Grandma got run over by a reindeer

Every time I used to hear the song 'Grandma got run over by a reindeer' I used to cry when I was little. I didn't like the idea of my grandma getting run over by a reindeer. This year as always we had Grandma up for Christmas a my parents house. When we used to live in Greenville in Orange County Grandma always used to come and stay over night. I remember yelling one Christmas Eve night that I heard the reindeer on the roof. And one year we even had Christmas at Grandma's house because we lived with her a few months as our house in Sullivan County was being built. This year we went and got Grandma out of the assisting living home. She is 87, and she spent the day with us. She really enjoyed it and I was happy we got to spend it with her as always. I love the top picture of them with her.

My favorite memory of Christmas this year has to be at 3:30 am I woke up for some unknown reason, and I see two little boys at the top of the stairs holding hands ready to go down the stairs. I quickly wake up and yell, 'No guys! Not yet!' Not in a mean way, just because I was totally shocked upon seeing them and surprised that I woke up. Chip jumped out of bed and by the time he got their room, Adam had climbed in with Van on Van's bottom bed, both of them huddled together. How adorable is that? So he gently explained to them that it wasn't time to wake up yet and Adam reluctantly climbed back into his bed and we all got up around 6ish maybe? I can't remember. But Chip suggested we hook the gate after that episode which I agreed was a good idea.

Adam wanted a camera this year so that was his main gift and Van got a snow plow which you can see in the above picture and he LOVES that. What does a little 7 month old baby girl need? So she got a bunch of 'girly' sippy cups. And the cutest pairs of shoes from Uncle Joe and her grandparents as well. A girl can't have enough shoes. I am going to line them up to take a picture because they are just so darn cute.

But it was a fun day. We went to Christmas Eve service the night before and was longer than I expected, the kids got home and were tired, Anna especially since she usually goes to bed when it started. But they were all really well behaved. We had a wonderful few days of Christmas.

The prison Christmas party

For the past few years my dad has had a Christmas party at his work. Last year my parents took Van because we were on the cruise. My how much has changed in a year! We have an almost 8 month old and I am back to work. But anyway, we always enjoy this party. It is low key and the kids have a great time. Santa brings them each a small gift and we have dinner. I remember going one year when I was pregnant with Van and Adam didn't want ANYTHING to do with Santa. This year, everyone likes Santa and has a lot to tell him. I hope we can go again next year.

A confession

This really has nothing to do with my kids but I have a confession that I just realized about myself.

I am obsessed with collecting recipes.

And I just realized it the other day. I posted a year ago or so that I love getting the Taste of Home magazines. They come twice a year and I have been getting them since we have been married so it's about 7 1/2 years. So let's see, 7 x 6 is 42 plus the three is 45 magazines. I have them ALL! And I look through them. Seriously. And have tabs on them and stuff written on the front. Well we got a new TV for Christmas and are moving the living room around so we are getting rid of the 'center' that holds the old TV, and the magazines are underneath. Where am I going to put them? Anyway, I sort of got off topic.

I realized that I really am obsessed with the recipes. I have a binder that I keep, and I honestly use it probably about 3 times a week. It has all of these different recipes that I have found over the years and I have them in sleeves and organized. I used the binder twice today. But it is getting a little full, I think I need a bigger one.

I get emails from Martha Stewart and Betty Crocker and Parents and one other one that Martha Stewart does.... I can't think of it right now. But I always open them and on occasion will print out a recipe and it goes in the binder. I was just on Betty Crocker that is why I thought of this post. And you know in the Sunday paper when you get the coupons and they sometimes say 'go to helavucheese.com for recipes'? I do. And I print them out. And they go in the binder. And when my house is clean (which is the WORST time to cook because then you make a mess again) I open the binder or go to my tabbed magazines and make something. I decided if we won the lotto and I had a house cleaner and my kids were in school and I decided to take advantage of a wash and fold service because holy hat.....laundry takes all day.... I would stay home and make food all day like containers of spiced almonds for snacks and really yummy sandwiches and scrumptious dinners with dessert choices. But for now, I'll keep plugging away at the binder on occasion.

Professional Portraits

My beautiful beautiful children (minus one of course)!

