December Happenings

December has been a busy month for us, filled with fun activities and busy to do lists. My boys have had a blast savoring the excitement of the season, and I've managed to stay mostly on top of things while letting a few things go, in order to enjoy it more fully with them. Here are a few things we've been up to this month.

The Sunday evening after Thanksgiving we set our Christmas tree up. We let the boys help with the non-breakable ornaments and after they were asleep, Matt and I finished. That tree is full of such special memories, and the boys had so much fun hanging the ornaments on the tree (and taking them off).

I put up a few other decorations as I had time during that week, but I didn't get everything out this year. It just seemed like too much work in my too little free time amidst the craziness of the kiddos. I'm giving myself some grace this Christmas season.

We've added three stockings to our mantle in the last four years. I keep thinking we are a little crazy and a lot blessed!

Last Saturday, my parents' HOA hosted a Santa Claus visit. Matt and I don't make a big deal about Santa in our house (There are much bigger things to focus on at Christmas), but I've just let Nathan think what he wants to think right now. He does look forward to seeing him and talking to him, so I don't discourage that. Samuel is really disinterested in him. He just kind of sat on his lap looking bored. He's more of at Frosty kid than a Satna Claus kid I guess :).

Nathan went last year, and all he has talked about were the snowman donuts. My mom and I were praying they would have them again this year. He was definitely more excited about them than seeing Santa. Thankfully, they served them again, complete with black frosting for his hat :)

After our Santa visit, we headed over to my parents' house to bake Christmas cookies. It's one of my favorite holiday traditions. My mom makes every color of icing and it's an all day affair. So fun, especially since Barry is so willing to clean up our mess.

Nathan had fun helping us this year. He REALLY likes sprinkles on his cookies!

One evening, we also let the boys decorate a gingerbread train. Last year Nathan was more interested in the candy than decorating, but he was really into it this year, and did a great job. His orderly, perfectionist personality came out during the project.

Samuel helped decorate for a minute, before he realized there was icing and candy and cookies involved. Then he just started eating. His impulsive, enjoy the moment tendencies showed up for sure that night. I love the differences in their personalities!

We had one more opportunity to see Santa this week when he came to Storytime at the library. Nathan usually is in school during Storytime, but the special Santa storytime was on a different day, and he was excited to go. I think he gets a little jealous of Samuel going to Storytime without him.

He always tells Santa he wants the same thing for Christmas and it will not be under our tree Christmas morning (it's under my mom's tree). I'm hoping he won't be broken hearted until we make it to my mom's that afternoon.

Nathan had his school Christmas program on Thursday of this week. He has been talking about it and practicing his songs for weeks. All day he kept saying, "I'm just so excited about my Christmas program." We purposely enrolled him on Wednesdays, because that is the day they have Music time, and he loves singing and performing.

He sang, "Go Tell It On The Mountain," "Glory to God" and "Happy Birthday Jesus." It was the sweetest thing to hear him singing about Jesus. That boy has my heart for sure!

I just can't believe we're already entering into this new season of school programs. He is growing up so fast.

We've also been to Rhema's big Christmas display, and maybe we'll try and make it one more time this year. It's so crowded that it's stressful with Little Ones, but Nathan and Samuel were in awe.

One of my favorite traditions that we started last year is a Christmas book advent. I checked out a lot of Christmas books from the library (and picked out some we had at home), wrapped them and the boys get to pick one each night to unwrap and read before bed. They look forward to it every night. I catch Sammy climbing up on the table to grab one multiple times per day. It's fun this year, because they are both really into it. They take turns picking it out each night, and unwrap it together. So sweet to watch them enjoy it together!

And Baby Sister certainly hasn't been left out this Christmas season. I've had a ball with all her sweet Christmas dresses, outfits, and jammies.

Through hand me downs and some spoiling from her Grammy, she has seven dresses/outfits and at least six pairs of Christmas jammies.

I'm starting to miss the pink, because she has worn red and green all month long! I always had fun with Christmas outfits for Nathan and Samuel (and still am), but a baby girl is a whole other story!

In our house, December certainly is the most wonderful time of the year, and we have so many more fun things planned in the next week!

