Christmas Program

Santa Brunch

This morning our country club had a Santa Brunch, so we took the kids there for some pancakes, sausage, cookies, and a special visit from Santa.

Logan liked Santa this year.  He even posed for a picture with him.

Audrey and Emily, on the other hand, were scared silly!

Audrey said she didn’t like him because of his beard and gloves.

Anyway, they were much happier by mom after he left!

Tonight we’re going on a “Tour of Lights,” a bus tour of Christmas light displays in Crown Point.  I’m so thankful for the health and safety of my children today and find myself giving them lots of extra squeezes. 

It’s been 3 months!

Where has the time gone?  I can’t believe It’s been 3 months since I’ve updated… and probably almost as long since I’ve taken pictures off the camera!  December is a busy month, but Luke is gone a couple evenings this week so it’s a good time for me to check a few things off my list, including bringing this blog up to speed!

Let’s see what pictures I have here… this is a picture of Emily from her last appointment at Comer Children’s Hospital.  (We’re sitting next to the hospital’s mascot called “Remox” found in the Lobby.)  Emily went for a developmental screening in September, right after she turned 2, and they concluded that we no longer need to come for follow-up visits because she is at or ahead the development of a typical two-year-old.  Praise God that we have no concerns regarding her premature birth! 

Logan loves to ride his balance bike and still (in December) chooses bike riding before TV after he finishes his homework.  He loves to be outside!

In September, we gained two new nieces/cousins.  We got to meet Riley in the hospital when she was only a day old…

And we met Lauren when we made a trip down to St. Louis in November. 

The girls started the fall with a gymnastics class, but Audrey decided she didn’t like it and Emily was a little too young to do most of the activities anyway, so we only did one 8-week session.  They still play “gymnastics class” at home, which I think they actually like better than the real class.

Our piano gets a lot of use during the day.  Audrey, especially, loves to make up songs as her fingers bounce along the keys.  But here’s a rare moment that I caught my tow-headed child alone at the piano.

We went to the Pumpkin Patch again this fall.  The kids get taller every year!

   

Logan was the Star Student of the week in his first grade class, and he had to make a poster about himself.  When asked what he wants to be when he grows up, he replied, “A dentist!”

We took a family trip to the Science and Industry Museum during Logan’s fall break.

And finally, I’ll leave you with a costumed pictures of the kiddos.  Logan wanted to be a knight this year, and Audrey chose Snow White after seeing the show on stage.  I tried to think of a costume for Emily that would follow the Snow White theme, and the best I could come up with was an apple.

But seriously, she’s the cutest poisoned apple I’ve ever seen!

Two

Last week, Emily celebrated her second birthday.  She has been acting so much older lately but still continues to have such a sweet little personality.  Her birthday always brings back memories of the NICU and her uncertain start, so it’s a day for me to reflect on what a precious gift we have been given in this sweet girl.  

On Labor Day, Luke’s parents come to town and we had a little party at the pool.  I think Emily really enjoyed the attention and loved her new book and princess lunch box.

   

 

On Friday, her actual birthday, we had a pink pig party that evening after Logan came home from school.  Emily loves to point out the pigs she sees in books (“Pig! Pig! Pig!”), so I just rolled with it.  We had my parents over for dinner (pigs-in-a-blanket, of course), opened gifts, and had a few bites of her pink piggie cake.

 

 

The only hitch in the fun evening is that Audrey was extremely jealous of Emily’s gifts.  “Where’s my gifts?” Audrey asked.  And when Emily opened a new doll from Nanny and Papa, that was just too much.  “I want a new doll too!”  I wanted to celebrate Emily, and truthfully this is Emily’s second doll (the one from her first birthday has been loved-to-pieces by Audrey and is now hanging on by mere threads), so I wanted to be sure this one would be Emily’s doll.  But I didn’t anticipate all the tears.

See Audrey’s doll on the floor next to Emily?  That one’s just not good enough when there’s a new baby on the block. 

