Happy New Year!

Wow, only 7 hours left in 2008. I've got a couple of bottles of bubbly in the ole 'chill chest' ready to go, hopefully around 10 p.m. Seriously, we stay up 'til midnight or so nearly every night. If we truly want to celebrate the new year, and all it has to bring, we'll be in bed by 10. That's my goal, at least. Yeah, we're pretty boring...

Anyways, it's been quiet on the blog here for a while. Main reason: too much sickness. Seriously, who wants to hear about how sick everyone is. It certainly wasn't "in the spirit" of the holidays around here... Poor Jeremiah got it first--congested head and chest, cough, fever, zero appetite. Then as soon as he started getting better, I got a head cold. And to top it off, Jesslyn caught it next. The funny thing was, we all had different symptoms. Poor Jesslyn had everything Jeremiah had but no fever. However, as you're probably aware, babies have to breathe through their noses when they eat. Next time you're all stuffed up, try breathing through your nose exclusively for a while. Yeah, not happening. So the poor thing didn't eat hardly anything for 2-3 days. She's finally eating again pretty regularly, and we've never been more thankful! Seriously, there were two days there where it was HELL! Not the way we hoped to spend Jeremy's time off.

Luckily, everyone's nearly back to 100%, and Jeremy has another long weekend where we can try to have fun as a family. YAY! First on the list of things to do: get a new dining set for the breakfast nook. Ours is just barely holding itself together... Definitely time for an upgrade. Then hopefully the kids will enjoy a night with Grandma/Grandpa, and we can go out. YAY!! Still on the tentative list: a birthday party for Jeremiah. Kinda wanna do it this weekend, but kinda wanna next weekend... Hmm.... Doesn't help his birthday is on a Wednesday this year. Can go either way. I had wanted to do a "Noah's Ark" party (kinda like Build a Bear, but they come to you with lots of different animal choices,) but I think it's too late to plan that, and Jeremy doesn't think Jeremiah needs anything "big" as far as parties go. I'm sure we'll have fun no matter what we end up doing. :)

Kids updates: Jesslyn is SOOOO CLOSE to rolling over. She's got the form and technique down, just needs a little extra "oomph". She loves to chew on your finger if it's wrapped in a blanket, and has mastered holding her head up/sitting with support/lifting her chest and head up when on her belly. That's 'bout all for her.

Jeremiah's a riot. He's slowly adding new words to his vocab. His new favorite word? "Nooooooooooooo!!!" Not said in a rebellious-I-don't-want-to-listen-to-you-Mommy way, but rather an, "uh-oh, Big Fella, I'm going to run you over with my new dump truck!" or "oh no, Mommy's chasing me!!" kind of way. It's so funny. He's also saying lots of letters, and "counts" 1-2-3. The best, though, is still when he says, "apple." It's really more like, "ah-pull" but he says it perfectly, and will even say it in different ways, like in a whisper, or like "grandma" when she was sick and sounded like she was talking through a machine.... It's pretty funny. He'll also "moo" if you ask him what a cow says. We're still working on other animals.

And that's all for now. I'm on the crappy laptop, so typing is pretty annoying. Happy New Year, everyone! Stay safe.

Jeremiah's New Favs

Merry Christmas!

We just got home from my Uncle's house for the Portuguese side of my family's Christmas celebration!  It was crazy... Jesslyn was wayyy overtired (and sick,) so she was very cry-y.  But we survived and they both went right out.  In fact, Jeremiah never woke up--he was TIRED!  He didn't even wake up when we were changing him into his pj's.  We thought we'd take the opportunity to pose him with empty bottles and such, but all we had handy was a bottle of benadryl and his thermometer.  Awww... my little man was so tired!

Anywhoo, I'm trackin' Santa right now, and he's just left Chile... gotta finish a few things before he makes it to the East Coast!  Late-ah!

We're here...

We're just sick.  :(

In a nutshell, Jeremiah's been hit the hardest, with a runny nose, cough/congestion, and a fever.  Other than the fact that he's not interested in eating, he's himself--boundless energy, happy, playful, etc.  And with the help of a humidifier and Vicks Vapors, he's been sleeping pretty well, for the most part.  

Jesslyn seems to be coming down with what Jeremiah has, though it hasn't really hit yet.  Hopefully it doesn't.  

And I seem to have something completely different, but annoying nonetheless.  Hence the lack of posting.

