Christmas.. all that work and over so quickly..

It is amazing, all that prep for about 1/2 hour of unwrapping.. Katelyn was rather unimpressed with unwrapping. She would rip one strip of paper at a time so mommy and daddy had to unwrap most of her gifts. She was very excited to find new toys though.. 

It was a nice Christmas, busy and full of food, family, and fun. I got a new coat and boots. Ben also got me more beads for my bracelet. He did a marvelous job with the Christmas gifts.. 

Katelyn got lots of noisy toys and some clothes. We have to go through and thin out the toys downstairs and move the less used toys upstairs to make room for the new ones.. 

Noah got mostly clothes--which is good since he is only 8 weeks old.. WOW how time flies.. 


Z

Santa visit.

A few weeks ago we took the kids to see Santa.. here are some pics

It's almost Christmas

Wow, Christmas has really come upon us quickly, it is hard to believe it is 4 days away. Many may suggest that I have been a bit busy as of late, having a baby 7 weeks ago and chasing Katelyn and all, but that is no excuse to lose track of time like that.. 

For the first time though, we have are shopping for others finished, including the kids. Katelyn's gifts are all wrapped except and outfit. Noah is only getting an outfit and maybe some socks since he won't remember this year anyway.. I still have to go finish up Ben's presents.. Hopefully will be doing that tomorrow morning before he goes to work.. it is too hard to take the kids to the mall by myself.. 


In other news, I developed carpel tunnel during pregnancy that seems to have gone away. However, I have recently developed some extreme knuckle pain in my thumb on my right hand. Not good if you are right handed and must change diapers, kids, and do anything.. It is amazing how often you use your thumb.. My joint was clicking and locking so I saw a Doctor yesterday.. I have trigger finger in my thumb.. I am not sure how it came about, especially since I don't text a lot, nor do I play video games..   I had a cortisone shot in my knuckle that "should" work. If it doesn't, I need a booster in 3 weeks. If that doesn't work, it is deal with it or surgery.. Fortunately, I have already felt relief with this first shot.. 

will update after Christmas. 

Z

Where has the year gone..

What a year it has been.. Katelyn turned one, has learned to crawl, is attempting to walk (but prefers crawling since it is faster for her right now), and is becoming more and more sassy.. 

Noah joined us on Halloween and life has been a whirlwind since.. Katelyn is not sure what to think of the boy that has taken over her house.. but she is pretty good for a child that has not had to share her world until recently. .

Thanksgiving was a success, we had close friends over and shared a small (number wise) dinner and great company. It was a far cry from the chaos of previous years at Ben's aunts, but it was quite nice, nonetheless. 

Christmas is fast approaching, as I  have realized there are only 2 more weekends until the Big guy in Red comes to visit and we still need to shop.. argh..  happens every year.. 

We did pick up this years special ornaments though. One for each of the kids and one for the family. The tree is down from the rafters and ready to go up on Monday.. We will also be getting a real tree at some point soon. It will be fun to see how many times I have to chase Katelyn away from the trees.. 

We are prepping for the arrival of St. Nick on Tuesday.. It is a tradition that Ben's family has observed.. St. Nick comes on Dec. 6th and fills the kids stockings.. Santa doesn't fill them on Christmas Eve.. Since in my family Santa always filled them on Christmas Eve, we will be observing both traditions this year and in future years.. 


We had the kids holiday pictures taken and as always, Katelyn was a ham. She cried when we left because she didn't want to leave. 


And who said kids are afraid of Santa? Not my child, she loved him.. We saw Santa yesterday and Katelyn is a big fan of the big guy in red.. 

Z