Christmas

I just love Christmas time! We had fun doing lots of things to prepare for Christmas this year and we tried to get Brynlee really involved. 

 We made some salt dough Christmas ornaments and let Brynlee paint them. I made some that were handprints of Brynlee and Annalyn's hands and we wrapped them and gave those to the grandparents. Brynlee loved that. We also made sugar cookies and Brynlee got to help frost them. We only had green food coloring so they were all green. In the end Brynlee got tired of having to use a knife to frost them so she just threw a whole bunch of them in the bowl of frosting and mixed them up.

We bought a real Christmas tree this year. Brynlee went with Joel to pick it out and she had fun helping us decorate it. She was also good at making sure we turned on the lights everyday. Our tree got rearranged several times because Brynlee loved playing with the decorations and eating all of the candy canes. When we took the tree down Brynlee was really devastated. I took all of the decorations off and Brynlee went behind me and put some back on. The worst part for her was when Joel took the tree outside. "Not my tree," she cried. "This is so sad." The tree is still sitting outside.

On another occasion we went to my grandma's house and made gingerbread houses out of graham crackers and candy. My cousins had a hard time getting their houses to not fall over but Joel and I both made one. my brother Josh just stacked a whole bunch of graham crackers together so his would stay. Brynlee loved eating all of the candy more than decorating it. I think Annnalyn even managed to eat a few pieces of candy thanks to her awesome babysitters (grandpa and Alesha). That girl loves to eat and she will go to almost anyone if they give her food. Neither of our gingerbread houses lasted for a long time after we brought them home because Brynlee kept eating them.

We spent a day at Joel's sister Joanna's house listening to Christmas stories and we watched a Christmas movie and tried to listen to stories at my grandma's house too. I loved that part but Brynlee didn't listen to it very well at all. There were too many kids to play with for her to sit and be good. 

On Christmas eve we hung out with Joel's family. We ate tacos and then everyone went Christmas caroling. I stayed with the baby because I didn't want to take her out in the cold. Joel and Brynlee had lots of fun singing Christmas carols. Joel said they got to visit several people who don't have a lot of family around for the holidays and they all seemed to really appreciate it. I am glad they went. 

On Christmas morning Brynlee woke up at 6 in the morning and crawled in our bed. I excitedly asked her if Santa had come yet but she just closed her eyes and went back to sleep. She didn't wake back up until 7. When she was fully awake she was super excited to check and see if there were presents under our tree. Santa brought her a barbie car but she was mostly excited to open the packages. She didn't even care what was in them. 

Brynlee loved helping me wrap the presents. 

We all took turns unwrapping our gifts. I got an Ipad and Joel surprised me with a kitchen aid mixer. Joel got a table saw and a shop vac. Brynlee's favorite present was some princess polly pockets that she got. She even slept with them for the next few nights. Joel's mom made both of the girls a cabbage patch doll and Brynlee liked those a lot too. Annalyn tried to unwrap presents all week but she was more interested in playing with the toys than anything that day. It was a really fun Christmas morning and we felt blessed to be together celebrating the birth of our Savior. We read the Christmas story before we opened the gifts and talked about the reasons we have presents so it was a good reminder for all of us. We spent the rest of Christmas day at my parent's house eating food and playing games. To finish off this wonderful day it snowed so we got to wake up the next morning and play in the snow. I truly am glad for the birth of our Savior and I am so glad we got to celebrate and share these memories with my family. 

 

Taking Away the Soothers

Brynlee has been in love with her soother (pacifier) since her first day home from the hospital. I read that you shouldn't give a baby a pacifier until they had figured out how to nurse properly so I didn't plan on giving one to her right away. But I was so tired and she would not stop crying. As soon as I stuck that soother in her mouth, Brynlee stopped crying. It was like magic. Her soother would stop almost all crying and it kept her so happy and calm. I tried not to let her have it all the time but it was truly a lifesaver when we needed it.

