I keep thinking that I need to write a post sort of wrapping up 2014, but tonight is not the night. We’re spending the night at my parents with family, and I don’t want to think to hard or do too much research on the subject. Instead, I’m writing this shorty post to wish you all a fabulous, safe, and hopefully enjoyable night to send out 2014 sweetly, and welcome 2015. But that is it! I want to spend time paying attention to whats going on around me more than anything, so I hope you can all do the same. WE ate lots of yummy appetizers for supper, and the kids are finally asleep. So are my parents, humorously enough, so the rest of us are downstairs playing Mario Kart. Its proving to be quite the party 😉

Happy new year, everyone! I hope it was a good one, but if it didn’t feel like it, I hope 2015 smiles down on you just a little bit brighter 😀

We got up around 9:00 this morning and visited with Caity and Stef over coffee for a bit before getting the kids and having breakfast. It was fairly quickly after food that we got ready and headed out to my parents place for the day.

Once again, we rocked a nice relaxing day together. We napped the kids separately so they both actually slept, which was a wonderful change from the recent week and a half or so. While they napped, the boys set up my parents new computer and the ladies visited and made a plan for tomorrow. We’re going to spend the night with everyone so that the kids can go to bed and we can indulge in some yummy hors d’oeuvres for new years. We made a meal plan and shopping list, and now I can anticipate the deliciousness early.

Our drive home this evening was a little bit tough, and the kids were on edge for sure. Upon arriving home, Dekker was completely devastated to go to bed. He wailed all the way to his room, despite Brady carrying him and us being very compassionate. Its hard to go from so much fun to bed. Once we were in his room, between sobs, he asked for his Mater blanket. The kids had gotten their Christmas presents from my parents and from Caity and Stef today, and my mom had sewed him a flannel blanket to cuddle that was bright red with Cars characters on it. Fabulous idea, right? So I grabbed him his blanket, which he was thrilled about, and eased the transition. It also helped that once everyone was diapered and in their jammies, Laela still needed her milk. So she lay on the floor in the dim light and we all talked quietly and had some nice time together. I was feeling a real need for some cuddles so I lay down beside her to draped my arm over her while she drank. This move motivated Dekker to come over too. He basically lay on her face/bottle and told her how sweet and soft she was. Lots of kisses, as she stared at him, wide eyed. He was sooo close to her face, haha! It was awesome. But we got in some good cuddle time while Brady snapped a few pictures, thankfully. The flash didn’t do us any favors but I’m sure you can get the gist.

Now they’re both in bed but still winding down. Well, I think Laela might be sleeping but Dekker is talking away. Brady and I are looking forward to a soak in the tub and some shows, or maybe a movie. We’ll see. We both feel pretty spent, and its nice to relax together 🙂

Heard over the monitor: Lightaqueen (Lightening McQueen) not feel well!

Bummer, Lightaqueen. Feel better.

Our family got up this morning in time to dress the kids, pack them into the van, and get to the airport on time. We sat at Tims and had breakfast together while Laela made eyes at random strangers. We finished our food at the perfect time, and headed over to the one gate in our tiny, tiny airport to wait for the guests of honor. Caitlin and Stefan came through the gate within moments and we waved them down. Dekker remembered them from summer and warmed up immediately!! We got all of our hugs in, and Dekker even got auntie to carry him over to baggage claim. It was so great to be all together 🙂

We got their stuff together and headed out into the freezing cold to get to the van. Luckily, we hadn’t been there that long so the vehicle wasn’t completely frozen solid again. We ran a quick errand before heading to my parents for the day. We haven’t see my mom and dad since Christmas Eve when we all got sick, so it was nice to get some face time in with them as well.

The day was nice and relaxed. The boys set up the new tv my parents recently purchased, and other than that, we ate yummy turkey sandwiches for lunch and ordered pizza for supper. We really just took our time and rested the day away. I’m looking forward to another day like it tomorrow. Everyone loves a good chill day watching the kids run wild all over the house, right?

