Faithfulness and Firsts (Birthdays, Words, Shoes, Time Meeting Teachers, Day of School)

Friday, Aug 31, 2018

I woke up crying on Aug 1.  Well, maybe I didn’t wake up crying, but I was in a mood.  Everything felt different and it didn’t take long before I realized what it was that was on my mind.  So much was about to change and, while they were good, exciting things, it was a reminder of the fact that time just doesn’t stop to slow down because I want to soak in the moments.  

August first meant: 

1 week until Maddie turns six

2 weeks until Maddie starts kindergarten

3 weeks until Peter turns 1

4 weeks until Sarah meets her preschool teacher

5 weeks until Sarah starts school

See? All good! But, yet, I found myself sobbing that day.  And over the course of the next couple of weeks, I would sneak into my children’s bedrooms at night, stroke their cheeks as the slept, prayed over them and held my little baby (yep, picked him up right out of the crib at 2 in the morning!) while he is still a baby. 

And you know what, it was sweet, emotional and precious. Knowing that time was passing made me reflect and be more watchful and, that I am grateful for. 

What I saw: 

1. Maddie had the best birthday party at the park with her friends on her actual birthday! So many kids came to play and they just ran around and laughed for hours even after it started to drizzle! Auntie showed up and surprised us, too! 

That time when Maddie got stuck in the baby swing on her 6th birthday. 

Coming in out of the rain

2. We made memories. We went shopping for new school clothes one day, giving me some special bonding time with Mads. Another day, the kids and I walked to Maddie’s school together, sat under a tree and prayed for the upcoming year.  We thanked God for school, teachers, our ability to learn and grow and we asked him for safety, endurance, fun and health! I hope to carry on this tradition every year stationed right out in front of the kids’ schools. 

3. The day before Maddie started kindergarten, we went to the pool as one last hurrah of summer. We truly soaked summer up this year (tons of outings to the park, pool, Santa’s Village, zoo and vacations galore!), so we wanted to end  it with a really fun day doing one of Mads’ favorite activities.  And, as I stood back and watched my 3 children splashing around having fun, I saw Maddie sneakily approaching me. She was trying to sneak behind me so she could surprise me and jump on my back, but she was in full view: plain sight. not hidden in the least.  But she had this smile on her face. The biggest smile you could imagine and time did seem to go in slow motion in that moment.  Maybe it was the way her body was slowly wading through the water, or maybe it was my mind taking a mental picture of her beautiful face, but the moment seemed to last forever and she slowly got closer and closer to me with her radiant smile never faltering.  In that moment I thanked God for the past six years I was blessed to stay home and play with my little girl every day and also for this sweet memory I will always have of her as she is still a little, mischievous, playful, silly girl.  

4. The sunflower.  When we brought home Maddie’s sunflower on her last day of preschool, I never could have guessed how God would use it as a meaningful symbol. Maddie planted the sunflower seeds in a small cup at school and we transferred it to our garden when the weather was warm enough.  All summer, we patiently watched as it grew, stretching higher and higher toward the sun (Son). It’s bud grew bigger and bigger and we eagerly waited for it to bloom. On the Eve of Maddie’s first day of school, we looked out at this sunflower, which was now at least 8-feet-tall, and it’s flower was finally starting to open. And the morning she stepped foot into her kindergarten class, the flower was fully bloomed, just like my little girl was. God was telling me: 

She’s grown. 

She’s ready. 

She’s beautiful. 

I’ve got this. 

I’m faithful. 

My timing is perfect. 

Trust me.  

5. The morning of her first day, Maddie woke up screaming with glee! She exclaimed, “It’s my first day! It’s my first day! It’s my first day!” She could not be more excited.  We got ready, hopped in the car, walked to the school drop-off-line and then I stood back and waited. She seemed like such a big girl.  Sarah told me she was going to miss Maddie and went to her and gave her a kiss and a hug (I’m so glad I caught that on my camera!). Then, before I knew it, she was walking through the front doors of the school.  She was so brave and I was so proud.  Sarah, Peter, and I went to the park and I counted the minutes before it was time to pick her up.  And when that time came, we were all so happy to be reunited.  Maddie loved eating lunch at school, had a fun time, but was looking forward to being home and playing with Sarah.  And I finally got my hug that I had been waiting for all day! 

