Silly lessons learned over Christmas...

Seth

If there is a promise of future excitement, no food will be consumed. Seth ate very few meals when he knew we were going somewhere fun or doing something fun immediately following. There were presents to be opened at Grammy and Grampy's so he was not interested in dinner. He didn't really complain about wanting to open the presents, just about not wanting to eat! Although he and Carson did work up an appetite dancing with Grammy's animated snowman. He did the same thing the night he and Daddy were heading to the Children's Museum for Daddy's employee night. No food was consumed for dinner that night either.

Luke
He is seemingly moving beyond the baby clock and onto "real people" time. He had been on internal baby clock time and no matter when you laid him down at night, he would pop up to awakeness about 7:30AM. But, gloriously, and actually over the last few weeks, it seems that if he gets to bed a little later, he'll sleep a little later. This was evidenced by my waking him at 9:40AM on Christmas morning so we could open gifts. However, he will still fall asleep anywhere and at anytime if he's had enough! And since naps have been a MAJOR issue lately, around 6:30 or 7PM he would decide he needed a little power nap...

Christmas Eve at Grammy & Grampy's, with his Puffs from his stocking

Christmas night at G&G's. He did this to his own feet!

David
And finally, never trust a husband who assures you he has only spent a certain, very small amount, on Christmas gifts for you. He was able to rationalize his tall tale (who's the attorney here?) and since the huge gift that I was instructed to open first was a wonderful camera I have been drooling over for quite awhile now I really couldn't be angry!! Unfortunately, I'm still not sure how to do any of the "fun stuff" yet as I've only made it to page 25 in the "for dummies" book that I bought.

Santa Claus came to town!

We are quite fortunate to have a connection with Santa Claus. As such, he is good enough to make home visits and hear all about the Christmas lists in person. And even bring a small gift in his big red bag.

These are last year's photos. Most of you know Seth is not the bravest little boy. The handshake was as close as he got in 2007. I think he only left Dave's arms to lay in my lap last year. We were so fortunate to get to experience this in the comfort of our own home, rather than plunking down the ridiculous mall price for a 10 second photo op!
So, imagine our surprise this year when he practically jumped into Santa's lap. Seth didn't know the jolly old guy was coming by. He and I had had a discussion or two during the day about being extra good in case Santa had questions about his behavior, should he drop by or anything. So, around dinnertime Grammy and Grampy stopped by to see Seth and Luke. And just a few minutes later we heard loud jingle bells at the front door. Followed by a distinct 'Ho, ho, ho." I asked Seth if he wanted to see who was there. I opened the door and Seth stood in awe for just a moment and then said, "I want a tractor!" It was very much the voice of, 'just-in-case-I-forget-later, let's-get-this-out-there-NOW!" And the next thing I knew he was on Santa's lap. I missed just a moment because I had to bury my head in the stairs and compose myself after his little request.
Seth and Santa had some discussions about what else Seth might want for Christmas, whether he was behaving, and what Lukey might want. Luke didn't seem to mind at all and just sat there like a big kid taking it all in. This, even though we found out a few hours earlier both of his little ears were infected! Aarrggghhh!!
Santa brought a gift for each of the boys and when he pulled them out, Seth told Santa it was Jesus' birthday. I was quite happy with that moment. It is so hard at 2 1/2 to balance the concept of Jesus and his birth and what is really important with wanting them to feel the wonder and awe of Santa. And Santa understands that and reiterated to Seth how important Jesus' birthday is! So, all in all, it was a great visit.

Funny two year old moment: Santa asked Seth if he could show him to the door. Seth stood up and pointed in the other room, "there it is." We suggested he walk Santa to it, and Seth was glad to do so. So sweet...

Christmas cards...

You know that line in the song, 'greeting cards have all been sent....'. She sings it so sweetly. She sounds so calm about the experience. Clearly she is not the mother of an almost 10 month old and a 2 1/2 year old! Over the course of 24 hours we took nearly 150 pictures for our family Christmas card and I finally 'settled' on 3 for the card where mostly the eyes are open and no one appears to be being tortured (at least I hope that's the case!). Over the course of the extremely long photo shoot we used about 8 AA batteries (calling Canon about the battery sucking camera is on my to-do list); broke a floor lamp we were using for extra lighting (I think Dave repaired it); had at least 3 of is in tears at some point; the phrase, "I don't care what it costs, I'm taking them someplace and letting the professionals do this!" was uttered, but then rescinded; and my personal favorite, Seth crying, "I just want daddy!" (this was during my second attempt while Dave was at work). Of course, I cannot reveal the photos used on the card - what fun would that be? But I did think you might enjoy a peak at the not-so-useful ones. Enjoy...

