New Year's Eve ~ Adios, 2013!!!

This New Year's Eve, we said goodbye to 2013 by "partying" at home. And by "partying," I mean going to bed by 9:45 :) We tried our best to stay up and celebrate, but 9:45 is actually pretty successful for us (I know, we're lame). We did manage to decorate our mantle with jalapeno lights and balloons to pop at every hour:

 Ella was responsible for popping all of the even-numbered times, so she got to pop the first "6 o'clock" balloon. :)

 POP!!!!!!!

 Daddy had gone hunting that afternoon (and didn't kill anything but TIME), so between 6:00 and 7:00, we waited on him. He got home around 7:00 to watch the popping of the second balloon (Nora had the odd numbers):

 POP!!!! Their faces are so awesome when the pop the balloons:

 They were so very excited to see Daddy. They tackled him on the bed which they do every single day. Such daddy's girls:

 Daddy always tells Clairy that "he's gonna hang her on the wall." She thinks that's funny:

 Needless to say, our girls were a bit WIRED......

 Before, long it was time to pop the "8 o'clock balloon:"

 POP!!!! Another terrific face!!!

 Between 8:00 and 9:00, we decided to go play outside for a bit. So, we told the girls to go put on some warm clothes. Ella had the right idea:

Claira, however, needed a little help:

 So, we bundled her up like Ralphie from The Christmas Story:

 We went outside and built a fire:

 You can't have a fire without s'mores!!!

 We also just hung out by the fire, goofed off, and looked at the stars for a bit: 

 Finally, it was time to come in, warm up, and pop the "9 o'clock" balloon!!

 POP!!!!!! 

 In the 9 o'clock hour, we played some board games, and high-fived each other for making it to 9:00!!!

 But unfortunately, once we sat down to watch the "New Year's Rockin' Eve" (or whatever it's called), the girls were OUT!!! So, we didn't quite make it to 10:00.  

Still, staying up to nine-something is a huge accomplishment for us!! WINNING!!!!

2013 was a beautiful year with beautiful memories. Can't wait to see what 2014 has in store!! It's already off to a great start!!

Cheers to a new year with new adventures!!! May God bless us all in 2014!!!! ;)