21 Months Old

Samuel Jacob,
 You are 21 months old! We are creeping closer and closer to two! You continue to grow up right before our eyes and are still the sweetest thing around!

You are talking up a storm, and I'm loving it! It's so fun to hear you say new words and phrases, and it makes life a lot easier when you can communicate better. You are putting three word phrases together now. Your first three word phrase was "more pees, choc" (More please, chocolate). I think you get your sweet tooth from your mommy :). It's interesting that you've been talking for so long, but never had a word for Nathan. You would just point or grunt, but this month you started saying his name, "nay-ta," and it's adorable. We hear "Frosty" "Santa Claus" and "Christmas Tree" come out of your mouth multiple times per day. It's that time of year I guess. You are captivated by the lights and wonder of the season, and it's a joy to watch.

You still love to read books. We've been reading some new favorites, and you get so sad when we get to the end of a book. One time you cried and tried so hard to turn the last page of the book (and then got frustrated when you couldn't). You demand three to four books in your crib at nap time and bedtime, but it keeps you from screaming when we put you to bed, so I let you have them.

One of your favorite books right now is "Peek a Who." You can practically read it yourself. It's cute to hear you say, "Peek a Who." You point to the tree in your room and say "Owl" every morning. Your Daddy is pleased that you appreciate his hard work.

You're interested in trains still, and I'm sure your obsession will continue to grow. You play train table often and almost always break the train track and come find me to fix it for you. You are learning the names of all the Thomas trains and fight with your brother over the Thomas train track too.

I get some alone time with you  on Wednesdays while Nathan is at school and at Cubbies in the evening. We try and make it to Storytime after we drop him off at school, and you love it. You're just full of joy and get excited about every little song, finger play and book and bubbles of course. I'm savoring that sweet time with you.

On Wednesday evenings when Nathan is gone, your Daddy and I try and carve out some time to both play with you upstairs, and you eat up the attention and throw a fit if one of us has to leave and stop playing with you. Lately we've been playing "hot chocolate." You'll take a cup and put it in the play oven and then run over to one of us and tell us to drink it. We make a face and jump and tell you it's hot, and you laugh and laugh and repeat it over and over again.

You cut your last canine tooth (bottom left) on November 16, and since then have been sleeping much better. I still wouldn't call you a good sleeper, but the number of nights we have to get up with you is drastically less, thankfully. You are great at putting your pacifiers in your bed after you wake up. In fact you get upset if I forgot and try to change your diaper before you put your pacifier away. However, when we're upstairs playing, you usually go straight to your crib to grab one. I guess you just like knowing where they are.

You're wearing mostly 24 month and 2T clothes. You'd wear your "Frosty shirt" everyday if I'd let you. You ask for it when I get you dressed, and you love your Cars shoes and don't like to take them off. You say "shoe on" when I try and take them off.

You know and say most of your colors. Yellow is still your favorite, and you also know blue, green, orange, red, purple, pink, and black. We're working on counting, and you'll usually count to three for us, and you are even starting to recognize some letters. I attribute that to your big brother and the work we're doing with him on learning his letters. You catch on quickly and learn new things all the time.

You like to draw and color. I need to give you more opportunities to color, but Nathan isn't really into coloring, and you still require close supervision when we have the crayons out, so it doesn't happen as often as it should. We have two little magnetic writing boards that you scribble on and erase all the time. You'll wander upstairs by yourself and be so quiet. I'll come up to check on you, and I usually find you drawing on one of them. You have a big Magna Doodle wrapped under our Christmas tree, and I know you're going to love it! I can't wait to watch you open it.

It's been special celebrating the Christmas season with you. Your joy and excitement is contagious, and makes this Christmas season even more memorable. We love you Sweet Boy!

Four Months Old

Elisabeth Kae,

You are four months old and still the sweetest thing ever! We've had another fun month with you. You are developing and showing off your personality and are still such a joy for all of us.

I've put you in the bumbo a few times this month. You are just almost big enough for it. You love to be in one the action and have a better view of your brothers, but you get tired quickly from holding your head up. You still are a fan of the swing, and for the most part are always content when you're in it.