Happy 5th Anniversary...

David,
Thank you for five wonderful years, 2 great boys, a home to live in, a car to get us around, food to eat, the opportunity to be a full-time mommy, neverending love, and lots of laughter! Each year is a new adventure and I love sharing it all with you. Thank you for being a great partner to me and a super daddy to the boys.
I love you, Cara

Oh, I'm a thankful slacker...

Well, sometimes life happens faster than I can blog I guess! But here's what the rest of the week would have looked like:


Thankful Wednesday - Books...
Wednesday we took a break from pre-Thanksgiving cleaning and went to the library. Seth loves the library! Well, he loves the tractor and the little horse and the little farm. But he is getting more excited about books. We have some favorites that we check out often and then there were lots of fun little Christmas books too. My favorite part is how he likes to curl up in Mommy and Daddy's bed and look at them after we get home. He loves when we read them but he also loves just to lie there and look at them. Dave is not a huge fan of reading, but I'm hopeful the boys will be!


Thankful Thursday - Turkey, family and home
We had 17 people at our home for Thanksgiving. I think this is our 4th year of hosting Thanksgiving. We moved into this house in 2005 and I think have had it here ever since. It was a very blended group as both sides of our family were able to make it this year. We had my grandma and her boyfriend, my parents, my sister and her family, Dave's parents, and his sister and her family. Dave fries the turkeys and they are scrumptious! There was a ton of great food provided by everyone, super yummy desserts, lots of visiting, and even a little napping! Luke even had a lovely jar of Turkey Rice Dinner. I am thankful for a home with a floor plan that allows us to accomodate all of these people and especially for all of these people! I am thankful for 4 cousins who entertain each other (well, maybe with a little help from Grammy) - a 4 yr old, 3 yr old, 2 yr old, and 9 month old! But again, I am mostly thankful for all these people that make up our families. They have shaped who we are and where we came from and we wouldn't be where we are without them.


Thankful Friday - Christmas decorations and lights!
Seth adores Christmas lights. Especially Christmas trees (or kissamah trees, phonetically). He also loves trains. A train table is number one on his Christmas list. So, when you put a working train under the tree, it's all over for him! You can see the excitement on his face before the train even left the box! {Dave got up very very early last year on the Friday after Thanksgiving to get this train.} Luke got in on the action too and loved watching the train go around and around (it wasn't going around under the tree yet as the tree was not decorated yet. But the boys (all 3 of them) couldn't resist setting it up anyway!).And finally, we took Seth downtown for his first Circle of Lights festivities. Our niece, Ashley, who is 15, spent the weekend with us so she went too. I'm not sure if she had ever been before but both she and Seth seemed to have a good time. I'm sure that crowd was a bit overwhelming for a 2 year old, but, again, he loves the lights!And, final photo, a rare almost (Luke stayed home with Grammy and Grampy for some extra spoiling) family photo for the blog...It is so fun to experience all the lights and decorations and wonder of this time of the year through the eyes of a two-year old. And so fun to know that in a year or two Luke will be just as excited! I guess that makes me more thankful for my boys than for the Christmas lights, particularly knowing that the lights and decor are not what this season is all about.

Thankful Tuesday - jammies and bedhead...

I am thankful for little boy pajamas. I think they are some of the cutest clothing in the world. Seth slept in my absolute favorites last night so I whipped out the camera this morning and took some pictures. I think he looks like a little old man in this pair. And oh, what bedhead! He got a haircut just a couple of weeks ago, but it was an unruly mess this morning! He looked a bit like he slept on his head last night! Luke's pajamas are lovely too (I think they were Carson's and I'm VERY thankful for all the great hand-me-downs we get).

Thankful Monday - oh you gotta have friends...

Well, my last post was a bit of a "Debbie Downer" kind of moment. So, in this week of Thanksgiving I am going to try to post some happy, thankful thoughts! [Great, I started this post yesterday, got distracted, and never posted it - already a day behind!].

