Merry Christmas!

Life With Eliza Grace: A Public Service Announcement

Life With Eliza Grace: A Public Service Announcement

I missed Prematurity Awareness Month, but I thought that this was such a nice post by a preemie mom that I would go ahead and share it in December. It gives some great ideas for things people can do to help parents whose babies are in the NICU. I remember Lilly's first Christmas in the NICU and all the little items that people made and donated meant so much. I still cherish all the tiny Christmas hats and blankets that were given too her.

Santa, cookies, snow

We took the girls to see Santa. Lilly was thrilled but Lucy was a little bit unsure about this. The photographer kept trying to get her to smile, but that wasn't going to happen. I couldn't get my scanner to work, so I had to take a picture of the picture, which is why it looks weird.

We also made gingerbread men cookies. The girls had a lot of fun watching them cook and decorating them. Also, this photo made me realize I needed to clean the side of the stove.

And finally, last Saturday we had our first snow of the year. It wasn't a lot, but just enough that the girls could play and sled in it. It was mixed with sleet so it was great for sledding and they had a ball. Felix was less enthusiastic about it and George was just confused.

Lucy Talking

Walking in the Icy Wonderland

Due to all the super cold weather lately, our little pond has frozen over. The girls enjoyed throwing acorns and rocks across it and hearing the funny noises they make. George was slightly confused about what exactly happened to the water. He would try to walk on it and then get scared and scamper back. He then growled and the ice and tried to attack it.

We also strung cranberries and made a little wreath. I'm not exactly known for my crafting ability, so it is far from perfect, but I'm happy with it.

December Berries

December isn't a month that is usually associated with fresh berries, but thanks to a local farm with greenhouses, it now can be. We have been enjoying fresh raspberries every week since October, but the strawberries weren't ripe until December. They are so good! They don't taste anything like the kind you get in the grocery store.

In which I clean my floors really, really well.

Once upon a time when either Lilly or Lucy was born, I got a large bottle of baby oil. I wasn't exactly sure what to do with it, but it seems like something all new mothers get. I tried using it once and it just turned out to make a greasy mess, but I felt bad just throwing it out. So I stuck it in the closet in hopes that one day I would find something useful to do with it.

Flash forward to yesterday when the girls were playing in the closet. We have large closets and they make perfect places to play. I thought I had taken out all non-child friendly objects from this closet, but (and I think everyone knows where this story is going) had not. I was cleaning the kitchen, the girls were playing happily together in the closet, and then I hear Lilly saying "Wow the floor is shiny and so is Lucy!" Yes, she had found the bottle of baby oil, pried the child proof lid off and dumped it all over herself and the floor. She was having the time of her life.

I guess I should have taken a picture to commemorate this event, but I was trying to keep Lucy from running through the house, leaving behind little baby oil foot prints. I got out my new mop, filled it with Murphy's Oil Soap and went to work cleaning. It actually cleaned the mess up pretty well. Lucy was another story. Getting it out of her hair was a challenge and I'm not sure her clothes are ever going to be the same. But, on the plus side, it took the permanent blue marker off her face. And now my floors are super clean.

Gingerbread Houses and Doctor Visits

Yesterday was cold, rainy and miserable. Made even worse by the fact that I had to get up early and take the girls to the doctor for their yearly check-up. Also, I was out of coffee with caffeine, so my head hurt and I was rather cranky. But, we made it in time and appeared to be the only patients at the doctor's office. Everyone was wandering around drinking coffee (they didn't even offer me any) and chatting about holiday plans.

Anyway, we got taken back quickly and both girls did really well. Lilly is up to 31 lbs and Lucy is 23 lbs. Lilly passed her hearing and eye tests and was horrified at the idea of giving a urine sample, which we couldn't even do because I had made her use the potty before we came. They were all up to date on their immunizations, so they didn't have to get any shots. Lucy is doing great except for her speech and since we are already in therapy for that, there really isn't anything else to do.

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Last year on Christmas Eve, Jimmy brought home a gingerbread house kit that he had seen on sale. There was no way in the world I was going to make a gingerbread house on that busy day, so I stuck it in the freezer to make this year. Lilly has anxiously been waiting all year to make it, so we went ahead and put it together. I really liked this kit because it came with a base that had little slots to stick the pieces in, that way I didn't actually have to depend on my poor house building skills to hold it together. They had a ball decorating it and it came out pretty well. I just now have to keep Lucy from trying to eat it.

Oh Christmas Tree, O Christmas Tree

How lovely are thy fake plastic branches.

Complete with a blue and purple dinosaur who has been arranged to look like he is about to eat Santa.

A Christmas monkey that gets taken off and chewed on by a toddler.

And yearly Hallmark ornaments that get made into families by a preschooler.

