Monday's errands

Yesterday was a busy day.  First, there was the school drop, where George and I saw Lauren and Gracie off for a great day of school.  Next, we went to Target.  I always take George's stroller in at Target, usually because I am there at 8:00am in the morning when vacant carts on the parking lot are few and far between.

Plus, having the stroller limits me to using the basket, although yesterday I had my eye on this little number that had been advertised as the "weekly wow" in Sunday's sale paper.  (By the way, Target, knocking a mere $10 off the price does not exactly wow me, for future reference.) 

Meet the Electrolux Ergorapido:

Anyrate, after getting a few items in the little basket, I ventured over to the vacuum section and scooped up the cordless vac.  But for the chronic crumb situation at our home, I would have left the vac on the shelf ($10 discount, indeed).  I picked it up with one hand, steered the stroller with the other, and made my way to check out.  After settling up, a fellow shopper paused near my register and asked if she could help me get the vacuum to the car by placing the vacuum on the bottom of her cart.  No, no, I assured her that I could manage everything just fine.  She reiterated, asking if I was sure I didn't need help.  I told her that the vacuum weighed probably five pounds (the highest quality plastic available, I'm sure) and that I usually have twin girls with me, in addition to George there in the stroller, so I am accustomed to having significantly more to maneuver to the car.  She looked at me skeptically and then reluctantly headed toward the door. 

For the record, I had George, the stroller and the vacuum loaded into the car and was pulling out of my parking space before she had slid onto her driver's seat.  I would gloat about that, but I think we can all agree that it was definitely the sun, moon and stars aligning just right for that to occur. 

As an aside, whenever I am at the Target I am always struck by how George's red and gray car seat/stroller matches the Target logo and color scheme perfectly.  George could be the Target mascot. 

Do you think a mascot would receive a discount?

Weekend update

George has an endless supply of energy these days. In addition to reaching milestones and simply being capable of doing more, he also has had a surge of energy courtesy of steroid medication.

He began taking a mild steroid a few days ago, and he has several more days to go.

 

We have noticed some changes in our normal, happy-go-lucky, sweet little guy.

One of the adverse affects of his medication are "mood swings," which is a nice way of saying he has 'roid rage.  Since he has been an exceptionally good sport during this whole allergic reaction/rash/chronic itching situation, we are doing our best to keep him appeased.

And when that doesn't work, we simply lay low and try not to provoke him.

The countdown is on

Only one week until Jason Wu arrives at Target!

The cost of allergies

William George was evaluated last week for food allergies.  Since then, we have incurred the following expenses:

Pediatric allergist (out of pocket - deductible not met):  $240.00

EpiPen (out of pocket - pharmaceutical deductible not met):  $198.00

Two prescription medications (out of pocket - deductible not  met):  $58.00

Locaid (topical prescription)(out of pocket - deductible not met) (our per person/per family deductible is obscenely high (not by choice)):  $222.00*

Hypoallergenic formula (out of pocket - coverage dispute):  $249.13**

The week's total:  $967.13, all of which are out of pocket expenses.  Not enumerated is the additional $100.00 in specialized soaps, oil and heavy purchase of Aquaphor to be used in lieu of lotion.  I am not feeling the love for our group health carrier today. 

*What is really special about the Locaid prescription is that there are three refills. 
**Even better, the formula is obviously an ongoing expense.  $250.00 represents a week's supply.

Friday's quote

Historic Centre of Bukhara, via Fotopedia Heritage

The best and most beautiful things in this world cannot be seen not touched... but felt in the heart.

-Hellen Keller

Things parents say

About three+ years ago, I overheard an exchange that we still quote periodically today.  The scene was an overcrowded playground, and we were loading the girls in the car after some prolonged play.  The weather was unseasonably hot, one of the very first hot days of spring, when temperatures reach the high 80's.  Days like those are harbingers of the sweltering heat to come.  We had belted the girls into their car seats when I noticed a harried dad wrangling three boys, seven or eight-ish, into a small car.  They were hot and very sweaty, and they were arguing bitterly (and relentlessly) amongst themselves about an animal bracelet grievance.  The dad had mentioned a couple of times that he did not want to hear anything further about animal bracelets. Finally, one of the boys sullenly blurted out, "I'm HOT!!!"