Anyway, I am thankful for great friends. I believe that one good friend is better than lots of casual friends. I have had the same best friend since kindergarten. God took great care of us, as always, when he let us get married the same year and have lots of kids all pretty close in age. It's awesome to get to see our kids become friends too.

However, I thought of this post because of some other friends. A friend of mine, since sixth grade, and her husband and kids came over Sunday night to watch the Colts game. Or part of the game as all the kids needed to get to bed WAY before it was over. But I didn't clean my house. The only food I "served" was the pre-made cookie dough cookies she helped me bake. And their kids came over in their pajamas. To me, those are the best kinds of friends - they don't expect much but we always have a good time, no matter.

So, that said, I am so thankful for my friends - the ones I don't have to dress up for or go all out to please. The ones who you can truly just enjoy their company!

Torrential Downpours...

Okay, so the "torrential downpours"...

First, please understand that I know there are people with real problems SO much bigger than mine. So, while this post may seem long, rambling and pitiful please know two things: (1) a few days removed from the situation my perspective is much better, and (2) hello, it's a blog - no one is forcing you to read it!! Ha ha ha.

So, last weekend we were out doing some shopping and as we were out and about, it was rainy and icky and my car started making a funny noise. NOT funny-ha-ha, but funny-I'm-feeling-sick-at-my-stomach-wondering-what-that-will-cost. Ha ha. Did I mention my vehicle is the only one that will hold both car seats? So...

Dave ran home after his lunch on Monday and took my car in to have it looked at. Yippee, I got brand new front brakes. Happy Anniversary, Merry Christmas, yippee. But safety is a good thing and I'm thankful it was "only" the front brakes.

He couldn't take it that morning because Luke had his 9 month "well check" doctor's appointment. Lukey is 95th percentile for height and 75th percentile for weight. And he had an ear infection. I felt rather silly as I had no clue. He hadn't really changed his eating or sleeping habits and hadn't been overly grouchy. But, of course, that afternoon, after the doctor told him he was sick, Luke decided to act sick - crying, tugging, whining. Do you think he heard the doctor and decided to milk it? Funny part of this story, this was his first experience with antibiotics and I think they make him sleepy.

So, Tuesday night is when it got really "fun." I was cooking dinner and doing laundry. Dave was sitting on the couch and the boys were playing right around where he was sitting. Luke was pulled up and holding onto the coffee table. Here's where there's a bit of confusion. Not too sure how he ended up in the floor - whether he reached too far and lost his balance, Seth pushed something into him, or Seth forgot that Luke cannot stand up if you move his hands off of whatever he's holding onto and then let go of his hands. Anyway, I heard a little thud, hesitation, Luke's scream, and Dave, somewhat excitedly, asking Seth if he had anything to do with the fall. Once the blood coming from Luke's lip was discovered the how and why became secondary to the 'how bad is it?' Dave seemed to be on the side of, it'll all be okay. I was more on the side of, everytime he moves his mouth (you know to breathe, smile, eat) it's coming apart again. So, I did something that I NEVER do. I called the emergency line for our pediatrician's office and had someone call me back. In the meantime I called in the real professionals - Grammy and Grampy who arrived on our doorstep momentarily. The doctor called back and explained that if it crosses the border of the lip (where my lip liner would go - yes, this was her description for me!) then it should be professionally put back together or his smile would be forever crooked.

After weighing the options we decided that if he was 14 and said, "I don't care about my smile" that would be one thing. But instead, I was imagining him at 14 wanting to know why he smiled funny and me having to tell him I really didn't feel like taking him to the ER one night when he fell. So, Grammy and I loaded up in the car and headed for the ER. It was nearly Seth's bedtime by now and Dave's not the biggest fan of hospitals so he stayed behind. I insisted I was fine to go alone, but in the end I was really glad Grammy came with us.

I know, it doesn't look all that exciting.

