December Adventures!

Dec 1 ~ I got up early with Katelyn this morning, but was able to go back to my cozy bed as she went down for her morning nap. How I will miss that morning nap when she eventually decides to give it up! My wonderful husband allowed me to sleep in today! Craig got up later in the morning and took care of the girls and even made them pancakes for breakfast. I woke up to find that Natalie had made a fort in the kitchen using two chairs and her beloved "Pooh blankie". We spent most of the day just taking it easy with a bit of housework here and there. It was very windy today with a bit of an ice storm - you could hear little ice pellets hitting the windows for the majority of the day. The girls and Craig took a very late nap. Katelyn was the first one up, so we spent some time together checking out the Christmas tree. Even though last year was officially her first Christmas, this year REALLY seems more like her true first Christmas. She was just a tiny little newborn last year and slept through most of the good stuff. So this year she is touching the tree and yanking on the ornaments and taking it all in. Despite the nasty weather, our family decided to brave the streets and get a late meal at Red Lobster.

Tonight after regular choir rehearsal, Scott held auditions for the Go Tell It on the Mountain solo. At first I had debated trying out this time - first of all because I think it's probably a better fit for an alto singer (I'm soprano) and secondly because of just how awful I do at auditions. But I practiced quite a bit and decided I'd give it a shot. Probably about a dozen of us gals tried out. I totally bombed the thing - I just cannot do a decent audition to save my life! Put me in front of a microphone in front of a larger crowd and I can pull it off...don't ask me why. Though my biggest obstacle this time was that there is a choir part underneath this solo part and I kept reverting back to the choir part and just couldn't get up over it to do the solo. It was so completely frustrating! I was very angry with myself at first...it wasn't about actually being picked to do the solo...it was more about wanting to just do a good job for me. In the end, Jean Prahm got the solo which was who I would've picked if I was doing the picking...she is an alto and is a very powerful singer.

We had Katelyn's birthday celebration at my dad's house - just like we had Natalie's when she turned one. I went over there a little early to decorate and such. The theme was ducks and the colors were just kind of girly ones like pink, yellow, and light green. My dad had a special treat - he had ordered customized M&Ms candies! They were different shades of pink and said things like "Katelyn's 1st Birthday" and "Katelyn is 1". I had run across a neat Mardi Gras looking kind of necklace that had big chunky beads and rubber ducks on it...Katie loved having it around her neck and playing with it during the day! After decorating, I went back to Craig's parents' house to get both girls dressed in their party duds - I broke down and bought them each a new dress and stockings. Kate's was a pretty green with tiny white polka dots on it and a couple purple butterflies. She also wore cream colored stockings and shiny black dress shoes. Nat's dress was a purple and gray plaid jumper with a purple shirt. She wore gray stockings with her shiny black dress shoes. Soon we were off to the party! Even though it was sort of an icky dreary day outside, we were glad to see that many relatives came to wish Kate a happy birthday! Some family members traveled quite a ways, too - such as Uncle Michael coming out from Chicago, Wanda and Denny traveling from Indiana, and the Watsons making it out from Mt. Carmel! The girls played with balloons and Katelyn was passed around from person to person. We had gondolas from Avanti's, some awesome side dishes that Craig's mom made, and of course the cake - two cakes. We had a sheet cake made with rubber ducks on the top, and then Katelyn had her traditional lamb cake that Mom Essington makes for each first birthday. Katelyn was sooo into her cake - it was awesome! When all was said and done, that poor little lamb was faceless! Everyone sang Happy Birthday to our sweet little girl. That is my favorite part of the whole thing - just everyone gathered around serenading my baby - makes me want to cry! Big sister Natalie had a very important job today...she blew out the candle for her little sister! Katelyn received many nice gifts as well. Some of the highlights being her own piggy bank (though it is actually an elephant bank) and her very own handmade Christmas stocking. To tell the truth...I think she liked the ribbons on the presents the best!