However when Emily opened some princess figurines (and tried to hold all 4 at once so Audrey wouldn’t take them), Audrey seized her opportunity for the doll.  See who has the new pink doll here?

Audrey now understands that she’s the “Auntie” and she can hold the new baby, but Emily is that baby’s mommy.  We’ll see how this works.  I have a feeling this isn’t going to be the last of this type of argument with two girls so close in age!

We gave Emily a new doll carseat/swing.  Both girls like it.

Last year, Emily burned her finger on the candle at her first birthday party, so I was trying to be so careful about keeping her away from the fire… but would you believe it, she did it again!  She reached right out, faster than I could stop her, and touched the lit flame.  We’ve got to practice this before her 3rd birthday!

Oh well, she still had a great birthday.  We love you Emily and had so much fun celebrating YOU!

Firsts

Lots of firsts today.

First day of school.

First day of First Grade.

First day of Gymnastics class.  (She wanted a picture on the steps too.)

(And she wanted a picture of her fingernail polish.  This picture cracks me up.)

And a First day of First grade big giant cookie.  :)

July & August

There are so many good pictures on our camera right now!  With school starting next week, I’m feeling the need to share a glimpse of our summer life over the past few weeks.  Before we know it it we will be in the midst of carpools, school bells, homework, and fall activity filling our time.

So, back to 4th of July.  We spent the day at my parents’ house and finished with a backyard fireworks display courtesy of our own purchases and those of all of our neighbors!

I love it that in the summer the kids have the time and freedom to play and be creative together. 

We’ve also been giving Logan the privilege of reading in bed with his lamp on after we say goodnight.  His favorite books right now are the  Junie B. 1st Grader books.  Yes, the English teacher in me cringes at some of Junie B.’s grammar, but she is funny and Logan relates to her stories of lost teeth, school lunches, and friends.  These books have really motivated Logan to read independently, and I have dear Junie B. to thank for that.  Logan prefers reading out loud, and I love standing out side his door and listening to him read after we tuck him in.  Sometimes I even hear him laughing at the story. 

We also just had our front landscaping done.  Originally, the house had a big bush up front and two overgrown bushes on the side.  A local landscaping company came and transformed it into this:

Then it was off to Iowa to celebrate my grandma’s 80th birthday!  We spent the weekend at the Lodge in Inspiration Hills with my aunts, uncles, cousins, parents, siblings, and nieces.

Inspiration Hills had a playground right outside the lodge.  Logan was motivated to learn how to do the monkey bars before first grade, and he has succeeded!

My grandparents (Happy Birthday, Grandma!  Can I please look like you when I’m 80?) and all their great-grandkids.

And this is my whole immediate family.

After our time in Inspiration Hills, we headed north to Minnesota for a week at a lake house in Alexandria with my immediate family.

The cousins in the rockers on the front porch.

The place came with a pontoon boat that we used almost daily.  Logan did a little fishing and also loved to jump off the side of the pontoon boat to swim.

Emily found her life jacket to be a bit restrictive, so she found it most comfortable to just recline in the seat.

Emily also loved the beach.

Luke took the older two kids to see the Viking statue and Runestone Museum in Alexandria.  I’m sure all three of them know more about runestones than I do.

One of the highlights of my time was the evening my parents offered to watch the kids while my brothers and sisters-in-law and Luke and I went out for dinner.  It was so nice to catch up with each other sans kids.

We were also able to spend a day with my college roomates, Holli and Crystal.  Holli lives only an hour from Alexandria, and Crystal drove 4.5 hours with her kids to hang out with us at Holli’s house.  We had a great time catching up and our kids had a blast playing together.

In their pjs saying a silly goodbye…

Overall, we just had such a great time on our vacation.  It’s so fun to see my kids interact with their cousins and to watch memories being made.

Behind the lake house there was a wooden rocking seat that I thought would made a great picture at some point during the week.  The first time I tried it, though, no one was in the mood for a picture.  This shot really makes me laugh!

The second time was much better.  :)

This vacation was a fun closure to a great summer!