Happy New Year!

These pictures were taken the first week in January....2012 is looking pretty great :)

We've got our little helper and our sweet baby boy....

And silly Allie :)

Christmas 2011

Daddy and McCoy in their Christmas outfits :)

Christmas Eve we had the Allen's over for what turned out to be a little bit of a chaotic evening....but we still had fun! Poor Allie broke out in a strange rash all over her body so I was trying to take care of her and I'm pretty sure McCoy was crying...Thank goodness the Allen's are such great and understanding friends....In the meantime, Layne took the other 3 kiddos out to feed the reindeer!

And she got some super cute pictures of Bryce, Marissa and Avery :)

I guess the reindeer were extra hungry this year because they used up all of the oats.

After the reindeer food....we came in to make some cookies for santa!

Bryce and Avery were having a great time! I love this picture :)  So funny!

The next morning, Santa came a brought Jesse and Woody costumes!! Along with lots of other goodies!

And some Ariel hair accessories...

Woody and Princess Ariel

Having a tea party! :)

McCoy was enjoying his rainforest playmat!

This may be one of the best pictures ever :) That is some serious posing!

My sweet babies on Christmas morning!

So, so sweet.

Breakfast with Santa 2011

Sweet Sisters ready to see Santa!

Such a great picture!! No one is crying! :)

These two loved meeting Santa!

Family pic...McCoy was done by this point!

After Santa, it was time to head home to help Daddy with the lights for the oustide tree!



McCoy, Texas and I stayed inside :)

Everybody pitched in at first...

However, Allie soon found something more interesting.

But Marissa was faithful to help Daddy til they were all done!

3rd Birthday for Allie Joy!

Our little Allie turned 3 back in December, and we had a wonderful time celebrating with her that day! It started off with a trip to the Donut shop (and, unfortunately, no pictures...) but she got her usual sprinkle donut and only ate the icing off the top :) Then, later that night-the real party started!! Pops, Nana and Aunt Jessica drove in from Texas, and The Allen's and NeeNee came over to help us celebrate 3 years with the sweetest, curly-headed little girl I know!

We cannot imagine life without silly Allie...she brings such joy and laughter to our family. She and Marissa are pretty much joined at the hip these days...but they are so very different. Allie loves to be the center of attention and knows no strangers...she will talk to anyone, anytime! She is always doing something to try to make us laugh, like a silly dance or a silly face. She loves Woody and Buzz from Toy Story and Alvin and the "chick"monks (as she calls them), her hair is always crazy but on her...it works :) and her smile is infectious. She is our sweet, silly Allie and we are so thankful for her! Here are some fun pictures from her birthday party!

The birthday girl with two of her most favorite people!

Very excited about those cupcakes!

These 4 have a blast together!!

Buzz and Woody cupcakes!

If this picture doesn't make you smile.....nothing will :) Look at that sweet little face.

It's cupcake time!!!

And, of course, a Nichols' birthday party isn't complete unless there is a cookie cake!! Nana and Allie's birthdays are only 3 days apart, so we did a double celebration!

Amazing. Seriously, what else can I say about this picture?

PRESENTS!!

McCoy and Aunt Jess spent a little quality time together during the party :)

Allie got some more fun train tracks!

McCoy! He loves to just hang out on the floor, watching all the action going on around him!

Nana and baby McCoy



The best way to end your birthday? According to Allie, in your halloween jammies while Aunt Jess reads you a story!

We love you Allie! Happy 3rd birthday sweet girl!!

if you asked me...

I would tell you that yes, we are still alive and doing very well!

I would tell you that life has been crazy busy.....with a husband, 3 babies and my "part-time" job....

I would tell you that I work as a personal trainer at the club where Russell works...in case you didn't already know. Plus...I teach 3 boot camp classes a week, 2 Silver Sneakers classes a week and have been training anywhere from 1-7 people each day. Phew.

I would tell you that I am so incredibly grateful for the 3 other people (my sweet husband, my wonderful mother, and the awesome Miss Jill) in my life who love my babies as much as I do and are willing to take care of them while I am doing my other job...which I truly love to do.

I would tell you that I am sorry for neglecting this blog. I think about updating it often, but just can't seem to get around to doing it. I feel so far behind. I will though, I promise. There is so much happening around here that you need to know about  :)

I would tell you some of the things you need to know might be...McCoy is almost 5 months old!  Marissa and Allie love to play pretend...some days they are Aladdin and Jasmine, some days, like today, they are Bolt and Penny (from the movie Bolt), Jesse and Woody is a favorite as well, and of course, Mommy and Daddy. Marissa is always the girl and Allie is always the boy. Haha.

I would tell you that Russell and I just got back from an amazing trip to Vegas...and, honestly, the amazing part wasn't Vegas...it was spending some much needed time with my amazing husband and being reminded of just how much I love him and love being around him. He's pretty great :)

And finally, I would tell you to stick around...there's going to be some good updates...very, very soon! :)