The dad did not miss a beat and said, "You're hot because you're talking about animal bracelets." 

When we stare into the stubbornness of toddlers and young children, we sometimes snap and say things that defy logic.  In our desperation, we will say anything that might work. 

At our ballet class, the little cluster of moms who sit close to me are often comparing notes.  One such mom, let's call her Maggie, is one of those super-put-together types.  She has two daughters who take classes at the same time (5:00 and 5:15), and she always has her older son with her, and he completes his homework while his sisters dance.  The three children are exceptionally well behaved the vast majority of the time.  When an instance arises where they are not so well behaved, her unflappability is showcased. 

Last week, she relayed a story wherein they were at the pediatrician's office and experienced an unexpected, two-hour delay.  Because that type of delay was uncharacteristic for her doctor, she was there with nothing that would amuse her children.  She said they had read all of the books in the waiting room; they played "I Spy;" they exhausted all games and activities on her phone; they played games she made up.  She had nothing else up her sleeve.

Finally, when all three children were revolting, she overheard another child who was screaming from one of the exam rooms.  She said she huddled them together, leaned forward and asked, "Do you know why that little girl is crying?" 

The three children shook their heads no. 

"When children are bad -- really bad -- in the waiting room, they make them spend the night.  That little girl has been here all night long!" 

Upon re-telling, she was embarrassed.  "I never lie to my children," she said.  But it worked.  That cautionary falsehood bought her 15 minutes of exemplary behavior.  They were then called back, and she says she forgot to tell them the scenario wasn't true.

Given the fact that she was outnumbered and clearly acting in desperation, I would be tempted to keep that one to myself.

Inclement weather plan

Photo by Scott Harmsen | Kalamazoo Gazette

This past Monday was an unplanned inclement weather day.  Schools in our county were closed, including our preschool, due to power outages following storms.  Last January, my schedule was really thrown way off by days and days of unexpected school closure due to snow and ice.  Having always been very schedule-intensive and routinized, an impromptu week(s) at home really threw us off.  Being snowed in without activities planned was interesting, to say the least.  At that point, I decided to at least have a mental list of activities for future closures.  I needed a plan.  Shortly after I had that little epiphany, I saw this blog post from Manic Mommies echoing the same sentiment. 

My five point plan for managing inclement weather days is as follows:

1)  Resist the urge to make the day a "pajama day". 

Unless someone is sick, we plan to be dressed, whether we are snowed in or not.  Getting up and dressed is analogous to NYC addressing its graffiti problem years ago when it began getting crime under control.  When we remain in PJ's for too long, one of my children (whose anonymity will be protected) thinks that anything goes.  A quick change into clothes -- even just our super casual "comfy" clothes -- sends a message that a weather day is not be wasted. 

2)  Write out a schedule. 

Since this day at home was likely thrust upon us, I scramble to quickly set the tone and manage expectations.  Waking up to snow on the ground (at least here in the south where it is unusual) is the mental equivalent of walking into a classroom, finding the normally stern teacher absent, and seeing a very docile-looking sub sitting in her place.  In two words:  PARTY TIME. 

Writing out the day's schedule, discussing the day's schedule and periodically referencing/reiterating the schedule sets the expectation that a plan will be followed.  Kudos if you/your children can do this mentally (bonus points!); we tend to need a focal point. 

3)  Be indulgent. 

That might sound counter to points 1 & 2.  However, a weather day is the perfect time to get out an activity or toy that might not be in the rotation as much as others due to the amount of effort/time required.  On weather days, there is nothing but time... hours and hours of big spans of time. For us, an indulgent activity might be the Easy Bake Ovens, or one of the toy communities (with the thousands of pieces) -- basically the toy equivalent of Monopoly and the time investment required.  Have a tea party, paint, play the games with all the tiny pieces. 

4)  Vary activities and scenery.

 Offer an array of activities, e.g., arts and crafts, reading, hands on activities, something cognitive in nature, a movie, and games.  Try to mimic the variety that would have been offered at school.  Also, try to utilize a few different rooms and locations (cleaning up each area as you move to the next).  Even the smallest of spaces can provide some variety (think kitchen table for arts and crafts, your child's bedroom floor for games, the master bedroom for reading time and the family/living room for movies).  I don't know why this works for children, but it sure seems to do the trick.