You eat about 7 times per day and get a 2 oz bottle of formula after 5-6 feedings. You nurse and take a bottle like a champ, and are a very efficient eater. A feeding session (including bottle), usually only takes around 15-20 minutes. You eat about every three hours during the day. Your last feeding is around 10:00pm. In the last couple of weeks, you've started waking up around 4:00am pretty consistently. I thought it was just a growth spurt, but now I think it's turning into a habit for you. It's not a huge deal to me. I grab you up and stick you in bed with me and you nurse and we co-sleep until 7:00-7:30am or so. Then you have six feedings throughout the day/evening.

You nap after every feeding. For most of the month, you could only stay awake about 1.5 hours at a time. I'd notice you starting to get fussy, look at the clock and sure enough it had been about 90 minutes since you woke up from your last nap. In the last few days, I'm noticing that you can usually last closer to 2 hours before needing a nap. Your naps really vary in duration. Some are about 45 minutes, and then you'll have a day where you will sleep for two hours at a nap. We just go with it. You can sleep through almost anything which is good because your brothers are loud. I swaddle you for naps and at bed time and you take a pacifier when you're falling asleep. I'll rock you until you're just about out, and then put you down. You go down for naps and bedtime really easily.

You started laughing this month. You are the happiest, sweetest thing, and your laugh is one of the best sounds in the entire world.



You like movement. You still almost always fall asleep in the car. You'll cry when we put you in your car seat, but the minute we start moving, you settle right down and usually fall asleep (if your brothers will let you)

A lot of people ask if we are calling you by any nicknames since there are so many options for Elisabeth. Your daddy and I are not fans of the more traditional nicknames (Lizzy or Beth). Actually your daddy just wants you to be called Elisabeth. I love your name too, but it can be a mouthful, so we've tossed around a few and we'll see if one sticks. Right now Nathan and my favorite is Ellie. He calls you Ellie a lot actually. We'll see if it sticks. You'll probably always be Elisabeth to me.

You're still rolling consistently from your tummy to back and aren't a big fan of tummy time. You prefer to be on your back. You're starting to reach and grab for your toys on your play mat more. It won't be long before you're playing with toys. Your favorite entertainment right now is watching your brothers. They continue to be so sweet to you. You just light up when they look at you and talk to you. It's precious.

You weigh 12lb 7oz (25%), are 23.5inches long (25%) and your head circumference is 16in (50%). You're wearing 0-3 and 3 month clothes. We're starting to move into some 3-6 month things. You wear a size 1 diaper, but as soon as we finish this pack, we'll move you into a size 2.

You have a content, sweet temperament, but when you're upset, you can lay on the crying. You have a terrible upset cry. It's pretty dramatic. It's funny because you'll be screaming and so upset, and then someone will look at you, and you'll immediately stop screaming and grin at them. You certainly know how to turn on the charm!

We've been on the go and busy a lot this month with a weekend trip to Branson and a full and busy Thanksgiving, and you just go with the flow and make it way too easy on us. You love attention and had the best time at Thanksgiving with so many willing arms to love on you.

You found your voice in the last week and practice talking a lot. And you've learned from your brothers to be loud. I'll hear you and think you're upset about something, but I'll look over and you're just jabbering loudly. You're learning what it takes to get noticed in this crazy house! You also are kicking your legs all the time now too. You get excited and jabber and kick and flail your arms. It's fun to see how excited you get.

You experienced your first Bedlam last weekend and what a Bedlam it was! I think it's your destiny to be a Cowgirl after that game. Your Daddy got pretty excited and scared you, but you were a trooper and of course you
look adorable in orange!

We love you to pieces sweet Baby Girl and can't wait to see what your fifth month brings!

My Favorite Thanksgiving

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving weekend! I think this might have been my favorite Thanksgiving (at least in a long time).  We had so much good food, but much more importantly so many great people to spend the holiday with. Usually Thanksgiving in our family is pretty small (10-12 people). This year, however, we had a house full and it was so much fun. Barry's daughter and her family decided to make the 12 hour drive for the holiday, and since they were coming, my brother and his family decided to come too, and on Friday my mom hosted a lot of Barry's extended family and some of our extended family. There was always a crowd, and everyone had a great time!

