2011 comes to an end

To keep with tradition we spent the evening with the Bustas and Sumners.

This year we went to Stacey and Shane's.

We had pulled pork, beans, chips, cole slaw, meatballs, buffalo chicken dip, pizza dip, fruit kabobs, pickle dip and much more. 

The kids played and the grown ups hung out.

We watched The Hangover 2 (super funny!)

After we toasted in the New Year we hung out some more.  The kids were playing so well together that we sort of lost track of time.  The next thing we know it was 2:30 am!  By the time we packed up, left, got home, and got into bed it was close to 3:30 am.

We were so busy hanging out tonight that I didn't even get my camera out to take one picture. 
NOT ONE :-(

Happy New Year!

Adventures in Babysitting

I was suppose to be off this week.  I wanted to take the whole week off between Christmas and New Year's but things came up so I ended up working on Wednesday, Thursday, and today.

Last night Kari texted me and asked if I would bring the girls over so that she could spend time with them while I worked.  It was a splendid idea!

My plan was to get out of work around lunchtime so we could all have lunch together.

When I got off work it was close to 1:00.  We went to lunch at Denny's and while at lunch Kari told me of their plans to go to the casino tonight.  Grandma Bauer offered to watch the boys.  I knew it would be too much for Grandma to watch all four kids so we decided to call Jennie to see if she would want to stay at grandma's to help with the girls.  (It wasn't that we didn't want Jennie to come with us tonight but she typically doesn't like to go to the casino to spend money so this would give her a chance to spend time with the kids).

We got to Treasure Island and I texted Jennie to check in.
This is the response I got.

Later I found these pictures online that Jennie took while she was babysitting.





Grandma is reading them Put Me In the Zoo which was MY favorite book she used to read to me when we were little.  It's the actual book that she used to read to me.

Never knew only 34 words could say so much

It's hard to know if we should be concerned or not.

Hailey turned two in September and she isn't talking much.  I guess I should add to that statement.  She talks A LOT but doesn't say that many words.  She is not a quiet girl.  She is vocal and she can understand ANYTHING you say.  Truly, no concerns from a comprehension standpoint at all.
You can sit with her with a book and ask her to point things out and there are very few things that she can't identify. 

At this age Hannah was speaking full sentences.  You could carry on a conversation with her and she was putting strings of words together.  It's pretty normal for a first child and espeically when that first child happens to be a little girl (who has a mother that likes to talk).  The doctor hasn't been concerned yet and said that it will come with time.  Comprehension is important and this little one has got that down!

The words in Hailey's current spoken language include mommy, daddy, Ah-Ha, Hah-he (Hanny/Hannah), no, yeah, hi, bye, ball, bowl, cut, green, good, blue, go, work, eat, more, cheese, here you go, right here, purple, bubble, baby, poo-poo, yuck, Bieb (yes- what you think it means), Ahhh man!, one, duckie, me, wa-wa (water), Emmy, song

She can string many of those words together to form sentences that everyone in this house can understand.  Add in her very expressive personality and I honestly think that if she never spoke another word (besides the ones listed above) she would be just fine.  She's pretty easy to read.

A few of my favorite things that she has been saying lately

"Ahhhh mom!  or Ahhhh dad!"  (said with the Come'On Man expression)
Turn a song on the radio and if she recognizes it she will yell out "Mommy!  Hah-he song!"
When I am putting her to bed she will grab my face and put her nose on mine and then say (in a sweet-demanding way) "Baby song."  I will ask which one and she responds "Baby, ahhhh".  Then I sing "Baby, Baby, Baby, ahhhhh like Baby, Baby, Baby, ohhhhhh, Baby, Baby, Baby thought you'd always be mine"  While the whole time she shakes her booty slowly from side to side while lying in my arms.

Somedays she will run to me like Lassie saying "Mom!  Hah-he wa-wa no ick"  I will ask "Is Hannah making a mess with the water?"  to which she will reply "Yeah".

She is into shrugging her shoulders a lot when she is talking or trailing off her sentences as if to say 'that's all'.  I am more and more amazed by her every day and somedays it takes every ounce of will power that I have in me not to pick her up and bite her to pieces.  Seriously.  I am not really into eating kids but this one could be an exception. 

Along with her adorable voice and kissable face, Hailey is such a sweet little girl.  She's the one who will walk up and hug and kiss you for no reason and then just walk away and get on with her day.  She loves to snuggle but usually on her terms- Hannah is game for snuggling at ANY time- Hailey needs to be in the mood but when she is, she's all in!

189

There are many words that one could use to describe things.

For example-

I am SO mad.
That is VERY far.
I love you SO MUCH or I love you A LOT
I have a MILLION things to do.
This is REALLY SUPER heavy.

Hannah's word is 189.