6. Peter. Is. ONE. He’s been walking for 2 months CONFIDENTLY. He falls and pops back up before I have time to react.  He has a smile, pinched at the corners, that will stop you in your tracks but also makes you think, “oh, what a little stinker,” and he never stops.  I mean, this kid gets into everything.  He is exhausting.  People told me that having a boy was different and I thought, “well, how different can it be?”  Oh, it is different! I am constantly on my toes, running after him and trying to keep him from nose diving off of things, dump the dog’s water, or play the drums on the toilet seat.  He is fearless, adventurous and curious. He loves to tinker with things and try to figure out how they work.  So, though he just turned one, it felt like he was a toddler for a while leading up to this.  I do still get my brief, snuggly moments, but it is fleeting before he sees something he wants to do and tries to throw himself out of my arms.  He doesn’t talk much, yet, but  he does say a couple of things.  He is the most proficient at waving his arms when he is done eating and saying audibly, “All done!” I mean, for real? Are his first works really an exclamation of him telling me, “Mom, I have eaten more than you could ever have imagined and now I need to get out of this chair RIGHT NOW so I can destroy the house some more,”? Typical.  He also will motion towards Cody and say, “Dah,” so I think he is working on “dog” as a close second. Well, his first birthday was special.  Steve and Vanessa were visiting with us with their beautiful kids and we were able to celebrate with Bagna Cauda and cake! I made a giant cupcake for Peter and he dove right in.  He ate the entire thing and then followed it up with veggies and bread from the fondu afterward.  He shovels so much food into his mouth that I truly do not know where it all goes! Isn’t his stomach supposedly only the size of his fist? How is this possible that he can eat so much?!?! I bought him a train set earlier this year for his birthday, but I’m not going to lie.  I still have not given it to him because mom-of-the-year here forgot.  Haha.

Vanessa and Steve visiting from MI. <3

Peter got his first shoes about a week after his first birthday! 

7. Peter and Maddie had a lovely joint birthday party (Pirate and Fairy Themed! and we are so grateful to everyone who was able to celebrate with us.  It was truly a blast and we are so thankful for the memories we could share with you all. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

8. Maddie lost her first tooth! And we were all home together to experience it.  :) 

9.  And, most recently, Sarah met her teachers for the first time.  She said she was shy as we approached the classroom, but when she got there, she was so excited to find her cubby and see all the toys she would get to play with! She started playing right away, painted a picture, we read a book together and she even asked her teacher if she could take a picture with her.  She told her teacher how to spell her name and, when asked if she could write it, she said, “only the H,” as she made an H in the air with her hand.  (she’s a prodigy. just saying). When it was time to go, she cried because she didn’t want to go home. I’m not going to lie; that was bittersweet. While I want my kids to want to go to school, I want them to want to stay home with me, too! Sarah came home so excited about starting the following week and only wishes she could go for more than just two days. She’s going to do great next week. 

Psalm 57:7-11

My heart is steadfast, O God,

    my heart is steadfast!

I will sing and make melody!

    Awake, my glory![b]

Awake, O harp and lyre!

    I will awake the dawn!

I will give thanks to you, O Lord, among the peoples;

    I will sing praises to you among the nations.

For your steadfast love is great to the heavens,

    your faithfulness to the clouds.

Be exalted, O God, above the heavens!

    Let your glory be over all the earth!

Jumping into Summer (2018) and Loving Every Second!

Friday, June 15, 2018

This has been the month of traveling! Or, at least a few weeks of it.  Maddie finished preschool (I can’t believe it! So many emotions!!!) and shortly thereafter, we headed off to Florida for a family vacation with Aunti Danielle and baby Gianna in tow.  It was Peter and Gigi’s first plane ride and they did great! Peter slept most of the way down there while Gigi snoozed on the way back home. And while the two of them were awake for extended periods of time during the flights, neither of them was overly noisy or fussy.  