Dec 13 ~ Today was Natalie's Christmas program at school! When I dropped her off at her classroom it was cute to see all the little kids dressed up for the day. Natalie has been going around the house for many weeks now singing Christmas songs, so I was excited to witness the "real" thing! They held their program in the chapel during the last part of the school day. Craig met Katelyn and me there. You could tell Natalie was scoping out the room looking for us when she got up on the risers. This was all of the Tues/Thurs classes combined, so there were quite a few children up there. They sang Jingle Bells (while shaking bells), Away in a Manger, Baby Jesus We Love You, and We Wish You a Merry Christmas. Natalie participated in all the singing and bell ringing, but was a tad reluctant when it came to doing any movements with the songs. We were very proud though that she wasn't shouting or trying to escape from the risers. She said it was a lot of fun. They also recited a rhyme called Who Loves Baby Jesus? that went like this: "Who loves baby Jesus? His mother, Mary, loves Him. Joseph loves Him. The sheherds love Him. The wisemen love Him. And I love Him. Do you love Him? YES!" It was the most precious thing! After the program, we joined in Natalie's classroom for cookies and milk before school let out. Natalie had her picture taken with Mrs. Fink. Daddy took us to Taco Bell for lunch before he went back to work and we went home for naps.

Dec 14 ~ Well, my pink eye eventually spread to both eyes. Then it seemed to get better...then it seemed to get worse. Plus I was trying to fight off some sinus issues along with it. This morning my eyes were so irritated that I decided to go see the doctor. Saw Dr. Maxson and she suspected that I may be allergic to something in the medicated eye drops, so she prescribed just a simple non-medicated soothing eye drop. After just a couple doses of those I was on my way back to normal again. Wasn't sure up until the last minute whether or not I'd feel well enough to sing in this weekend's Christmas services at church. Craig suggested just going to tonight's dress rehearsal and giving it a try before deciding for sure...he was so right...I made it through the rehearsal with no problem and was excited for the weekend to come! Rehearsal was long - three hours - and while we had a lot to do, it was still a good time.

Dec 15 ~ We had two church services tonight for our early Christmas program. We sang from a booklet of songs called The Wonder of Christmas. We sang Let Us Adore Him (includes Christmastime, For Unto Us and O Come All Ye Faithful), I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day (with Dona Nobis Pacem), Sing Noel (includes African Noel and Go Tell It on the Mountain), Carol Medley (includes Hark the Herald Angels Sing, The First Noel, and Silent Night), and a finale of O Come All Ye Faithful. All of the solos were magnificent - especially the one Kristen Kufeldt did for O Holy Night! That is my favorite of all Christmas songs and her voice is just so lovely and she has such good control. I especially love the third verse that you don't hear often that goes "Truly He taught us to love one another. His law is love and His gospel is peace. Chains shall He break for the slave is our brother. And in His name all oppression shall cease. Sweet hymns of joy in grateful chorus raise we. Let all within us praise His holy name. Christ is the Lord! O praise His name forever! His power and glory evermore proclaim!" I was also thrilled that we dropped the instrumental out for the end of Silent Night - it makes a room of many seem so connected and I think it just helps make everything seem more personal and meaningful. Choir did a ton of singing and I loved all of it so it is hard to pick favorite moments. But I did also enjoy singing that little bit of For Unto Us - it is fun to sing and reminds me of college choir at Illinois State when we sang selections from Handel's Messiah. A great plus to these big music events at church is that we get to know people in the choir better. Usually we are provided a meal in between services and we gather to eat and fellowship together. I was able to meet with many wonderful women and learn more about them. Also we make it a priority to pray together as a group before we get up on the stage - it's a powerful and beautiful time.

