Ego Deflation

"Mommy, I love you."

"I love you, too."

"Mommy, I love you."

"Aaawww, I love you, too."

"Potty seat, I love you."

Reasons to Celebrate

The little guy's first Christmas,

Well-loved gifts,

A *very* white Christmas,


And, most importantly . . .

Christmas Eve

Come Thou Long Expected Jesus

 Come, thou long expected Jesus, 
 born to set thy people free; 
 from our fears and sins release us, 
 let us find our rest in thee.  
 Israel's strength and consolation, 
 hope of all the earth thou art; 
 dear desire of every nation, 
 joy of every longing heart.

 Born thy people to deliver, 
 born a child and yet a King, 
 born to reign in us forever, 
 now thy gracious kingdom bring. 
 By thine own eternal spirit 
 rule in all our hearts alone; 
 by thine all sufficient merit, 
 raise us to thy glorious throne.

Written by Charles WESLEY

Merry Christmas, everyone.

A Very Christmasy Day

Our day, in pictures:

Mom and Dad took us to Rice Park in Saint Paul to see the Christmas tree and decorations.

We ran around in order to keep ourselves from freezing.

Then we spent some time visiting our favorite Peanuts statues,

and took in the ice skaters at the outdoor rink.

Inspired by our outing in the snow, we came home and drew Frosty the Snowman,

and warmed up by reading a good story,

After lunch, we made some cookies with Daddy.

Frosting the cookies was fun.

Our brother decided to take a nap, since he's too little to bake.

After dinner and a bath, we donned our Christmas PJs for some jumping on the bed.

I love to jump.

I don't mind it, either.

Mom attempted to take our picture in front of the tree. It started like this . . .

And then turned into this . . .

And this.

We calmed down in time to put the star on the Advent Calendar.
Christmas will be here soon!

Favorite Phrases

My new favorite expressions, courtesy of the the littles:

From Master (usually said while scurrying up or down the stairs): Oh, oh, oh, here comes ME!

From Miss: I am very *fond* of . . . (cookies, coloring, etc., etc.)

From Baby Boy: Aaaaaah guh.

Lovin' the Little Guy

I have been amazed, lately, by how much Miss and Master adore their little brother. I expected them to like him, but I also expected them to be significantly annoyed by his interference in their daily lives. To my surprise, they have rarely been irritated by the attention he requires. Instead, they love to jump in and help with his needs. Master gets some kind of big thrill out of throwing away the little guy's diapers. Miss loves to hold him for me (though, she is starting to get tired of this because he squishes her with his tremendous girth). They both love to kiss him, hold his hands, and make him laugh.

Perhaps the love will fade when he becomes mobile and begins to threaten their toys. But, for now, all of the brotherly and sisterly affection around here is a sweet sight to see.

Notes on the Day

*I had an interesting morning, corralling all three children at church by myself. Mr. was forced to depart for work after Sunday School, leaving me to handle the three peanuts throughout the remainder of the morning. Master had to be fetched, taken to the bathroom, and returned to the nursery. Miss was retrieved from Sunday School (where she learned about "the feeding of the five thousand. By Jesus. With bread and fish."), and brought into the service with me. The little fella slept through most of the experience, but I had to lug his heaviness around in the car seat carrier up and down the stairs and wherever I went. It all went surprisingly smoothly, until after the service when Master decided to tour the choir loft in the sanctuary, while Miss took off in the other direction to run around the gym with her best pal. They were eventually rounded up, though it wasn't easy. Most frustratingly, I was unable to have any real conversation with anyone the entire morning, because I was on constant kid-patrol. I did manage a few fly-by 'hi, how are yous', but that was about it.

*It is cold here. And the real cold hasn't even really started. It climbed to 48 degrees today, and we were told by the TV weatherman to enjoy it, because it won't last for more than one day. We are trying to combat my California wimpiness and keep the thermostat set at 66 in the house. I am cold. Soon, I will begin to dress like this:

Thankful

Life With a Big Sister

Here she comes. What is she going to do now?

Halloween At Our House

One tired (and sick-with-a-nasty-cold) Mr. (who ran the store inventory overnight last night). One little ladybug. Two matching frogs. Reese's Peanut Butter Cups, Snickers, and Kit Kats for those who knock on our door. A trip to the church down the street for their Pumpkin Festival festivities. A lot of smiles, a good bit of candy, and a good picture.

Just Like Santa!

So, I was innocently taking pictures of Mr. with the children on a recent trip to the apple orchard, when a curious onlooker approached. He watched the picture-taking, and then stepped right up to take his turn.

"I want a picture."

"With me?"

"Yeah."

"Uh . . . . OK."

He sat down, I snapped away, and he scampered off toward the play equipment. And was never heard from again. At least we have the picture and the memories.

Fun With Leaves

We love fall. I am making pumpkin muffins and homemade applesauce every chance I get. The weather has been beautiful and crisp, and the kids love playing in the leaves. This morning, we attempted a major yard clean up, while allowing the kids to play to their hearts' content. Better than any toy, the leaves were great for jumping in, rolling in, wrestling in, and throwing in the air. The tree in our back yard is now completely bare, but there are many more leaves yet to fall from the giant maple in our front yard. Watching the littles having so much fun does make the chore of dealing with so many leaves quite a bit more fun.

Happy Autumn!

8 Weeks of Baby P

The little fella is now 8 weeks old. He has experienced those first dreaded immunizations and lived to tell the tale. He is sweet and cute and off-the-charts gigantic. Other news of note:

* In spite of being sick, I had a great birthday thanks to the efforts of Mr. P, who ordered my favorite dinner, and bought me a dark chocolate brownie with espresso cream cheese frosting for my birthday 'cake'. Yup, I like him.

