Smith rounded out his eight weeks on Monday!  Can you even believe that?!  Some days it seems like he should be older, but I really can't believe it's been eight weeks!  Our life has turned completely upside down and sideways in a matter of 3 months.  God is so good!

This week we have spent lots of time in our pajamas.  I think I managed to get showered most days.  It has just been nice to snuggle and play, enjoying the lights of the Christmas tree and watching some Christmas movies together.  It turns out, Smith was a huge fan of Happy Feet.  I looked down at him and he was grinning the biggest smile looking completely amused as he watched the penguins dance across the ice.  It was hilarious!

He is beginning to grasp the dramatics that come from his big sister, and this picture pretty much sums up how he feels about it all...

Smith's stocking arrived this week!  I've had it since October, but it took a while to get it monogrammed and shipped back to me.  It's perfect!  And I am just so giddy about his first little Christmas!

Baby's First Christmas!

Excuse the apartment fireplace.  Not much longer!

This week, I received a letter from Smith's birthmother.  I just love open adoptions for so many reasons.  She is continuing to heal the best she can.  Please continue to pray for her.  She is also looking forward to meeting Millie Janalee's birthmother at the annual Bethany Christmas party for birthmothers.  Our family has grown in more ways than you may think.  My heart is bursting at the thought of them meeting...and sharing a difficult experience with each other.  Something I can never imagine or pretend to understand.  They have a piece of my heart for sure.  Adoption is such a beautiful thing.  And I can't wait to see how God continues to work as he weaves His story together!

He is starting to have his own little quirks. His favorite sleeping position.

It has been a full eight weeks and getting fuller!  As Christmas approaches, we will get in full swing around here.  Smith has his two month checkup and shots on Monday.  Prayers that he handles it well...and that I can too.  Then, it's time to pack our bags and get this Christmas thing started!

Here's to the weeks ahead, sweet Smith!  I love you more than you know.

Sisterly Love and an Eye Appointment

Last week, we followed up with Millie Janalee's pediatric ophthalmologist.  This was my first big outing alone with both babies.  Last time it was an all day appointment, so I planned as such.  We managed to get up, dressed, fed, and loaded in time for the commute to the hospital.  Unfortunately, it was during rush hour traffic.  And rush hour in St. Louis is no joke.  We made it in time for a quick parking job...except there were no spots until we got to the fifth level of the garage.  Then I had to put the double stroller (aka "the bus") together so we could all glide through the hospital uneventfully.  It was also freezing cold.  And I was cringing at the fact that Smith had to traipse through a children's hospital before his shots.

I have a thing about doctor's offices and hospitals with children.  I can almost see the germs jumping all over them.  Ha!

I checked us in only 4 minutes late just in time to feed Smith.  It turns out, you don't wait as long for checkups.  So here I go holding Smith's bottle with my chin, running after Millie Janalee across the waiting area where she was playing with the other children, and trying to drive "the bus" through the doorway to the exam rooms.  Thankfully, there was a male doctor who pretty much took over "bus duty" for me while I wrangled my babies down the hallway into the exam room.  Smith is a slow eater, so I fed him with one hand on one leg while holding Millie Janalee on the other leg so she could complete her exam before seeing the doctor.  It's moments like that that make me feel like a real mom.  Ha!

Once that exam was complete, the male doctor drove "the bus" back out into the waiting room until our doctor was ready to see us.  We made it all the way down the hallway and parked "the bus" before Millie Janalee went racing back to the exam rooms hallway.  Mama holding baby bottle with her teeth at this point is running after her...and just left the male doctor with "the bus."  One of the receptionists asked Millie Janalee, "Don't you want to wait on Mom and Dad?"  To which I answered, "It's just mom.  And the doctor pushing our stroller."  Lol!

Just minutes later, our doctor was ready to see us.  She took a quick look and said Millie Janalee was doing wonderfully!  No surgery.  Yay!  We are good to go for another nine months.  Looking back at how tragic this whole thing seemed in the moment...we have been blessed.  And Millie Janalee is just as cute as a bug in her little specs.  Every color!

When I first told Millie Janalee's birthmother about her needing glasses, she said exactly what I had been thinking.  Well, first she asked and was worried there was something she could have done differently.  The answer to that is an absolute NO!  From what I've read, there is no cause or reason.  Then, she told me that Millie Janalee has the perfect personality to pull these glasses off.  And she was exactly right!  I love the spunky, joyful disposition radiating from my girl.  What a blessing she is to me!  What a joy!