Dec 16 ~ I got up super early this morning to sing two more church services. The snow that fell the day before just made everything outside look so "Christmasey" and perfect! The main worship area wasn't too packed last night due to snow moving in, but today's services were completely full. In fact, the last service had people standing in the back for awhile until someone could track down some extra chairs. Not only was there a crowded congregation, but we had little room to move on the stage. We had a very large choir which included children, a huge full orchestra with many violins and winds, a brass section, plus all the other intruments and equipment. And the more people you cram into the room the hotter it gets in there! But it was all good! We had music at the beginning of the service, then Pastor Jeff preached for about 30 minutes, then we closed with more music. I got to sit with Craig and Nattie during the sermon...yep, Nattie got to sit in "big church" today so she was very happy! Plus, she got to sing along with all the songs...she is so used to Mommy playing the rehearsals CDs over and over again in the car! Katie stayed in the nursery during the service since she is so wiggly. As soon as we ended our very last song of the very last service...a gentleman from the congregation yelled out "Yeah!" really loud and there was a standing ovation. Which is really such a great thing to witness...not because it makes you feel good about yourself, but because you hope that the excitement is because these people feel moved and feel closer to God through the sounds and words they just heard.

Dec 17 ~ Katelyn had her twelve month appointment today! All four of us went to the exam together. We learned that Katie is 31 inches tall and weighs 22 pounds 14 ounces. That puts her at 95% for height and 78% for weight. She is dropping back in weight because she is more mobile now and also takes in less formula than she used to. As soon as we use up the rest of the formula, we'll be switching her over to whole milk. According to Dr. Miller, Katelyn is doing really well in all areas of development. We asked about her teeth...she's got her 4 front bottom ones that look nice and then on the top she's got what appears to be one of the middle ones and one of her canines and then a bunch of the other top ones coming in very slowly. Basically Dr. Miller said not to worry much about them right now because all babies grow their teeth differently. We also expressed our concern about how many times she gets really dark circles under her eyes. The doctor wasn't too worried about that either...she said it could be nothing or that it may also mean allergies later as she grows. Katie babbled on and on and played with the toys and showed off all of her one year old skills. The bad part of the appointment was the shots. Kate had four shots - two in each leg which left her crying of course. Then she also had that same kind of blood draw from her fingertip that Natalie had at her last appointment. It's that new screening for lead and iron - I guess they get it at one year old and 4 years old. And it was hard to get the blood from Kate's finger since hers are tiny and like to curl up...it was a long process and just painful to watch. Katelyn was so, so upset. Natalie completely freaked out when they went to do the fingertip poke on Katie...she was flashing back to when she had hers done a few months prior and I had to actually take her out of the room and calm her down. She just had this look of total terror - I can't even describe it...it was bad. I even thought she was going to hyperventilate for a moment there or start scaling the wall to try to get out of the room...and she was going on and on about the nurse hurting Katelyn. It was sweet but scary. We picked up some McDonalds on the way home and then had some long naps.

Everyone was feeling better by late afternoon. And the snow was looking good for playing, so we got geared up for some fun in the backyard. I kid you not...it took me twenty minutes to get us all dressed just so we could spend that same amount of time outside playing! Snowsuits, snowpants, boots, hats, gloves...gotta have it all to be out there enjoying the white stuff! The snowsuit and boots I have for Katelyn are still a bit big for her, but they were good enough for our twenty minutes of cold fun! The dogs also went outside with us. Katelyn wasn't sure what to think of the snow. She didn't seem too interested in touching it with her gloves. I picked some up and put it on her lips for her to taste. I think she enjoyed that part. That is actually Nat's favorite part of the snow...eating it. She spent more time eating it than anything else! Nat walked around a bunch and made tracks and created a ton of snow angels. I pushed both girls on the swings for awhile. We wanted to kick some snow up for the dogs, but there was still a thick layer of ice under some of the softer snow. Soon our cheeks were very pink and Nat was asking to go in for some hot chocolate milk.

