Our Christmas Week in Pictures

Last week when the girls met Santa

Little Rudolph

Grandmom, the girls and I made a gingerbread train

We all loved the "Holiday Specs!"

Here's a glimpse on what the lights look like when wearing the holiday specs. My picture doesn't do it justice.

Christmas Eve

Analise had daddy put reindeer food on the roof, and she left this note and cookie for Santa.

Christmas morning before:

After:

The seven of us after a full day's celebration

The girls with their favorite treasures

We love LOVED having my parents here!

Last Week's Memories

Warning - this is long and possibly boring. I just wanted to get everything down for my own memory.
Tis the season to be busy...
Last Friday night, we were able to have the boys (my nephews) come over for a movie night. Their parents finished their Christmas shopping, and we had lots of fun. I played a Toby Mac song for them, and all six kids got their groove on. I recorded it, and the kids loved watching themselves. This video will bring back fun memories as the kids grow. We then watched, "Snow Buddies." It was cute, clean and all the kids enjoyed. Yeah! Not easy to do when the ages range from 21 mo-10. (Though Sadie doesn't really sit and watch.)
Saturday we did things around the house, and then we were able to go on our own little date night. Analise was going to Grandma/Grandpa's for dinner and a sleepover under the Christmas tree. (With the boys) Grandma called and invited the other two over for dinner, so Brandon and I could get some shopping done. It was great! We went to a local BBQ place for a yummy meal and then completely struck out on the shopping. My luck hasn't been so good this year. However, we still enjoyed the time.
Sunday was church and naps. Even Analise napped; she was so tired from the weekend. In the afternoon I took Analise shopping at Target.
Monday was a busy day. Brandon and I were taking Sadie to doc visits two hours away. Grandma was at our house by 7:45 to take Analise to school, and so we could hit the road. We had great roads the first 45 minutes, and then the interstate became slick. We drove on for awhile, but it got to the point that we knew we needed to head home. One of Sadie's appts. had already been canceled, so we only had a couple of more to postpone. So, we were home by 12:00. Brandon went in to work, and I enjoyed an extra afternoon at home. Monday night was Analise's music class, and I was glad to be able to be there for all of it.
Tuesday morning I got together for my Mom's In Touch group. Love that time! After school we came home for 30 minutes, and then Analise had a birthday party at the local fun center. She was excited, and I was happy for her. I took all three girls in so I could meet the mom and hang out for awhile. Of course, while I talked, Maisie wanted to play in the big ball/play area like rest of the girls. I finally let her, but I told her that Analise would be playing with her friends. It turned out that Analise chose to play with Maisie more than her friends for that 30 minutes we were there. Oh, it warmed this mother's heart!
Weds. morning the girls and I went to my nephew's preschool Christmas program. I love those! We enjoyed it, visited with family and friends and then went directly to the doc's office. It was time for Sadie's second round of liquid gold. She weighed in at a hefty 21 lbs. She is doing awesome, but for some reason she has a rash.
After school we went down to the police station to meet up with my sis in law and nephews so we could see Santa! All season long, Analise has told us over and over she wants a puppy for Christmas. We've told her over and over that she won't be getting a puppy. On the way down to the station, Analise tells me she isn't going to ask Santa for a puppy, because she knows we don't want one. I was impressed with her maturity in the situation. She went on to tell me what she was going to ask for. She says, "A bouncy ball, Webkinz, and and Ipod." I laughed out loud.
She was so excited to sit on Santa's lap and tell him what she wanted. Maisie sat on his lap, too, and just kind of talked. Sadie sat on his lap, but she didn't give him much of her attention. It was a great time. My middle nephew cracked me up the whole time.
Weds. night was the last night of Awana before break. Analise took a friend, so she got the awards she wanted. Brandon and I planned Christmas themed games, and the wound of kids enjoyed them.
Thursday morning, I again had a sitter here first thing in the morning. Analise's class was having a "Moms and Muffins" morning. I went into school with her and spent the first hour with her and the other moms and kiddos. We ate muffins, the kids did a little "show" of songs, poems and jokes. We then made a craft. Lots of fun, and I was so thankful I was able to go. I got home and then an hour later we were headed to Kindermusik. Our last class with both girls. I was sad; I've really enjoyed the time. Maisie and Sadie both loved it, too. I've signed Maisie up for next semester, but Sadie will take a break. :( Since they can't be in the same class anymore, and I don't have the time to take them to separate class, we will start her up next fall.
I think after school we just came home, and we had a awhile before Grandma and Grandpa came over. Brandon and I had my Children's Commission Christmas party. I love this night with friends!
Friday morning, I took the girls with me to Walmart. I always feel like I deserve a badge that says, "I survived" when I leave. Esp. this time of year. While the girls napped, I packed. Brandon worked from home in the afternoon, so as soon as Analise got home from school, we packed up the van and headed east. We had a free night's stay at a HI Express that if we didn't use, we lose. We figured it would be fun to get away and finish our Christmas shopping. We ate dinner at Cracker Barrel. (YUM!) and then went to the hotel for the girls to swim. Two girls were excited, and one enjoyed it. Analise loved every minute of it. Maisie walked around the hot tub for awhile, and then she wanted to just watch. Sadie wasn't a big fan of it. It was crowded and noisy, so she just wanted to be with me. It wasn't a dream night of swimming, like I had hoped for, but the two older ones still had fun. We got to bed late, so that made Saturday interesting. We went to the mall first, but the girls were dragging. Brandon is hoping this is a good sign for the future and that they might not enjoy shopping. :) We moved from there to Kohl's, where we lost Maisie. Kohl's was out of their carts/strollers, so the big girls had to follow us. Maisie didn't last long before she wandered off. Thankfully we found her rather quickly, in the toy dept. Brandon hung out there so the girls could play while I quickly shopped. We left town later than we had wanted. All three girls fell asleep in the van.
We stopped on the way home for a family get together in another town. We didn't get to see everyone, but we were able to spend time with GG. We ate dinner at Pizza Hut and headed home.
That's our week in a really big nutshell.