5)  Introduce something novel. 

This point is similar to point 3, but is designed for buy-in.  Have a couple of items on hand that are new.  For our age group, this might be a new coloring book and a new box of crayons.  Have a new game stashed away.  Having something new/novel to introduce goes a long, long way, and the item does not have to be significant or expensive.  The Target dollar bins are treasure troves for these types of materials, as is their bargain DVD shelf ($5 DVDs). 

Finally, allow some free time, for yourself and the children.  Schedule free time in the morning and afternoon to give everyone a breather.  Take a break, enjoy some quiet, and allow the monkeys to enjoy the freedom that a weather day brings.  An inclement weather day should be fun.  Again, two words:  PARTY TIME!

On the list

Yosemite is in my top five places I want to explore.  As a family, visiting this national treasure is an imperative.  I was happy to stumble across this video via Blurbomat:


Yosemite HD from Project Yosemite on Vimeo.

Cosmetics and cameras

Santa brought Gracie and Lauren make-up cases containing lots and lots of make-up.   Additionally, they also received new dolls for Christmas, as their gift from mommy and daddy.  A couple of days after Christmas, Gracie decided that she would apply some make-up to her new doll.  In a rare move, we had purchased dolls that are a little pricier than what we would normally buy.  Regardless, we would not want any doll to be permanently marked with make-up so I nicely explained why applying make-up to a surprisingly porous doll was a bad idea. 

Argument 1: 

While it may seem temporary, the make-up cannot completely be removed from the doll.  At best, smears of make-up will remain. 

We wouldn't want to ruin her, would we?

Argument 2: 

A baby's skin is very sensitive.  We had given the strong admonition that absolutely no make-up could be applied to William George.  This time period was during the peak of his allergic outbreak, and therefore, we had to strongly caution against applying anything to his skin. 

We wouldn't the baby to have a skin reaction, would we?

Argument 3: 

Technically, argument 3 was a counter-point to Gracie's argument that she wanted her doll to be made up like her.  My counter-point was that babies do not wear make-up, and therefore, her doll should not and could not look like her since her doll is a baby, whereas she is a "BIG" girl. 

Your baby will wear make up when she is a big girl, like you. 

Finally, the debate reached a fevered pitch, and I simply banned the make-up for the rest of the day.  I had made several attempts to nicely reason with her, but, in the end, the rule has to be that we do not vandalize our dolls.  So... no make-up for the rest of the day.  Gracie huffed off proclaiming that "this is the worst thing that's ever happened to me!!!" 

At the time, her response seemed incredibly disproportionate. 

In an abrupt shift of topic, I was tempted to yell that into the phone at the camera associate in response to being told that my camera will be delayed another 7-10 days.  I left my camera for repairs on 11-23-11 and was told that the approximate turn-around time would be 4-6 weeks.  I assumed the repairs would realistically take four weeks and that they were managing expectations by providing the extra two weeks of time as a cushion.  Factoring in the holidays, I assumed the camera would be back in my hands in exactly six weeks.  Eight weeks later, I am still awaiting the return.  Maybe I am not exactly at worst-thing-ever territory, but I am increasingly impatient.

Ballet performance and weekend update

Lauren and Gracie, December 2011

Back in December, at the last dance class prior to the holidays, the girls performed a preview of the dance they are learning for their May recital.  This is one of the many photos I was unable to upload during our Internet-the-speed-of-dial-up days, and I stumbled across this photo over the weekend.  So much fun. 

This past weekend, we took things very easy here.  Saturday, we played all day and watched some movies (Strawberry Shortcake and Olivia, of course).  After church on Sunday, we ate lunch at Applebee's and then ran errands at the mall.  Following the mall, we visited Gran, who is recovering from her second hip replacement surgery.  Nothing says "get-well-soon" like unleashing three small children in her home. 

