Lego phase is here

I am not sure how I feel about this phase...from what I am told it lasts a VERY long time.  Is very expensive and you find pieces everywhere when flying your airplane/car/train/whatever into everything around the house.  From what I observe boys never grow out of this as Seth enjoys them just as much as Isaac.  Isaac LOVES the creations that his Daddy is able to make for him, and well Seth LOVES making them.  Isaac however is quite good already at making his own creations.  Here is a small sampling as well as what our new table looks like all the time now...in order to attempt at keeping them away from Addy!!

Vogt Christmas

This year the Vogt Christmas was the day before Christmas Eve and by some sort of miracle all the cousins were able to make it that live in the same state and their kids.  Usually...with three families of kids someone or kid is always sick.  It was fun to see the second cousins interacting with each other.  There was never a dull moment...lots of noise...lots of food and Grandma made her famous chocolate mint bars.  Haven't had them in soooooooooo many years.  I wish I could eat them everyday...really I wish I had the leftovers.  I only ate one to be polite but I really could have eaten the whole platter.  Thanks Grandma!!
Here are a couple of pics compliments of Uncle Jerry! :)

Isaac was very shy when we arrived

Addy was not!

playing with the balloons with Nana

wild piggies

Grandma and Grandpa Vogt

The best attempt at getting a family pic

Love them all!!

again another attempt, at least they are all pictured

Santa/Christmas Day

"I just want to see Santa, I have one more thing to tell him..."  This is what I heard when it was time to go to bed on Christmas Eve.  I can't remember being 4 years old, but I can only imagine that the excitment level had to be much of the same.  I can't even tell you how much fun it is to play santa...setting everything out special, filling the stockings and writing them both special letters from Santa.  Then I too, sit and sleep in anticipation to see if what I think will be the most popular toy truly is...and let me just say it never is.  I don't even care, becasue my kids are always so gracious, and spent the entire Christmas morning saying thank you to santa as they played with all of their new toys.
Here are some pictures from the mornning and then again in the afternoon for dinner at Nana and Papa's.

Santa left the presents downstairs this year

Santa brought a trampoliine/ball pit

Isaac saying,"what is this.."

leaped right in

unwrapping santa presents

new carrying case for the cars

tired of unwrapping...taking a break with her new book

pirate telescope

taking her baby for a walk

so excited to see the legos in his stocking

num num num...feeding her baby new vitamins that were in her stocking

new playdough machine

color changing cars

she LOVES her horse

putting cars in the case

pushing her baby at Nana's

doing car collection with Isaac...he has watched too many youtube shows.

new toy at Nana's from santa

wrestling with Papa

Christmas Eve

It is so much fun to see how excited the kids are at Christmas time and especially Christmas Eve and day.  The whole Christmas season has been so much fun with all the santa visits, and sleigh rides, cookie and ornament making etc. but nothing beats the excitment of Christmas Eve and the anticipation of Santa arriving.  The kids are just amazing to watch and listen too.
Here are a few pics from Christmas Eve

Isaac had to change out of his church clothes before I could even get a picture. Opening his new trains.

piggy bank complete with a tutu

all smiles to open presents at Nana and papa's

opening some new floor puzzles

blow up Bozo the clown was a huge hit...thanks Papa

Nana showing off her new shirt from Isaac and Addy

Mommy and Addy doing her new piggy bank toy

puzzles with papa

tracking santa before bed to see how close he was to our house...still in chile but we told them anyways that he was close!

legos legos and more legos

There is a club in MN where all people do is sit and put together HUGE lego displays, and it is located right over in North east Mpls.  We are just entering the lego phase at our house and are intrigued by all things lego.  I caution myself with using the word phase, since both kids were ready to go before their daddy was.
Basically, it is a giant warehouse that they have heated and put lots of displays including trains that move up for people to look at, and admire.  Then they have several tables for kids to play with legos, create their own lego cars and race them down a track.  Our kids did this the majority of the time, although they also spent quite a while checking out all the scenes within the giant displays.  The members of the club are there and they get quite the laugh when they tell you about some of the scenes and displays they have created.  One might go as far as to call them lego nerds.  However, the scenes and displays are very impressive.  Pictures don't do them justics, you should all check them out yourselves...completely free and we were there at least two hours and all three of us dragged Seth out pouting!!

so excited about the lego trains

This display he could actually touch and loved it!

IN front of a huge lego mountain

HUGE lego ship

lego heliocaptors

More legos trains

racing his car down the ramp

Addy would say,"one, two, GO"

talking about their cars before the race

I think Isaac's is in the lead

Ho ho ho meets choo choo choo

Choo choo Bob is famous in our house and we liked, I mean LOVED him long before it was even a show on pbs.  Both kids love going to the store to play with the many train tables, even though we have one in the basement.  Different place, makes for many more hours of play, I guess.  Today was no ordinary day at choo choo Bob's Santa was coming all the way from the North pole and who else to lead him into the store was Engineer Paul.  Engineer Paul is also a favorite in our house, not only for his part on the show but for his very entertaining story times that Isaac loves to go to.  

Although we were second in line for this, both kids were a little nervous.  So we sat and watched and listened while other boys and girls had their chats with Santa.  I was beginning to think Isaac was never going to go see santa when it happened.  Two little girls were asking santa for some princess dolls.  I said to Isaac,"If you don't tell santa what you want, he might just think you want princess dolls like those two girls."  Isaac,"I don't want princess dolls, I don't like them.  I will go talk to him now."

Yay!!!  They were both nervous, but Isaac talked just enough to tell santa that he did not want a princess and that he wanted trains and a hulk.  When santa asked what his sister wanted he said he did not know.  Yay!!!  That was the one question I have been avoiding because I didn't want anymore searches for toys on my hands.

Enjoy my very serious, santa goers!

High 5 with Engineer Paul before santa arrived

Santa and Engineer paul make quite the singing duo

Santa was really getting into it

He took the jingle bells off of his reindeer before coming in he said

Yep, those are my kids!!!

talking with santa

When we got back in the car to go home Isaac said,"I am really glad that I wasn't scared and I talked to santa."  Melted my heart, I knew he wanted too, he just needed time to sit and watch first.