We spent the first couple of days in High Springs, FL, which is sort of inland, with my cousin, Devin and her family.  Devin was the best hostess! She prepared dinners, and thoughtfully, too, keeping in mind that we have young, picky children, and even packed a lunch for the day we spent at the Springs.  It had been years upon years since we have seen her, but when we finally got together, it was like we had grown up next door our entire lives.  I loved getting to know her two sweet, super smart kids and Phil and Jeff got along great.  My heart ached to leave them when it was time to go. Why do we have to live so far apart! We definitely will be making more plans to visit hopefully in the near future. 

After visiting Devin, we headed further south near the Tampa area, where my Grandma and Aunt Debbie live. I haven’t seen gram since my wedding (almost 13 years ago!), so I was really looking forward to giving her a great, big hug. Visiting with grama was super sweet. I especially loved watching the ways the kids interacted with her.  I sat Peter in her lap and he just gazed into her eyes, reaching up his tiny little hand to touch her face.  He was enthralled with her and just stared and stared.  Sarah was our little performer, singing song after song to Gram. The best, by far, was when she started singing a song that Maddie had learned in Preschool, but Sarah added her own little spin on it: 

“Five little monkey balls hanging from the tree, teasing mr alligator can’t catch me….”

We laughed and laughed and laughed. Maddie, our little lovebug, climbed right up into Gram’s lap to talk with her, snuggle and hug.  All three of them really seemed to adore Gram (just like I do)! 

In between visiting family, we spent time exploring the area or swimming in the pool at the house we rented. Our beach day was just absolutely perfect! Maddie and Sarah loved playing in the sand and splashing in the Gulf, exclaiming that the water tasted bad, while Peter took a long nap under an umbrella in a beach cart meant for hauling chairs. We made both girls mermaid fins out of sand and we built a little city near the water.  We even saw dolphins jumping later in the day! While Gigi was tired and having a tough time this day, both she and Peter both loved the sand and the water! Gigi’s favorite part of the beach was the tasty sand.  Despite her mom repeatedly smacking the sand away from her mouth exclaiming, “kaka! kaka!”, Gigi still attempted to down handfuls of the yummy, Florida delight. Peter tried some, too, but was more content to crawl around and splash at the water.  It was so fun to see them both experience the Florida beach together for the first time! We also had an amazing lunch out that day (grouper sandwiches for the win!) before spending the rest of the afternoon on the sand. 

The house we rented was amazing! It had the perfect, screened-in pool! Maddie wore a life vest and, by the end of the trip, was confidently swimming around the pool on her own while I floated nearby on a large, inflatable unicorn who we affectionately named Ole’ Girl. and there was a smaller, circular pool, which was more shallow, that Sarah spent most of her time in.  In the evenings, after putting the kids to bed, Danielle, Phil and I relaxed out in the pool area enjoying some drinks, watching stand-up comedy on netflix, late-night swimming, and gorging on pizza. All in all, the trip was a huge success.  We had the time of our lives and are so glad we got to spend so much quality time with Auntie Danielle and Gigi! 

The following weekend was our trip to Michigan, this time with Phil’s side of the family. It was a nice little get-away and so so so relaxing.  Th first day, we drove straight to the beach and spent the afternoon playing in the sand, eating lunch and let the kids run around at the nearby playground.  We checked into the house later in the day and Uncle Steve and Auntie Vanessa made us all an incredible dinner! We made a bonfire, ate s’mores and played cards late into the night and enjoyed one another’s company before heading off to bed.  

Day two was rainy, thank the Lord, because it allowed us all to relax and take it easy in the house.  We were able to have quality conversations and reconnect while the kiddos ran rampant through the enormous house we were staying in.  We later blew up some pools in the backyard and were able to take a walk around the property when the rain cleared up. The only thing I would change about this trip would be to add an extra day. I was so sad to leave our family the next day, but now I am craving and yearning for the next trip! 