* Miss is in full-on Mary Poppins mode these days. Insists upon being called Jane. Insists that we call her brother Michael. And insists on calling me Mary Poppins, and calling Daddy, Bert. It's a Jolly Holiday at our house.

* Master is learning to enjoy singing *almost* as much as his sister. He delights us all with moving renditions of memory verse songs from Bible Study, and, of course, the Thomas the Tank Engine theme song.

Here are some updated photos:

Smiley face.

Skeptical face.Sister love.Brother love.

Our Last Few Days

We've spent our recent days enjoying Mr.'s weekend, which included a little bit of rain, and some unseasonably warm weather. Here are some pictures to summarize our pursuits:Miss and Master thoroughly enjoyed some time running free at our local park. They love darting between the big trees.

We went on a beautiful walk by the Mississippi River and enjoyed the changing foliage.

The little guy gets bigger every day and is becoming more aware of the world around him. Thems are some kissable cheeks!

Miss has taken on her role as big sister of *two* with gusto. She loves to hold and entertain the baby for me, and she was a great assistant in cleaning our kitchen today. Must capture that enthusiasm for cleaning now. I am not deluded enough to think that it will last very long.

We now eagerly await a weekend visit from the grandparents, and my brother, sister-in-law, and little nephew. We are hoping for a trip to the local apple orchard, if the weather cooperates. In any event, seeing the family will be great fun.

Pain, Pain, Go Away

Two days after giving birth to my 10ish pound little boy, I was innocently chewing some gum when a large chunk of tooth fell out of my mouth and into my lap. This startling development was even more surprising because I felt no pain, which one would expect when half of one's tooth falls out of one's head. Little did I know that plenty of pain was headed my way.

One week later, I headed to the offices of our neighborhood dentist and spent over an hour having the tooth drilled, filed, shaped and reconfigured so that a crown could be ordered to replace the broken molar. I went home and took ibuprofen and expected my jaw to be sore. And it was. For days. And then for a week. And then, it began to worsen. Gradually, the pain was getting more severe, until my entire face felt as though I had been on the losing side in a boxing match. Why, you ask, did I not call the dentist and describe this crippling pain? Because I am an IDIOT. I was busy with the kids, I was hoping that it would just go away on its own. Why I didn't catch on to the fact that this was clearly *not* going to happen, I can not tell you.

And so, I headed to the dentist three days ago, for my previously scheduled appointment to fit the crown. There, I confessed that I had now been in serious pain for a couple of weeks. The dentist could not believe that I had suffered without calling him. He inspected the tooth and pronounced it abscessed. I have no idea what that means, but I am assuming that it involves infection, because penicillin and a lovely pain killer called darvocet were immediately prescribed. The dentist further told me that any pain beyond two days after the first appointment was more than I should have experienced. Have I mentioned that I am in IDIOT?

I am happy to report that the antibiotics are having their desired effect, and the pain is now subsiding. I am starting to feel like a new woman. I have recovered from the delivery, and I am now recovering from the follow up dose of pain that was due to my own stupidity. I think that having three kids to manage will become much easier now that I am not in severe pain. Perhaps my newly cleared head will allow me to become a cooking, cleaning, breastfeeding, potty training, teaching, boo-boo fixing wonder. Perhaps.

One Month Old

This is still his favorite activity.

Ah . . . Life in the Midwest

Tonight, I had the distinct pleasure of serving Trader Joe's corn dogs, crinkle cut potatoes, and apple slices to two little people seated on the floor of our basement. Why the impromptu picnic, you ask? Because of the wailing tornado sirens and the violent thunderstorms passing through our area. I thought it best to head to the lower level when the weatherman on TV said, "Take shelter IMMEDIATELY if you hear tornado sirens." I also thought it best to evacuate to a quiet area in order to avoid a further meltdown by Miss who was growing increasingly nervous because of the melding sounds of thunder and siren.

As it turns out, our home was not leveled and we did not end up in the land of Oz. It also turns out that Mommy becomes rather cranky when she has to schlep dinner down the stairs, and then try to keep the littles seated and eating while simultaneously comforting a crying baby and keeping one ear attuned to the weather report on the radio. Mr., as you may have gathered, was working one of his night shifts this evening.

All part of the never ending weather adventure that is Minnesota. On the bright side, leaves are starting to change, and a beautiful Fall is on it's way. Let's just hope it gets here soon. I am so very *over* thunderstorm season. Can you tell?

A Few Random Remarks

*None of our babies have enjoyed the pacifier. Miss tolerated it for one day and then decided that she preferred her thumb. Master did not want it at all. Baby Peanut was initially receptive to the idea, but has now decided that the thing is good for nothing and should be spat across the room.

Here he is, during those good old receptive days.



*Why, dear reader, oh why, do toddlers feel the need to play with their poop during their nap/quiet time?? Why must it be found all over the room? Embedded into the area rug? Smeared across the bed sheets? Ground into the wheels of the Tonka truck? Miss did this as well at the tender age of two. Why, oh why? Or, maybe it's just my kids.

*Cousin W mentioned one of our favorite children's books in the comments from my last entry, and so I thought that I would heartily recommend it here. We love, love, love . . .

Sweater Weather

We've had an early burst of Fall weather in the Twin Cities, prompting us to dress Baby Peanut in a hoodie that first belonged to his sister, 4 and a half years ago. Each of the littles has worn it, and it will be one of those small things that I just might have to keep in a box somewhere after he has outgrown it. Someday I'll look at its tininess and remember their soft little heads and their little cheeks that I spent so much time kissing.

The rest of the family is looking pretty cute in their sweaters, too: