Blessed and Thankful

My Girls

The are just totally funny sometimes and do the weirdest things. Claire was cuddling next to me on the couch and started petting her bottom lip with her hand and said they were soft, then Shay came up and started licking her hands thinking she was doing the same thing Claire was doing. Just so goofy. I'm trying to get Claire to dress herself now (should have started forever ago) and she can put the cloths on just not the correct orientation. We got a gingerbread house as a present and the girls were so excited when I told them that we couldn't even wait one day to build it! They barely waited through our video call with my family before they convinced us to make it with them, and they loved it! Claire has also asked for so many things in the past week that I am glad we didn't get her talking to Santa because we would end up with a moving puppy, a moving kitty, and new roller skates for Christmas! She made cars makeshift roller skates then asked me for shoes with wheels which I told her were called roller skates.

Thanksgiving

This was our second year spending Thanksgiving away from our extended families because it was impossible for us to travel when Chris has school. I practiced my meal prep for future Thanksgivings and made the butter horn rolls recipe my dad always makes, the sweet potato and deviled eggs recipes my mom always makes, and the gravy recipe that my father-in-law always makes. If I knew a recipe that was special to my mother-in-law I would probably make that too, but I need to experience more Thanksgivings there! We just bought a ham instead of a turkey since it was just us and we prefer ham anyway, and I tried a new pineapple sauce to eat with it. Didn't forget the potatoes, stuffing, and pies either! I bought us sparkling cider and eggnog to top off the meal and we all sat down to eat together saying the reasons we are thankful. The girls liked the rolls the most and ate some of the ham and sweet potatoes, then shared one deviled egg between the two of them. They also thought the sparkling cider tickled their nose.

Sadly Sick 

It has been a very sick week and lonely because we didn't want to spread around any germs so daddy stayed home from church with the girls today. They both started getting sick on Wednesday evening and woke up with pretty bad sounding coughs that have lasted through today. The worst days were Thanksgiving and Friday where Claire took some long naps while Shay took two naps each day and Chris and I worked hard to get enough nutrients and liquids in them to get better. They've had more energy and less coughing so they are getting better and my heart doesn't have to break every time I hear them being miserable and coughing. I've learned that they do not like soup and although Claire would eat what I fed her, I couldn't get Shay to even keep it in her mouth! I pretended the broth was medicine and was able to get a little in her so replenish her electrolytes and felt less worried afterward.

To the Dentist!

 Claire 

We had an eventful week with more days of sunshine and being able to go outside and play in the sun again. We also went to the dentist this week for the first time, and I was thinking it was really late to get started with Claire, but her teeth have always been really good. She has larger gaps and it makes it hard to floss, but we have always brushed her teeth and recently started using an electric toothbrush to get them even cleaner. She was excited to go down the hall, sit in the big chair and meet the nurse. In the end, they both got a sticker and went around behind the desk to say goodbye to the receptionists, having no sense of boundaries or off-limit areas. It was so much excitement that she ended up taking a nap for the first time in a loooooong time! She was also excited to help with any project I start but I can't post about them yet because they are Christmas presents. Let's just say I think the tye dyeing turned out awesomely! Claire has been being a princess for the past two weeks and started wanting to only wear her dresses which consist of one that fits and one that is definitely a size too big.

Shay

She was much more wiggly when it was her turn to be in the dentist's chair and only sat still for the cleaning because she was able to hold the suction in her mouth. The nurses were so great with them and kept her excited about sucking the water and toothpaste out. Shay was the main reason we went to the dentist because her teeth have always looked like they collect more plaque and need more attention. She had a little growth that the dentist said might have been from when she fell and hit her mouth (which she has done far too often!) so we are going to get it x-rayed to make sure there isn't anything too bad about it. This little girl always pretends to be a kitten and even hisses when she is in cat form. Her favorite show is PJ Masks and sings along with the theme song and acts out Catboy's parts sometimes. She likes sandwiches and toast but she stuffs an entire piece in her mouth then has to sit chewing for 10 minutes just to swallow, so I've started cutting them smaller and now she eats two at once...I don't know what to do with her sometimes.

Decorating

 Claire

She comes up with such fun things to do throughout the day that it is hard to catch up with it all as mom and get her to do the things I want. I never have to plan arts and crafts time because play dough is one of her favorite things to ask for and play with. She also likes showing off her song "I am a child of God" and naming colors on her rainbow being able to identify light and dark colors too now. I like it when she shows off what I teach her by reading words! It is exciting that she can recognize the ones we practice a lot like cat and dad, but she doesn't like working for new ones as much. Rewards let her do what she wants, like playing with bubbles, but then they come down like rain and have to use their blankets to cover up.

Shay

I am impressed with how good Shay is at picking up certain parts of songs, she has known the ABC song for a while even though she mumbles the 'lmnop' part. She started singing Twinkle Twinkle Little Star when we were setting up Christmas together and knew a lot of the words, just like being able to sing "Rain, rain go away" fairly accurately. She wants to sing with Claire, but Claire usually says no but that will probably get better soon. She had started to have a stuffy nose early this week because it has been getting cold and I haven't been on top of making sure they are dressed warmly before going outside. This week has been better so now the habit of putting shoes and coats on is hopefully established enough that they remind daddy when he takes them outside. 

Decorating

I am rationalizing that I can decorate this early because we are going to be gone on vacation for most of December and I want to be able to enjoy my own decorations before we go. I shouldn't have to rationalize, but I always thought it was important to focus on Thanksgiving before Christmas, and this year I have fully accepted that I don't want to! I want to make this a full holiday season and decorate with lights right now! Claire and Shay loved it because they were in bed when I started doing our fireplace mantel and then did the tree together this morning. We watched Polar Express while we decorated and daddy lifted the girls up so Claire could put the star on top and helped Shay put ornaments higher on the tree. We have it elevated so most are out of reach but they are good about not taking them off now, I'm just worried about our friend that comes.

New November

I was bad at taking pictures this past week but I forgot to have our professional pictures shared on the blog and had only done FB thus the pictures...

Claire

She discovered her neighbor this past week over the fence who stands on their trampoline and shares toys by trowing them down to her and then they try to give them back by standing on our little chairs. The next morning she wanted to go out there first thing and call out to have her come play again but I kept telling her that its cold in the mornings. Our week has been pretty uneventful besides taking down Halloween decorations and Claire always wanting to help with things. She has enjoyed earning candy when she eats all her regular food and is learning how many different types of candy there are now that we have a bigger varity. I've hid some away to become Christmas candy for our advent calendar that I'm realizing we might not use very much unless we pack it on our trip to family this year. 

Shay

She seems to always be the one who asks for baths and usually any time of day, but she is also the one who poors dirt on others to cause the need for a bath. I can see her frustration when I ask what she is saying over and over again because I can't understand what she is saying which happens because her sounds aren't super developed. Although Claire still calls her baby Shay sometimes she is getting so big and they aren't very different in their height and weight or how much they eat. They are still different in their preferences where Shay likes milk still and Claire likes apple juice, they have different shows they like and toys they prefer playing with. I think they like having things that are all their own and to argue with each other which solidifies their interests as different.

Season

It is fun to think about this season for many reasons, but mostly because it makes me feel excited about the holidays coming up and start planning about thinking of others. Chris really likes the rainy overcast days we have had over the past month and I've enjoyed stealing to wear his sweaters. I also like seeing the pictures in memories about getting engaged 6 years ago and that makes me think about how wonderful my life has been over the last 6 years with Chris. We have been blessed with such a wonderful life together and as we were having a movie night watching Fireproof it was apparent that we are extra blessed with how well we have learned to communicate and have the Lord in our lives.