We got to the ER, no Prompt Care for stitches apparently, and they called us back to take his weight, temp, etc. Luke is a real 'face grabber.' He loves to pull my hair, grab my nose, etc. So, as I'm trying to lay him on the scale, he knocks my contact out of my eye. I could feel it wasn't in there. I am searching franticially. I have REALLY bad eyesight so it's hard to find a missing contact with only one in. Plus, they aren't disposable so there's no more at home. They are hard and expensive to replace, never mind the weeks I must live in my glasses as they have to be special ordered (embarrassing, can't believe I'm sharing this!). Anyway, the nurse finally figures out what I'm saying and sees the contact on the floor. YEAH!! I bend over to pick it up and realize that he has no concept of how wiggly a 9 month old on a scale suspended in mid-air can be and place my hand on Luke just as he tries to squirm off the scale. Yikes! Eventually, I got the contact in and they finished the prelim tests and sent us back out to wait.

Finally we get into a room, the doctor comes in, takes a look, says 'yeah, needs a few stitches.' We joke and laugh about boys (the doctor said he has 4 and that he's always sewing one of them up), etc. You know me, I'm trying to keep it light. Then he says, oh, and I'd like to put him out to do it. I think I laughed - ha ha, what a jokester. Except he looked very serious at that point.

So, to sum this up before you all fall asleep, my sweet little baby go to be sedated. Not one shot, but two as either he was resistant or the staff did a poor job of converting his weight from pounds to kilograms. It's the latter if I was hearing all of their conversations correctly. But he has two nice little bruises on his leg from those shots. It was quite a party during the stitching - a nurse and someone shadowing her, the doctor, a physician's assistant, someone with a little tiny scary respiratory aparatus "just in case" and mommy and Grammy. The worst part for me and mom, after the scariness of sedating this little person who has never been sedated before, was trying to keep him in the bed. The doctor had said we shouldn't touch him, talk to him, turn the TV on, etc. until he was fully awake as it would agitate him in his "altered state." However, he was flopping all over the bed and was small enough to fit all the way through the rails on the side and kept getting all wrapped up in all the monitor cords so I had no option but to hold onto him and keep him in the bed and keep untangling him. At one point, the nurse convinced me he was awake enough for me to pick him up. I did and his neck flopped like a newborn. Ick. So, we put his confused little self back down. Finally, he woke up enough to support his own head and get up on all fours. That's when I had had enough and just held him tight. It was about midnight and it was hard to tell if he was just exhausted and hungry or really still a little 'out of it.' When they released us, Grammy asked if he should be watched at home this particular night. The nurse said, 'well, it's up to you but I certainly would.' Then shouldn't you just tell me that??? Then my favorite was when she said we could go and I asked about the little patches where they had been monitoring his heart. "You can take those off." How about YOU, the medical professional, take those off? He's mad enough at his mommy!

Well, as they say, all is well that ends well. He tolerated the stitches like a real trooper. Never once did the stitches affect his eating. I never even saw him touch them. He always has his tongue hanging out anyway but he mostly touches the top lip and the stitches were in the bottom lip. He got the stitches out today [Sunday] and the doctor was wonderful. Luke was extremely calm and didn't even cry once. It was quick and easy and he is napping away in his bed. And I even closed the door all the way and haven't been in to peek at his little sleeping self once.

Rain Showers...

My last post started out, "Not much new or exciting is happening..." Well, around here, when it rains it pours. Some of it comes down as a nice soothing shower. Then some of it comes as a torrential downpour.

For the showers: [And I apologize to any non-parents reading this post.] Seth peed in the potty. You see, we have a ritual. Every night before bath one of us asks him if he would like to pee in the potty. He says no. I assume I will have that one 5 yr old who goes to kindergarten in a diaper. I tried to force the issue once. Removed the diaper and suggested he sit down. I was met with screaming and crying and hysteria. Okey dokey then. But Sunday night Luke was already in the tub and Dave was showing his love to me by grocery shopping and I asked Seth the seemingly rhetorical question and he said, "yes." So, he won't do it any other time of the day but at night he will make an attempt. You have to start somewhere. Sorry, no potty pictures.

Another shower: We went for Luke's 9 month check-up on Monday and both boys got flu shots while we were there. Seth barely flinched. Not a tear. An absolute trooper. I was so proud. We even got to go see Daddy afterward at work.

And final shower: I got a new camera. NOT the super fancy suped up one I had been eyeing. But a very nice one indeed. I'm pretty happy with it so far. Okay, so far is 24 hours but you know me and the camera so it's already getting some use! Short version - the 'picture taking button' on my old camera had started sticking. We called to find out how long the warranty was good and it had expired the week before. Am I the only one these things happen to? Dave called the manufacturer and I could send my old one in for repair OR I could send my old one in (just for them to keep, not for repair) and for less than $50 more than the repair cost I could pick one of 3 much newer cameras. My camera was 4 years old so we decided to go ahead and upgrade.

