December in Review

It's amazing how fast a month can go-- and even when the days can seem to go by so slowly, the years still fly by at warp speed!

The first weekend in december was filled with christmas decorating. getting our tree was the highlight. or at least it was supposed to be. we thought cutting down our own tree with a real saw would be a fabulous adventure that the boys would get a kick out of. we found a tree farm that had a hayride, free cocoa and cookies, giant teddy bears to climb on, and a 2 story statue of santa, as well as a real santa walking around handing out candy! we thought it'd be the perfect place to get a christmas card photo, so we (ok, I) dressed them in matching outfits and powered up the camera in hopes of getting the perfect, smiley shot. turns out the best laid plans... go oft awry. the boys were only mildly amused... and once the tractor/hayride had dropped us out in the field, kyren decided he was done with the whole process and began to fuss, wanting the tractor to come back and get us. the sun was too bright and the wind was too cold. nobody was smiling. not even for the candy. honestly, kids these days! perhaps we'll wait another couple of years before trying to impress them again.

decorating the tree went just about as smoothly. kyren was excited mainly about the breakable ornaments... 4 of which were broken within the first 24 hrs.

let's just say there were very few photo op's this weekend.

the second weekend, Chicago cousins arrived, and it was nonstop go-go-going with 4 kiddos under 4. Gramsy and Poppy gave them all PlasmaCars, which was really fun. mostly for me, b/c it was my idea. second 'most fun' prize went to kyren, for finally finding a vehicle he could successfully maneuver on his own! i don't think i've ever seen him so delighted. it was precious and priceless! we also had a fun music night, singing christmas carols by the fire, and all playing instruments and taking turns being 'the loudest'.

somewhere in there i realized we still hadn't gotten a christmas card photo, and we were now running thin on time. the boys had their new sweaters on from Grampy and their new vests from gramsy/poppy, so i threw them in the wagon and strolled down the street to watch the neighbor boys ride their dirt bikes. definitely a good scenario for getting them to hold still. getting them to both smile in my direction at the same time was another story. brilliantly, one of the boys came over to talk with us after he finished riding, and i seized the opportunity, having him make funny faces so the boys would laugh. and by george, it WORKED. we got a few good ones, and actually had trouble deciding on which one to use. and it was actually a FUN memory to boot!

a couple days later it was time for a week with Grandpop and Uncle Kevin, who drove all the way up from FL to spend time with all 5 of the PA grandkids. We went to Longwood to see the trains and lights; the Brandywine River Museum to see the Christmas Trains display; and had a fun time exchanging gifts... we got an ice cream maker-- complete with a fresh batch of homemade strawberry ice cream, compliments of Grandpop! Deeelicious.

Somewhere in there, poor Silas got a stomach virus...which has now spread through just about everybody. bleh. at least we had fun in the process!

And before we knew it it was time for Christmas Week! Our new advent calendar from Grampy (which is the coolest thing ever), helped us count down to the birth of Jesus, and will for years to come! It has a little door for each day in December, behind which is a magnetic figure that goes on the painted manger scene background.

On Christmas Eve Eve, Dave read the Christmas Story from the Children's Bible, and we used the Nativity Set figures to act it out. Christian loved it. Kyren got frustrated and started trying to throw the resin figures across the room. He's 2 now, you know.

Christmas Eve we spent a nice relaxing day at home and then went to early church at 4pm. Then a lovely dinner at gramsy/poppy's and opened some super-fun presents from the MN Levitans. The boys were in heaven with their new gears and truck ramp.

Late to bed and Late to rise, probably for the last Christmas for a long time. Dave and i were up at 7. the boys not til nearly 8! which is unheard of for Christian. He came out of his room very matter of factly, carrying the ramp from L and E, intent on setting it up in the living room. he kind of shyly looked at the presents under the tree, and didn't say much. we had him go wake kyren and lead him down the hallway to show HIM all the presents, which helped them both get excited. it was a lovely morning of smiles and happiness, and everyone got surprises, and practiced verbal thankfulness, which we've been really trying to get C to work on in this season of 'giving'.

we spent the evening with dave's fam. , and it was a wonderful whirlwind of presents and giggles. unfortunately several people were either recovering, getting, or about to get the virus... but at least we all got to exchange gifts, and share the merriment of the day...despite sharing germs as well. ;0)

This week after has been filled with new-toy-playtime and sniffles/coughs, and trying not to succumb to the tummy bug. Kyren is recovering as i type this. He's defiantly kicking the screen of my new Macbook Air! which tells me he's starting to feel better.