George lying on the booth bench

After terrorizing Gran, we completed our regular Sunday night routine.  At 3:30am, we moved the monkeys downstairs when we heard the tornado sirens.  Since George has been playing every night from 3:00am - 5:00am anyway, he thought the experience was great fun and was glad to see that the whole family was joining his regular routine.  Alas, at 4:15am, we put everyone back to bed so his recreational time was cut short.  Skip, who is out of town on a day trip today, left for the airport to catch his 5:30am flight.  We slept until 6:00am, at which time I got up and gave George his morning bottle.  George and I awakened the girls at 6:30, and we all left for school at 7:35.  When we pulled onto the parking lot, I quickly realized that the presence of only two cars meant I had missed an important announcement.  I stopped and checked my phone to see that, yes, indeed, a call came through at 7:32.  Our basement is a dead spot for my phone so the call had gone straight to voicemail.  After listening to the message and confirming that school was closed (versus a late opening), we headed home where we have spent the day. 

The girls have been giddy all day.  Sure, it may not be as magical as a snow day, but a day without school is a day that they can appreciate.

The sales

In the hopes that we can all outfit our children at a fraction of the regular retail cost, consignment season is right around the corner.  Here is a link that outlines sales in our area.

Happy shopping to all! 

Let the shopping begin!

I have four words for you:  Jason Wu for Target.  Read about it here.  Available February 5th.

Friday's quote

Dressing up is the thing now. People no longer dress for an occasion because every day is an occasion; there’s no hard line between day and evening.

-Jason Wu

Allergies, updated

Today we had the appointment with the pediatric allergist.  Before we get to that, let's discuss the formula prescribed on 12-19-11, a month ago today.  First and foremost, George detests this formula and getting him to drink the formula has been challenging.  Second, the formula is unlike anything we have had previously.  The formula cannot be pre-made, as it cannot be refrigerated; it cannot be heated; and the consistency is not appealing.  The smell is appalling; the formula stains everything, and it creates problems in the bathroom area.  Specifically, it creates stool the consistency of water.  We have been using this formula for a month. 

We initially mistook George's reaction to the formula as illness, thinking that he was sick on top of everything else.  No, that was not it.  Because of the protein structure, it is impossible to form a solid stool.  I accepted that and prepared for this reality for the next six months he would be requiring formula.  I packed our diaper bag to allow for these types of issues in public, and I made a vow not to complain, as there are parents of children with real and legitimate medical issues and limitations who would love for their biggest challenge to be a daily change that was unpleasant. 

So George had taken a nap on the drive to Dr. Allergist, and I decided to let him sleep until evaluated.  In the waiting room, I detected an odor from his car seat, and we found ourselves performing a change in the waiting room restroom.  I washed his Gap sweater onesie in the sink, and we borrowed scissors from the front desk to remove his onesie undershirt.  Luckily, I had prepared, so we were able to double bag everything for the trash can.  Since this was a pediatric allergist, they had a very accommodating changing table, tons of supplies and a full can of Lysol.  The scenario was not ideal, but we were able to make do, perform an impromptu bath and exit the restroom just in time for George to be called back. 

I am pleased to report the above was the worst part of the appointment.  The physician was incredible (seriously, if anyone needs a pediatric allergist, I highly recommend this individual).  George has an odd set of symptoms, and the origin is unclear.  He and his staff spent a lot of time taking down each detail, and he recommended some testing, given George's reactions so far.  George was tested (he was fantastic!  did not even cry!) for the main culprits (versus full testing), and he is allergic to soy (Nutramigen is soy-based) and peanuts.  This is valuable information because it means we need to discontinue the Nutramigen immediately, and we need to make sure we do not have peanuts (a frequent snack item for us) in our home.  We have a list of prescriptions and instructions for daily care, involving 6-8 different steps each day.  From start to finish, the appointment lasted two hours.  The newly prescribed formula is even more costly than the Nutramigen (but of course!), but we are hopeful that it will be more appealing to George and not cause any additional reaction.

 All in all, the appointment went really well, and we are very thankful.