When Brynlee turned one we would only let her have her soother when she was in the car and for bed. I had planned on getting rid of it totally when she was eighteen months, if not sooner, but it was just so easy to put her in bed with her soother. She wouldn't sleep without it. I also wanted to wait for the ideal time to take it away because I felt like it was such a huge step for her. It seems like most experts recommend waiting three moths after a big life change before making more life changes. When Brynlee was 15 months, we stayed in Boise for a month and then had to readjust back to our previous apartment. I was pregnant at that point and I was really afraid that Brynlee wouldn't take a nap without a soother. When Brynlee was 18 months we moved to Boise and at 21 months Annalyn was born. Three months later we took Brynlee out of her crib and put her in a big girl bed. Three months after that I started potty training. So I kept giving Brynlee her soother. Whenever I talked about taking it away she would cry. 

In December Brynlee turned 2 and 1/2 and I decided it was finally time to take the plunge and get rid of these things she loved so much. I knew it wouldn't be easy, especially since Annalyn still uses a soother, but I feel like it is messing up her mouth and it was time for them to go. Sometimes I felt really guilty for giving Brynlee that soother, she was so big; but I also felt really guilt taking it away from her. The worse part is that she kept trying to sneak her soother in the middle of the day. If I couldn't find Annalyn's soother I just had to look in Brynlee's bed and I would find it. She would collect them and put them in purses or other container. She would hide under blankets, in her closet, or in dark rooms so she could suck on it without me knowing. If it got quiet and I couldn't find her, I could usually guess that she was hiding with a soother. I got so tired of this that I couldn't wait to get rid of her soothers. 

It was a few days before Christmas when we finally took away Brynlee's soothers for good. I had been preparing her for this moment all week. When bedtime came I gave her a bath, read her a story, we said a family prayer, and Joel tucked her in bed. Brynlee wasn't at all happy. There were lots of tears and she came out of her room several time but eventually she stayed in there and fell asleep. When she woke up we both made a huge deal about what a big girl she is and she got to open up one of her Christmas presents. She got several things of play-doh and she was so excited. She was in play dough heaven all day.

 It took us several  days before Brynlee would stay in her bed and she doesn't fall asleep near as quickly as she used too. There have been no naps for her either. We bought a night light for Brynlee's room and that helps to get rid of some of the monsters but she keeps having bad dreams and trying to come in our bed in the middle of the night. I keep waking up and finding her in my bed. It also hasn't stopped her from trying to use Annalyn's soothers. She is constantly taking them. At least she doesn't sleep with them at night. She sure is getting big and I am so proud of her. 

Jolly Old Saint Nick

Christmas time is so much funner when there are kids around. This year was a lot of fun because Brynlee actually got the whole Santa Claus thing and she loved watching the story about Mary and baby Jesus. She couldn't wait to unwrap all of her presents. Every time anyone would ask her what she wanted for Christmas her reply was that she wanted presents. She wouldn't get any more specific than that. I just loved that she really didn't care what I got for her. She is at such a great age.

To start off celebrating Christmas we went to Christmas in Melba where we listened to Christmas music and watched them light up the big Christmas tree. Joel's mom was in charge of the live nativity that they had. Joel told Brynlee all about it and she was super excited to get to see Mary. As soon as we pulled up we saw this nice little house that was covered in Christmas lights. Brynlee started pointing at the house exclaiming, "Look mom, I see it, I see Mary's house."

We  eventually took her  over to see the live nativity. She stared at Mary for a long time but she didn't want to get that close. The best part was that they had a live camel there. Grandma took Brynlee over to see the camel and it stuck it's head right by Brynlee and she just gave it a big hug. Brynlee seriously loves animals. Later we saw a little blow up santa claus and Brynlee was super excited and she kept waving and saying hi to it. Then we saw the real Santa and Brynlee was  super excited to see him until it was her turn and then she didn't want anything to do with him. This is the first year we took her to see Santa. Santa gave her a candy cane so when she walked back to me she was super excited and kept telling me how nice Santa Claus is. She begged and begged to see him again and she kept saying she was going to sit on his lap next time.