Snow Much Fun

It's definitely winter here! I guess if nothing else, it helped me get in the Christmas spirit. Last weekend, Analise and I were in our church's Christmas musical. I had a lot of fun being on stage with her. However, it kept us quite busy, so it's nice having it over. Last Monday night we were in a snow storm warning. I am so thankful they canceled school the next day, and we knew before we went to bed! I had been grocery shopping, so we were stocked up, and I had bought some extra goodies for holiday baking.
Tuesday morning, we woke up to snow on the ground and snow falling all day long! The girls slept in, I let them hang out in their jammies awhile, watch a Christmas movie, and then we did some baking. We made a new chocolate pretzel, and we made our traditional white chocolate pretzel. (only in a new, easier shape.) The girls were great help and had lots of fun. While the younger ones napped, Analise helped me make chocolate fudge. I have never made this before. I'll just say it tastes better than it looks. :) I had chili in the crock pot, and I made my annual cinnamon rolls, arranged on the platter like a Christmas tree. Grandma and Grandpa joined us for supper. It was a fun, cozy day. The next day brought high winds and super cold temps, so school was canceled again. Brandon went into work late today because he and his brother and dad, snow blowed 11 drives! It was a good teachable moment for me to show Analise how daddy uses the gifts from God to bless others. Though we didn't do baking today, we still had fun. After dinner we drove around town and looked at Christmas lights. It felt good to get out of the house.
The girls had been out playing in the snow, but I had limited the time due to the cold temps. Sadie always stood at the patio door begging to go out.

A couple of days later, it was warm enough I felt like I could bundle Sadie up and let her experience it for the first time. She was so bundled, she could barely walk! She kept falling face first into the snow. Kind Analise wanted to help Sadie, but she could trip, too, and they would both land in the snow. Sadie didn't last long outside. But once I took her inside, she wasn't begging to go back out. :)


Grandmom and Pops always send us a package to open the day after Thanksgiving. Here are the girls in their new jammies!

The girls decorated their own tree this year. I didn't have to help at all!

We had a good weekend. Friday night our nephews came over so their folks could do some Christmas shopping. We had a movie night and watched "Santa Buddies." Quite cute!

Saturday we hung out around here. Brandon and the girls played outside and made some tunnels in the snow. Saturday night we were blessed with a dinner out and some shopping. The girls went to Grandma's. Brandon and I hadn't been on a date since August. We ate at a local BBQ place and then struck out shopping. I tell ya, I've just has the worst luck this year. Makes me long for the bigger city with more selection. :)

Analise spent the night at Grandma's, and the other two came home with us. Sunday was relaxing and slow. I have geared up for a busy week!