Other general things I wanted to mention before I close this blog post are some things about my beautiful children.  Maddie, oh my goodness, I adore this girl.  She is blossoming into a kind-hearted, polite, gentle, sweet-spirited little girl and I adore watching her grow up.  She is truly beautiful inside and out. She recently has been super chatty and it is so fun to listen to her stories.  She sometimes goes on and on and on, but her voice is so sweet. She also has started to find more interest in learning to read and spell.  Phil is doing a great job encouraging her without pressuring her and she is starting to be able to sound out 3-letter-words and also spell them, too.  She loves to sing and is experimenting with tones and she is super active.  She is an expert on the swings, rides her bike like a pro and loves to run and chase the dog with Sarah. 

Sarah: sassy, silly, and sensitive. Spend 5 minutes with this kid and she will have you rolling on the floor with laughter.  Her personality is pure gold - like, for real.  She is one of those kids who you meet and you just want to be around. If I was a 3- or 4-year old, Sarah would totally be my best friend.  Sarah recently heard a “quack quack,” and exclaimed with wide eyes, “Was that a pterodactyl?” I was dying.  I love her long, curly, golden hair and her eyes that are so full of love.  She is a beauty and I could watch her all day long frolicking through the flower garden in the backyard with her hair bouncing behind her.  God gave us a very special gift when he gave us Sarah. 

I love having conversations with Sarah and Maddie on car rides and I feel like we really connect during these times.  We pray when we leave the house every morning (they remind me when I forget) and I recently was asking Sarah about Jesus and some basic questions about salvation.  She seemed to really understand the gospel message, so we prayed for her salvation in the car last week! It was a special moment and so very exciting.  I am just so thankful to God for revealing to me that mundane moments like a drive to and from the grocery store or dropping the kids off at school doesn't have to be mundane: it can be meaningful, beautiful and life-altering! 

Well, onto Peter. This kid is the best little boy in the whole world.  He is the cutest, has the best smile, eyes that sparkle, he is a cuddly mama’s boy and he blows us away with what he is capable of.  He is just shy of 10 months now and he already has 7 teeth, is balancing on his own two feet without holding onto anything, walking while pushing a walker (or whatever is in front of him), traversing over uneven terrain (i.e. he climbs over large objects including the dog if I can’t rescue poor Cody in enough time), he has learning to fall without hurting himself/banging his head, can open the back screen door and the dog’s crate (::sigh::) and is constantly making trouble.  He is experimenting more and more with his vocal cords, making all kinds of new sounds including, but not limited to, yelling out of frustration and aggravation.  When he isn’t angrily telling me to put more food on his tray so he can shove it into his mouth (the kid CAN EAT!!!!), he is talking in what sounds like his own language. 

We are truly blessed with 3 absolutely wonderful children. 

The Desires of My Heart

Thursday, April 19, 2018

Do you ever just sit back and realize how full your heart is? Like, take a breath and look at your family and realize just how blessed you are? I’ve been doing this more and more frequently as I watch my kids play on their mats from across the room on my treadmill. Or when I am washing the dishes and see the two big sisters crawling around, hugging and kissing their baby brother.  Or when I return to bed after nursing the baby in the middle of the night and my husband rolls over and gently puts his hand on my hip.  These are moments that are so easily squandered or overlooked, but I am so thankful that God has opened my eyes to see them in the moment.  

Delight yourself in the LORD, 

and he will give you the desires of your heart. Psalm 37:4 

This is a verse that has been streaming through my mind ever since I had the ultrasound and discovered that Peter was a baby boy.  I was overjoyed to be pregnant, despite the difficulty and uncomfortableness of being pregnant; and my heart would have been filled and  overjoyed to find out I was having a third girl, but I did have a deep desire and longing to have a little boy of my own.  

Phil and I had a little difficulty getting pregnant this third time around.  It wasn’t an extreme amount of time to wait, but month after month of negative pregnancy tests was wearing on my spirit. I had been praying, “Lord, allow me to get pregnant,” and soon after seeing it wasn’t happening as easily as it did with the first two, I started to change my prayers to, “Lord, if it’s not your will for me to have a third child, change the desires of my heart.” But the longing remained, not only for another baby, but for a baby boy.  And, in His perfect timing, God granted me that very desire. 

