getting ready for Christmas!

Its a different year around here- thats for sure! Its sunny, 60, not a drop of precipitation. Definitely doesn't feel like Christmas with our surroundings but inside the house we are ready and excited. This will be the first year in 31 years Ive never been with my family on Christmas. Will be different but I will be with the three people who are the loves of my life and I know they will make the next couple of days VERY fun and full of love. We are pretty much ready. Just need a few last minute gifts and need to grocery shop for Christmas dinner with our neighbors, then we are ready! I have loved this year with Hannah. She has been very into it and loves looking for Joey every morning and loves talking about Santa and what he will do. She also loves the nativity scene and talking about how Christmas is Jesus' birthday. My mom wrapped like 30 gifts for them to open one each night and Hannah has LOVED that. She does the feel test and if she thinks its a book she gives it to Owen. Ha ha! No, she really does love books but one night she said, "Um...this one is a book. Owen you open it." Sisterly love!

We are excited and ready. Hopefully this is the only year without extended family but if not, we do have eachother and more love in this house than I ever thought possible!

A little re-cap of the last few weeks getting ready for Christmas!

 Joey brought pj's and hot chocolate!

 She LOVED decorating. She unwrapped every single ornament and was so excited to put it on the tree.

 Picture by Hannah. and Photo bomber Owen. This was the night of Jeremy's company Christmas party. We had a REAL babysitter! He sure has done alot in one year at Angel Park and I could not be more proud of him.

 Joey surprised the kids during the bathtime. H was in one of her moods so she doesnt look too impressed :)

 This kids smile gets me every time!

 Joey brought matching pj's! I dont ever get pictures of them together anymore. It always looks like Owen is being tackled.

 Ready for her school Christmas party and cookie exchange!

 Watching the Elf movie Joey brought.

 Going to see Santa!

 Christmas party night!

 LOVE her and heart. She might be the strongest willed child Ive ever seen but she does know how to love!

sick babies

we've have a bunch of sickness around here. Which means lots of movies, cuddling, coughing and little sleep but I dont mind the cuddling part. Hannah started to come down with something on Friday and by Saturday we couldnt even get that girl out of our bed. No bribes were even working to get her downstairs to take her to urgent care. I felt so bad for her. That is NOT like her. Usually you cant get her to rest for a second. She spent most of Saturday asleep on the couch or asleep in our bed. She was super hot and crying every time she coughed. We took her to urgent care (which they wouldnt see her? but luckily there was a pediatrician open right next door) and said she had a sinus infection. Im no doctor but it seemed alot more flu like or strep throat to me but I dont have MD after my name :) We got an antibiotic and are now on day 5 of trying to force that down her :/
While we were there the dr said she might have enlarged adenoids and that they should come out. I was surprised to hear this because those have never been an issue for her but the dr did ask if she snores. And she does sometimes but its not like its keeping anyone awake. So we had a next xray done yesterday to check the size of them. We'll see. But Im not rushing out to do surgery...

 Owen snuck under the covers with her. She was not happy about it though!

Owen started warming up a couple days later and was taking some serious naps- like almost 4 hours. Which I guess isnt really rare- he can take a good nap. But he's been coughing, fussy and not eating much so I think he has a touch of it.

We went today for his 18 month appt...he was not a happy camper! 103.6 fever and a strep test turned this well visit into a sick one :( I felt so bad for him. He was miserable. He was ok this morning and then just went downhill. I couldnt believe his fever was that high. So we are waiting for the results and will start his antibiotic depending on the next few days.

But for now we're all cuddled under blankets enjoying some quiet family time! Im so ready for Christmas. I know it will be a COMPLETELY different year but Im thankful that even though we arent together, we are all happy and healthy and there is so much love in our hearts all the other days of the year that matter too! Im also thankful for Face Time!

a hair ordeal!

I havent wanted to cut Hannah's hair, its so long and pretty. Beautiful color too. But for the last couple of weeks she's been getting these awful knots all underneath her hair. Like a rats nest. Just awful. We are usually able to get through them with a little bribing. Let me remind you that she HATES having her hair brushed or touched so detangling knots for 30 minutes is rarely an option unless you want to listen to screaming.
She sleeps like a propeller. And it just made her tangles get worse everyday. Saturday and Sunday morning it was this bad.

It was time for professional help and a CUT!

 After 45 minutes in the chair, a deep conditioning treatment, and lots of brushing out tangles, Its FINALLY soft again. We got alot cut off and some layers put in it. It looks adorable!

 I know it hurt, she did so great!

 After!

Looks so much more grown up!

Thanksgiving 2013 & back to reality!

Im very late with this post, things have been busy these last 2.5 weeks to say the least! But I wanted to post some pictures from Thanksgiving. It was a fun, long weekend with everyone. I ate Thanksgiving dinner like I'd never be eating again :) I figure I had deserved it! Jeremy got in late Wednesday night and was flying out Sunday morning so we crammed in as much as we could.

We enjoyed a fun, funny and entertaining Thanksgiving at my parents house. The kids were good, the food was awesome and the company will always make you laugh!

 At 90 and 96, they're looking pretty great!

 Best we could get! Owen doesnt sit!

 They are two peas in a pod- always together, getting into trouble!

 I was taking pics of him, he wanted to take pics of me :)

 Hannah wrote all the place cards. She LOVES to write!

 THANKFUL for them!

 Funny little boy!

 Setting his own place!

 Thankful we were in KY for Thanksgiving!

 Love this kid...he's getting more mischievous by the minute!

 This silverware was my Grandpa Ben's from the 1920's.

 Putting her to work :)

 Nothing like iphones to keep them out of the kitchen!

 She was ready but all she ate was mashed potatos!

 my two favorites!

 Adam and Owen :)

Friday morning we drove to Owensboro to spend a couple days with Jeremy's family while he was in town. I realized Jeremy had not been home since March for our going away party. I forget that because I come home so often that I forget he's always the one staying back here catching up on sleep working. :)

 A fun group of wild grandkids :)

Aunt Kim and the girls!

Saturday night Jeremy wanted to see some people he had not seen since March so we went out for a bit and then he was on a place at 8 the next morning. Talk about a fast trip!

We spent the rest of the trip doing as much as we could, seeing everyone we could and preparing for our trip back to reality. Thankfully Jeremy's parents were flying back with me and were staying for a few days with us. We enjoyed the company! They left yesterday and now it is really back to reality :(

 We had a 45 minute delay and a 100 mph headwind...we were on that airplane for 5 hours! longest flight yet. And my skin was crawling by about hour two :)

 She loves to hold him, he hates to be held

 Passing time in the airport!

 We went and had lunch with Jeremy at the golf course and Hannah wrote her own letter to Santa. Which she wanted to decorate with stickers...my stamps!

 Sue and I did some Christmas shopping and tortured Owen in the process :)

 We went out to dinner on Friday night...it was COLD! We came back to 40 degree weather here! No snow, but just plain cold!

 proud of him!!

 Before we left for Red Rock and the airport I was trying to deal with this....OMG. This is layers and layers of knots and tangles. IF I can get through it today, we're cutting it!! Doesnt help that she HATES having her hair touched. Like she wont even wear a ponytail. Wish me luck!

Whew! Now its time to decorate for Christmas and get in the Christmas spirit! Im actually almost done with both kids gifts- probably the earliest Ive ever been done with them!