Allergies

Back at the beginning of December, William George began having some issues with his skin.  He had a rash, severe itching, welts, and many, many self-inflicted wounds from scratching.  This was a head-to-toe occurrence.  I won't go into the details except to say that it was borderline unbearable for George and, as a much lesser consideration, very stressful and unpleasant for us.  We made calls to our physician, and we even ended up in the emergency room one weekend (did I mention the extremity swelling?).  We followed up with our pediatrician 10 days after the ER visit when he still had a severe rash. We think he had a mysterious virus, coupled with an allergic reaction.  We changed formulas (to one of the exorbitantly priced ones) and discontinued rice cereal.  After a couple of weeks, we tried oatmeal cereal, and he can tolerate that better, although he still has redness on his face and chest after eating.  He was very hungry so I finally tried bananas (the baby food version), and he had a moderate reaction.  We have discontinued everything but formula and oatmeal and are holding off on introducing anything else.  After a month+, his rash has cleared almost completely, but the food reactions still occur daily after feedings. 

Therefore, we have an appointment with a pediatric allergist today at 10:00, and we are booked for two hours to allow for any testing that needs to occur.  We know we need answers about his reactions and recommendations as to what he will be able to eat, but I do not want him to undergo allergy testing. 

I don't want to do it.

Squirrel update

Thanks to everyone for the concern about our squirrels.  (Jo Anna, thanks for the tip about Critter Control. We may have to contact them.)  I was willing to live with them peaceably until they 1) damaged our home (again) and 2) tried to gain entry.  Honestly, if one of these bushy tailed rodents gets into my home, my slight grip on sanity may slip completely.  I can hardly stand the thought of them being in the basement, attic or alcoves, but, if they were to make it to the living area of our home, we would have to move. 

You will know when and if the unthinkable happens because you will hear me yell, "SQUIIIRRRRRRRELLLLLLLLL!!!!!!" Christmas Vacation-style.  You say you live in another town/city/state?  You will still hear me.

When we first viewed our home (six years ago almost to the day), we were struck by the prior owners' immaculate upkeep of the house.  They had made several aesthetic improvements, and their taste is/was impeccable.  Our only concern was when we found various stuffed and mounted animals in the basement.  There were the requisite deer, of course, and that is not considered unusual by local standards.  However, there was also a bobcat and several other animals.  I cannot remember what the other animals were; I have blocked it out.  A fox, perhaps?  For a year or so after we moved in, the basement gave me the willies.  Finally, I was able to repress seeing them.  They were so oddly out of place with the rest of the home that I willed myself to pretend they were never there.

Slowly, the gears of my mind have shifted and I remember now that one of the basement creatures was a stuffed squirrel that had been mounted onto a piece of a small log, as if it were simply scurrying through its natural habitat. 

It is as if this new generation of squirrels is seeking revenge. 

 

Bumbo Envy

Since George arrived home, Gracie has become quite the little mommy.  She has her babies and all of their many accoutrements, and she coordinates all of her mothering with George's schedule.  If George needs a bath, her baby needs one as well.  If George has a bottle, her baby has a bottle.  If George needs to be changed, then her baby, Georgia, needs to be changed also. 

Little Georgia enjoys all of the same ameneties as George on a daily basis.  Therefore, I should have anticipated some issues when we brought a Bumbo home for George.  As soon as he was positioned in the seat, Gracie said, "Does my baby have a Bumbo?" 

I answered, "Well, uhm.... no, she doesn't...."
"Did you get one for my baby?" 
"Well...."
"Is my Bumbo in the car?"
"Well.... they don't exactly make them for your baby."
"Why you didn't get one for my baby??? You're just teasing, mommy?  My Bumbo is in the car???"

The conversation was awkward, to say the least.  In a moment of thinking quickly on my feet, I fashioned a Bumbo for her baby out of one of our plastic bins.  Voila!

Once little Georgia was assured that she is every bit as important as George (ahem), all was right with the world. 

The happy foursome regularly have a great time.

Under Attack

Over the last couple of weeks, we have experienced a couple of random events.  First, the dormers on our home -- the ones we just had repaired and painted in October/November -- have issues again.  When our contractor initially evaluated the job, his theory was that we had some type of rodent chewing on the wood.  I mumbled something about squirrels, but I chose not to really hear/accept that and, instead, stuck with the theory that the wood needed to be replaced after 18 years.  Now it appears that some wood has chipped away in a couple of places, you know, again.

Second, (and this is not for the squeamish), we discovered a deceased squirrel in our driveway last weekend.  We have lived here for six years, and this is our first time to discover anything in the driveway.  My suspicion is that s/he might have chewed into a live wire, as the occurrence took place close to our power lines.