Our baby boulder, as he is affectionately known, brings so much joy and surprises to our every day.  Two teeth popping through a day apart at 5 months old?!? Not what we expected. Rolling around months before the average baby starts moving? yep. Crawling at 7 months when his big sisters didn’t start until around 11? Ok. I simply sit back, observe and am overwhelmed with love for this sweet, little guy.  

So, he is just shy of 8 months now, and he is crawling ALLL. OVER. THE. PLACE. and getting into everything.  And it happened in a day! He figure out how to go forward a couple of paces one morning and by the end of the day, he was zipping around. His favorite past-time, though is definitely removing objects from baskets.  He crawls (on his hands and feet, btw, not on his chubby, yummy knees: I call it his gorilla walk) across the room when he sees a full basket with one intention: remove all objects from within.  He has done this with the dog toys, his baby toys, clothes baskets (as much as he can reach and pull out)…etc.  Now the dog, he’s not a fan of Pete playing with his stuff.  He has precious few toys of his own, so as soon as Cody sees Peter grabbing at his chew toys, Cody walks over, gently removes it from Pete’s hands,  and walks away with it.  

Now, Peter also can get quite worked up when there is something he really wants that may be just out of reach. He will take his palm and pound it against the ground to indicate that he wants something.  He also will do this when I am holding him and he wants milk: he hits me on the chest or back.  Or, if he wants something in his mouth to chew on or suck, he really works himself up.  Sometimes he puts his open mouth on my shoulder and, somewhat aggressively moves his head back and forth as though saying, “I’m desperate! Feed me!!!!” But for all the oomph he expresses in times like these, he also has an affectionate, tender side.  

There is one thing Peter loves more than anything in the world: kisses.  He will be singing or screaming or just being plain loud, but if you start giving him gentle kisses on his cheeks or lips, he stops, stares out longingly like nothing else in the world matters, and just experiences the soft touch against his skin.  And when you stop, he turns to you and leans in for more.  These are some of my favorite moments.  

But there are other moments I love, too, like hearing this boy say Mama or Maaaahm. Madelynn and Sarah both said Dada first - they are their daddy’s girls- but I definitely have a mama’s boy on my hands with little Pete. He sees me from across the room and desperately does his silly, clumsy crawl over to me while repeating “mum! Mumah, maaahm, mama!” It’s music to my ears. 

And his expressions! Oh, his silly expressions! When he wakes up, he’s a grump with a poochy-lip. Or, at least that’s what he looks like.  But really, he’s just taking it all in and observing the world around him.  And at other times, he is a super, smiley little guy, with a giggle that will stop you in your tracks. But, what will really get you is his Stinker-Face.  He scrunches his nose and purses his lips while breathing noisily in and out of his nose.  You can’t not laugh at his silly little face.  He may only be 7.5 month old, but there is no one quite like Peter. 

But, how can I finish off this blog post without mentioning my sweet girls.  Sarah and Maddie have blossomed into sweet, big sisters.  They adore their little brother and help their mom out all the time! Sarah “baby sits” while Maddie is at school.  She plays on the floor with Peter while I am watching from the next room and reports to me, “Mom! Peter is on the tile!” or, “Mom! Is this a baby toy? Peter has it!” She cares so much for him and wants him to be safe.  Maddie anticipates my needs and helps me with diaper changes, placing the mat on the floor, handing me the wipes and diaper and then bringing the dirty diaper to the trash for me: all without being asked. But, outside of their big-sister achievements, they are so much more! 