And tomorrow's Christmas Eve!  Not exactly how I had hoped Jesslyn's first Christmas would go.  If there are no improvements, we may have to skip out on some family gatherings, which would SUCK.  But, that's the nature of the beast, I guess.  Gotta love this time of year.  

In other news, Jesslyn seems to have found her voice.   :)  She loves to squeel now, and uses that to let you know when she wants something.  Hey, it beats crying.  She definitely seems to be getting older (I know, no duh, but she's becoming less of a baby and more of a little girl.)  I love that she plays in her crib instead of just crying after her naps (definitely sets a nicer tone for her awake time.)  She's very interactive, and is so happy to just "talk" to you.  My little girl is growing up so fast!

Speaking of, I hear her squeeling now.  Guess she's done napping.  :(  Oh well.  We're just chillin' anyways.  

If I don't post again, Merry Christmas, everyone!  Hopefully we'll have happy, well babies to photograph and post!  :)

A MUST have for Christmas...

Especially if onion dip or green bean casserole (with fried onions) is being served...

http://www.flat-d.com/flatdpremium.html

I know a LOT of people who would benefit from this. :)

Awesome cards.

These have gotta be some of the neatest handmade cards I've seen.  Every person I've given one to has been very impressed by the quality of the craftsmanship put into each and every one.  I'm definitely going to be picking up some more.  I'd rather support a local craftsperson than Hallmark anyday!  

They're made by a gal at my folks' church.  She was originally selling them in support of their "missions" week last month.  Good stuff.  If you'd like to get some, shoot me an email.  I'll set ya up with her email addy.  :)

The ultimate bad boy look.

All he needs is a chain, and no one will doubt his toughness!  This kid means business! :)

Christmas!

Alright, here ya go:  Pics of our Christmas Trees!  That's right, trees, as in, more than one.  This year, Jeremiah is too big to simply barricade away from the tree, and since we spend most of our time in the family room, I wanted a tree in there, but didn't want him to destroy it.  So we bought two trees.  Well, one was free (thanks, Grandma's work!) and the other was only $20 from Home Depot (pretty good size for $20, I think!) So not a bad deal, all around!  

I love them both.  The tree in our "formal" living room is the "fancy" one, with all our sentimental ornaments and pretty ribbons.  Jeremiah's tree, in our family room, is definitely more whimsical.  Bought some funky ornaments from Walmart and Target (all the ornaments on both our trees are shatterproof, but they sure look like glass!) and made a construction paper chain as a garland.  When was the last time you made one of those?!  So fun!

So yeah, Jeremiah's is fun and kooky, yet we still have our "grown up" pretty tree.  It's a win win all around!  

So without further adieu... pics!

The "Formal" tree.  Pics just don't do it justice...

The "FUN!" tree!  Notice how most of the ornaments are towards the top?  That's because Jeremiah insists on pulling them off.  So when I put them back on, they go higher and higher...

He helped make that snowman!  And the snowflake, right in the middle of the pic.  We actually used those for our Christmas party--the numbers for our Yankee Swap were on the back of the ornaments, and then you got to keep your ornament as a favor!  That snowman is actually Uncle James'.  He took it yesterday, but not before I snapped a pic while it was on the tree! :)

First Stroller Ride!

Today is a beautiful day, sunny and 60's.  Much better than this past weekend, where it was only in the 30's and cold.  So we seized the opportunity to get in some vitamin D and headed out for a short walk around the block.  Usually, I "wear" Jesslyn, or she's in her carseat.  But today, I decided to let her try out her "seat" in the stroller.

It went well enough.  Jeremiah enjoyed pointing out all the garages (he's obsessed with them...) and looking at the different Christmas lawn ornaments people had out.  Jesslyn did not like the wind blowing, though, and started fussing about halfway through.  Amazingly, she survived.  :)  Now, she's napping, and Jeremiah's winding down with some Yo Gabba Gabba!

Maybe we'll go for a drive around the neighborhoods to look at Christmas lights tonight.  Depends on the kids' naps.  Hopefully everyone will sleep well!

Happy Three Months, Jesslyn!

Yes, I've been meaning to post this since Wednesday. I did cheat, and created the post, knowing full well I wouldn't actually be able to publish until a later time... So here we are!

