Lights

Last night I was driving home from church. I noticed all the Christmas lights on the way home. I had the urge to yell, "Christmas Lights, YAY!"

You see, our family has a tradition of shouting this as we drive. Its fun to see Christmas through my children's eyes. Every house that has lights is like a gift for them.

When I was a little girl I remember I used always count how many houses there where from point A to point B. The other day baby girl started doing this and it sent the memories rolling back to me.

I encourage put on rose colored glasses as you shop for gifts, drive home in the dark, and fight the crowds. Lets be as the children are, and enjoy every moment of the holiday.

Baby Boy's school picture

School Girl

My baby girl got her school pictures back. Baby boy will be scanned in and posted tomorrow. I just got it today :) Expect them on your Christmas cards (if i can do it)

Realism

Baby boy is very much into realism. Every night when I put him to bed, Teddy talks to him. Teddy says, "Daddy I love you and I missed you" then gives him a great big kiss.

I told baby boy that I get to put him down to bed tonight. He said, "NO DADDY!" I said, "Don't you like it when Teddy talks to you?" He said, "No, Teddy does not talk. Its just pretend and your imagination." I said, "How do you know this?" He said, "He is made of fluffy so he can't talk."

Kids doings

We had mommy/daughter father/son night:

Daddy took baby boy to the play area of the mall. Then they got some dinner, rode a quarter ride, and got some gum balls. Baby girl and I went skating.

Baby girl wore me out. I skated with her but she held on to my right arm the whole time. She fell and I would have to pick her up while skating. I had 35-40 lbs on my arm for an hour!

She started off timid, but each circle around she got better. By the time we left she was only holding on to my hand/arm and not the wall any more. She hardly slipped at all. We had a good time.

Stories on the kids:

Baby boy said to me yesterday, "Mommy, you know Santa isn't real. Last year when he came to church he had a fake beard and fake suit and fake everything"

Baby girl was talking to me in the car. She said, "Mommy I know how a credit card works. If you don't have money in your purse you use it. Then you pay for it with money later."

Health Update

Last week I had my iron tested again. The doctors office called back and said that my iron had gone down again. The nursed acted shocked. She first asked if I was taking my meds. I said yes. Then she said something to the affect that they were worried that I was internally bleeding. Then she quickly decided to put me on a new drug. She talked to the doctor.

I am eating lots of meat right now. Mainly meat and veggies. (Ewwww on the large amounts of meat) I have taken caffeine out of my diet. I read that it can inhibit iron absorption. I will now gain some weight but hopefully I will have some energy soon. I can always loose the meat weight after I get my iron under control.

PACE

Baby Girl has been recommended for our school gifted program. The parents have tons of paper work to fill out. The questions are difficult because it requires you to remember specifics. The questions are also similar in many ways. I think if I were a trained teacher, they might seem more different.

Here are the questions.
1. Intellectual curiosity/ asks important question
2. understands big ideas and perceives relationships between big ideas
3. cleaver/ out-of-the-box
4. analytical thinker/methodical thinker
5. views situations, problems, or issues from multiple perspectives
6. interprets information in a wider context (social, political, economic, technological, environmental implications)
7. expresses ideas in variety of ways including advanced vocabulary use
8. learning style/ enthusiasm of learning/ initiative/ rapidity and depth of learning
9. persistence/ goal-oriented/ commitment to task completion/ attention span
10. independent worker/ability to work with others
11. sense of humor/ type of humor/ use of humor
12. sensitivity/ empathy/ awareness of other's emotions, needs, and perspectives
13. variety of interests/ intense focus
14. handling advice or criticism from others/ self-criticism
15. leadership in family, among peers, or in outside activities
16. tablets in art, music, writing, or performing for audiences
17. activities/ sports/ clubs/ hobbies
18. recognition/ honors/ awards
19. Are there any special needs or special concerns that you would like to share/


These are all fill in the blank questions. If you want to help my memory please help.

We are getting healthier

I have about 1/3 of my voice back now. Baby girl is fully wonderful. Hubby is 99%.

I have some pics of Halloween. They are really bad because Hubby's cell camera was fogged or something. Baby girl didn't want her pic taken.



Here is a few pics provided my friend Laura. :)





All but baby boy got sick last week. I am the last to start recovering. The main reason for my late recovery is that I didn't go to the Doctor until Monday.



I got 4 inches cut off my hair. I wanted it to have fresh ends. It grows really fast, but it is very different. It looks big again.

Job

We came to the conclusion today that I have to get a job. Life is just way to expensive and we need to catch up with everything. Pray for me to find a good fit. I am a little sad but I know it is what we need to do for our family. Do you all have any ideas?

EDIT We figured out a way that we can hold off for a while and see where we are. We both would love it if I could at least wait until baby boy goes into school. Anytime after that would be a blessing, but not an expectation.