Both Maddie and Sarah are so intelligent! Sarah can recognize several letters and numbers at the tender age of 3. She can spell her name and is a skilled artist.  We are consistently impressed with her pictures she draws for us.  Maddie has a memory like no one I’ve ever known. She has excelled with her Bible Memory Verses at Awana and is on track to finish not only her first book, but the whole extra credit book, too! She participated in a verse-a-thon earlier in the year and said 29 verses in one night! Maddie has so much depth to her personality: she loves deeply, cares for people, wants to be friends with every one she meets, cheers excitedly when others win, even when she doesn’t, but she has a child-like playfulness and joy to her, as well. Sarah is our chatty talker (she always has been!). Everything that comes out of her mouth makes us smile and giggle.  Every morning, we avoid stepping on the “fire monsters” (i.e. yellow lines painted in the parking lot) outside of the preschool per Sarah’s instruction.  She tells us stories about her funny dreams she has, which really are just stories she makes up in her head.  Sarah sings songs she wrote herself about “Auntie and Mommy going ice skating” and plays quietly and calmly with her toys when she is home (while Maddie is at school).  She loves loves loves babies and is going to make a really good mommy one day and she is currently looking at me and asking, “what mom?” in response to my loving gaze at her gorgeous face while I type this and think about all the things I love about my second-born.  

These three children: their daddy and I are so blessed.  God truly has given us the desires of our hearts, yet it is better than I could have ever imagined.  

Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, Rolling, Teething and our Energetic Pup!

Thursday, January 11, 2018

I have a to-do list a mile long and one of those to-do’s is to update my blog.  Well, I guess that’s the one I’m going to try to work on now since little baby Peter has decided that the only way he is happy is if he is strapped to my body.  I can’t believe he is actually allowing me to sit right now, so I’m guessing this blog-writing session will be short lived.  

Troublemaker

Peter has been such a sweet, happy, BIG boy since the day he arrived.  We have felt so blessed to have such a beautiful boy join out family.  Maddie and Sarah are obsessed with him and, let’s face it, so am I.  He is developing so quickly, too! He rolled from his front to his back when he was about 3.5 months old and the next week, he rolled from his back to his front - a feat that most babies don’t accomplish until they are 6 or 7 months! So, gross-motor-wise, he is way ahead of the game by 2-3 months.  

First roll front to back

and Back to front!

Right now he is going through a tough patch.  I think he has started teething because he is super drooly and he is chewing on everything he can get his hands on.  He has also regressed with sleeping. He used to sleep 4-5 hour stretches, but he's been waking every 2 hours for the past week or so.  I am so looking forward to this period to pass because I am tired! 

He recently has become super social, though.  He will smile at just about everyone if you look at him the right way.  He laughs, too, especially at the girls.  Maddie was making a joke about bringing Cody to school for show and tell one day and she was saying that the dog wouldn’t fit in her show-n-tell bag when Peter started cracking up (for the first time!).  Maddie and Sarah kept repeating, “he won’t fit!” over and over again and Peter was loving every second of it.  

My goofballs! 

Life has been pretty hectic for the past few months.  As Phil and I tend to do, just when we feel like we have a handle on what’s going on in life, we decide that we need to shake things up a bit.  The transition of bringing Peter home was going much more smoothly than I expected, so I must have subconsciously thought, “well, let’s throw something new into the mix!”  Enter Cody: our lovable, rambunctious (now) 8 month old puppy.  He really is a good dog, but he is a lot of work.  We are working on bell-training him so we get a better sense of when he wants to go outside, he walks well on the leash but still needs a bit of work, and he does great with sit, stay and lay down.  He still chews all of the kids’ toys, which gets really frustrating, and he has tons of energy which is hard to exercise now that the weather has turned cruddy.  But, he is a fabulous family dog! He nips when he plays, but he’s never tried to bite.  He plays fetch and tug with the girls and I’ve even seen Sarah pull his ears and tail without a bad reaction from Codester.  I’m looking forward to this summer when we can be outside more and go on walks and adventures with our sweet pup. And when our sweet pup can be outside for longer stretches time and not freeze to death.  

Bringing Cody home! 

That time when Sarah was on the swing and Cody pulled her pants off. 

Our silly Sarah is just that: silly! I can not believe the things that come out of her mouth sometimes. I seriously just sit back, listen to her and laugh sometimes.  Today while playing with a toy computer, she turned to me and asked me, “Mom, do you want to do logic or numbers?” Love it! Well, this silly brain of hers is also super smart.  She has been memorizing some of Maddie’s Bible verses and knows John 3:16 like the back of her hand. 