Things I am looking forward to with my daughter

1. black patent leather shoes
2. making intricate sugar cookies
3. toe nail polish
4. baby dolls
5. bows and barrettes
6. gingerbread houses
7. doll houses
8. tea parties
9. french braids
10. American Girl Doll store
11. going to see the Nutcracker with a red wool coat that has two buttons on the top with a black fur collar and a black headband with a bow and the shoes in number one (have I thought about this one?)
12. horses
13. striped cotton tights
14. entering an animal in the fair
15. Mary Janes
16. purses

Crap

I have just noticed that I am blogging like once a month now! Oh well. That's what happens when you are busy I guess.

OK, is it just me or do you have an unlimited amount of crap lying around your house? Dear Golly, I am not really in the mood to scrapbook and am sort of caught up on emails so I decided, (Anna is taking a VERY long nap) to look 'pick up' this little area up here where I scrapbook, have my computer, and also hold buckets of clothes and diapers and anything else. Holy Moley!! This is the problem, I have trouble I guess throwing things away- for example, I just came upon the cd of the sono pictures they took of Anna when she was 13 weeks. It has been sitting on my scrapbook table for over a year now. What do I do with that? I have the pictures in a scrapbook already, I have the living baby downstairs sleeping. Do I hold on to the cd? I feel bad chucking it. But I did.

I have all these left over crafts from VBS that have been sitting on my scrapbooking table since the summer. Now you know why I scrapbook on the floor, the table is a little full. :) But what am I supposed to do with them? There's nothing wrong with them, yet they don't belong on my table and if you saw what the Sunday School stage looked like you'd hang me out to dry if I put something else in the Sunday School area. So they are on the floor. The scrapbook table is clean. So basically I have just 'moved stuff around' up here. I have all these certificate of Adam's story hour, some preschool things I have saved (believe me, it's like two things) first Halloween cards for Van from Great Grandma. What do I do with this stuff? Sigh.

Clinging to the line

OK, this is going to be a really sappy somewhat strange post so just a forewarning.

I moved the bassinet out of our bedroom today. It is LONG overdue. She has been in her own bed now for almost two months I would say? The bassinet has been serving as a catch-all for my school clothes. I take them off when I get home and put them in there. The funny thing is, Chip hasn't really said anything about the bassinet because I think he knows I don't really want to move it out. Our bedroom has been a little cluttered. Since we moved the boys into one room we have all these old baby blankets I guess, some people made, some were given to me, one was Adam's old comforter. And they are all in a pile in our room. As well as a bunch of other stuff. (This part of the post is really not important information.) But anyway, the other night I felt this draft and we realized it was this space of air between the air conditioner and the window so he took it out of the window. He was like, 'If we didn't have so much stuff in this room, it would be a little easier.' And that was the extent of the reference to the bassinet but like I said, the blankets are there, I have birthday present stuff on my floor, there's is a lot, not JUST the bassinet.

So today, I got up the nerve and took it down and out of the room. (As well and put all the other stuff away too.) I said as I brought it downstairs to him to take out, 'I think I am emotionally detached from this now, you can take it out.' He said, 'I don't think you are until you throw it away.' And I said, 'Well, I guess I'm not then because I'm not throwing it away.'

I'm not saving it because I want any more babies. Or maybe some clinical psychologist may say that is why I am saving it. But my mother in law has hers from her kids that my kids have slept in. Hers is still in her house too, she hasn't put it away yet. (From Anna I mean) I thought maybe I could save mine too for that reason. But it all makes me really sad. I titled this 'clinging to the line' because I still have my line on my stomach from when I was pregnant with her. And basically, I feel like that is all I have left of my pregnancies. My boobs are dried up, my period is back, my hair has fallen out and coming back I guess? I have an extra ten pounds I don't care about nor am I trying to do anything about really so I guess I could claim that too. But I still have my line. All of my infant clothes are gone, all of my maternity clothes are gone. I even tried to throw my pump out but Chip thinks I could donate that so I am going to try.

I can't WAIT until Anna is like two years old. The crying will diminish, we can do fun things as a family. Not that we can't now but with a baby baby it is really hard. So I look forward to that. But knowing that my pregnant small infant days are done is kinda sad to me. But knowing that my baby bearing is over makes me sad in a odd sort of way.