Time Marches On

I feel like I am cheating on this post, but really, I am saving myself time. :) Ever since Analise was 13 months old, I have done a monthly update letter on the girls. I send it to relatives who we don't get to see much. It has always been one of my few creative outlets, and I love having a binder full of the monthly letters. However, since I have started blogging, my monthly letters get a little later and later. I just finished my November letter; since I am so far behind in my blog, I cut and paste from the monthly letter. :) I didn't include the part on Analise, since she got her own post not too long ago.

Not too long ago, the girls played "at the beach"

This was a picture from our annual picture taking trip to a certain park.

Maisie keeps me smiling and laughing most of the time. She is in fewer time outs, and generally a happy girl. Though she does have her moody moments. Maisie is my daughter that will offer a big "thank you" all on her own, and lately she will randomly say, "Mom, I love you." I consider those words as my "pay checks" of being a stay at home mom. Maisie is no longer calling Analise "Me." Instead she calls her "Lise." She is working harder on saying words correctly. The other day she said "lap" instead of "wap." So I asked her if she could say "Lion" (instead of Wion.) She looked at me with a concentrated face and said, "Rrooaarr!" Maisie loves gumballs! They are a treat at the end of a meal that she has eaten well. She gets so excited and shows each of us, one by one, what color her gumball is. When she shows Sadie her gumball, Sadie always says, "Oooo."

Sadie (21 months) is another mover and shaker in our house. I love to see her beebop to music. Sadie loves hats and shoes...no matter the size. She gets so excited when she has one of them on. Of course, being the third child, she expects everyone to ooh and aah over her. :) Sadie is answering questions with a nod/shake of her head. She calls her blanket "baby." And most mornings when I get her out of bed, she has taken off her footy jammies. Sadie is also bringing me a diaper when she is stinky. It's amazing how fast she seems to be growing up! Sadie was at the docter several times this month. She got her first Synagis shot to protect her against RSV. (And I just want to vent a little here...you have no idea how much each one of these shots cost. I don't know how the makers of this can charge this much and have a good conscience about it. Thank God our health insurance covers it!)A week later, she had a bacterial infection that lasted several days. She was quite the pin cushion, and such a trooper! Though she ran a high temp for several days, she just kept her normal schedule. It takes a lot to get her down. The nurses and doctors were amazed how well she handled all the shots and blood draws. I guess I have the NICU to thank for that. :)

We all had a great Thanksgiving, celebrating in town with family. We enjoyed having Analise and daddy home two extra days, spending time with out- of- town family, and reminding ourselves of everything we are thankful for...including you and the Father who has blessed us with so much! For our Thanksgiving dinner, Analise was asked to make Pilgrims hats. She did them all on her own. Ever seen a Pilgrim playing games on a lap top? :)

A Girl with Character

Analise has always been a little chatterbox. She loves to ask questions, share things, tell stories, you get the idea. My prayer for her is to use her speach to glorify God. (My prayer for Maisie is that she will use her hands to glorify God. :)) Anyway, the other night I got a phone call from her teacher. Thankfully, I knew I didn't need to be nervous. She told me about how at school they highlight a character trait each month. At the character assembly each teacher gives an award to a student who lives out that trait. All that to say, Analise was chosen for the character trait of "Speaking with Good Purpose." Yeah! She didn't know she was going to win, but we knew so we could attend the assembly.
So Friday morning came, and we were ready to go. Brandon was going to meet us there, but he came home instead. He was suffering from an ear infection, and the pain meds he took made him feel lousy. (That's a story in and of itself, that I won't go in to.) Bummer, he couldn't go. Thank goodness for Grandma and Aunt S. close by who were willing to come.
Analise didn't see us sitting with other adults, so she didn't know we were there. At the assembly, the kids talked about speaking with good purpose and what it meant...using kind words, not hurting others, ect. However, before they announced these winners, they had another drawing. As a school ,the kids get stickers for when they are caught doing good. The teacher then fills out a form and puts it in the class bucket. At the assembly, they randomly draw a name, and that student gets a prize. Wouldn't you know it...Analise won that, too! A bonus for us already being there. When she was called up front, she finally saw us and gave us the biggest, most satisfied grin. She was excited about the award, but she was more excited to see family there. After that was finished, she was then announced as her class winner for the character trait. We are so proud of her and thankful that she is using her speech to be a light for God. May we continue to pray that for her, and for me as well.
Analise won a lunch with the prinicpal and came home with a nice certificate. I have a cute picture of her with it, but since it has her last name on it, I don't want to post it. We'll have to settle for the picture I did post. :)