So, that's the nice gentle rain showers. Stay tuned for the torrential downpours...

Just some pictures...

Not too much new or exciting is happening around the McNichols' household. Everyone has had a cold so our favorite pasttime has been terrorizing our children with kleenexes. Okay, not really the plan, but these two act like we are about to rub sandpaper on their little noses. And I have really nice Puffs Plus with Lotion facial tissues. There are plenty of items out there that I buy generic to save $$. But I have to draw the line somewhere! Anyway, even Luke has figured out that if I have him in my arms and walk into the bathroom and reach for the kleenex box, it is his job to squint his eyes, turn his head, scream, and wipe his nose on my clothes as quickly as possible! Uuggghhhh. Luke, hiding behind the chair looking for a good book, probably to chew on again!

Seth's food must have looked really exciting. Or Luke just needed a good laugh. Seth seems to provide that for him.

This particular morning they actually seemed like they were almost playing together.

Then they were hamming it up for the camera together.

And I'm sure I've mentioned that Seth did everything "late" by normal developmental standards (well, except talking). Anyway, he crawled and walked late. Luke is wasting no time. These two seem to be complete opposites!

And finally, those colds make you sleepy. And this rosey-cheeked sleeping baby just needed to have his picture taken!

Happy Halloween!

I love a good theme, so we ended up with farm animals. Well, a cow and a horse-riding-cowboy. But please don't tell Seth he wasn't an actual horse. I did not lie to him. He simply insists he was a horse (apparently a horse wearing a cowboy hat). We went to Grammy and Grampy's house for pictures with the cousins (and to get a special bag of treats) and then dashed home to get in a little trick-or-treating in the neighborhood. I stayed home to pass out candy while Dave took Seth to a few houses nearby. Of course he had to take Luke too. Not to get candy, but because they were a set! Seth was shy, until he figured out that everyone was dispensing candy out of their front doors. It's so funny though, he has not asked about the candy since he brought it all home that night. I'm guessing it won't be so easy next year!

A Whirlwind Weekend...

Halloween started off, well, sluggishly. Somewhere I went wrong and Seth tends to be a much worse sleeper than Luke. Seth was up three times during the night. Well, he refuses to move to a big bed and is still in his crib, so he cries and I am actually the one up, not Seth. So, on the third venture in to cover him back up, I asked WHAT he needed?! His reply, "Daddy." Well, I kindly explained Daddy was in bed. Asleep. Not getting up anytime soon. His reply this time, "Oh." Never heard from him again. So, Seth slept in Friday morning. Of course, it doesn't quite work out for mommy to sleep in!

Next we made some Halloween treats, Nutter Butter ghosts and vanilla wafer eyeballs. Yummy. Aunt G, Carson, and Laney all come over and helped us make them and eat them. Fun, fun. We got everything cleaned up, had lunch, and then I started packing for my weekend away. And tidying the house. And doing a little laundry. And putting other clothes away. And on and on. I finally got the boys both in bed and tried to rest up for the long drive but realized that my body still thought it was running around like a crazy person so that would never work.

Dave came home, we had dinner, ran to mom and dad's to show them our little cowboy and our cow, came home for a little more trick-or-treating, helped with baths, got the boys into bed and mom and I left on our adventure.

We headed to Starbucks, always a good place to start, and we were on the road at 10:12PM. Mom drove first and took the whole Friday night/early Saturday morning leg of the journey. We've decided we don't travel really well together because we would both rather progess on the journey than eat or, sometimes, sleep. But by about 4AM I was beat! We found a hotel about 4:30 and were in our beds by 5AM. Then up at 9AM and on the road. I drove this part - and it was definitely through the hills of West Virginia and into Virginia. We actually saw, on the interstate, walking in the median, a man in full camouflage carrying his hunting weapon. A little scary. Okay, a lot scary!