I’ve looked forward to today for quite some time now. We’ve enjoyed the novelty of getting a 3D ultrasound with each baby so far, and hope to continue with each pregnancy to come if at all possible. I had an appointment booked for a few weeks back but sickness had just hit everyone too hard and there was no possible way. So we postponed to today. 31 weeks along. We were in the city in plenty of time to pick up Jerilee, drive all the way across the city, and then backtrack a little ways upon discovering that it had moved locations. No big deal. We had time.

The new building was a bit less luxurious but super roomy. Jerilee sat on the floor with the kids and played toys the entire time. She was a total lifesaver. We had no idea just how much we needed her along until the scan started. What was supposed to be a half hour scan turned into an hour, as our baby was not in a cooperative mood. I am so thankful for how hard the tech worked to get us pictures of his whole face. I was flipping from side to side constantly, and we even took a break for me to stand up and massage my belly a little while the tech met the kids and cooed over them a bit.

So while I don’t have the energy to put up the pictures today, here is what we learned about our baby!!!

He is definitely a boy. DEFINITELY! Yet he looks sooo much like Laela! Or at least Laela’s 3D scan photos. A pointy chin, big lips, and chubby cheeks. Only his cheeks are waaay chubbier. His nose looks exactly like that of my nephew, Charlie. Oh, and he has hair, like my other two showed at this point. While the tech couldn’t tell us any specific information, it was unmistakable that he is a VERY good size already. While lots of women can easily have these types of ultrasounds at 31 weeks, my little boy was pressed up against a wall at every angle. Poor kid is already running out of room. No wonder I feel huge already! Lastly, what we learned that wasn’t my favorite thing was that baby Jim is feet down, and is very comfortable in that position. She showed me how to rub my tummy to encourage him to flip, and he would sort of tick-tock back and forth, but wouldn’t ever go head down. I know there is still lots of time for him to flip, and he is still quite active and mobile and he does do flips sometimes, but I also know he is running out of room, and that its pretty quick here that doctors start taking note of baby’s presentation. So its not a huge scary thing now, but its starting to be important.

Because of how uncooperative baby was, we didn’t get the fun tour of fingers and toes like usual. In the past, we’ve seen organs, bones, details, etc. This time, it was more of a constant fight to get a picture of his face. While I’m thrilled that we did in fact get to see his whole face at the end, it felt more like work and less like fun :/ Is that ungrateful? Maybe. I’m really, really happy we went still, and saw what we did. I can’t imagine how beautiful he’ll be, and I can’t wait to hold that chubby face in my hands and kiss those humungous lips! I’ll just have to be patient like most other people and wait to count fingers and toes.

After the appointment, we all went out to lunch at the Broadway Cafe, which was delicious. I always love it there, and I feel like their fries are less icky and more healthy, if thats even possible.

We dropped Jerilee off afterwards so she could get on with her Sunday, and we drove home with both kids fast asleep. We thought we were hooped for naps but both kids burst into tears as soon as they woke up in our driveway, so back to bed they went. Dekker rested but stayed awake, while Laela probably got another hour or so. I used that time to chat on the phone with my sister and mom. I’m so excited to get my hands on them tomorrow!!! Family time is long overdue.

We finally surfaced today!! We made a plan earlier in the day, and left it nice and flexible, since plans don’t hold a lot of water around here these days. The kids slept in really nicely, and we had a normal morning. Dekker didn’t sleep at all during nap time, but opted to wake his sister after less than an hour of sleep, which was a pretty unpopular decision, but happened nonetheless. Brady and I left the kids in their room for a bit in hopes that they’d sleep a bit more. They didn’t, but at least had some quietish time while we had our quietish time too. We got them up and dressed around 4:00 and fed them something we knew would go over well – fries. We were correct. The kids ate their supper, but not tons and tons, since we had lunch early, and this was also a pretty early supper. But its not like we can take them out for supper in the city at 6:30 and then do our plans afterwards. Not how it works with our kids anyway. We would if they could. But they can’t.

