1st Day of Chanukah

To celebrate the beginning of Chanukah, we went to my in-laws' house in Acworth. Faron was there and my mother-in-law served the traditional fixins. Then, the girls were able to open their presents,



and light their menorahs. Abby had some help from Uncle Faron while Nana led the prayer.





Then Lexi had some help from Nana as she recited the prayer and lit her own menorah.





Abby thought the menorahs were birthday cake. She said, "Birday Cake!!!!" and drew in a deep breath like she was ready to blow out the candles.





She was quite upset when we told her that she could not blow out the candles.

Santa Visit 2008

We took the girls to see Santa today at the local Belk store. They were both excited to go until we actually got there and they saw the jolly, fat man. They both acted shy and wanted nothing to do with him. After an attempt to convince them to sit with him on their own, Stefan suggested we get in the picture. So, we ended up with a family pic with Santa this year. Lexi refused to talk citing her shyness as an excuse and wanted me to tell him what she wanted. I did not. I insisted that he does not believe parents when they say what the kids want, it has to come from the kids themselves. Lexi still refused. So while I was processing the paperwork to get my overpriced piece of memorabilia, she built up some nerve and while we were leaving she told him what she wanted, gave him a high five and off we went. Abby then decided that she wanted "Seeenta Clows" which she reiterated over and over until we got home.

Hangin' Out with Uncle Faron

Faron came and hung out Friday night. Lexi, Abby, Faron, and I played Guitar Hero for a bit. Abby served as a wonderful vocalist attempting to swallow the microphone as she Aaaaaahed into it.



At one point, Abby gave the mic to Lexi (who was playing guitar) and Lexi attempted to do both at the same time.



Afterward, it was time to cuddle with Uncle Faron on the couch (the girls, not me).

Puttin' up the tree

Thanksgiving Recap

This year, we spent Thanksgiving with my family at my parents' house. My sister, Sandi, and her family were also there. We had a wonderful dinner prepared by none other than my mom and while we allowed the meal to digest, we migrated downstairs to the game room for ping pong and pool. Here are some pictures.

Abbyism

For a long time Abby has always enjoyed playing in the bathroom while Stefan or I take a shower. Until recently, she'd keep herself preoccupied with the toys in the tub or brush her teeth or wash her hands so she was quite distracted from the nudity in the shower stall. Now she will sit on the potty and watch. I don't worry about it mostly because the glass of the shower door gets so steamed that I'm sure she cannot see anything she shouldn't.

Last night Stefan was taking a shower and Abby creeped in. I remained downstairs watching TV when all of a sudden Abby came downstairs traumatized and screaming with real tears streaming down her face. I asked what was the matter and she said that she saw Daddy's butt. After I calmed her down, we went upstairs and Stefan was already dressed with a look of embarrassment on his face. I began to tell him about Abby's problem and he said he knew. He then asked Abby where his butt was and she said "In your pants!" and pointed to the front of his pajama pants. Oops! I guess it's time for the toddler to not play in the bathroom while we take showers.

FYI - she also points to her chest and calls that a butt too.

Oh my!

I can't believe it has been over a month since my last blog. I've been super busy finishing up TOSS which is an intense field internship necessary to my degree program. I thought that the end of TOSS would be a moment to celebrate. I was surprised to find myself quite sad. I got attached to the students that I had been working with and I will miss being in front of the classroom. Most of my peers are going on to student teaching next semester, but I still have 3 courses to complete before I can do so. So now I must remove my teacher hat and go back to being the student this semester.

I have recently applied to Huntington Learning Center as a tutor. Normally they only consider certified teachers for this role, but they were willing to speak with me based on my progress in the teacher ed program as well as my transcripts (which are quite impressive, if I must say so myself). I had an interview last Monday and am still waiting to hear a response. If I get the job, it would be a huge growth opportunity for me professionally. I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

Lexi is doing great in first grade. She is earning awesome grades and has been named Student of the Month for the month of December. She loves reading and math yet excels in all subjects. She cracks us up all the time with the little things she says. Speaking of cracking...recently she came to me and asked if popping your back was the same as crapping your back. I had to quickly explain that she had misunderstood the word and hoped that the explanation would stick.