Life

We have been enjoying the nice November weather. It's so much better that October. We've gone to parks, played outside, and I have loved watching all the girls enjoy it so much. Sadie is finally able to play at the parks since she is now a walker. And she's not only a walker...she's a climber! She climbs the play equipment all by herself and goes down the slides by herself. I stood behind her as she climbed up 8 vertical steps to go down a metal slide. That girl; she amazes me. I now let her play out in the back with the other two. She climbs up the ladder and down the slide there, too. I still get a little nervous. :)
Sadie seems to be developmentally catching up to her real age. She is saying more words, (but she still won't say mom or dad.) I hear: juice (for milk of all things) apple, help, ball, balloon, choo choo, and others that I am probably forgetting. She will still jabber in complete sentences. Sadie's latest thing is taking off her clothes, mainly her feety jammies. Most mornings if I don't go in her room as soon as I hear her, there she stands in only her diaper. The other day she kept taking off her shirt. Goodness! She continues to go everywhere and get into anything she can. She is also bringing a diaper to me when she is stinky. Another new thing is she shakes and nods her head when I ask her a question. It's so cute seeing her head bob up and down.

They all cuddled up after baths...couldn't pass this moment!

As Brandon and I were enjoying lunch one day, the other two were busy playing. As you can see from the picture, they were quite entertained as the moved almost everything from their room to the living room. I think the quiet lunch was worth the cleaning up...

More updates to come.

Halloween Birthday

We woke up to sunshine on Halloween morning. YEAH! My birthday was already off to a good start. The girls got up before we did, but they played in their bedroom. Once I was up and went to tell them good morning, the first thing they said was, "Happy Birthday Mom!" Analise is so good about remembering important things.
Brandon made breakfast and then took the older two birthday shopping. I enjoyed an hour of quiet at my house. Sadie got into things still, but at least she was quiet. :) I even talked to my sister on the phone in the peace and quiet. Amazing.
We then got together to celebrate with the family here in town. My mom in law made me a delicious lunch. Florentine soup, homemade bread, and my sis in law brought over fresh pineapple. Mmm... I brought the birthday cake: Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Cheesecake. I won't toot my own horn, but it was good.
I was very blessed to get some great gifts! I got fun things for the kitchen, a new candle, itunes cards, a new electric blanket, etc.
One thing I have learned about Analise a few months ago, is that "gifts" is one of her top love languages. Not only does she love to receive them; she loves to give them. She just loves shopping for someone, and she can keep it a secret! The gifts from her were extra special.

Here are the ladies of the house:

We got a fun package in the mail from my parents. It had candy, stickers and each girl got their own card with a $5 bill in it. Sadie opened her card and just ooohhhed. It was too cute!

Saturday afternoon was an afternoon of leisure. I read a book for awhile and then went shopping by myself. Isn't my hubby good? :) When I got home from my errands, we were going to eat a quick supper and then head out trick or treating. I found Analise on the swing, complaining about be tired. I was concerned but figured she was just hungry. However, once she started supper and just picked at her pizza, I got more concerned. I took her temp...103. BUMMER! Analise has been counting down all week for trick or treating, and now she couldn't go. I gave her the option of riding in the van to go see friends/family, but she chose to stay home and watch a movie. Poor thing. I had to do a little of my own pouting, too. This is the 3rd birthday where something has been a bummer. Two years ago, I was on bedrest. Last year I got sick. This year, Analise. Brandon offered to stay home with her, so I took the other two out. We went and saw some friends first, so the kids could see each other dressed up. We then went to meet up with the cousins and walk in their neighborhood. Maisie had a blast! Her older cousins did such a nice job of including her. I carried my "bunny" around, but at one point I put her down. She walked right up to the front door and helped herself to candy. She was not going to miss out!