And my very favorite ornament, a clown that I got when I was in preschool. David Ammons gave it to me and I was thrilled because it was breakable and getting a gift that could break showed that I was no longer a baby.

The Ghost of Halloween Present

The ghost of Halloween past

Halloween is coming!

Lilly is very excited about her pink fairy Halloween costume. Sadly, it isn't holding up too well, so I'm not sure it is going to make it past Halloween. I'm sure if I was creative and talented I could make her a fairy costume, but I'm not, so I won't.

Lucy is going to be Raggedy Ann, I just have to find some striped tights and black shoes. I'm not even going to bother with a wig because there is no way she will wear it.

Since Halloween is on Sunday this year, I don't think too many people will be doing Trick or Treating, so we will most likely just drive to relatives houses and let them show off their costumes and get a little bit of candy. I don't really want them to have buckets of candy anyway.

Some of my favorite childhood memories are from Halloween. Liberty Baptist church used to have a costume party for all the kids and my mom would throw together some amazing costumes at the last minute. One year I was a Japanese girl with some items that my Uncle had brought back from Japan. I think that was the same year that my mom created a Statue of Liberty costume for Jaclyn, complete with lighted torch, in almost no time because Jaclyn had told everyone in the church, minus my mom, that she was going to be the Statue of Liberty.

Going on a walk with friends.

A while back when it was actually raining, Lilly enjoyed a nice walk stomping in puddles. George also enjoyed running along and splashing in the mud with her. Felix followed, but only so that he could show his disdain for such activities. And I do believe that the last picture is the closest George and Felix have gotten without Felix hissing and fluffing up.

Everything tastes better with a smile!

Lilly used her blueberries to make a smiling teddy bear. And then she ate him. She said he tasted pretty good.

Going to the shucking of the corn....

FoodLion had corn on sale a couple of weeks ago and I bought some. Lilly and Lucy really enjoyed shucking it. Well, Lilly shucked it and Lucy just threw the tassels everywhere. She also tried to make off with a couple of pieces of corn, but we rescued them.

Aargh, Matey!

The museum has a pirate exhibit going on right now and we took the girls on Saturday. Lilly loved getting to meet "real" pirates and play on a pirate boat. We even got to see a gun fight, sword fight, and a cannon fired. Lucy had a great time too. Her favorite part was the monkey exhibit. She was rather upset that she couldn't get in the cage with them.

A real pirate battle.

Locked up for assisting pirates.

Lucy being a little pirate herself and trying to steal a hat from the dress-up box.

Lilly steering the ship.

Lucy learning to tie knots like a pirate.

The whole family aboard the Jolly Roger.

Lilly raising a pirate flag.

A year of blogging

A year ago I started this blog and posted about the snake in our yard. Luckily that was the only snake we saw last year and so far we haven't seen any this year. It doesn't seem like a year has gone by, time is going by way too fast. Wish I could slow it down sometimes.

Enjoying spring

Lucy is very carefully eying the "tree" that Lilly just planted.

"Trees make nice friends because they can help play hide and seek." - Lilly

Lilly enjoyed the daffodils this year and was very disappointed when the ones she picked and replanted died.

Having fun on the front porch.

Weather wise, this has been a very strange spring. It went from bitter winter to hot summer with 90 degree temperatures almost overnight and now it has gone back to being rather chilly. The girls haven't seemed to mind the constantly changing temperatures. On the hot days we swim in their pools and on the cooler days we play in the sandbox. We have used the screened in porch a lot this year too. It gives them a nice place to ride their trikes and play in the giant box that mom and dad gave them last year.

A yellow world

Lucy looks so grown up in this picture.

Lilly doing the tree yoga pose next to a tree.

The pollen has been very bad this year. So bad, that it can be seen blowing around in the air, giving the world a very yellow tint. Even our clothes would get coated in yellow pollen from just being out side a little bit. After jumping on Mom's trampoline, Lilly's hair and scalp turned yellow! I am ready for all this to be over so we can start enjoying the outdoors again.

They show no mercy

Due to the fact that I am very cheap, I didn't buy the girls a real chocolate Easter bunny until today when it was 75% off. It was the cutest little Peter Rabbit chocolate bunny I have ever seen. It had the sweetest little eyes. I asked Lilly if she could eat a bunny that was looking at her and she replied "It's chocolate right?" and when I told her yes, she, with no remorse at all, took a bite out of its ear. She took special delight in eating the sweet candy eyes. Lucy also had no issue with eating the little bunny.

The many doll parties of Lilly

Lilly has parties with her dolls at least a couple of times a week. She spends forever arranging them and getting everyone set up just right. And if she sets them up down low, she also has to fight off Lucy who love to sneak off with a doll or two. Once she gets everything set up perfectly she calls for me to take her picture, because no party would be complete without a couple of photos.