She loves her "baby bruver" some kind of fierce.  Sometimes a little too fierce.  Ha!  And I pray they are always close and loving toward each other.  I love the bond they will share as they grow to understand their stories more and more.  I love that they are mine!  Well...actually they are on loan from God.  And I am honored and humbled that I was chosen to care for and raise them.

Smith may feel a little differently at times.  Like, he probably wonders "What in the world have I gotten myself into!?"  Usually when his face is stuck between his sister and another object or she is sitting on him or she is kissing all over his head or when she puts all her dolls around him or when she leans in to hug him constricting his ability to breathe.  She loves hard.  But she loves well.

And Smith is watching her every move.  May they continue to learn from each other and love each other all the days of their lives.

See how small this newborn gown looks!?  He's growing!

Life with two?  Full of noise.  Full of fun.  Full of limited sleep.  And full of LOVE!

Christmas Books

We added another tradition last year that I love.  I got the idea from my sister-in-law I think.  She does the same with her children...so I'm thinking that's where I got the idea.  Anyway, I wrapped 20+ Christmas themed books and placed them in a basket.  The basket sits by the Christmas tree.  Each night before bed, Millie Janalee chooses one gift to open and read.

She takes it very seriously insisting that she sit on her special Santa stool for something so important as this.  Ha!  She strategically chooses a gift and opens it herself.  Upon opening the book, we are pretty much guaranteed to hear a gasp as she inspects her "new" book.  I basically just rewrap the same books...although I did add 4 new ones this year.

We all sit next to the Christmas tree as Russ reads the book to Millie Janalee and Smith.  The last few nights we let her open the book by the tree, and she and Russ take the book upstairs to read for her bedtime story.  Smith is usually hungry by then anyway, so we divide and conquer bedtime.

This is one tradition that will stay!  It is precious time spent with our little family.  Making memories and reading old and new stories of Christmas.  Sharing the joy of a good book and the special moments as a family.

Our book list includes board books, Golden books, books about Christ's birth, and more.  Do you have any favorite Christmas children's books?  Please let me know!  I'm always open to growing our Christmas library.  After all, Smith will need his own books to open too soon.

Counting Down to Christmas

I grew up in a family full of traditions.  And we all feel pretty strongly about traditions still.  So you can imagine that when our family began to grow, Russ and I talked about our own little family traditions we wanted to start.  Traditions that our children will look back on fondly and smile.  Traditions that will always make them want to come home from college.  Traditions that just feel like home.  Cozy and comfortable.

Growing up, my siblings and I had this countdown calendar hanging on our bedroom door.  It was a quilted hanging calendar that a family friend had given us.  I told my mom that I wanted something like it for my own family.  She went above and beyond and found the exact one we had growing up!  Apparently all the kids from the 80's were also looking for one for their families, because she said they were quite valuable on eBay.  Ha!  She was able to find the fabric, and I quilted it myself.  Russ even helped stuff the little bear.

We hung it on a dowel rod with some cute bows and it hangs in our home by our bedrooms.  Each night, Millie Janalee helps the bear count down to Christmas.  The bear is looking for Christmas and each day he looks in a new spot.

We do this right before bed, so Russ can be a part of it too.  Smith watches on too.  Millie Janalee finds the number for the day, and I read the directions.  She follows the directions and finds his next spot.  She gets pretty dramatic with the whole thing.  You can imagine.  For example, when I say " Where's the front door?" there's really no need to look through every room in the house and say "hmmm" for the front door.  But it makes it more fun and obviously drags out her bedtime routine a little bit.  She's clever like that.

I have really loved doing this countdown with her this year.  Last year, we pretty much put the bear in her hand and stuck her hand where it goes.  This year, she is doing it all on her own!   It is so amazing watching your child grow and learn.  And she's so proud too!

Precious moments.  Traditions that she can look back on with a smile and a longing for home.  Where her heart is.