Dec 19 ~ Craig has the rest of the year off from work! Yay! We all love it when Daddy gets to stay home! Today we all went over to Coral Ridge Mall to have lunch and visit Santa Claus. We don't really focus too much on Santa Claus at our house, but we surely aren't against the jolly old man with the beard! We thought Natalie was actually going to sit on his lap for a picture this time - no such luck. We even ran into Nat's friend, Sam Brown, and watched him do it...but it was still a no. Like I told Craig "I don't blame her. He's a stranger in strange clothes. Don't push the issue. It's not a big deal." And I refuse to make her sit there for a picture while she is screaming her head off and bawling...I remember a few pictures of me like that when I was young and they are just disturbing. Not worth it. We did get a picture of Katelyn with Santa - though you can tell she had been crying at some point before the photo was taken. Next year there may not be any Santa photos at all. :) After our visit with Santa, we spent time in the play area. Natalie found some little girls to run around with while Katelyn explored the tunnels and licked the mirrors and all that fun stuff.

Friday, Dec 21 ~ We took our time packing and loading up the van. I am estimating that it probably takes a good four hours to get everything together for a long holiday week out of town. The ride into Bloomington/Normal seemed to go by fast this time - Craig thinks it was due to the heavy fog we drove through. He says that when you can't see where you are you don't know how far you have left to go! We listened to Christmas music most of the way out there. And as we drove I mentally prepared myself for the week ahead...don't get me wrong...love, love, love all of my family...it is just that it is a long week away from home and we are usually so busy that entire week...it can get to be overwhelming and I wanted to be in the mindset saying "I refuse to let anything bother me". And you know what? It was a pretty enjoyable week! We had Tobins pizza at Mom and Dad Essington's house (Mike was there as well). Mom Essington already had her endless plate of Christmas cookies sitting out on the counter...I kid you not - every time you turn around the platter is full of cookies again :) We brought over some of Natalie's cookies for the grandparents to try...they loved them of course. The girls had to go into the living room and check out the tree, the gifts, and the collection of Hallmark singing snowmen. Natalie was "reading" the labels on the gifts (she can tell her name apart from Kate's). Katie crawled to each gift and had to touch each bow. Natalie showed off some of her dancing moves...she now shows us what is called "First Position" which is placing your feet together like a "mermaid tail". Katelyn showed off her new-found walking skills...she now takes maybe two to five steps at one time as long as there is a person or object there to walk to. We had Craig's parents open an early Christmas gift - a DVD of a fireplace. For a moment there we thought we actually felt heat coming from the television...oh, and it plays music, too!

Saturday, December 22 ~ Craig slept in a bit this morning. Mom E made pancakes which everyone enjoys (even Katie). I got the girls started with their baths and then Craig took over while I ran a shopping errand. Craig and I have our ten year anniversary coming up in a few days. I had been wanting to get the inside of his wedding band engraved, but was having trouble finding someone who could do it fast. Everyone I called was telling me they would need the ring for a whole week - well there is no way I can keep his ring from him for a week so I wasn't sure what to do. I had finally called a place in downtown Normal called Marquise Jewelry Service Center where they said they could do it in one afternoon. Perfect! But the only day before our anniversary that I could do it was today...so I had to get over there. Come to find out that my mother-in-law gets all her jewelry fixed there and the man is a real nice Christian guy. It is such a cute store right above Campus Town Supply. They've been in business for many, many years. The man that helped me out did the engraving right there while I waited. I had him put "FOREVER MY PRINCE ~JENNY 12-27-07". I decided to go ahead and give Craig his ring the same day so that he wouldn't worry about where it had gone. He really liked it! In fact, he then pulled my wedding ring out from his laptop bag...he had taken it from my jewelry box in hopes that we could find time to go have it resized this week. I haven't worn my real wedding ring since I was pregnant with Katelyn. So we drove over to Jack Lewis (where he originally purchased the ring) and had it resized. It's not done yet, but Craig's parents are going to bring it with them next time they come to Iowa. It was time for the Bair family Christmas get together. This was held at Becky and Jeff's house this year. Nat wore a red/black/white plaid dress while Katie wore one of Nattie's old fancy holiday dresses. I also put an adorable pony tail holder in Natalie's hair that had lots of curly ribbons...you could tell that Natalie thought she looked just so pretty...she flounced around and swung her hair back and forth! We ate a lot of good food, talked, and played games at the get together. Jeff and Becky have a room in their basement that is like a mini movie theater...the kids loved watching traditional Christmas movies such as Rudolph on a huge screen. Katie was in awe and it really kept her attention. Katelyn also ate lots and lots of Aunt Becky's banana pudding! Natalie spent most of her time playing with cousin Abigail. The guys had fun playing pool and a golf arcade game. We found out that my Aunt Mary Beth is now engaged and that my cousin Nick and his wife are expecting their fourth child. Soon the kids were showing signs of over-stimulation, so it was time to go on back to Craig's parents' house. Craig played the piano a little during the evening...which I thoroughly enjoy...I love a man that can play an instrument :) Natalie said something really sweet tonight. She said that she was pretending that she was married and that she was married to her Daddy! That is just the best!