Jesslyn is 3 months old now! Wow, time flies, huh?  And there are definitely tell-tale signs that she is older.  They are as follows:

~Less crying.  Apparently, babies cry the most during the first three months.  We've definitely noticed a drop off.  The biggest change came when she started waking up from her naps and "growling" rather than crying.  :)  It's really not a growl, but that's the best way I can describe it.  And when you go in to get her, she just kinda looks around at everything, and is so happy and smiley when you pick her up.  It's as if she's saying, "You're here!! Oh, I'm SOO happy to see you!!! I've missed you, Mommy/Daddy!!"  Much more fun than picking her up screaming (though she is still crying when she wants to eat in the middle of the night.)

And for the most part, she really only cries when she wants something and we're taking too long to figure it out--if she's hungry, over-tired, or wants to be held.  Those are the big three.  She'll occasionally cry if she's dirty, but she's pretty forgiving of that, unless you've got her sitting up, which brings us to....

~Sitting up.  Not by herself, mind you.  But we put her in Jeremiah's high chair (slowly becomingher high chair...) and she LOVES to sit there and look around.  We've also propped her up in her moses basket, which she also enjoys.   A Bumbo or Bebe Pod is on her Christmas list.  :)

~More talking.  More growling.  She and Jeremiah will have these little conversations back and forth--it's so cute!  It's almost as if they understand each other (and I'm sure on some level, they do, at least moreso than we...)  More smiling.  More interaction.

~Work those legs! This gal does NOT want to lay down, and is happy for a very short amount of time doing so (unless there's a toy dangling over her head... even then, she'd rather be sitting up.)  She loves to practice "standing", and really supports herself well.  We've started putting her in Jeremiah's old activity center (which he still trys to climb into...) and she loves it.  Still ends up tilting forward, and needs adjusting, but her feet touch the floor perfectly, just as they should (keep in mind the min. age on this thing is 4 months... she's been in it a few weeks now...)  That's our big girl!  Speaking of....

~Goodbye 3-6, hello 6-9!  Yes, she's almost out of her 3-6 month clothes.  Well, really, it's the pants she's outgrown.  They're not long enough!  And with her cloth diapers, most don't accomodate her [non-existent] behind [just like her Daddy.]  Her pajamas?  Forget it.  I put her in a pair, and they BARELY fit.  That's the last time she'll probably wear those... And I just bought her so many cute 3-6 month things (didn't have much, despite all the clothes I bought while pregnant... didn't know if she'd need warm or cold weather clothes.)  So we'll probably bump her up to the next size by Christmas (might hang on to some of her tops a little while longer... those usually get the most dirty anyways, since she's still the "Spit-Up Queen!"  Bow before her and she'll annoint your head with oil... err... spit up. :) 

~Hand/mouth coordination.  She's got that one down pretty well.  It used to be... "Where's my fist?  I wanna suck on my fist!  Has anyone seen my fist??? Fist???  FIST!!! HELLO, FIST, WHERE ARE YOU!! WAAAAAAAHHH!!"  And now it's, "I wanna suck on my fist.  Where's my fist?  Oh yeah, there it is.  **suck suck suck** No, wait, I didn't say fist, I said BINKY! WHERE'S MY BINKY??? WAAAAAAAAHHH!!"  We're making progress.  :)

That's the big stuff.  Sleep wise, she does very well, though still somewhat quirky...  Her morning naps have only been lasting 45-60 minutes lately (and then she wants to play...) but her afternoon naps still tend to be 2.5-4 hours long (sometimes she wakes up wanting to eat, then goes back to sleep, as if it were nighttime.... I think she gets confused....)  By 7-ish, though, she's ready for bed!  

Nighttime has been off lately (I blame a growth spurt...)  She usually sleeps from 7-4-ish, eats, then sleeps 'til 7:30, 8.  Sometimes she wakes up early (anywhere between 11 p.m. and 2 a.m.) and then again at 6, then sleeps 'til 9.  But for the most part, she's still only getting up once a night, sleeping 12 hours total.  Add that to the 1-2 hours in the morning (sometimes split over two naps,) and the 3 hour nap in the afternoon, she's only up 7-8 hours a day.  The gal likes to sleep!  I don't blame her.  She's like her Mommy in that regard.  :)

And now... pics!

23 Months Old -- 3 Months Old... Really...

"AHHH!! Jeremiah!! Your spikiness!! It tickles!!!"

"Uh, Mom, do you mind, I'm trying to suck on my fist here..."

"See?  Told ya."