My sweet chicken

"Eat More Chikin"

My Lil' Bunny

We were very blessed to have someone loan us these great costumes! I love seeing the girls dress up, but I am too cheap to buy a costume and not crafty enough to make my own.

Before I forget

I don't want to forget a couple of things...
Here are the two girls actually sitting down and enjoying something together. One of these days they will be best buds, but now they don't play together all that much.

Analise's cookies that she decorated. It was a LOT of work on my part for those cookies to have that frosting....
Maisie loved decorating, too! A wise friend suggested I give the girls gum while they frost so that don't lick their fingers and utensils. Maisie had gum and still licked!

A couple of Analise funnies:

1. Yesterday at breakfast she announced, "Satan is going to eat breakfast with me." Wanting some clarification, I asked her to explain. She told me she had named her new plasic snake, Satan. I suggested we change the name. The snake is now called San Diego.

2. Last night at supper, Analise says, "I like cash." My first response was, "Me, too!" I asked her if she knew was cash was. "Yeah, it's what I am eating." Um, that would be quiche. :)

Busy days

We've been busy the last few weeks. I don't think I can remember it all.

Sundays have become busy days. (I miss my day of rest!) We have church in the morning, I am at church at 3:00 for choir practice for the Christmas production, I leave at 4:00 to go get Analise and take her to the church for the kid's practice until 6:00. Some nights we pick her up at 6:00 and go straight to small group until 7:30ish. I am excited about this Christmas production because it's a multi generational production. I love seeing families (or parts of families) participating together. I look forward to serving with Analise by singing on stage.

Last Monday was applesauce day! It's another tradition. :) This year there were more apples, so it took all day! We go to my mom in law's house. My sister in law comes as well. This year her mom was also there. We were very thankful for the extra help! We left at 4:30, grabbed a pizza on the way home and ate quickly. Analise and I then left at 5:20 for her music class. We were home 6:40 and headed out the door again. Her school was having an openhouse for parents to meet each other. I was looking forward to getting to know some of them, but when we were there we were the only ones in the classroom. Oh well, I always enjoy visiting with her teacher. Analise was thrilled to show us again, and I like Maisie being able to see where Analise spends her day.

Tuesday we stayed home from Bible study because the girls had an annoying cough. We ran errands instead. I was supposed to have a meeting, but it got canceled.

Thursday I was able to go to Analise's class. I had a different group of kids, so that was fun. I then made a quick grocery run since I didn't know when else I would have the chance. I am loving this "freedom" each week!
The girls were all moody/emotional today. It makes me wonder what they will be like as teenagers. Whew! Glad to get them to bed!

Friday was Fall Break, so we had Analise home all day. I was glad because the day before, eight kids were absent from her class. We want to stay away from the sick germs! We all slept in, and everyone woke up on a much happier note. PTL! The girls got along so well all day! I decided it was a good day to make sugar cookies. We made the dough in the morning and used cookie cutters in the afternoon. Then came time for frosting. What a mess! Thankfully they had fun. I had a good laugh during this time. I had the two older ones standing at the counter while I mixed their frosting, and I was on the phone with my mom. I hang up the phone and see Sadie walking out of the kitchen with cookies in hand. I said, "Sadie...", and she gave me a smirk and ran out of the room. Little stinker took them off the counter! :) I'll post pictures of their cookies another time.
Friday night was movie night. We watched the new Veggie Tale Christmas movie. I know...but I had a good reason. Operation Christmas Child is kind of promoted, so I wanted to preview and see if it was something we would want to show at church. So it worked well. I got something accomplished during movie night. :)

Saturday was game day! Grandma came over at 7:30 so Grandpa, Brandon and I could get on the road. We went to the University football game. It was cool and kind of dreary but lots of fun! Our seats were behind the field goal (to the side a little) and I love watching from that angle. Though the outcome wasn't what we had hoped for, it was a great time regardless! Fun times and time with my hubby. I loved it!

Sadie had a doctor appt. last week. She finally hit the 20 lb mark! We did a little jig when we heard the good news. Everything looked good. We will continue breathing treatments while she has this cough. Grr...those are battles! She has learned how to take it all apart.
After I was home from the doctor, the nurse called to let me know that more H1N1 vaccine had arrived. Last time they were out within four hours. It put a kink in my day, but praise the Lord for Grandma willing to come over last minute. I picked Analise up from school and then took Sadie in. She qualified for it because of her small lungs. We waited our turn and got shot. She started crying when they pulled up her pant leg. She knows what that means. She recovered quickly and had no side effects.

