December happenings

Oh my, it's been a busy month! We started by going to see the show Chicago (I think season tickets to the Broadway shows that come to town should be my anniversary present every year). It was really good. The guys thought it was great because there was very little fabric on most of the women.
My friend Kristin had her twin babies on the 4th! A boy - Alec, and a girl - Addison! They are absolutely precious and still so tiny - I've held Addison twice now and got to hold both of them on Friday (19th). Kristin took pictures so I'll post them eventually. They are definitely growing already but it is so fun to hold a little one that doesn't kick and squirm!
Beca had Payton come hang out for a few hours at the beginning of the month and we played lots of dress-up and made cookies. Both just had to lick the mixer wand:

That first weekend, we also made ornaments at Oma's house. We have several albino reindeer.

And I took pictures of my friend Jenny one month before the due date of her first baby. It will be a boy and I can't wait to meet him!
I spent almost the entire second week in December in doctor's appointments for my jaw. I finally got a lower jaw splint that was developed using technology rather than guess and check - we'll see how that turns out. It was an interesting week as Mrs. Santa also attempted to figure out where all the presents had gone over the last few months. We had a visit from my grandparents and went to see A Christmas Carol. For those that are not from here, this production is amazing and is in it's 34th year! The man that plays Scrooge has for years and it just gets more amusing as they throw in little current happenings. I still love it and can't wait to take Beca next year.

The second weekend of the month, Beca and I went with my mom to Virginia Beach to visit my cousin Missy and her boys Noah (Beca's age) and David (the amazingly charming but devious 19 month old). And when you get to the Santa thing at the mall and they are closing to feed the non-existent reindeer for an hour, this is how Oma entertains 3-year olds (thank goodness for a full purse of junk!):Getting closer to Santa... (inside the snow globe with some snow-like substance)
Beca's bravery with Santa inspired Noah to sit on his lap as well. Beca asked Santa for a Princess Bike and White Christmas (the movie). Luckily, while we were gone, Santa's big elf was assembling the bike.
The children were dropped in a bath tub in the evening together so hey, why not some pictures of that too!We also made cookies and opened presents while we were there!
A "nap" with Aunt Jill and the poodle party (Bridgette, Joie, and the "mini Zoe", I mean, Laci)
Dressed for mixing (Missy uses sleeveless hoodies as aprons - they zip up and don't come untied!)
Pouring in the flour (everyone was really careful and hardly spilled any of it!):
The finished cookies:

It was a really fun weekend and ended with a trip to Disney on Ice with Payton and Kate. All the girls were a little freaked out by some of the loud noises (especially during "Cars") but liked the rest. Especially the Ariel and Tinkerbell parts. It was a good show. And the 3 Musketeers had a good time.

And here we are in the third weekend of the month. Beca spent Friday night with Oma and Pop-pop while Steve and I went to a Christmas party with folks from work. We found a new favorite spot to eat and it is really good. It's called Humble Pie in downtown Raleigh. I had bites of tempura asparagus, fried green tomatoes, shrimp and grits (in "broth of the gods"), and a delicious dessert of cinnamon flan and something they tried to call sopopillas but they were more like little logs of fried dough. They were still good just not what I had grown accustomed to in New Mexico.
Saturday, Beca and I spent all day at Oma and Pop-pop's baking cookies. Payton, Kate and Elijah came to help paint the cookies and the girls exchanged presents and posed for pictures. They are still so cute together.


Pop-pop's magnolia Christmas tree:

Unfortunately, the night did not go as nicely. I am fighting a cold and Beca had really bad diarrhea. It seems to have stopped now that we are watching what she is eating but it sure kept us in the house for the day. 3 yogurt pops later (and we fed her other things) she's a much happier girl.

And thanks to Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, Beca gets great joy in asking Steve "Guess what?" and when he says "What?", she answers "Chicken Butt!!!" and giggles furiously! She even asks Zoe! Thankfully, only 2 days of work left for me and 2.5 for Steve. We can't wait for Christmas morning! (I wrote that Sunday but finally put the pictures on here Monday).

Birthday cake rules apply to Jesus

Soo, the other night, my parents took Beca to the Hanging of the Greens and Birthday party for Jesus at the church. And there was a big cake and birthday note to Jesus. And Beca mumbled something about the first piece. So Mom said "Beca, are you having the first piece?" And Beca replied "No, Jesus gets the first piece - it's his birthday"!

And there is a growth spurt in progress. She's eaten massive amounts of food at dinner - one night, it was 1/2 a curly noodle soup (Raman) and 1/2 a pack of saltines. Another - 6 pieces of pizza! And always with dessert!

More later but I am still trying to catch up.

November's start

So far in November, I have gotten a little more time outside but I am having a really hard time with the adjustment in the sun. I had gotten so used to coming in when it was dark and leaving when it was not yet dark. So now I always feel like I am late since it is a little lighter in the mornings and way darker in the evenings.