We arrived at our destination, my friend Kelly's wedding, with 15 minutes to spare. It was a wonderful wedding and she was an absolutely gorgeous bride. I have never seen anyone look more like Cinderella. I used to babysit her, go to church with, teach her class at church, etc. Her family moved some time ago but they still have family here and we've kept in touch over the years. I was so thankful for the opportunity to attend her wedding. Just to see how happy she looks and to hear her friends and family talk about how she's grown into a young woman who is as beautiful on the inside as the out, meant so much to me. It was a really nice time - a very personal ceremony, beautifully decorated reception with yummy food, perfect weather, visiting with some old friends, and the cutest favors - a whole table of candy in glass jars and bowls and little bags to make up your own sweet treat concoction (such a cute idea). But, the bride and groom eventually rode off into the sunset and mom and I got back into the van and headed toward home. We only made it about 3 hours that night. I guess the lack of sleep the night before finally caught up with us! We found a hotel, had a good dinner, and got some much needed rest before driving the final 6 hours the next day.

So, to sum it all up - we were gone 42 hours, actually driving 18 of those hours, plus stops for gasoline, food, etc,; logged just over 1100 miles on the minivan; attended a wedding and reception (about 4 hours there); slept twice, and hit two Starbucks. Good fun. Now I need a nap!!

Devouring a good book...

Beckley

I would like to introduce the newest member of our EXTENDED family. This is Beckley. He lives with Grammy and Grampy. He is a shitzhu puppy and weighs almost 3 1/2 pounds. As with all things Seth does, it took some warming up. We told him only that G&G had something new and we were going to their house to see it. I asked what he thought it might be. "I don' know." That's the answer to pretty much any question you ask Seth. However, with some prompting/leading you can usually get to something more interesting. I think he guessed a kitty once. Or he was looking out the window and one of the neighborhood cats was walking past (just a note here - if you want a cat, get a cat. I like cats. But I don't want my neighbor's cat. And I definitely don't want my neighbors cat or its five kittens, which will be another five soon I'm sure, etc. So if you get a cat, it's your cat, not the neighborhood's cat. Sorry, just a peeve I guess I needed to vent about). SO, Dave suggested we were going to see their new kangaroo. I had to jump in as the voice of reason and ask Seth if he knew anyone else who had a kangaroo in their home. Then Dave suggested a giraffe. This time Seth looked at me like, huh?? So, we got there and found this little guy in a little box filled with towels. Seth's question, "what's he doing?" So we explained he wanted to live at Grammy & Grampy's house. We asked Seth if he wanted to touch him. Seth said no and went to get out some books instead. Of course Luke thought touching was great - or more like grabbing a big hunk of the hair off his head, but I intervened! Eventually Seth warmed up and gave him a couple of kisses before we left for home.
Now if only visiting mom and dad would fulfill Dave's need for his own dog. But I'm not sure small and fluffy is what he had in mind!

Punkin patch

I don't say "punkin." I say "pumpkin." So, how do little kids just know that when they say "punkin" my little heart will melt?? Our October Saturdays are filling up fast so we seized the day and went to the pumpkin patch. Of course, I missed the memo that it was going to be August again and nearly melted, but some would say that's better than it being cold out. I don't agree but for the sake of the kiddos, it's probably true. Anyway, there's a great pumpkin patch not far from us that has lots of fun kid activities to make that admission fee a little more bearable.

There was a sandbox with construction type toys. Kinda nice as the toys did more of the digging and Seth did less of the digging.

There were cutesy little cut-outs for the older boys, errr Seth and Daddy, to stick their faces in and humor Mommy.
The biggest deal of all - I thought the carousel ride was brave, but Seth rode a real pony! He LOVES horses so we let him watch a bunch of kids ride. He kept saying he wanted to do it so Dave bought the ticket, all the while thinking, there goes $3, but he did it. Very brave. And I think he loved it.
Then there was a tractor to sit on. Tractors are pretty cool too these days.
And a pumpkin eating dinosaur. He was a little loud but even that didn't seem to bother him too much. I thought it was a little annoying and tried to leave the fun to go find food but Seth actually wanted to stay and watch him.

We took a little hayride out to the pumpkin patch.

Seth and Daddy set out on the quest to find the perfect pumpkin, or two.

Seth apparently thought this one looked pretty good.

I know which one I would pick!

Or maybe two!

It was a really nice time to just be together and have some fun. We are truly blessed to have these two little guys to remind us that simple things like a hayride and a pumpkin eating dinosaur can be crazy fun!