After they ate, we all got into the van and drove to the city for dessert. For the last several days, I’ve been saying Jerrys, but I will blame my pregnancy brain and say that I’ve been talking about Fuddruckers the entire time. I’ve been picturing Fudds and anticipated it, but saying Jerrys. Either way, we stopped in at Walmart first to try and pick up a tv that is on sale for boxing week. The website said it existed at a particular location, but I was informed that the website is a teller of lies and they were sold out days ago. They said every other location was as well, but refused to call on my behalf. We checked the next closest location to us and, lo and behold, found a stack of about thirty of them! So we happily bought a new tv today!! Its nothing massive or impressive at all. Its the same size as our current tv, actually. But ours is on the fritz, starting to have mini blackout flashes, occasionally turning itself off, and probably weighs in at several hundred pounds. Time for a new one. After tv shopping was dessert.

Fudds was packed and for the first time ever, we had to order, give our names to someone, and wait for a seat to become available. So we bought some cookies and ordered a milkshake to have made once we got a spot. We didn’t have to wait too long at all before a table freed up. The kids destroyed the desserts and Laela sugar crashed pretty much right away. It was actually hilarious and adorable and I’m frustrated that my pictures won’t load onto my laptop. I suppose this calls for a photo post in a few days, because it was so cute to see my daughter resting her chin on the table, fairly unmoving. But at least its solid proof that dessert was delicious and enjoyed by all.

After Fudds, we hit up Tims, and Brady and I each got a coffee. I kicked off my boots, removed my coat, and settled in for the Christmas lights tour. I’m incredibly pleased to report that Dekker LOVED the light tour!!! He said over and over again that he loved all Christmas lights. Ok, well, he says Griffmas lights, but it was pretty much adorable, and close enough. We even found a house with John Deere tractors on the yard all lit up. He loved that, since he got some tractors for Christmas. He liked the reindeer and snowmen, and stars. Once or twice, he reached across the way just to hold Laela’s hand. It was clearly magical. We drove past an inflatable Santa, and Dekker said “Santa makes a funny face at my eyes.” I liked that 🙂 Very well said, dude.

Laela slept the entire drive home, while Dekker talked the entire drive home. When we stopped to fill up, Dekker just rested his head to one side of his car seat and stared at Laela. “I love Laela” he told me. I said that was so special, and that she loved him too. I then asked him why he loved her, and he just responded “She’s really little.” She certainly is.

We gave Laela some milk while we got their diapers changed, and got them dressed in jammies. While she was having her bottle, I lay down next to her to get my cuddles in, and Dekker came to share her for a minute. He snuggled all up to her like I was, but on her other side, and nuzzled her cheek. Then he said “I love you, Laela. Sleep well.” My heart is so warm to know that he loves her, and that he’s obviously heard Brady and I talking about our love for them. Big win!!

Since getting home, we’ve put the kids down, and Brady is just finished nerding out and setting the tv up. Its pretty much exactly what I was expecting. Not the highest of quality, but just what we need. When we hypothetically move in the near future, we’ll want something bigger and better, but this will be a great secondary tv for a guest room or even our room. Its perfect for right now. A definite step up!

This evening was a complete success in my opinion, and I think Brady would agree. The kids had lots of fun, the treats were yummy, it was pretty meltdown free, and the tv is great! All good. And because that isn’t enough, tomorrow is our 3D ultrasound and in a PERFECT twist of fate, Jerilee is coming!!! It’ll be so fun to share such a crazy experience with one of my very best friends! Happy days are here again. Maybe they never left.