Sunday, December 23 ~ We all attended church service over at Calvary in the morning. The choir did a sort of gospel number which is not usually something you'd hear at that church. I whispered to Craig that I felt like I should get up and clap along or something - that is when he pointed out that Mrs. Tripp was already doing just that - there she was just moving and clapping away to the music and enjoying every minute of it! Uncle Michael told Natalie that he liked her coat and she replied "Thank you" as she accepted the compliment - blew me away, because I've never heard her reply to a compliment before. In the afternoon I met Sara Emberton and Kara Dennis over at a Mexican restaurant called Chevy's. We talked about all sorts of things. Then I drove over to Eastland Mall just to walk around for awhile and get a butter rum coffee at Gloria Jeans...yum! Craig and Mike went to see a movie in the evening. The rest of us stayed in and watched this really neat Elmo Christmas special on tv - Katelyn is a big Elmo fan. Then Nattie stayed up and watched Little Mermaid and Happy Feet while having some of Grandpa's popcorn.

Monday, December 24 ~ Grandpa and Katelyn shared some Cheerios during breakfast. I was able to sleep in for awhile before going to a few stores with Mom Essington. Can you believe the stores are putting the Valentines Day merchandise out already? We all got dressed up for Christmas Eve church service. The girls wore their matching red and black Christmas dresses - they looked beautiful. We all went over to Monicals for our traditional before-church pizza dinner. The phones were ringing off the hook over there. So everytime they'd ring, Katelyn would hold her hand up to her ear pretending to answer the phone! Sometimes she'll peep out a little "Hello" when she does this. Everyone sat together at church. Katie clapped to the music while Natalie tried to sing along. It didn't take long before Daddy had to take Kate out to the hallway - she's not one that likes to sit still much. Natalie kept asking when we were gonna light the candles - so when we finally did during Silent Night she was more than happy. After church we drove over to Jerry's house to open gifts with my mom's side of the family. It was a really nice time. Katelyn ate lots of crackers while Natalie kept cousin Amber playing and busy. Jerry and Michelle had a Rudolph scene set up on one of their end tables. Both girls loved the miniature characters from the movie...but I had to move it all after awhile due to Miss Kate who decided it was more fun to toss them all on the floor over and over. There were lots of gifts for the little ones and grandparents. We were hoping that my brother Jason was going to show up on the webcam - not sure if that ever happened or not. We had to get back to Mom and Dad Essington's house to get the girls to bed. The kids took a bath together - water everywhere! Also for some reason the girls were found streaking (Kate's was more of a fast crawl) through the house on more than one occasion during our holiday visit! Natalie and I went out to Grandma and Grandpa's driveway to put out the "reindeer food" (oats and sparkles) that Nat had received from her teacher. But as I was tucking Natalie into bed later, she started getting very, very worried and anxious about Santa coming into the house and the reindeer being in the yard. I mean, she was seriously upset about the whole thought of it all. So I told her that I knew Santa's phone number and that if she really wanted I'd call him up and tell him not to come. She was all for that! She insisted that I do it right away as well as sweeping up the reindeer food. So I went outside and cleaned up the sparkly mess. When I came back inside she was almost asleep in the bed. I assured her that I had called Santa and cleaned up the driveway - that it was all okay and that she'd still get her presents. This huge look of relief came over her face and she smiled as she drifted off to sleep.