Abby is calming down a bit. She no longer has to be entertained every waking minute of the day. She enjoys building tall towers with blocks and follows Lexi around at every possible chance. She hates when Lexi gets on the bus in the morning. She wants to go too. She'll throw her mini-backpack that doubles as a diaper bag over her back and put on her shoes and say she's going to the "buth". When the bus leaves, she is very heartbroken and can only be calmed by Mickey Mouse Clubhouse or candy. She's got quite the sweet tooth and can be coerced to do just about anything for candy. Anything, except going on the potty. She's in a weird phase where she doesn't want her diaper changed even when she needs it. In fact, she typically only agrees to a change if she can do it herself. This is usually a sign that a child is ready to potty train, but she will not sit on the potty. Quite frustrating!

Stefan's working as a seasonal driver's helper with UPS to assist us through the winter. He's been working so hard and his body is paying for it. I assume that, by the time he's done with his seasonal role, he will start becoming accustomed to the rigors of the job. That doesn't help him now, though. He's looking into getting a part-time with UPS as a sorter so that me and the girls can get better insurance. Hopefully that will work out and not interfere with SGL Lawn Services in the spring.

We had to say good-bye to a member of the family. Our yorkie, Brandi, was attacking our poodle, Cassi, to the point of drawing blood. The behavior progressed to a point where it was not just dog fighting, but it was an attempt to kill. The vet suggested Prozac, but we could not afford it nor did I think it was necessary since her focus was purely on Cassi. I suspect that Cassi probably has cancer or some other disease that Brandi could sense and so Brandi was trying to kill her off-the whole wolf pack mentality/survival of the fittest mindset. We searched Craig's List and found a woman who was looking for a yorkie for Christmas. I was upfront and honest about all of Brandi's faults with this lady but nothing would break her. She wanted Brandi. Before I took Brandi over to meet her, she had purchased pink dog dishes, a puppy dress, and a jingle bell collar for her. I was very comfortable with the home and the people and so...Brandi has a new home. Hopefully, Brandi's life will be happier there where she can be the center of attention and not have any other dogs to compete with. Regardless, I still have Brandi's stocking hanging from the mantle. I decorated before Brandi left us and I can't bring myself to take it down yet.

Anyway, I think that about sums up the last month. Looking forward, I will be attending a class to become a substitute teacher for the county just north of us at the end of February and will being taking the first of my certification exams in March. Still busy times.

My Little Jill-o-Lantern

Friday night, Stefan and I went to a movie leaving the girls in Faron's ever-capable hands. Lexi apparently lost a tooth while we were gone. She didn't realize it when it happened...nor did he. I'm guessing she swallowed it. Lexi informed me of the loss on Saturday. Could it be that she was testing the theory of the Tooth Fairy, or did she really not notice? Who knows. Anyway, once I was enlightened I told her to write a note to the Tooth Fairy. She typed it out on the computer and it went something like this:

Dear Tooth Fairy,

I swallowed my tooth. Can you still give me money? If so, can you make it $10?

Your Friend,
Lexi

Nah, she doesn't ask for much...really! So Saturday passed and the tooth fairy never came. Why? Stefan and I blamed it on the fact that Lexi didn't put out her special tooth pillow with a pocket for the treasure. So, last night was the night. The tooth fairy came, but Lexi did not receive her $10. She got $1. That'll teach her to be demanding!

Flash forward to this afternoon.

I returned home from school, got the report from my mom that Abby had been good (thank God!) and after she left, Lexi informed me that she had discovered another loose tooth and that she hadn't been wiggling it at all(I do think thou dost protest too much, dear Lexi). So she showed me and this tooth was ready to come out too. Lexi persisted to "not wiggle" the tooth and after a few short moments it fell out.

Now Lexi has a very toothless grin. She is missing 3 out of 4 of her front teeth on the top. The one she does have is only halfway grown in in the year that has passed since the baby tooth vacated the spot. Another is just barely breaking the gums, so it'll be at least another year before that gap is filled.

I told Lexi tonight at dinner that I would not be able to look at her without giggling for quite a while. It's such a sight to see. She seemed to think that would be funny...my giggling, that is.

So, my dear Tooth Fairy, I do apologize that we couldn't have saved you a trip. It looks like you'll be returning again tonight--the second night in a row. You might as well add us to your frequent flyer list.

Abby's too tired for monsters

With the time change and the fact that it's getting dark at 6 p.m., Abby has developed a fear of the dark. Not only is she afraid of the dark, but she thinks that monsters are looming everywhere. Here's a video.