Each day, it seems, I get a new email or text from a friend or family member detailing all the fun stuff they’re doing. I’m so thrilled for them, but a bit bummed for us. We are still stranded at home, sick, and with some grouchies. Its sad, but its ok. I’m coming to terms with it. We went straight from Brady working, to ten hours in the van, two days visiting a new place, and ten hours back home. It was great, but busy. The kids were incredibly overtired. It seemed like the moment we got home, we rushed out the door again to run a decently busy schedule on Christmas Eve. It was lots in a short period of time, and I think thats what hit us the hardest. Its not a secret that our little family doesn’t usually do lots and lots each day, and I think a few home days will do us good. Dekker is considerably less snotty today, but is still pretty grumpy. Brady and I are definitely on the mend, and Laela seems to still be in good shape. Knock on wood she isn’t just a few days behind. It would be ideal if it didn’t hit her this time around!

Our plan for tomorrow was to have an early supper before heading to the city for a special dessert and then driving around to enjoy the self guided Christmas light tour. Anyone who has already gone, please tell us the hot spots! Last year, we did the same evening and it was so much fun! This year, the kids will be able to see out of the vehicle a bit easier, and Laela will be more entertained and less asleep. However, last year we did Moxies for white chocolate brownie. With the way Dekker is feeling, I don’t want to push it and try to hit up a nice place, so if we can actually surface and get to the city, we decided to go to Jerrys instead. They have the most delicious ice cream, and I LOVE their milkshakes! Plus, I’m less self conscious if the kids get noisy at a place like Jerrys, so thats always helpful. Less fancy, but still yummy, and kid friendly.

So maybe by tomorrow, I’ll actually have a story to share about something we did! Not today, but I’ll give you a cute little story about the kids anyway, before signing off for the evening.

We got Dekker a camera for Christmas. Just a VTech one. I was hoping to find one that would actually take pictures that would show up on the back, and that would maybe hold like ten pictures at a time. I’m not picky. But the one I found was $35 I think, and it holds up to 800!!! No, the quality isn’t exactly meant for developing, but Dekker doesn’t care. He LOVES the thing! He’s getting the hang of actually looking through the viewfinders (there are two!!! lol!) and lining up his shot, and today, he discovered how to look back through the pictures he has already taken. At one point this evening, Laela was playing on the floor and Dekker was on the couch scanning through his pictures when he got up and beetled over to her with his camera. He started to talk to her in the squeaky high voice he often uses when talking to her, and he pointed to the screen, saying “Thats you, Laela!” He went on to show her pictures of mommy, daddy, and the “orments” on the tree, all in his adorable baby-talk voice. Laela giggled and was really into it the entire time too. I love those kids.

And I cannot wait to add another one to the mix! I’m coming up on 31 weeks, and this Sunday, sick or not, we’re going in to UC-Baby to see our latest morsel and get just a little bit more acquainted.

On that note, my loving and doting husband is cooking for me. Basa filets, and broccoli mix with cheese sauce. I’m sooo ready for that! Time to eat!

As humor and strange changes of plans would have it, we had a nice, sick day at home. I say this with genuine honesty. In order of illness, we’ll start with Dekker being the worst off, dry coughing and fevered, with his nose running like a faucet. Brady was next up, with an angry bowel and a nasty headache. I was third, with the same angry bowel, and Laela was in the best shape of all of us, only fighting a bit of teething pain. However, she did a lot of sleeping, so she’s either fighting something bigger, or is going to be sick tomorrow. I vote for fighting.