Tuesday, December 25 ~ We all opened gifts at Mom and Dad Essington's house. Natalie helped to hand out presents to everyone. Katie got a huge Elmo from Grandma and Grandpa! One of Nat's gifts was a cooking and apron set to go along with her pretend kitchen at home. Poor Katelyn was so tired and we ended up putting her down for nap in the middle of opening the gifts. She slept for quite awhile. Natalie loved being surrounded in wrapping paper and sneaking many pieces of chocolate from her stocking! Mom Essington made a big turkey dinner. Katelyn enjoyed all the potatoes and green bean casserole. The girls spent the rest of the day playing with new toys. Katie played with her new babydoll that came with a pacifier. Natalie was really into Katelyn's toys this year - almost as much as her own toys. Daddy hooked up the digital art studio to the computer, which Nat just loves! It was soon time for Craig and me to say goodbye to our babies and be on our way to Chicago for our anniversary! Craig had orginally wanted to take me on a cruise for our ten year anniversary, but we decided to scale back a bit and spend a few days in Chicago instead. I felt very sad leaving my two girls, but I was also looking forward to spending some time alone with my husband. So I lingered a little and gave extra kisses when tucking Katelyn into her crib...and I gave Natalie many hugs and reminded her that "Mommies and Daddies always come back". Of course they were totally well taken care of at Grandma and Grandpa Essington's house and had a good time as always. The only details that I gave Natalie were that Mommy and Daddy were going on an anniversary trip together and we'd be back in about four days. I did not tell her that we were taking a train or that we were going to Chicago. She knows that Uncle Michael lives in Chicago and takes a train...and I wasn't sure if that would make her sad or jealous that she wasn't going...so I kept it simple. Mike drove us to the train station. Riding on a train was a first time experience for both me and Craig. There wasn't much to see going out there since we left so late at night. I was surprised at just how much the train swayed and how often they blew the horn. We arrived at Union Station very late at night so there were not any crowds to deal with. Mike was staying behind in Bloomington for awhile longer, so he offered to let us stay in his apartment for the majority of our trip. That was awesome because it was just as nice as any hotel room we would have booked and it was also free! Mike lives in a studio apartment at Presidential Towers which is a block or two from Union Station. It is actually four really tall buildings of apartments...and they also have things like a small grocery store, video rental place, coffee shop, and different restaurants right there in the building.

Wednesday, December 26 ~ Craig and I took it easy, slept late, and showered. Mike was due to come into town just for the day/night and then he was going back out to Bloomington for the remainder of the time we'd be in Chicago. So when Mike came into town we went and had pizza with him over at a place called Bacino's - very cozy restaurant with excellent deep dish pizza! I mostly sat and listened to the two brothers have conversation about school days and church, etc. Craig and I then decided to walk down to The Sears Tower. It was really busy there - seems like quite a few folks were there visiting for Christmas. We went up to the Skydeck where we spent a few hours gazing out the windows. It was pretty clear outside and the sun was just starting to go down, so that made for some nice views. Then we walked back to Mike's place and gave the kids a call. It was wonderful to hear little Nattie's voice on the phone and hear that she was having a good time! Since Mike needed his apartment for the night, Craig had made us reservations at a hotel called the Millennium Knickerbocker over on Michigan Avenue kind of near Water Tower Place. It's an older historic hotel, but very pretty with a European style to it. We took a cab there where we planned to get dressed for dinner. Can you believe? - we realized that we had both left our nice slacks hanging back in Mike's closet! We had read that the restaurant we were going to required, at minimum, business casual dress. So we got ready minus the slacks (we put on our jeans) and took a cab all the way back over to Mike's place just to get our pants - what a waste of ten bucks! Especially when we got to the restaurant and there were a few people there who did have on jeans. Oh well. Anyway, the restaurant we went to was Ruth's Chris Steakhouse. Craig had been wanting to try out this place for a long time - it is insanely expensive if you want a full meal, but we had to at least try it once in our life . Two appetizers, two steaks, two sides, and two soft drinks ordered...with tip included we dropped about $170 - gulp! The appetizers - pretty ordinary, but good. The side dishes - we did not really enjoy at all. The steaks - the best! I am not one to sit and gush about a piece of meat, but let me tell you - these steaks were like butter in your mouth! The service was excellent and so was the atmosphere. We also got to choose a free dessert since we were celebrating an anniversary. We were pretty tired after dinner, so we hopped in a cab and went back to our hotel room for the night.

