven't arrived yet.

Stationery card

View the entire collection of cards.