December 11, 2013, at 10:31 pm | In yet another step toward leaving their little girl days behind them, Becky and Susie now sleep in bona fide big girl beds. They’ve been on mattresses on the floor for about a month now, but tonight Jim assembled their very own beautiful wood beds (which have the potential to bunk in the future if I can ever convince myself I’m not asking for head injuries by allowing a child to sleep up that high!). I know most kids leave their cribs behind much, much earlier than the girls, but for a variety of reasons the cribs worked very well for our family. I had told the girls that if they could stay dry at night, they could earn the right to have new beds, and so this fall they did just that. I’m so proud of the girls, and I’m excited for this new transition. I have a hunch that Jimmy won’t be staying in his crib until age 5 – he’s already pleading for a big boy bed of his own (but given that we just moved Danny on an experimental basis into Jimmy’s room a few nights ago, I don’t see that happening any time soon!).
Here’s Jim putting the beds together with four eager helpers:
The girls were so excited:
Sweet dreams!
December 10, 2013, at 10:22 pm | The kids and I had a great time playing in the snow today (did I really just say that? I guess New England is finally freezing the California out of me! :)).
 
 
December 9, 2013, at 9:33 pm |
December 8, 2013, at 8:15 pm | You know you have school-age kids in the house when a trip to the pediatrician diagnoses one daughter with scarlet fever and the other with pink eye and strep! I’m just so thankful for access to antibiotics so my little ballerinas can keep dancing!
December 6, 2013, at 11:12 pm | I wasn’t putting up the Christmas ornaments fast enough for Susie, who took matters into her own hands with a set of building blocks!
December 5, 2013, at 11:08 pm | There’s something missing in our home as of Tuesday – Susie’s tooth! Much to all of our surprise, the tooth that only started wiggling a week ago is already gone! Apparently while Susie was eating lunch at school, she reached up to wiggle her tooth for the umpteenth time that day and was shocked to find it had fallen out. We assume she must have swallowed it, but she took it in stride once we assured her she’d still find something under her pillow the next day.
When the kids were young, Jim and I decided that we would tell the kids the truth about the Tooth Fairy, Santa, etc, but that we would still emphasize to the kids that we can have fun pretending. So even though Susie knew it was going to be her parents sneaking into her room that night, she was still so excited she could barely stand it. And honestly, I was too! I found an idea online to paint the quarters with glitter nail polish so they would “sparkle” with fairy dust. Much to my surprise, I actually had purple sparkly nail polish in my possession (thanks Mom!), so I was able to transform some ordinary coins into magic ones, and I printed out an envelope to put them in under her pillow. I swapped it for the picture of a tooth we drew in place of her actual tooth. Susie found the envelope the next morning and was so bowled over by her sparkly coins that she took them to school with her, and then took them to bed with her the next night. I love the fact that she is still entranced by the magic of this whole experience, even though she knows it’s all make-believe. My grown-up girl still has a marvelous childlike imagination!
    
December 4, 2013, at 10:11 pm |
December 3, 2013, at 10:19 pm |
December 2, 2013, at 10:26 pm | My favorite outing during our Tennessee trip was attending the Dixie Stampede dinner theatre. I was spellbound during the entire show, as were all the kids. And not only was the production fantastic, the food was outstanding as well!
      
We followed up the dinner show with a trip to a huge Christmas store and an ice cream parlor. Yum!
I had to get this shot of my dear husband putting Jimmy to bed. Every night, Jim dutifully tucked Jimmy into his little tent. It’s so nice not having to lug around a pack n’ play for him!
The girls’ bedtime routine was more social, since it involved the cousins. We had the four big kids all sharing a room, so after Julie read them a story and we tucked them into their beds, we typically heard giggling for another hour or two!
 
Each morning, the big kids would leap from their beds and wake up the household with their excited banter. Good thing we all like early morning cuddles!
We woke up Wednesday morning to a fresh layer of snow, much to the children’s delight. It was good, sticky snowball-friendly snow:
     
The kids were happy to thaw out by the fire with bowls of popcorn!
December 1, 2013, at 11:40 pm | Many of my fondest childhood memories involve trips to see my out-of-state cousins, and I am sure the same will hold true for my kids. We just returned from a wonderful, action-packed trip to Tennessee with Jim’s parents and sister’s family, and it’s safe to say my kids were on cloud nine the whole time. From sun-up to sun-down (and usually before and after the sun!), the cousins giggled and played and squealed and wrestled and hugged and chatted with each other. We were all so impressed by how well the kids got along with each other (the only exception being that Danny sometimes greeted his cousins’ sweet overtures with an irritated, wrinkled-nosed “Bah!” We’re all hopeful he’ll be more receptive at our next visit!). And of course, the little kids all flocked to their big cousin Alli, who entertained and embraced them nonstop.
Tennessee didn’t fail to provide amazing adventures our whole week, including a chilly snowstorm that blanketed our rental mountaintop cabin. While the adults were wishing for warmer temperatures, the kids thoroughly enjoyed the snow! And seeing kids all bundled up with hats, gloves, boots and pink cheeks is awfully cute, even when you’re freezing!
Here’s the first installment of the many pictures I took this week. Looking back through them is making me miss everyone even more!
Our rental cabin, complete with three levels of decks overlooking the Smoky Mountains:
We took the kids to an arcade the first night there. Isn’t it great when they enjoy the games without having to put any money in? 😉
Danny did occasionally let himself be cuddled by Kate!
Sweet Alli:
We took a great hike, led by Jim in his new quest to take as many steps as possible (thanks to a fancy new Fitbit pedometer!). I don’t think Danny was quite up to Jim’s speed.
   
We couldn’t get enough of the breathtaking Smoky Mountain vistas:
Alli was such a good sport to squeeze in the back and listen to the kids’ incessant chatter!
Becky and Susie came nose-to-nose with stuffed wildlife behind glass:
As well as with LIVE wildlife behind glass!
Some of the group took an air tram ride in Ober Gatlinburg:
 
Bubba and the baby:
Uncle Jon giving the kids a breakfast Bible lesson:
The kids used a downpour as an excuse to go stomping in puddles with umbrellas:
And of course they had to warm up afterward with a soak in the hot tub:
Pappy’s lap was frequently full this week!
 
More pictures to come!
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ABOUT US I'm blessed to be saved by the grace of God, loved by my wonderful husband Jim, and embraced by my twin girls, Rebecca Faith and Susanna Joy and my sons Jimmy and Danny. I started this blog in May 2008 when I was hospitalized for pre-term labor at 24 weeks gestation. The Lord allowed me to keep the girls inside until they were 34 weeks along, and on July 27th, Rebecca made her debut, followed by Susanna, five minutes later, on July 28th. We ecstatically welcomed Jimmy into our lives on April 25th, 2011, and Danny on August 31, 2012. This blog has been a personal journal of faith and motherhood and the only way I can remember which child did what and when. Thanks for stopping by to share in my Faith and Joy! Feel free to e-mail me at: [email protected]. |
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