This week has been busy as well. Fun things, but still busy. More on that later....

Pumpkin Patch Fun

I love traditions. I don't know exactly why, but I just do. One of my favorite things to do in the fall is go to a pumpkin patch. I think I look forward to it as much as the girls do. The last couple of years we have gone to a close, smaller patch. The girls enjoyed it, and it was a nice size when they were small. This year I wanted a bigger one where there was more to do. Brandon was on board, so I did my research and found one about an hour away. We waited until the girls were up from their naps, and we loaded up and hit the trail. It was a sunny day but only in the 50s. I was thankful I had brought along some extra coats. We used them!

Sadie rode in the stroller most of the day and didn't seem to mind.

She loved the corn pile! I let her play in this while the others took the wagon ride to pick out their pumpkins.

They even had adult trikes!

I wish the picture portrayed how blue Maisie's eyes were.

The girls LOVED this slide!

The zip line was more fun with daddy's help.

We walked through the corn maze Pony rides are fun.

Sadie enjoyed the goats.

There was so much to do; it was a kid's paradise. I was never told when I was pregnant how much joy I would have watching my children enjoy something. The girls jumped in an inflatable pumpkin, climbed forts, rode in a "train", rode the trikes, went down slides, zip line, corn maze, wagon ride for a pumpkin and loved all the farm animals.
We ended up eating dinner there and left when they closed. It felt good to warm up in the van. I asked Analise what her favorite part was, and she said, "All of it." What more could we ask for?

Fun Times

What an October it has been! Most of the days have been cool and cloudy. So we take advantage of the sunny days! This week the girls were playing outside. Sadie walked over to me, coat in hand and gabbered a long sentence, making it very clear she wanted to be outside with her big sisters. I couldn't resist. I put her in the swing first, because she always enjoys that. However, since she is an official walker, I let her roam the yard. I had the most delight watching Sadie delight in her new independence of walking around and playing with new things. She was on top of the world. Her favorite thing was the Little Tykes car. In and out, in and out.

Last Satuday the girls came flying into our room announcing, "Snow, Snow!'' (Maisie says, "No No!") They couldn't even eat breakfast before they went outside. Brandon and I pulled out the snow gear and realized we have some shopping to do. :) Both girls were in snow pants that were too small. Analise squeeze into her boots. They didn't care; they just wanted to play.

As much as I didn't want snow on Oct. 10, it really was pretty. The first snowfall always is. Come January, I will be tired of it. While the girls played, I made pancakes for breakfast. After that we all went shopping for new winter gear. The girls did fairly well, but we didn't have any luck.

We had a good, healthy week. We were able to participate in all the scheduled activities. Music Academy, Awana, Bible Study, Moms in Touch, etc.

Sadie is now 19 months. She is walking everywhere, carrying the step stool to reach things she shouldn't be reaching, and she can jabber like none of my other girls did. She is signing for "more" and "milk." She's had a cough and runny nose, but I think part of it is teething and part of it is just because she's Sadie.

Analise said something awhile back that I want to remember. A few months ago, I had her grandma buy Analise the next size up in undies. However, they were way too big. When I brought out all the fall/winter clothes, I decided to have her try them again. I laid out her school clothes with her new undies. When she was getting dressed, she asked me, "Mom, are these my big grandma underwear?" I laughed and laughed, but I knew what she meant. :) The best part...they fit!

I've been going in to Analise's class once a week to help for about 30 minutes. I always enjoy it and I like getting to know her classmates. She likes having me come, even though I don't ever work with her. I go in the afternoon while the other two are sleeping. A college gal comes over and does homework while I am gone. After I leave the school, I usually run a couple of errands...by myself! It's so liberating. :) It's a good set up, and I love it.

I think that's about it. We are going to enjoy the sunshine.

This tube has provided lots of fun

Sadie loved her freedom in driving the car

The first snowman of the season

Snow fun in early October

Maisie is hiding....do you know where she is?

Grandmom reading a story over the phone to the girls

Our little flower