Coolest kid on the block.  She has so much personality.

Sarah with her coat-beard

Maddie is in her first year of Sparks and is almost completely done with her book! I am truly amazed at the way she picks up her memory verses.  She can recite all the books of the New Testament now, too.  She is doing great in school and loves her friends. She is SO SO social and hugs everyone she knows.  

Maddie went caroling with her Awana club.  She was so excited to be an angel!

Maddie did an EXCEPTIONAL job at her school's winter program.  We are so proud of her!  

She has been going to several birthday parties and loves playing arcade games. 

Look at that stamina! 

And now you are about to be inundated with pictures: 

The girls were fairies this year for Halloween

And Peter, Gigi (cousin) and Logan (friend) were pea pods. Very unhappy pea pods.

We went trick or treating with Maddie and Sarah's friend, Jacob, and with Auntie (Danielle) and their cousin, Gigi.  Maddie had a breakdown three houses in. Sarah kept tripping over her shoes. When Auntie Danielle chuckled, after determining that Sarah wasn't hurt, of course, Sarah thumped her fists on the ground and growled, "It's not funny, Auntie!" Of course this made Auntie laugh even more.  

Sarah also saw a bunny from across the street. We gestured for him to come say hi to Sarah and she hugged him, saying, "I like bunnies." Since her newfound friendship with the rabid bunny, she has also announced, "I like stinkbugs. Ladybugs and Stinkbugs are my friends." And, yes, she was referencing a dead ladybug in case that wasn't clear.

Happy Birthday, Daddy! Maddie and Sarah painted him a new mug. 

We opted to stay home for Thanksgiving this year and celebrate with just the 5 of us.  We needed a little time to ourselves after all the big changes and transitions our family had recently gone through

It was a BEAUTIFUL day

And we spent a lot of time playing outside in the backyard

It was just what we needed to refresh

The next day, we put up the Christmas tree

and we decorated for Christmas.  The girls love playing with the nativity sets. 

We visited my parents' for another Thanksgiving dinner the following Sunday. 

Its so good to be with family

And Sarah, of course, only cared about being with Uncle Mark

Sarah got her first hair cut! 

Maddie and.... 

...Sarah performed in front of church, leading worship fr the congregation 

Maddie and Sarah were SO excited to visit Santa! 

We went with Baby Gigi this year. Look how cute they are! 

I made the dresses again this year (whipped them out just in the knick of time!) and I made a bow tie for Peter and matching hair bow for Gigi. 

We had a couple of grandma days in December! One day we had Baboo over for lunch

And another day we visited Grandma Rumproast and Maddie got "a thousand kisses!"

And Grandma Jones. We really enjoyed our time. 

Christmas Eve was here before we knew it and Aunt Rachel and Uncle Neil made us  dinner at their house. 

Everyone had a really fun time! Maddie and Sarah met guinea pigs for the first time (they were terrified!) and the kids all danced to a song about tacos raining from the sky. 

Christmas Morning rolled in and we spent the morning opening gifts

We all got just what we wanted (there were actually concert tickets inside this box with Phil's old shoes). 

Christmas morning with kids is even more fun than it is being a kid! 

She loves dinosaurs! 

We hosted Christmas day dinner...

Which was actually a Christmas day brunch! The food (especially Danielle's quiche) was delicious and simple. 

And this little guy celebrated his very first Christmas. <3 

The guys

Auntie with "Auntie's Baby" 

And, oh my goodness, could this be any cuter?!?!

Phil's Dad and Carin stopped by for a bit

And Alex was in town and spent the night with us, too!

We spent the next few days at the Illinois Beach Resort courtesy of Phil's dad and Carin and celebrated the holidays  with most of the Jones clan

I didn't take a lot of pictures, apparently. but here's a shot of Uncle Taylor and Sarah.  We really had a nice time swimming, eating and spending quality time with our family.  All-in-all November and December were lovely.