Brynlee got another chance to see Santa about a week later. They had a free community thing where you could get your picture taken with Santa. There were lots of games and prizes to win. Brynlee and I waited with Annalyn so we could see Santa. I tried to get Joel to come but he wasn't interested. As soon as we got up there I tried to get Brynlee to sit on Santa's lap and she didn't want anything to do with it. Annalyn wasn't so sure about the whole thing either. She almost started to cry. I set Brynlee down and she started crying. The lady snapped a quick picture with both of my girls and then we got away. Santa offered Brynlee some neat toys that he had in his bag. There were puzzles, balls, and frisbees among other things. In the end Brynlee just wanted one of the cheap little candy canes.

After Brynlee got that second candy cane she just looked at me and said, "Santa's not scary, he nice. I want to see Santa again. I not going to cry anymore." I found out Santa was coming to our ward Christmas party and it was a good things because Brynlee kept insisting that she would sit on his lap without crying this time. 

At the ward party they announced that Santa was in the primary room and all the kids went running out of the gym and Brynlee went with them. I really didn't expect her to actually sit on his lap but I figured we would try it one more time. There was a really long line and Brynlee kept leaving so that I had to go find her. At one point I looked down and she was gone. After looking for her I found her sitting on Santa's lap. She just cut right in front of everyone so she could have a turn. I guess she didn't like having to wait in line. She was super excited about the candy that she got and I was proud that she faced her fears and sat on Santa's lap; just like she said she would. She was so fast that I didn't get a picture of her. I didn't even try to put Annalyn on his lap. I love the magic of Christmas and I am really glad I got to share it with my girls. It is fun to pass on traditions. 

Double Trouble

Annalyn had become an excellent crawler and she uses it to her full advantage. Anna and Brynlee love to play together and it makes me super happy to see them playing together. There is no better sound than the laughter of my two girls. They are good at making each other laugh. They are also really good at getting in trouble together.

On this day I was trying to do laundry and I went to check on the girls. This is what I found. 

Brynlee found the bag of lemon bread that I had and she got it all over the carpet. Brynlee just looked at me and said...
Brynlee: "Look mom, I am sharing with Annalyn"
Me: "Well, it looks like you made a mess."
Brynlee: "Yeah, Anna did it."
I might have believed her if she wasn't in the process of crumpling the bread up and leaving it on the floor for Annalyn to eat. Brynlee gets into things a lot. 

On this day I got out the tote with our Christmas lights and Brynlee opened it and dumped it out when I wasn't looking. She was thrilled to find an old candy cane in there that she ate right away while sharing it with Annalyn. I put it away and she dumped it out again when it was time to decorate the tree. 

Brynlee and the baby both keep undecorating the tree. Joel insisted on putting candy canes on the tree and I keep finding them all over the house. Brynlee keeps giving them to the baby and Annalyn Loves them. The other day I found Annalyn playing in the kitchen with part of a candy cane in her mouth and the other half stuck in her hair.
Me: Brynlee, how did Annalyn get a candy cane?
Brynlee: I don't know. I think maybe Brynlee did it.
Me: I think so too.
At least she was honest that time. I still don't know how it ended up in the babies hair.

This day also started out with me finding a candy cane in Annalyn's mouth. I told Brynlee she had better stop giving them to her and I made Brynlee wash off the baby. Plus she had to take the candy cane away from her. 

Annalyn was okay with being washed off...

But she was really upset when Brynlee took the candy cane away. 

Later that same day I found Brynlee doing this. 

She covered Annalyn's face with Desitin. She was really close to Annalyn's eyes too and she had it all over her own hands. Anna just sat there and let Brynlee do it.  

That night ended up with Annalyn getting a nice bruise on her head. She hit her head on Brynlee's bed.  

I decided it was time for bed but I left to get something and the girls decided to share a quick snack before bed. 

They definitely know how to make a mess. Brynlee has also covered the baby in lotion and in some of my eyeshadow. One day Brynlee took a gallon of water I had saved in a milk jug and she filled up a whole buch of egg cartons with water. They were both in the kitchen playing in the water that was all over the floor and they were pretty wet. Anna was rubbing her hand in the water and trying to suck it off of her fingers. They make several messes a day. They love to dump things out. I am so glad they are good friends but I can tell I am in trouble. They are a handful already. 