Third, last Thursday night I had the girls upstairs getting dressed in their leotards for dance.  Skip called up to us from the basement, via the monitor intercom, to see if we were all still upstairs because he heard something, a "skittering" sound, on the main level.  I heard a similar sound tonight from the roof.  A quick check of our alcoves did not reveal any squirrel invasion, but clearly we had a rodent on the roof looking for some tasty, newly painted wood. 

Fourth, today we were alerted to a squirrel attempting to enter the master bathroom via the French door.  He was chewing all along the bottom of the door, and, upon inspection of the door exterior, he managed to nibble away a good section of the wood.

The squirrels have always been troublesome on this lot, but they have only served as a nuisance previously.  Their damage was limited to emptying/destroying all of the bird feeders and eating pounds and pounds of bird seed.  Also, there was that time or two that they chewed through all of our cable wires, creating loss of Internet service and interruption of cable television service.  Now we are under full blown attack.  They are damaging our home! 

I love animals.  I really do.  If I find a ladybug in our home, I gently get the fellow back outside.  I usually put them on our topiaries and wish them good health and good times.  The number of stray animals I have brought home with me is a high number.  I do not resort to an aggressive response easily.  Squirrels are rodents, and these particular rodents are damaging the structure of our home and costing us many, many dollars.  (When our contractor repairs the dormers again, it will likely be $300, and replacing our French doors would be at least $1500.)  The fact that we can see 5-6 large squirrel nests in the trees next to our home means that solving this problem by setting traps is probably a futile effort.  I pitched an idea wherein we could acquire a couple of Labrador retrievers, as I am sure that would solve the squirrel encroachment.  Skip vetoed that plan.  Instead, we are declaring war.  Skip went to an outdoor store today and purchased a hefty pellet gun (our neighborhood would frown on anything stronger), and we plan to eliminate our squirrel problem.  I would really prefer it if we could fire some warning shots in the air, and have the squirrels acknowledge our re-claim of our turf and back further into the woods.  But I'm thinking it won't go down that way.  They are an aggressive, destructive pack of squirrels.

As Skip was checking out, he mentioned to the sales associate, "We've got a squirrel problem."  The associate scanned the pellet gun and, with the gun still in his hands, said, "You ain't got one now."  Let's hope that proves to be true. 

Friday's quote

If anything goes bad, I did it. If anything goes semi-good, we did it. If anything goes really good, then you did it. That's all it takes to get people to win football games for you.

-Paul William "Bear" Bryant

Six months

Today is William George's six month birthday, and he is celebrating by having a well-baby visit.  He is absolutely getting a bad deal on his half-year birthday celebration. 

Here is a look back at our happy boy:

Newborn:

One Month:

Two Months:

Three Months:

Four Months:

Five Months:

Six Months:

George, you weigh 16 pounds, and you are currently wearing 6-9 month clothing. You have large feet, and the 9 month shoes we got for you to wear during the holidays barely squeeze onto your feet.

You still say "mama" and "dada," and you have said "LuLu" 3-4 times. (We are really encouraging you to work on your "Ga" sounds so that you can learn to say "Gracie.") Your sisters LOVE you. They play with you and kiss you constantly. For your part, your favorite thing about our home are the doors. To you, they are magical because, at any given moment, your sisters will burst through them with excited animation. You will sit in your exersaucer or Bumbo and watch them play for up to an hour at a time, although you are really wiped out after all that play. "You Are My Sunshine" is still your favorite songs, and you enjoy participating in our nightly story time, when you can stay awake for that event.

We love you, George!

Birthday party

Back on the 27th, I had the dubious honor of celebrating a birthday. As mentioned here, Gracie single-handedly altered our plans for the evening by announcing that we would "have my party" in the dining room that night. Our quiet dinner for two was immediately transformed into a rowdy family affair, and it was actually very fun.

The dining room was prepared for the festivities, and the girls insisted on wearing their party dresses from their birthday party. Also, they wanted to know where my party dress was? Why wouldn't I wear it? Finally, would I be willing to share my birthday balloons with them?

