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.