The kids slept in forever, so Brady and I opened our gifts from each other in bed, in front of a YouTube yule log video 🙂 It was funny and cheesy, and suited us just fine. We finally retrieved the kids around 10:30-ish and told them we had a yummy special breakfast planned. Dekker cried and asked for water. My heat hurt for him. We got him all changed and wiped his face up before bringing him to the table. I got him a cup of water, which he destroyed. Then I asked him what he was hungry for, and he said “just water.” I figured it would just take some time, and it worked. As soon as he saw Laela having Cheerios, he wanted some. So he had cereal with milk on it, and just a cup of water. He had a fruit cup besides that, and that was it. As soon as he was done, he asked for his presents. We had just told him that morning that he’d get to open gifts, and the prospect seemed to lift his spirits slightly. So we all sat on the floor of the living room and opened presents by the tree for a little while. it was so much fun! He could really revel in his gifts this year, and he LOVED them all! Laela also seemed incredibly happy with her new stuff, but of course, enjoyed the ribbons and boxes almost as much as the toys themselves. They also had a gift to share. Lastly, the kids bought Brady and I gifts! Ok, it was maybe a little bit sneaky on my part, since I picked out and wrapped everything, but it was still fun, and they bought us awesome gifts!!

Once gifts were done, Dekker decided to go downstairs. He didn’t wait for everyone or anything, he just went on his own. He turned on the tv, curled up on a chair, and played with a car in his lap. Sooo tired and sick. We got the upstairs tidied and Laela entertained so he could have his quiet time for a bit, but eventually I went down with the kids while Brady made us a yummy brunch. We all watched a movie together while the kids got to run around and eat and play and enjoy their afternoon.

Both kids went down pretty much seamlessly for nap time, and slept over three hours. We actually had to go lull them and get them up. Unfortunately, having just got home from a trip, we haven’t had a chance to stock up on groceries, so while we were just planning a totally lame but necessary supper of toast and soup, having no bread made it impossible. So we opted for just another laid back snacky meal downstairs. We had crackers and cheese, and apples. We made sure to pump the kids full of fluids and they seemed pretty happy with the day of no plans/obligations.

While the evening played on and we finished up the movie from earlier, I built my special Ikea chest of drawers!!! I’m sooo pleased with the result, and I did almost the entire thing by myself! Brady helped me manoeuvre the heavy pieces together, and he did the final step of drawer slides, since my back was feeling pretty tired. But its done and beautiful and I can’t wait to fill it with all my fun things!

The kids are tucked away now, the bath is running, and Brady and I are making supper. We missed the memo that everyone indulges in appetizers on Christmas Eve, so we’re getting in on it now. Of course, we have very few on hand so we’re makeshifting but I think it’ll be delicious. Its probably good we didn’t try to have them yesterday, since we were all so sick and wiped out after the church service in the evening. Hopefully today is a better day for it.

Lastly, I just want to touch on a post I wrote a while back about mourning the Christmas I was hoping for, and having to let go of plans I had wanted to make but hadn’t gotten to. Funny how we are all sick, and even if I had successfully scheduled everything and done all of it right, we still likely wouldn’t have gotten to everything, or anything! Clearly, this year, we’re just supposed to lay low and be together in the comfort of our own home. And that is wonderful 🙂 I’ve totally enjoyed our home time so far. We had plans to be out tomorrow but it seems that we can’t know if any plans will work out until the morning anyway, so we’ll just go with the flow. Its Christmas, after all. Whats the rush?

Merry Christmas, from ours to yours.

We spent the afternoon at my parents house, playing toys and getting reacquainted. Its been a pretty long time since the kids have been there so it was really really good to get accustomed again. And Laela is suddenly the master at turning around to go down the stairs properly, so yay!!! Nice to not have to worry too much about that anymore. For the two stairs anyway. I also did our laundry in the afternoon, since we didn’t have a chance this morning and I am NOT going to do laundry tomorrow!

When the kids went down for their nap, Brady and I rushed to the church to meet up with the group we were singing with this evening. We ran through and practiced for a solid two hours before heading back to my parents and a yummy supper. We ate together and then the part that I find the most fun came – getting ready! I so rarely get to be all dressed up and made up, so I really enjoy it when the times do come. I played in my makeup and picked between a couple of dresses and jewelry options. Once I was comfy, I rooted through the options I had brought for the kids and picked their clothes as well. Dekker was getting pretty snotty for some reason at this point so he wouldn’t cooperate for pictures too much, but look at my darling Laela!!