After explaining that adults do not really have party themes and, as a rule, do not have balloons, they seemed a lot less eager to grow up. Adults do sometimes receive flowers, and they always have cake.  CAKE! 

Although there were no balloons to share, I did share my scrumptious coconut cake, and the girls devoured it. 

I had a FANTASTIC birthday!

Christmas Day

On Christmas morning, William George was the first person awake in our home, with his usual 6am (or earlier -- much earlier, in fact) awakening. 

After a quick breakfast, he headed upstairs to his sisters' room to tell them that Santa had visited!!!!  He found them sound asleep.

They quickly got up and were ready to venture downstairs.

Gracie, who had asked Santa for a new stroller and a new doll, was so happy and excited to see a pristine new stroller under the tree.  (Lauren was surprised to see one delivered for her, too.)

Gracie also inspected the cookie crumbs Santa left behind while Lauren prepared to empty her stocking contents onto the sofa.

She found many Hello Kitty accessories!

Early awakenings aside, George's good behavior earned an exersaucer from Santa. 

After using the exersaucer for a while, he was ready for his morning nap.  Generously, Lauren and Gracie opened his remaining presents while he was resting. 

After Christmas brunch, we enjoyed some extended play time. 

Most importantly, we know that Christmas is about the ultimate gift, the birth of Jesus, and we emphasized the birth of our Savior on Christmas Day.

The night before Christmas

On Christmas Eve, we had lunch with Skip's parents, and spent the afternoon visiting.  Then, we came home and prepared for Santa's big visit.  After nightly baths, everyone put on their new gingerbread pajamas.  We prepared food for the reindeer...

Every year, Gracie and Lauren are very concerned that the reindeer will come inside with Santa, and every year we have to reassure them that the reindeer wait outside while Santa does his work.  Accordingly, we leave their food on the front steps.

Next, we made cookies for Santa because everyone knows that Santa runs on sugar.  HA!  While we were waiting for the cookies to bake, the girls posed a little more with George. 

After baking, we left the cookies in a conspicuous place where Santa would find them. 

The girls wanted to play, and we let them.  However, it wasn't long until we heard the reindeer in the neighborhood and even felt Santa touch down on the roof.  When I went outside to see if I could see Santa on top of our roof, Gracie was very alarmed. 

Lauren became upset and started hurrying us all upstairs to bed.  After all, if Santa had arrived and found us awake, he might not have left presents.  At her urging, we turned in to bed. 

Even William George stayed up long enough to listen to bedtime stories and sing songs:

Despite all of the excitement, the girls were fast asleep in no time. 

The next morning, Gracie reported hearing Santa when he landed on the front lawn.  Lauren, on the other hand, whined that she didn't hear anything because she was asleep.  Either way, Santa visited our home!

Christmas parties

We hit the party circuit hard this year, with visits at my dad's home, my mom's home and lunch with Skip's parents.  The girls could not get enough of the celebrations, and William George took to the party scene as well. 

The girls love to aboard PawPaw and Ms. Eva's sleigh.  William George, who was dressed as Santa to match his sisters, is too little to navigate the sleigh alone.  Next year, George; there is always next year.

How I managed to miss photographing George in his Santa suit is a mystery.  He must have been hot, necessitating a change into something cooler.  Anyrate, here he is with his new best friend, the original Curious George. 

The word on the street about George is that he is too nosy/curious to take afternoon naps because his sisters are home from school, and he is much too curious about what they may be doing.  Additionally, he will not take a morning nap in the nursery at church because he has to be constantly alert to his surroundings. 

In his defense, these two make a lot of noise:

After celebrating with dad, we had our Christmas party with my mom on the 23rd.  Lauren and Gracie love their Uncle James.  When they were discussing Santa, Gracie asked James what Santa was bringing him.  When Uncle James confessed that Santa might not bring him anything because he had not been very good, Gracie adopted a very austere manner, as if she was comprehending that what she had heard viz. the naughty list could be true.

Perhaps it was James's behavior toward gifts and shaking them to guess their content that landed him on the bad list: 

We reassured that Uncle James would probably be visited by Santa after all. His behavior has been good overall.

On Christmas Eve, we had lunch with Skip's parents and enjoyed wonderful company and good food. We were all set for Santa's arrival.