Overall, our hearts are full, and we couldn't ask for more as we head into the new year.

and now that i have my very own laptop, hopefully it will inspire me to be on here more in 2012!!

fall recap

unfortunately i have fallen wayyy behind in keeping up to date here.
not sure i can even remember back to October, let alone, get all of November in one post... so perhaps i will just say that we've been busy. ... and try to recount some of what's happened in the last couple of months...
The boys are growing like little weeds. They love the leaf jumping, bike riding, apple picking, pumpkiny fun of fall. We're trying to shelter them from the Christmas Songs already playing on the radio, and the decorations that are already hung in every store window. But it's not easy!
Even the weather seems to not be able to let Fall be Fall.
we were all slightly confused when Halloween Weekend brought us a surprise snowstorm! But we took full advantage of the 3 inches while it lasted (about 24hrs). Sledding up and down our hill and getting as many photo opps as possible. It was really the first snow Kyren could remember seeing. He simply loved it. And i must admit it was nice to have a little preview of winter... and then return to 60 degree temps for another month!
By Halloween night it had melted, leaving us with the cutest Tigger and Pooh you've ever seen. We lucked out that it was a chilly night for trick-or-treating, since their costumes were about the warmest you can possibly get!
I've been eating their candy ever since. They fortunately? forgot about it by the next morning.

They are finally reaching a safe 'independent play' stage, where i can actually get things done around the house, take a shower, or surf the net for christmas bargains while they undo whatever cleaning i just did. mostly they are obsessed with the brio trainset. it's migrated into the livingroom and has not been put away in over a week. they never get tired of it. especially C. he uses his imagination to fill in whatever's missing, uses legos to build stations, tunnels, bridges, etc, and gets new ideas from watching other peoples' home videos of Thomas trains on YouTube. Kyren delights most in messing up whatever Christian is building, just to get a reaction. tho he can often be found pushing his own train around, when he's not causing trouble. it's been a big month for him in the speech arena. he's talking up a storm these days-- well, a storm for him-- stringing 2 and sometimes 3 words together! "Down, peeze, mommy." "Beeeg Tow Truck". "Bye Bye Ball". And yesterday after we hung up from talking to daddy on the phone (well, k just listens and smiles when someone talks to him through the phone), he looked up at me and said, "Daddy. Work." It was both adorable and sad. Dave has had to work the last few weekends, and we miss him a lot. it's starting to wear on all of us (tho mostly him), and we are really hoping December slows down a bit so we can be a family again.
And as wearying as it is some days to feel like a single mom, i'm trying really hard to have a good attitude about it all. Because, in reality, i'm NOT a single mom. i just have to stop and remind myself that it really isn't that much of a hardship in light of all the suffering around us. we've had some major perspective checks this month, as friends and family are diagnosed with cancer, advanced and aggressive, and other friends and family experience job loss and stress beyond what we have ever known. So we'll take little extra workload for now, thanks!
Christian is enjoying his new school, and has only missed 2 days due to colds. Kyren has made it through both of these colds rather well too, for a change! No nebulizer and no trips to the Doc. or E.R.! Hooray! We're hoping that his lungs will prove to be stronger this winter than last, and that he will continue to grow out of his aspirations and be able to drink from a cup soon. he likes to steal Christian's sippy cup of water and choke and laugh and run away from us.

The only other thing that is newsworthy around here, besides all the adorable things our boys do and say, is that we decided to talk with some doctors about what happened with my last pregnancy and what, if any, risks may face us should we decide to try for a third. We met with 2 specialists, a week apart, and got similar information... tho we're glad we got two opinions, b/c one was a lot easier to understand than the other! The most fascinating part of it all, to us, was actually getting to read some of my records and discover some details about K's arrival that we had not previously known. One of the docs took a lot of time explaining what most likely happened to cause me to go into labor in the first place, and that it was one of those random things that isn't necessarily likely to happen again (esp. since i had a normal delivery with my first). With some precautions he said that next time there might be a 10% chance of going into preterm labor. . . which is really only about 5% more than someone who's never had such an experience. We were a bit surprised by this, as we didn't expect to hear such positive things from either doc.
It's kinda funny thinking about it in terms of statistics, when we really don't see Kyren's story merely through scientific eyes -- as we recall how every single detail of it was timed and ordained by God. We know that any pregnancy is a 'risk' from a medical perspective, and yet we don't look at our babies as statistics/numbers. It really is ultimately about God's plan for each person -- when and how they come into the world-- as much as it's His sovereignty that takes us from this life at the exact moment we are meant to no longer be here. Don't get me wrong, i am totally fascinated by science, stats, and the medical discoveries therein. I really like to be informed and understand the why's and how's of it all... Sit me down and spell it all out! but that is not solely what we base our decisions on. It's not where we found our comfort during our NICU experience with K-- how many babies did or didn't make it. We relied on God's perfect plan, whatever it would be. We know that our precious miracle DID defy a lot of odds. We are so thankful that God chose to let him be in the whatever percentage of kids who make it, and turn out 'normal'. We don't take that for granted and indeed are sobered by the idea of going through something like that again.
So.... we'll see. We're not in a hurry to add to our family at the present time. But at least now we aren't in complete darkness when it comes to what happened to my body, and what a future pregnancy may involve.
So that's some of what's been going on this fall-- as usual we're just trying to get as much time in watching our boys delight in the simple things of childhood-- trying to soak up every moment of it, before it slips away. Squeezing them tight, and tickling them to pieces, as long as they'll let us. Watching them watch the world through new and innocent eyes, trying constantly to help them stay that way.
Christian now uses the term "allitrerative" properly. He asked us last night what a 'soul' is. He's been picking out his own outfits, brushing his own teeth, and asking how babies come out of a mommy's tummy. He uses phrases like, "Speaking of trains..." and "That reminds me..." , and we just have to sigh and hope that we can at least keep him liking Winnie The Pooh for a little while longer.