So in case you can’t see, she’s rocking a little red clip in her hair, an adorable white and red floral dress, an undershirt and tights, and little white shoes. The dress I actually bought months ago from Value Village for less than five dollars, I’m pretty sure. I thought maybe it would be cute for Christmas, and a bit non-traditional, but I didn’t recognize the brand and the size was a bit small. However, she rocked it!! And she could definitely rock it again with the wiggle room she had.

She is the cutest little hambone that I ever did see!

This was the best we could get for a family picture, as Dekker wasn’t feeling awesome, but I wanted to put one up! Laela and I were rocking the traditional Christmas colors to a degree, and the boys were keeping with the blues and greys. If you can see, Dekker is wearing bright blue pants, a grey v neck, and a dressy vest. I think those boys are just smokin’ hot.

At the church, the kids were pretty twitchy and didn’t sit especially well. But when a service starts at bedtime, there’s only so much one can do, and thats ok. No one seemed to mind. The service was beautifully laid out and organized, with readings and carols and special music spread throughout. We did our more upbeat song first, and if I’m totally honest, I felt like no one really cared for it 🙁 Maybe its just my attitude, but its SUCH a fun song and I felt like we got very little response. But hey, we had fun! Towards the end of the service, we sang a beautiful a cappella version of Silent Night and that seemed to really please the masses, which felt nice. It was by far the more complicated piece, and at a more important part of the service. It was good.

As for the kids, Dekker’s runny nose was in full swing the entire time, progressively getting worse. Brady then pointed out how warm he was. Perfect time for a fever. So he wouldn’t play or occupy himself too much. He just wanted to sit on laps and heat everyone up. Laela, on the other hand, was ticked about most things, and needed to be held and carried at the back. She was getting rosier by the minute as well, but not actually warm, so I blame hers on teeth and fatigue.

The fun came after the service. While we all visited before making our way out of the church, people came by to speak to the kids, and Dekker responded beautifully to everyone!!! He smiled and was charming and didn’t get upset once! Then, Brady went to go get some stuff together on the stage, and once he was already way at the front of the church, Dekker decided to go after him. He trucked on up there all on his own and sort of oversaw the whole operation. He drummed a bit afterwards, which didn’t put anyone off thankfully, and hung out by himself away from us! Laela eventually noticed and toddled off in Dekker’s direction, again, totally unaware that she was leaving her safe haven of her mom. They squealed and chased each other around a bit up front before we had to start making our way out of the sanctuary.

In the main lobby, we were getting everyone into their jackets, while still visiting with friends, when Laela went missing. Yup. Found her wandering the sanctuary on her own, in her cute little dress and bright pink parka. She was just all mischievous smiles as she walked back to me. Such a ham. I love her.

The drive home was a little sad, but Dekker is feeling considerably worse. I’m very sad to say that I think we’re calling off our Christmas party plans tomorrow :*( I know the kids won’t be up to socializing, and I don’t think its fair to bring them into settings with lots of people to spread their love/germs. So Brady and I are feeling pretty discouraged, but neither of us are feeling on top of the world either so I guess it’ll be good. Just lonely.

Both kids are tucked in and quiet, minus the occasional hacking cough. I’m anticipating a hot soak and some tv tonight still, but hopefully another deep sleep and late morning like yesterday. We’re planning a really delicious breakfast that I’m already hungry for 🙂

So! To all of you who read, I wish you the merriest of Christmas!!

<3

Tis true! We are home after many, many hours on the road. Good hours, hours well spent, but many nonetheless. The kids did great! Better than I expected, actually. We got started a bit later than we had originally hoped for, but waking them up from a dead sleep is always sad, and it seems to take a bit longer to get things going on those mornings, even though the intention is there. We all had a good breakfast together and were on the road by 9:00. However, considering its a ten hour trip, and we lost an hour going home, that set us on course to be home at 8:00pm, which is actually already past their bedtime, and thats assuming we didn’t do any doddling. Which we did. At Ikea in Edmonton.