Abbyism

Last night, I took the time to go through the girls' closets and remove the outgrown items (some of which could go directly from Lexi's closet to Abby's) and rearrange the closets for the new seasons. We were in Abby's room and I was giving outgrown items to Stefan to box up, the girls were dancing and everyone was getting along...until, Stefan realized the door was locked. In most cases, this is no big deal since the doors NORMALLY lock from the inside, but we turned Abby's doorknob around to lock from the outside because she would never go to sleep by constantly trying to escape. We were locked in. We didn't have a "key" and we were in trouble. Stefan tried to no avail to unlock it with whatever we could find, but that was not working. I started feeling light-headed. The claustrophobia was kicking in. Finally, I spotted a plastic hanger with a thick, unbendable metal hook that I hoped had a long enough part that screwed into the plastic to reach the mechanism to release the lock. I ripped it apart hoping that it would work because otherwise, we'd have to call for someone to come rescue us. It took some finagling, but he finally got the door open. Thank you, Abby, for just about giving Mommy a heart attack.

Halloween 2008

Halloween was loads of fun this year although at first glance I didn't think it would be. Let me start at the beginning...err the middle because the beginning is actually quite boring.

Barbara and Dennis were here when I got home from school. They had been watching the ghouls until Stefan and I could get home. We had dinner together and all seemed well. Abby was a hoot putting on a show (aka spinning in circles and demanding we clap when she stopped). This went on for quite awhile until it was time to start getting ready for Trick-or-Treating.



I began by putting Abby's Jo Jo hat on which she seemed to enjoy. Then I put the costume on. Again she seemed to enjoy it, that is until moments later she wanted it "hoff". When I wouldn't remove it, she pitched an ever-living fit. She was screaming hysterically and hating us all. Stefan handled her by taking her outside (where the screams were still heard) while I got Lexi dressed as a hula girl.

Finally, we set out for the door to door panhandling...err trick-or-treating, but Abby didn't want anything to do with it. She insisted on being held by Stefan and continued to pout through the first block.







Even meeting up with Katelynn (Abby's friend from around the bend) didn't warm Abby's spirits.





We continued to a few more houses while Stefan had to "help" Abby trick-or-treat.



Finally, Abby spotted a neighbor with a dog and she wanted down. Once she was down, that was the end of it. She decided she was a big girl and would do the task on her own. She'd go to the door, say, "Ticky twee," receive her loot and say "Take ooo" as she examined her new prize on the way back to us. This amused Stefan, Barbara, and me and we got a good laugh for many more houses to come.



At the houses that just left out their candy to avoid the incessant doorbell ringing, Abby would take one piece and watch it fall into her bag, take another, then another, then... you get the point. About halfway through the night, she was so into the fun that she would say, "I want moe times!" At that point, enduring the tantrum earlier in the evening was pushed to the backs of all of our minds.

Here are the girls at the end of the night.





The end.

Silliness at the Playground

We stole the opportunity to take the girls to the playground on a day with phenomenal weather. Here are some pics.

Lexi's 7th Birthday

Lexi's Birthday fell on a Thursday this year. We woke her in the morning and she was quite insistent on wearing her favorite dress so she could be fancy. Nana, who was volunteering at her school that day anyway, brought cupcakes for the class to celebrate since Stefan was at work and I was at school all day. Nana to the rescue!!!!

Later Nana, Papaw, Uncle Faron, Stefan, Abby and I took her to her favorite restaurant, Viva Mexico. She scarfed down on her usual dinner of a cheese quesadilla and mexican queso with chips. Afterward, we all caravaned back to the house for a Carvel ice cream cake.








Friday was spent making the tower of cupcakes Lexi wanted for her party that weekend. This took all night, because I actually ended up burning a cake with my silicon bakeware because I didn't know how to adjust the cooking times for the dishes. Oh well, we had enough mix and were still able to produce the tower that Lexi wanted.



Saturday we had her party for her friends at Lexi's favorite playground. Madison, Carolyn, Savannah, Mikey, Ian and Riley all came. Lexi had a blast. We served hot dogs and of course cake/cupcakes.









When the kids were tuckered out, we returned home with a tagalong, Lexi's best friend Savannah who was going to stay the night. This was Lexi's first sleep over with a non-relative and the girls played like crazy. They were very well-behaved and I'm happy that Lexi was able to host her first sleepover. She had a blast!