Thursday, December 27 ~ Today was our official TEN YEAR ANNIVERSARY! We started the day on a good note by opting to sleep in until just before check out time! We took a cab back to Mike's apartment...he was already back in Bloomington by the time we got there. We hung around for awhile before venturing back out into the city. We took a cab over to Portillo's and had hot dogs and cheese fries for lunch. Then we jumped on the El which brought us right up to Macy's department store. We spent the day checking out all the Christmas decorations around town. We saw all the famous windows surrounding the outside of Macy's - this year's theme being The Nutcracker. We went up and down and visited each floor of Macy's - the highlights being the huge Christmas tree with all the lights and the FAO Schwartz toy area...gigantic stuffed animals and all kinds of adorable dolls and girly things that our little girls would have loved. We toured around Daley Plaza and saw the big Christmas tree there and also the the Picasso sculpture. There is also something there called the Eternal Flame Memorial which is there in memory of those serving in the armed forces. It's exactly what the name suggests - it's a small flame coming up from the ground. What is funny is that hoards of pigeons sit there to warm themselves during the cold weather. Around 5pm we noticed a group of people outside a building. They were there looking through the big open windows where they tape the Chicago ABC Channel 7 news. So we saw two news anchor ladies all dressed up and in their makeup and then also the guy who does the weather. Kind of cool. We had some time left to kill before our dinner reservation, so Craig attempted to get us in to the Hancock Building for a few drinks, but the line was super long. So we just went early to dinner over at The Melting Pot. I had been wanting to go to this restaurant for some time now - it is all fondue and sounded like fun! We ordered a four course dinner for two which was a cheese fondue at the beginning (with bread, apples, veggies, etc), then a really good salad, then a platter of various meats and seafood to dip, and finally the chocolate fondue (with fruit, cakes, marshmallows and other treats). Loved the cheese and chocolate fondues, but not too fond of the dip for the meat. Basically it was suggested to us to have a broth as our dip...well, cooking quality meat in a broth is not really an ideal cooking method. We should have gone with the one that was an oil dip. It was still a fun way to eat dinner! Craig and I talked about our ten years together and just how much we've been through and how much we've done as a family. And it also made us wonder where we'll be after the next ten years goes by.

Saturday, December 29 ~ Had to get up very early for the 7am train. We almost didn't make it there on time! The ride was neat since it was light outside and we could see everything that we passed. We had to wait a few times for some faulty train signals, but it wasn't too bad at all. The train is a nice way to travel. Mike picked us up at the station and the girls were waiting for us when we walked in the door at Craig's parents' house. Natalie squealed "Mommy! Daddy!" and gave all kinds of big hugs and kisses. Katelyn was so excited that she didn't know what to do - so she balled up her little fists and shook them and made her own little happy noises. After naps we went over to my Dad's house to open a few presents. Then he treated us all to dinner at Swingers Bar & Grille. Natalie had a great time sitting next to Caroline and copying all the "big girl" things she does. Katelyn was hamming it up and just dancing up a storm while in her seat! Soon Katie was ready for bed, so we had to say goodbye. Craig said he'd get the kids off to bed so that I could do some last minute Christmas shopping of my own - we still had gifts to open at our own house and I wanted a few more items to put under the tree for Nat and Kate.

