Each year I create a family photo album for us to look at during the days leading up to Christmas. It’s a PITA to make. But…I love looking at those photos. The kids start reminiscing about each event. They guess what might come next. It’s one of my favorite things to do.

Watching these two get along and have fun together is just so sweet. My siblings were my first friends. There were six of us total so you could always find someone to play with. I love that my boys are forming this kind of sweet bond.

Watching McKenna become independent in the kitchen is a sure fire way to get a smile on my face. I spent my evenings and weekends in the kitchen with my Mom or Grandma. It makes me so happy when she wants to join me to learn a family recipe. But she’s also amazingly creative in her own right. She’s become quite the little baker…something I do exactly once a year. She would bake daily if we let her. This is her famous homemade cinnamon Pop-Tart.

My husband and I don’t often get to spend time together without a gaggle of kids or child themed event. But when we do, I’m brought back to our dating days when going to bed at 3am only to wake at 6 seemed like the most logical thing in the world if it meant we got to spend more time together. I’m so lucky that after 15 years and so many challenges, we still enjoy each other’s company.

This movie is a personal favorite. talk about BELLY LAUGHS. Maybe it is because it holds up after a whopping 38 years. Or maybe it is because I’ve got a thing for a big guy who can make me laugh. John Candy was one of my first crushes. Weird. I know. If I can combine this movie with any of my other top fives, I’m in heaven.