truck lessons

funny boys!

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Birthday Boy, number TWO!

Kyren turned 2 on Tuesday...

But the celebration started on Sunday night with Party #1 with his cousins and Gia.

He wasn't sure what to make of all the hoopla...

he just wanted to touch the candles and eat the strawberries off the pie:

Each of the cousins had made him a special card and gave him little gifts that he absolutely loved opening. He had no problem ripping off the paper!

On Tuesday afternoon we celebrated with Gramsy/Poppy, Grampy and Gramma Peg...

and not until we pushed his cake in front of him did we realize that last year, for his first birthday, he wasn't even allowed to EAT cake yet... so this was kind of like his first (ever) birthday cake!

He wasn't sure quite what to do with it at first...

so he took off all the truck candles and played with them...

scooped some graham sand around with the dump truck...

and realized the frosting was indeed edible!

after that, he knew exactly what to do!

he's a very SERIOUS eater...

and never cracked a smile during the whole process...

but we know he definitely enjoyed every bite!

and then for some play time to burn off all that sugar!

It was a birthday to remember for sure! We are so thankful for how far he's come since his miraculous Birth Day 2 short years ago. It's hard to believe he's the same little guy. If not for the scars on his back, you could hardly tell there was a story behind this cute little guy that would amaze you!

Love you, Koo Bear!

Birthday Boy #1

Someone Turned 40 Yesterday....

and it wasn't me!

ready for an evening of surprises... he just doesn't know it yet...

we were all matchy/matchy ... not even on purpose!

On our way to The Orchard, a lovely way to ring in a new year.

Arriving in style in his new (surprise) aviators from his super awesome brother!

(just what he's ALWAYS wanted!...he was so surprised!)

On the porch of our little cottage

at Sweetwater Farm

Reading one of his surprise cards from a close friend....

Such a blessed man!

then off to coffee, lunch, and a movie...

the perfect way to celebrate a new decade!

Watch out MUM's-- Here he comes!

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Just dropped off a VERY excited little boy at his new school, wearing Uncle Seth's old army backpack from 1st grade.
We went to orientation last week, and he got to see his classroom, meet his teachers, and his 5 new classmates (they're going to get to know each other realllly well, compared to the 15 he was with last year!). at his request, he even got to ring the big church bell, by pulling the long rope that hung down from the bell tower in the chapel! He was most interested, however, in taking inventory of how many trucks would be under his charge each time he goes to school. He fancied one in particular, a Hess tractor trailer with a little ramp inside that sort of doubles as a car carrier. Ever since that night that is all he's talked about when it comes to conversations about school. (hey, whatever works!)
He has been mostly positive all week, with a few hesitant remarks here and there, quickly followed by positive ones. All i had to do was remind him that that Hess truck was waiting for him, and his anxiety seemed to disappear!
Last night we prepared by reading Clifford Goes to School, Spot goes to School, and The Kissing Hand, for good measure. He was too excited to sleep! This morning he ran in my room and said, "is it New School dayyyyyy???" with a little lilt in his voice. . . and i knew we were good to go! as we were getting ready, he ran up to me and said, as if to test me: "School might be scaaaarrrryyy!" and stared at me, anticipating my response. "Nooo! It will be SO fun!" I said, and feeding off of my excitement, he giggled and ran down the hall.
We got to school in 6 minutes, which is one of the main reasons we are going to this particular school... it was such a nice commute compared to 25 minutes last year! My big boy ran up the ramp and opened the big door all by himself and said, "wow, this is what a real school looks like!" He walked right into his room, checked to be sure the Hess truck was where it should be, and to make sure it had new batteries like his teacher promised it would. Fortunately all was as it should be. He found his own personalized hook... washed his hands...

and turned around to find this little monkey smuggling said Hess truck outta the classroom!
Fortunately i pulled it out of his hands without too much drama, and Christian promptly returned it to it's proper place... but not before a kiss on the hand (for him AND for me). So sweet!! And off he went!
.... a refreshing change from the little boy i dropped off last year at his first day of school!

Can't wait to hear how it went--
In the mean time, i came home, put K down for the morning nap he still so often needs, and actually got my kitchen cleaned! hoorayyyy for school!