Laela napped for maybe a half hour coming into Edmonton but was an adorable little soul upon arrival, and was cute as a button through Ikea. Dekker was roaring to go, and enjoyed himself immensely being out of the van and shopping. He loves shopping. We went to Ikea specifically to splurge on something I’ve had my eye on for a while, plus a duvet cover or two for Dekker’s big new blanket. I’m proud that after those specific things we went in for, we only spent an extra maybe $40!! We are so bad for overspending there, but we rocked it this time around and didn’t maybe any bad/crazy/impulsive purchases. Go us! Afterwards, we grabbed some food and fled the city. Dekker was asleep before we out of the city limits. He also only slept maybe a half hour but its better than nothing. The kids are such goobers, and make big efforts to wake each other up in situations like that!

The day went on with lots of Christmas music, dropping of toys, and gnashing of teeth, but it was actually pretty smooth. We haven’t done this trip since having kids, so the layout of places to stop along the way wasn’t really what we had accounted for, and by the time we could stop for supper somewhere, it had been quite a while and the kids were super hungry. Instead of fast food yet again, I ducked into a Safeway and bought a couple scoops of broccoli pasta salad, two packs of raspberries, a box of ritz bits, and a gatorade for my sick hubby. And it was GONE. The kids alone ate the crackers and both packs of raspberries.

And all of the sugar from those berries went straight into my sons bloodstream and he was WIRED. He talked incomprehensibly for the entire last hour or two of the drive, no lie. Just on and on and on. It was both hysterical and exhausting.

Upon arriving home, the kids were so relieved. Dekker was thrilled and was bouncing off the walls, while Laela just wanted to drink milk on the floor of her bedroom. It was actually really hard to put them down, because they just wanted to be up and around their own house, but it needed to be done. Once they were safely tucked away, we hauled stuff in from the van. Yes, I said WE. I brought in all the little annoying stuff that wasn’t appropriately bagged, like the Ikea purchases, and some of our winter gear.  I got it all organized and put away all of our toiletries and a few other things while Brady hauled in the big stuff. Not everything is put away yet, but the suitcases will likely get dumped into the laundry tomorrow, so thats not something I’m too concerned about. I don’t think the cleanup of coming home will be too ugly tomorrow at all. We are so bad at leaving our suitcases out for weeks at a time, but I think we’re organized enough that we’ll easily tidy it all up soon.

Its good to be home. Brady and I are anticipating some Netflix and a hot soak in the tub!!! Its been a while.

We had a really quirt, relaxed day today. It was actually pretty awesome. The kids settled in beautifully. We ate good food and snacks all day, they played with their new toys (still the ambulance and the dolly), and we all took a nap in the afternoon. Fun days are a little bit hard because naps and bedtime are sooo much worse, but we all know its because the kids are happy, and therefore sad for the fun to end.

But all in all, it was worth the drama at sleep times. The kids were super endearing. Dekker played with the train set downstairs like it was the most riveting toy in the world, while Laela not-so-secretly stole ornaments off the tree and hoarded them in a gift bag. They were both 100% comfortable and happy. Grandma Born even made them macaroni for supper, which was a HUGE win! Dekker didn’t eat as much as usual, but not surprisingly, he was just eager to get back to his toys. Laela ate a ton, though. Mac and cheese is always a crowd pleaser.

Once the kids went to bed, the four of us played tile rummy and ate treats for a couple of hours. It was nice to have some kid-free time, just the adults together. We adore the kids, but we could get in some good discussion and catch up for real.

Tomorrow is travel day, and we play to start out pretty early, so wish us luck! Getting up at 7:00 is not my favorite idea we’ve ever had, but we’ll lose an hour going home, and we have lots going on over the next couple of days. We’ve gotta give them kids (and ourselves) the best chance to be the least grumpy!