Wednesday was my nephew Jeremy's 10th birthday, Since he had to spend most of his birthday riding in a car, my mom wanted to make the evening really special for him. We brainstormed together and threw the cutest Lego party. I really hope one of my kids requests a Lego birthday party because it was so cute!

My grandparents and my brother, Anna, and Amelia made it to town in time for the party. Elisabeth and Jeremy got a chance to catch up :).

The highlight of the party was the pinata.

The kids loved it!

Samuel had to show us every piece of candy he picked up :).

Happy birthday to Jeremy!

Let's eat cake and cupcakes and ice cream. Nothing is off limits at Grammy's house!

Since we've moved to Broken Arrow, I've always hosted Thanksgiving. My mom asked if she could host this year since Mindy was coming up. I gladly passed it off to her. I was pretty intimidated anyway with a preschooler, a toddler, and an infant to care for and host at the same time. I didn't think I was up to it this year, so it was nice to have a break.

Thursday morning, we got ready and headed over to Mom and Barry's for the day.

When my mom and I saw this "Gobble 'til you Wobble" shirt, we couldn't pass it up for our Samuel. That boy loves his food :).

We spent the morning playing games and visiting and taking a few family pictures.

It was really special to have so many family in town for the holiday.

Nathan spent the day playing hobo from the Polar Express. He is adorable and has such a cute imagination.

The weather was nice enough for the cousins to play outside.

We ate a delicious lunch with my parents, Mindy's family, Jeremy's family, Granny and Grandaddy, and Matt's parents.

Nathan and Amelia had a great day together. They are good buddies for sure.

And no day is complete without some wrestling :).

We spent the rest of the day playing games and snacking. We got to play several rounds of Settlers of Catan over the two days, which was really fun for me and Matt. We miss playing board games. It's hard to manage with three little ones, but Grammy was sweet to babysit so we could play with Jeremy and Anna.

Friday morning we headed back over to Mom and Barry's house for more fun! Matt cooked breakfast burritos for everyone.

Samuel decided he wanted to sit at the kids' table instead of his high chair. He loves his brother and cousin and can't be left out!

My brother brought a new (complicated) game, that we had a chance to play. With learning the rules and interruptions from children, it took us about three hours to play, but it was a fun game, and we enjoyed spending some time with Jeremy and Anna. We wish we could see them more. We both really enjoy playing games with them.

My aunt and cousin and her family came for lunch. We hadn't all been together with my brother since his wedding, eight years ago, and I know it was so special for Granny and Grandaddy to have their family all together.

We managed to get a picture with all the great grandchildren.

I can't express how grateful I am that my children are a part of this couple's legacy and for the sweet relationship they share.

We welcomed more family that afternoon and evening. Two of Barry's brothers and their families came for the fun. I had a great time visiting with them all. Scott and Debbie recently moved to Broken Arrow, so we're excited to get to see them and their families more often now. My boys love playing with their grandkids, and I know Hailey and Elisabeth will form a special friendship as they get older :).

The cousins played outside some that afternoon. I have sweet memories playing with cousins on Thanksgiving, and I'm thrilled my kids are experiencing that now.

There was certainly no shortage of available arms to cuddle our sweet girl that day.

We played more games that evening, and finally made it home after 10:00. My mom and Barry kept the boys overnight so we didn't have to leave as early and so they could spend more time with their cousins, before everyone left town.

On Saturday morning, we picked up the boys, and headed to Edmond to Becca and Bryan's house for the day. My boys had a blast exploring her new house and playing with more family. We were exhausted on Saturday evening when we made it home, but all the fun was worth it.

It was definitely a busy, busy holiday, but full of so much fun and so many special memories. I've been begging Chris and Mindy to come back next year. It was sweet getting to know them better and build a relationship with Jeremy and Olivia. My mom and Barry worked so hard preparing, cooking, cleaning, hosting, and entertaining, and they did a fabulous job. I'm so very thankful for my family and so much extended family this Thanksgiving.