"Yeah, Mommy put this blanket here so I don't ruin her throw pillows when I spit up (because it's always a 'when,' not an 'if.') So I'm going to chew on it. :) "

"Let's see... e=MC..... squared?? Cubed?? And do I really just want my two front teeth for Christmas??"  The ponderings of a baby...

"Yes, I am cute.  Yes, you may take my picture." :)

"Dad-dy... people are watching... someone might see this pic and put it on their blog, for all the world to see, and then the other babies won't think I'm cool anymore!"

No comment. :)

"Aww, I love you, too, big brother.  But I'm really worried about the angle Mommy's using to get this shot... I mean, really, my butt isn't that big.  It's not!  Oh well."

Par-tay!

Last night, we had our third semi-bi-annual Christmas party!

It was an uber good time, though I was a bit stressed all day leading up to the party... We had a lot to do that we had didn't get done during the week. But, I had lots of great help, even though I think they wanted to walk out on me at one point... It was all good, though!

Once again, we had TONS of food, though I think there was less left over this time than last time. My Mom brought stromboli and made deviled eggs, and I made pork dim sum, beef teriyaki, two kinds of chicken wings, polish pigs in a blanket [actually, Jeremy made that one,] and some other random stuff, including lots of sweets [different cookies, brownies, bars, etc...] Yum!

Special thanks to James and Stephin for all their help the night before, and with the ornaments, which doubled as numbers for the game AND favors! Extra special thanks to my Dad for all the cleaning he helped out with. And SUPER extra special thanks goes out to my babish and my Mom, who probably felt the brunt of my frustrations, yet still provided so much help, which was greatly needed and greatly appreciated!

The game was a blast with lots of surprising hits, and a few things that people just couldn't get rid of! The favorites of the night: old school board games! The Game of Life, Chutes n Ladders/Candyland, Sorry and Clue were all up for grabs. An odd hit was a "glove box tool kit." Go figure.

But yes, uber fun, lots of yummy food, good conversation, a merry ole time!

For those of you who couldn't make it, here's a short clip of the party in action!

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

:)

Splashy, splashy, party, party!

Finally!  After many months [2] and many frustrating evenings [dozens,] Jesslyn now enjoys bathtime!  Yay!

I tell ya, it was getting really frustrating giving her baths... The first time we put her in the baby tub, she hated it and screamed the whole time.  So I gave up on that, and tried just giving her sponge baths, thinking maybe she didn't like the whole "full frontal" part and was getting cold... Nope, that didn't work either.  

Lately, though, she's been enjoying it more and more.  I knew we were making progress when she first wouldn't cry until I washed her hair, and then she even tolerated that.  Then Jeremy gave her a bath, and held her in the [tiny] bathroom sink, and she enjoyed that, too!  

The other night, I figured, "What the heck," and threw her into her baby tub again.  I don't know if it's the whole freedom of movement part, or just the splashy-splashy part, but she really enjoyed herself.  

And that, my friends, makes Mommy a happy camper.  :)

Happy 12 weeks, Jesslyn!

**Note: Quality is just so-so, as it was taken with my phone and not our camera.  So there.  Now you know.  :)

***Note: She's got some rollage on her arms, huh?? 

Can men breastfeed??

According to this article, yes!

Looks like I won't be the only one who can get up at 2 a.m. for that mid-night feeding, when Jeremy/Jess Jr Part 2 comes around... 

;)

Jeremiah, The Karate Kid

In a rare appearance, we see the little ninja getting ready for a night of... ninja-ing?

This little ninja moved so fast, all we could catch of him was a blur...

That's enough action for this little ninja!  Time to cozy up on his ninja-soft blanket, and dream ninja dreams...

Fun times with Daddy.

Notice how Jeremiah is trying to get away (he managed to get pretty far, considering all he could do was rock back and forth...)  Yeah, it was pretty late, and both kids were ready for bed.  But they made the best out of it.

Well that's just great...

I'm sure most of you have heard about the melamine they found in infant formula in China. Manufacturers were adding it to the watered-down milk before production in order to fudge their protein levels. This left over 50,000 babies sick, and a few dead. Scary stuff.

Well, earlier this week, the FDA announced that trace levels of melamine have been found in US formulas as well! Now, the amounts found are FAR less than in the Chinese formula [something like 2,500 p/p/million in the Chinese to the .15-.25 p/p/million in US] but even the FDA is saying that they don't know how much is too much. Some parents have heard enough.

The FDA maintains that the formula is safe. Plenty of folks disagree and are calling for recalls.