Guess what???? ~~ WE ARE HAVING ANOTHER BABY!! ~~ I was due to have my period during the Chicago trip...well, it never showed and a small part of me couldn't help but wonder if I was pregnant. So while I was out shopping by myself I decided to just buy a few pregnancy tests...I am not joking here...I took one in the bathroom stall at Walmart! I know, I know...not real classy, but I did it :) So here I am standing in the bathroom at Walmart watching the second line turn a very dark noticeable shade of blue...I could not believe it! So now here I am praying and praising God in the bathroom at Walmart - thanking Him for such an unbelievable gift and for hearing my prayers. I tucked the positive test into my coat pocket and then went to buy a card for Craig so I could tell him the big news. I had to tell someone right away, so I called my good friend Sara Emberton from my car...she was very happy for us, but also added that it was a good thing we went on the Chicago trip because it may be our last trip alone for awhile! I wrote a message in Craig's card before going back to the house. Once back at Craig's parents' house, I tucked Natalie into bed and then ran downstairs to take the second test...it was just as positive as the first one! I then asked Craig to come downstairs and told him that I had something I wanted to give him. I handed him the card...he read it and was so, so happy! We hugged and commented about how amazing it all was. We decided right then just to tell everyone the news and not hide it. Craig put one of the tests on the table for his Mom to see - of course everyone is just as happy and shocked as we are. I also called my Dad on the phone to tell him the great news! Wow, God is way too good to us! It's funny because I had just been saying to Craig how I really was feeling that the time was right for another baby...not that we can just snap our fingers and get pregnant or anything like that, but I just had a gut feeling. And to think that many years ago a doctor told us that he didn't think we could get pregnant on our own...now we have two precious daughters and a third child on the way! I had been praying recently - telling God that no matter if His answer was yes or no for allowing us to bring another child into this world, that I would be content with that answer.

Sunday, December 30 ~ Today we went to church with Craig's family and then had a nice dinner at home together. We took our time packing and loading everything...you should have seen our van! It was loaded from bottom to top with all our luggage, baby stuff, and gifts. We are still in shock that we will be parents to a newborn before this next year is through! We were going to wait to tell Natalie, but then decided we just couldn't. I said to her "Remember how Mommy promised to tell you if there was a baby in her tummy?" Her eyes got real big as she nodded her head! Then I said "Well, there is now a baby in Mommy's tummy!" She was so excited! She has been saying for the longest time how she wanted us to have another baby - specifically a boy baby named "Carridy". She did ask right away if it was a boy and I told her that I didn't know yet and that I'd let her know when I know. Another baby...I started to get a little anxious today thinking about it. Are we crazy? Can we do this? The thing is though...I felt this same way at the beginning with each of our girls...and now I can't imagine life without them. My worries are mainly just handling three children under the age of five and what that entails. Craig is a bit worried about the size of our house and the size of our van...but I know many people who have even larger families and they do just fine with what we already have...and some have even less. I'm sure there will be sacrifices - there always are when you add something or someone new to your life. But I know that the Lord has not set us up just to fail - He believes that we can do this and so do I. We felt in our hearts that our family was not yet complete - and God knew this better than we did. Amazing.

Dec 31 ~ We all spent the day lounging around...most of us even stayed in our pajamas all day. We really needed to spend some time just recuperating from our time away. I think everyone was glad to be home. Craig went to the store and got some ribs and made a delicious dinner. Before dinner we opened our own family Christmas gifts. Katie was so excited to get her fuzzy, soft Elmo doll. But before long she was off in her own world playing with toys and not too interested in opening gifts. Natalie loved getting some new sparkly princess dress-up shoes and a wand. She also loved receiving some new books, a tin tea set (like one that I had when I was little), and her very own diaper bag with accessories so she can play Mommy. Nat also got The Jesus Storybook Bible. I had told her a month or so ago that she'd be getting a new Bible since she had outgrown her old toddler one. Ever since then she has been patiently waiting for this new Bible...she was even disappointed after opening gifts at Grandma's and realizing that she had still not received her Bible. I had to remind her that there were still presents to be opened at our own house. There were quite a few presents under the tree this year...Mommy may have gone overboard again!