Santa Claus is Comin' to Town

Before we left town after Thanksgiving, I took Millie Janalee and Smith to visit Santa at a local boutique in town.  We stood in line over an hour I'm sure.  I was told it was the shortest the line had been all weekend.  Thankfully, there was a fun train table to occupy Millie Janalee for bits of time...between her trying to find an escape through all the breakables of the gift shop.  Most importantly, I was glad my mom was able to come for support...and manpower.  We got some super sweet pictures...mostly of Smith with Santa.  Since Millie Janalee wasn't having any of it.  I did bribe her with a candy cane to at least sit on his lap.  So in all our pictures she is pouting with a candy cane in her mouth.  Ha!

And we got some memorable ones too...

Our attempt at getting all the cousins together

I didn't even realize Smith was so upset until I looked at the pictures afterward.  Poor second child.  His cry isn't quite loud enough to overpower the screaming two year old yet.  And Hughes...well, he's like "I'm not gonna cry or pout.  Santa Claus is coming to town!"  Haha!  But weren't my babies dressed to the nines?!  They matched and everything.  In hopes of a Hallmark moment.  Nope.

After our long drive home the following day, Millie Janalee had a surprise in the mail.  An envelope addressed to her from the North Pole!  She eagerly waited for us to unload and clear out a spot for her to open her mail.

Opening her mail

What could it be?!

Inside, she found a letter from Santa addressed to her!  In the letter Santa talked about all the work he's been doing at the North Pole, how proud he was of her being such a good big sister to Smith, and he talked about his favorite part of the Christmas season - celebrating Christ's birth.  He promised to bring her something fun and to stick something in for Smith too.

Santa included a few other things too.  Millie Janalee has been such a sweet girl this year that she received her very own Nice List Certificate signed by Santa himself!  He also stuck in some autographed photos of himself and his favorite reindeer, Rudolph.

It was an exciting way to begin December in our home!  Smith was pretty elated about the whole thing...as he usually is.

This Christmas will surely be our favorite Christmas yet!  God is so good.

Thanksgiving with Russ's Side of the Family

After an enjoyable Thanksgiving Day, my mom, sister, and I enjoyed a spa day on Friday.  Instead of Black Friday shopping.  We spent four hours being pampered with facials, massages, manicures, and pedicures.  We also enjoyed a lunch between services.  If you have never done this, I promise you it will change your life.  Ha!  Or maybe it's just us.  I'm like a dog.  I'll back up to anyone who will rub. A special thanks to my dad for keeping Millie Janalee entertained with a playground, a trip to the depot, and whatever else they did.  And thanks to Elle who kept Smith at Russ's parents' house.  Divide and conquer.  That's how I handled childcare.  Ha!

Saturday, we spent the day celebrating Thanksgiving with Russ's family.  We all missed Russ, but we had a fabulous time.  Millie Janalee especially loves all the attention from her older cousins.  She went straight to her favorite spot in the house...the tea set.  Poor Sam!  Millie Janalee begged him for tea parties all afternoon, and he was so sweet to join her.  He was also glad when Leah and Grace took over tea party duty!

Pouring her tea so carefully.

Leah and Millie Janalee having tea

Roan took Olivia around to some downtown shops to Christmas shop for her friends.  They invited me to come along.  And the men of the house graciously agreed to babysit.  Millie Janalee was in good hands with all the younger kids.  The older girls went shopping with us.  Russ's dad and brother were in charge of Smith.  It still makes me giggle a bit.  Everyone was alive when we returned and the men seemed to have been okay.

Pop and Smith

Uncle Jimmy and Smith

We arrived in time for our "second lunch" (long story) and the big game.  You know the one I'm talking about.  We won't spend much time on the subject for obvious reasons.  But while I was busy watching the game, yelling at the screen, and nearly knocking the lamp over in the sunroom...the cousins were busy keeping my children.  It's so wonderful having built in babysitters who love my babies so much!

Julie feeding Smith

Olivia enjoying her coffee after some homework and a nap.

Elle and Millie Janalee

Once the game was over, all the adults began milling about.  Seth tried out his new camera while I tried to get my children to pose for an Egg Bowl picture.  Millie Janalee had NOT had a nap all day, so we took what we could get.  Clean up began, and we began to load our belongings.

Anna Kate and Seth

Roan taking care of the big bird!

Baby Bulldogs!  Win or lose.

It's always a joy spending time with my in-laws.  Of course we all like it best when Russ is there, but I guess they settled for me.  Or maybe I was just the mode of transportation for the babies.  Haha!  Either way...I'm feeling blessed.

Happy Thanksgiving indeed!