I also got to take some pictures outside. The sunlight in the fall is a wonderful thing. The sky is brighter, the leaves reflect so many colors and everything is beautiful. I was very excited to capitalize on this and take a few pictures of one of Steve's original college buddies, Jeremy, and his beautiful fiance, Anna. Beca was with us all day and she did really well as long as we let her into a couple of pictures every once in a while. The day was bright, shining and a wonderful trip down a twisted memory lane. I say twisted because NC State University's campus has undergone quite a number of changes since our days there (generally for the better and it certainly looks cleaner). And it has been a really long time since I did anything over at Meredith, which is still a beautiful campus regardless of what changes they make to it. Here's a few of the adorable couple:

And a few of the pirate princess:

And a few more of the pirate princess on other days this Fall:

This one is showing off a quick outside project. We keep trying to find ways to keep Zoe from digging up the yard as she rounds the corner off the steps to chase a squirrel or bird in the trees (hellllooooo, they are in the tree and you cannot climb that high or fast!). The latest was to add 4 pavers which Beca believes are for her to jump on. Good jumping though!

I don't think I ever told the hammock story. Soooo, we've had a hammock sitting in the garage for MONTHS, as well as a hammock stand in the box in the garage. I had requested it be put up on several occasions but my DH has such a short memory for tasks that do not provide immediate and direct assistance to him and might mean that work has to be performed that is not on a computer. So, one afternoon (I think it was early October), I came home early from work on an absolutely grogeous day - not hot, perfect sun, light breeze - and I was determined that the hammock stand would get put together. The amazing part is that it took me longer to carry all the heavy tubing to the back yard than it took me to put it together. I had the hammock on it in less than 15 minutes and was using Zoe and her ball to make my hammock swing. Now the hammock stand is out whenever we want to use it and the hammock isn't far away. It's been lovely on these fall days except that Beca believes its sole mission is to go "SUPERFAST" like Rocket on Little Einsteins. and she likes to flip in it.

blur....

The past few weeks have been a blur. I've managed to work very few hours at least one day a week and still put in about 65 hours most weeks except last week. And it was still kind of crazy. The hardest part is that I am physically and mentally exhausted and I have no idea what happens after this project is over. Maybe some laundry will actually get completely done and really put away. Maybe I'll get cards made before the day before whatever event I need them for. Maybe I'll sleep through the night without dreaming of drug names or inspecting cells.
So, firstly a big thank you to those who have worried over my state of being. I'm really blessed to have family and friends who are willing to give me a lecture stare when I come by to drop something off. I know this isn't the best for me but I have made sure that I absolutely made it to things I have to.

So, here's some pictures:
Beca dressing up in a dress that I used to dress up in that Mom used to wear.
This was at Kristin's shower (beginning of October) - Beca and Rachel were the shower helpers and passed out paper, pens, and presents on cue as asked.
Also at Kristin's shower - Beca poses for pictures. I love this dress on her.
Beca at Bike day at school. Mommy missed this one but Daddy was able to take her tricycle over.
So, the first week of the truly insane work schedule, I pulled a 12 hour day shift, took a nap, worked from 10pm to 3 am, slept a few hours until Beca woke me up, went back to work for a little while and then took the afternoon off to go to the fair! Cynthia and Jason went with us and it was a lot of fun. We mostly looked at the animals and ate. Beca's corn dog. On the bench is the largest thing of ice cream I have ever gotten from the NC State ice cream booth. It's taller than the cup next to it.
Hushpuppies! They all had pickles too! We also visited my photo that I entered into the Fair - it at least got hung up.

The last weekend in October, I had to work but I escaped during key moments! Aidan's second birthday party was so much fun!! It was a Diego party!
And the next day, Emily's 1st birthday party. Needless to say, the child loves cake...
So Halloween day, I went to Beca's Halloween parade at school (and a doctor's appointment before and after). She was a very cute Minnie Mouse. Behind her are her friends Flora (an angel) and Erin (a princess).
After the parade, the parents went back into the playground to give out candy to the class. It was fun to have them trick-or-treat around!

Oma and Beca (Oma gave out candy too!):
Beca's class!
After a short trip to work and a short nap in the hammock, Steve picked me up and we went to Payton's house (one of the Bella Trio).
Here's the family pictures before trick-or-treating:
The Chapman family (Rebecca, Payton, and Jonathan)
The Sullivan family (Kristen, Melissa, Neil, and Kate)
And the Cottles - Beca, Chewbacca, and me!
We had to beg the girls to take a picture with Chewy - Kate was ok as long as Steve didn't have the mask on but as soon as he did, she would watch him like a hawk.
Trick-or-treating little girls - and they got good at this quickly!

And finally, enjoying some loot (the lollipop party)!Sorry these took forever to post. I finally got to go through it all!!