Annalyn is 9 Months

Annalyn is such a sweet and happy baby. She weighs 17lbs 10oz (38%) and is 27in. (21%). So she hasn't grown a lot in the last three months but she is still a happy, healthy baby. I love getting to see her personality shine through. She seems to be a pretty easy going baby. Although she hates it when someone takes something away from her, especially if it's food. She likes to dump things out and mess up my piles of laundry. Annalyn hates hats and getting her diaper changed. She protest every time I put her in her car seat but she can take a really good nap in her car seat too. She can even fall asleep in there when I go to Zumba and the music is really loud.

Anna is pulling herself to stand on everything and she even let got for a second yesterday and stood all by herself. I don't think I am ready for that but she is one determined baby so I don't think I can stop her. If she wants to do it she will. She is a super fast crawler these days. She loves to follow Brynlee around the house and help her get into trouble. Brynlee is much more exciting than me. It is my favorite sound to hear them laughing together.

Anna has had lots of fun this month undecorating the Christmas tree and trying to open the presents. Her favorite thing seems to be the candy canes. Really she just loves to eat so she loves anything we feed her. Some days she eats better than Brynlee. Anna loves it when I let her drink out of my cups too. We are still working on sippy cups so my big cups without a lid are her favorite.

Annalyn has learned to wave and she does it all the time. She can also give some good slobbery kisses and she gives the best hugs. She is also good at high fives. Now we are trying to get her to clap but she will only hold her hands in little fists.

This month Annalyn got her first tooth. Her bottom right tooth made its first appearance a few weeks ago. The one right next to it is one it's way up as well and we have both been miserable waiting for it to appear. Annalyn doesn't handle pain very well and she is letting me know she is in pain. She is good at keeping everyone awake at night.

Annalyn also decided that baths terrified her at the beginning of the month. I used to always give her a bath in the big tub with Brynlee and she never complained until this month. I think maybe Brynlee splashed her a little too much. She would not get in the water for anything. She kept grabbing my arms and pulling herself up. I had to take her out. I tried giving her a bath in the sink but that was just as terrifying. I got soaked. She did fine if I was in the bath with her so I had to do that for a while. Brynlee and I got our swimsuits on one morning and we all took a bath in the big bath together and she loved it. Annalyn started splashing and going crazy. Ever since then she hasn't had a problem taking a bath. I am glad that phase is over.

I love this little baby and her enthusiam for life. It is my favorite thing to talk to her and see that huge grin. I am really enjoying watching her grow and getting to enjoy this phase of her life. I can't wait for what her future will bring but I don't want her to grow up so fast. 

November

The month of November started out with a family trip to McCall. Joel's dad and his brother were going to get firewood and taking their families with them so we went along for the trip. Joel had fun helping to cut down the trees and get the wood. I stayed at the cabin with the kids. Brynlee and I tried to walk and find dad so we could watch him but Brynlee fell in the mud and got all muddy. I ended up carrying her all the way back to the cabin so I got muddy too. By the time we were ready to go back out, they were done.

While we were at the cabin Brynlee had a lot of fun playing with her cousins, especially with Madison. Madison really wanted Brynlee to sleep with her that night and we said she could but in the end neither of them went to sleep. Joel ended up laying down with Brynlee and falling asleep before she did. Brynlee also woke up that morning saying she had to go potty so I ran her downstairs to the bathroom and she refused to sit and use the potty. She cried so loud that she woke everyone up. Rachel made all of the food so we ate really well and had a nice, fun trip.

Later in the month Joel got sick with some kind of fever and chills and then he got a bad cold. Eventually we all got the cold too. The girls still have a bad cough and a really runny nose. Brynlee keeps wiping her nose on her shirts too so her shirts have been really gross lately. I hope they get over these colds soon. 

My dad's stepmom also passed away this month right after Thanksgiving. I wish my kids could have met her before she passed. We wanted to go to the funeral but we weren't able to go.

Now that November is over we are looking forward to December and Christmas. I can't wait to do all of the fun Christmas stuff with my kids.