Christmas 2009

We had a wonderful Christmas! It was fun to celebrate with a child who was old enough to unwrap presents instead of simply eating the paper or playing with the boxes. (That's fun too, don't get me wrong, but personally I like to see them play with the toys.)

We have had snow a few times here, and Graham has enjoyed going out to play with Daddy while the rest of us stay warm inside. Here's Will's latest invention:



Yes, Will is on the other end of that rope. He pulled him around around for an hour the other day and came in quite exhausted.

My brother and sister-in-law came down the week of Christmas and we had a full schedule: decorating gingerbread houses, shopping, and going to the zoo to look at the lights. It was COLD, but totally worth it to see Graham's eyes light up while he rode in on my brother's shoulders.

Christmas morning was fun. Our best present from the kids was sleeping in until 7:00am, which they hadn't done in quite awhile. My mom & dad weren't able to make it over, so we set up the computer in the family room and Skyped with them so they could see the kids. Gabriella slept through everything, and Baby C ate the aforementioned wrapping paper before getting totally overwhelmed and requiring an early nap. Graham, however, had a ball. Here he is with his new Aquadoodle mat:



My first attempt at a Christmas dinner (without Mom's supervision) went pretty well with lots of help from everybody else, and we were able to Skype with Will's family that afternoon. All in all, it was a very good day.

We got to go to two local science centers with our friends Matt & Leigh Ann, Dave & Charlene, and Adam & Jayme. The kids had a ball and enjoyed playing with Kaelyn and Evie. Or at least they enjoyed their toys. :)

Will's brother Joe and his family came over on New Year's and we met them at the zoo for another cold trip. I think their boys enjoyed it, though. Here are Graham, Nathan, and Isaac riding a wooden alligator:



More of Will's family came down the next day and we had another giant round of present-opening (same results from Gabriella and Baby C). We figured they opened presents on at least 8 different days. We got to go to church as an entire family for the first time since Gabriella was born. I say "go to" because that's about all we were able to do together--Graham and Gabriella didn't make it past the song service. It was nice to be together in spirit.

We're looking forward to some quieter evenings and getting the house back in order (mostly finding places for all the new toys). Will was rummaging through the medicine cabinet last night and announced that he felt like organizing the entire house. I made a comment about how that's what everyone wants to do in January and all the organization stuff is on sale right now. Then he decided not to do it because he didn't want to be like everyone else. So close.

All three kids are sick right now, but hopefully we are pulling out of it. Gabriella is doing well and usually only wakes up once at night. She has discovered her fist and makes the same Superman pose that Graham used to do. I wonder if it's genetic.

Updates

Things have been rather busy around here. Make that hectic. We have found that 3 babies are a lot harder to raise than 2, now that we're outnumbered. Gone are the days when one of us can entertain Graham while the other plays with Baby C or works around the house. I am thankful for the hour or so of free time during naptime every day.

Graham is... busy. I came inside from getting the mail today and noticed that Baby C's mouth looked full. I fished out 3 (count them, 3) fruit snacks from his cheeks, which Graham had forcibly shared with him. He gets into the cabinet and bites holes in all of the granola bar wrappers. He dumped water all over our Christmas cards one afternoon, so if yours is a little wavy, you'll understand why. He insists on replacing the angel on top of the manger scene--either with the innkeeper's wife or a camel. Basically, he requires a lot of supervision and patience, which is sometimes in short supply. :) Here he is helping me make sugar cookies. And yes, the cookie barn plays "Green Acres".



...and after eating one.



Baby C finally learned to crawl! It took quite a while, but he is a lot faster now. It was much easier when he would stay in one place, but I guess that's always the case.

Gabriella is a good little baby and is sleeping well at night. When she cries, she has the biggest lip pout I have ever seen. Right now, it makes my heart melt, but someday I will tell her to tuck it back in.

Growing Up Too Fast.

A Man Purse

Yesterday, Graham rediscovered his gardening bag, a large cow-printed canvas bag that is supposed to hold some gardening tools. My mother-in-law Gwen was just saying that Graham had been wearing this bag like a purse when he walked by with one arm through each strap. He proceeded to walk past us to the garage door, open the door, walk out in his socks into the pitch-black 40 degree garage and try to open the van door. I convinced him to come back inside and we checked out the purse's contents:

- My van keys
- Two of my credit cards
- My brush from under the upstairs bathroom sink
- Two receipts from my purse
- An outlet cover

Update

Gabriella is officially 2 weeks old and is doing great. She is now sleeping in 4 hour chunks (or more) and goes right back to sleep after eating, so we're finally getting some rest, too. She is a sweet little baby, but an impressively loud grunter. Graham absolutely loves to hold his baby sister and he is mostly careful with her, save the occasional poke in the eye.





Baby C has accomplished a bunch of milestones in the last few weeks, including saying "dada" and scooting across the floor using a technique we've dubbed The Sea Serpent. He pushes his rear end in the air, buries his head in the floor, and squirms. He literally has carpet burns on one side of his forehead, but it gets the job done.

Graham is going through a John Deere tractor phase. At least I hope it's a phase. Every morning he watches an All About John Deere DVD while he eats his breakfast, leaving the rest of us to sing "John Deere built a better plow" all day long.



It will be a quiet Thanksgiving, and we are looking forward to it. Happy Thanksgiving to you all!

Gabriella Hope Arrives

Gabriella was born on November 10, 2009 at 2:08 am. She is healthy and doing great! She weighed in at 5 lbs 15 oz and was 19.5 inches in length. She is so small that she looked like a baby doll, especially when she was peacefully sleeping! The jury is still out on what color her hair will be, it has some brown and some red, but there isn't too much of it at this point. Plus, it will probably look a bit different in the natural light.

Valerie is doing well in her recovery, and Will's parents are here taking care of the boys during the day. I am sure there will be more pictures and stories to come, but as you might imagine with the unplanned early morning activity, our household is a bit tired tonight.

Beggars' Night

If we are ever left penniless and are forced to beg on the street, I am taking Mr. Bambi Eyes here with me.