And the formula companies? Well, they've been pretty quiet. Similac's done their own testing and confirm that they've found trace levels in their formula. Enfamil and Nestle, who both tested positive for melamine [or its relative, cyanuric acid....] have only said that their own internal testing found nothing.

As a parent with a baby drinking this stuff [not by choice, by necessity,] you trust those companies with your child's health. And you trust that it's going to be safe. A parent shouldn't have to worry about stuff like this--there's plenty else to worry about in the day!

I'll be keeping an eye on this. Honestly, I hope it doesn't require a recall, because I don't know what, then, I would feed Jesslyn. I don't think it'll get to that point, but you never know. For now, we'll just be cautious, and ready to blame any problems related to her kidneys and urinary tract on Enfamil [NICU, you're still on the hook for everything else....]

Happy 2 Months, 2 Weeks, and 2 Days, Jesslyn!

Or, in simpler terms, 11 weeks!

No pics right now. I'm on the crappy laptop, because SOMEONE took the charger for my GOOD laptop and hid it... or something. So now I have a dead good laptop with no charger, and a dead crappy laptop, with a charger... Ah well.

Now if you'll excuse me, I have 35 lbs of chourico sitting at my door that I need to deal with... Best bet is probably to just leave it outside, since there's no room in the fridge OR freezer right now. Oops.

I'm telling Santa I want a chest freezer for Christmas.

'Til later...

word.

Getting dressed.

Now that Jeremiah's a toddler, I try to give him as much independence as I think he can handle.  So for a while, he's been "picking out" his clothes, with a little leading from Mommy of course (usually I'll let him pick a shirt out of two I've already picked out.)  

Today, I told him we were going to pick out his clothes, picked him up, stood in front of the closet and asked him, "What shirt do you want to wear?"  He proceeded to "flip" through all of his shirts (like he sees Mommy doing at Target, trying to find good deals on the clearance racks!) and then pointed to one towards the end.  "Am-pa! Am-pa!" he said.  Turns out, he was pointing to a short sleeved plaid shirt that looks a lot like something his Grandpa would wear.  :)  When I pulled it out and asked if that's what he wanted to wear, he got a HUGE smile on his face and started speaking in his little language (that we have yet been able to translate...)

He was very proud of his choice of clothing, especially since it was similar to something "Am-pa" would wear.  What a little kook.

Turns out it's a little small... But that's okay.  :)  [I added the long sleeve tee... hey, it's chilly around here!  That certainly didn't help the fit, though...]

Obligatory silly Steeler hat poses...

6 months?

We took Jesslyn in for her two month check up yesterday.  Of course, everything looks good!  Was getting concerned when everyone kept saying, "Sick visit, right?"  Ummm... no.  I guess that's all they see nowadays--sick visits and flu shot visits.

So apparently, we have a two month old trapped in a 6 month old's body.  Yup, last month she was the average size of a 4 month old, this month it's 6 month old.  I'm guessing at four months, she'll be the size of a one year old.  She didn't seem THAT big to us, but now I'm beginning to think... "Yeah, maybe she is a bit of a big girl."  Perfectly proportioned, mind you--99th percentile for weight AND height.  Basically, she gained 2 lbs and 2 inches in a month.  Cah-razy! 

After clarifying that she was, in fact, only two months, our doc was surprised at how well she was holding her head up (I was sitting her up on my lap.)  Apparently, that's expected for 3-4 month olds, not 2 month olds (okay, 10 week olds, but she's been able to do that for a couple of weeks now.)  

He was also surprised to hear that she was already LAUGHING!  When we told him she did it when we tickled her, his only reply was, "Oh," he moved on.  Well, I'll have you know that TODAY, Saturday, November 22, I picked her up from the couch, where she was laying with Jeremy, smiled and her and she LAUGHED a REAL baby laugh WITHOUT any tickling!  I almost cried.  Awww... my baby girl laughed for her Mommy.  SO SWEET!   Now if she could just start substituting more crying with laughing...

And that's 'bout it.  Jeremiah didn't cry this time, which was good (if you recall, last time we took Jesslyn to the Dr's, Jeremiah screamed the whole time, thinking we were there for him, I guess.  He just does NOT trust those nurses!)  I guess we were able to reassure him beforehand that we were going for JESSLYN and not him.

Anyways, that was yesterday.  Quiet weekend this weekend.  Trip to Costco, laundry, church, sleep, done.  Short work week for Jeremy!  Three days on, four days off.  YAY!  

I love Thanksgiving, but I love Black Friday even more because it's.... DECK THE HALLS DAY!  Woot woot!  While all the crazy people are out shopping (seriously, why go out??? The deals aren't that great, unless you want to stand in line starting at 5 p.m. the night before! I've worked enough BF's to know that it's just NOT worth the HASSLE! But if you enjoy it, all the power to ya...) we'll be picking out a Christmas tree and decorating it whilst the kiddies nap.  I can't wait to see Jeremiah's reaction this year.  Last year, he got it, but only from a "shiny, bright, blinking object" perspective.  This year, I think it'll have more of an "awe" factor to it.  We'll see.  Should be fun!

Irony.

Tell me.  How does a gooey gel window decal, who happens to resemble a frog, CATCH THREE FRUIT FLIES?!?!  

Either these flies were pretty stupid (and they were) or there's more to this frog than meets the eye....

I thought it was funny.

"Baby, it's COLD outside!"

PROOF!!!

We finally caught her in action!  For the naysayers, here's a short video (well, not that short) of Jesslyn LAUGHING!  Awww... 

For some reason, though, I can only get her to laugh by tickling her when she's in her diaper and only her diaper.  I guess it's just not as ticklish through her clothes.

Now if she would only laugh as much as she cries.... man, life would be super sweet.

 

Happy 10 weeks, Jesslyn!

$10 off $25 @ JC Penney!

'Nuff said.  One per person, so I'm bringing my brother, Jeremiah, and Jesslyn (hey, if they count in the HOV lane, they should count at the store.... :)

Link is here.

Snapping Beans

Another new activity that Jeremiah just MUST do! 

 

How we kept Jeremiah entertained during James' graduation...

Congratulations, Uncle James!

"Twice as cute and half the price!"

We're big Robeez fans around here--I'm a firm believer in not forcing a baby who doesn't walk to wear shoes (hard-soled, at least.)  There's no reason for it, and it could mess up their feet when they do try to start walking.  

But I am a fan of warm feet, and sometimes, you need that extra layer that socks can't provide.  I've been using Trumpette socks for Jesslyn (they're so cute!) but at some point, we're going to need something a little more substantial.

Hence the love.  What I don't love, though, is the price tag.  New Robeez run $30+, though you can usually find a sale and get a pair between $25 and $30.  Don't get me wrong, I've NEVER paid that much for a pair.  I think the most was $15 or $16 (waited for a clearance at Endless.com, then got $5 off and free overnight shipping... sadly, they no longer give that extra $5 off.  But still a great site to buy shoes from!)  Jeremiah definitely got our monies worth out of the pairs he wore!

Enter Bugaloo's.  Same concept as Robeez (soft-soled, leather, easy to slip on and off, and super cute!) but ONLY $15!  Of course, when I see $15 is the regular retail price, then I expect to be able to find it for less (and will probably wait until I do to buy...)  But I just found them and wanted to share.  :)  Plus, 5% of your purchase will go to the International Justice Mission and help fight sex trafficking.  Not bad.  If you're going to shop and buy something anyways, might as well let a portion go to a good cause.

I would totally get these for a boy.  So cute!

Salt Dough Ornaments!

Last week, Jeremiah and I made salt dough ornaments to decorate in preparation for the holidays!  I got the recipe from ZRecs and while they came out fine, I wish they had included more instructions to make the process go more smoothly (I could probably google it and get the answers I need.)  Our two main issues were figuring out how long "several hours" is, and then getting them off the pan (it's just a basic aluminum half-sheet pan.)  I think I know how long is NOT enough, but still don't know the best way to keep them from sticking to the pan...  Will have to do some research!  

But Jeremiah really enjoyed helping me cut out all the shapes!  I let him sit on the counter and press the cutters into the dough--he loved it!  Then he would try to help me pick the pieces up and put them on the pan, but usually he would just hand me small balls of dough.

Oh, and I would recommend wearing gloves when working with the dough.  The air this time of year is dry enough without having your hands covered in salt, zapping what moisture is left from your skin... 

Anyways, we'll make some more and see if we get better results.  In the mean time, this is what Jeremiah's been doing with them.

First, you put the ornaments in the container....

Top with lid....

Get it nice and tight...

Then, open and dump!!!

Wash, rinse, repeat!  And do so for the next thirty+ minutes...