For example-

If you don't let me do that I am going to be 189 crabby!
How far is the North Pole?  Pretty far.  189 far?
I love you 189.
We are 189 busy today.
This is heavy, like 189 heavy.

It's probably one of my most favorite things about my 4 yr old Hannah.  Although this isn't a new thing just since she's four.
I absolutely love how she's taken onto this phrase and made it her own.  One night recently she was describing something as 189 (to get her point across that this was a HUGE deal) and Bri and I both looked at each other and I knew from his look exactly what he was going to say.  We have GOT to blog about this!

So, hear I am once again reminded of why I have commited to logging my families memories.  These are the moments and things about my children that I want them to learn about themselves.  I want them to be able to someday get a sneak peek into who they were as little people.

As we come to the end of the year and I complete my 358th post for the year I am reminded that I have many more years of this left.  There's 358 memories from 2011, in my words, how I see it, logged for my family to read and reread.  Documented for my children's children.  Their world through my eyes.

That makes me 189 happy!



Delayed post

These pictures were actually taken on December 22nd.
Hannah had gotten the blond Barbie from her daycare Christmas party.  She had played with her all night and made a few comments about how she sure loved her new Barbie.

Before we left for daycare I heard Hannah talking to someone.  I looked around the corner to see this.

She had set them up with the iPod so that they would have something to do.

Twas the day after Christmas and it was 46 degrees!

Day after Christmas, December 26th and it actually felt like spring.

The girls and I would be spending the day at Grandma Chris' with the boys, Kari, Jennie, Kristin, and Bobby making gingerbread houses.  Well, maybe more like graham cracker houses.

When we walked outside to get into the car it felt like spring.  The sun was shining and the air was a little chilly but by no means freezing.  I wouldn't want this type of weather for Christmas/winter every year but I am enjoying it this year.

Had to get a close up of Tin's.  This kid is so creative!  The cone on it's side covered in glitter?  Why that's a telescope of course!

Close up of Hailey's house and her cute chubby wrists :-)
Sure am gonna miss those when she grows out of all of the toddler that's left in her

Close up of Hannah's house

Merry Christmas Take 2

Last night we left out cookies and chocolate milk for Santa.

He left Hannah a walking puppy and Hailey a kitchen set that includes a toaster, mixer and coffee pot.
Lula even got the girls a present- a Barbie babysitter that comes with a pack n play, baby swing, and little tiny newborn.  She must know how much the girls love their babies.

Around lunchtime we left to go to my sister, Kari's.

When Kari and Andy were here this summer they purchased a townhome.  It's a 3 bedroom, 3 bathroom place in Maplewood.  Now they will have a place to stay whenever they want to come.  (They will also have a place for anyone else to use if they have any other friends or family that are interested in a trip to the US!)

They wanted to host Christmas this year since they were here and we gladly accepted their invite!

The place looked very festive.  My dad has been hanging out there putting their furniture together and decorating the place for Christmas.  It was super sweet of him to do that so they wouldn't have to worry about that stuff once they got here.

When she saw this picture she said "Oh my gosh!  Why did you guys take that picture of me?!"

It was a Justin Bieber Christmas for Hannah!  She got this poster, a singing Justin Bieber toothbrush and a Justin Bieber doll- all wrapped in JB wrapping paper.  Grandma Chris even printed a picture of Hannah standing with Justin.  We all got a kick out of Hannah opening the picture and saying "Here's a picture of Justin!"  We asked "Who is he with Hannah?  When did you take that picture"  She replied "That's not me.  Hey, it is me?!"

Grandpa made the girls a puppet stage that came with their very own set of puppets.

Kari gave everyone a crocheted gift.  I got a set of holiday magnets.  SO super cute!

Amazing that she just decided to take up this hobby a few months ago and today gave us magnets, scarves (mom), clutches (Jennie), bracelets (Kim), and headbands (Kristin).  So talented!

A few of the gifts we received today included:

Brian: socks, underwear, gift card to Sears, Maglite, Tape Measure, Buffalo Wild Wings gift card, Target gift card

Amy: Sweater, necklace, tank and matching bracelet, running pants, Bath and Body Works soap, gift cards for Michaels, Target, and Archivers.  Horrible Bosses movie, spoon rest- all the way from London, and a Bose SoundDockfor my iPod- that sounds amazing!

Hannah: more Barbies, cute skirt and leggings, tea set, table and chair set from Grandma Chris (Grandmas were thinking alike this year which works out great for us!), coloring stuff, Perfect Barbie family (where the baby folds up into the mommy's belly- you may recall an earlier post about this), movies, CDs, Justin Bieber stuff (listed above), Hello Kitty microphone that connects to your iPod

Hailey: new jammies, cute skirt and tights, new outfits, baby bath set with a toliet (perfect for a girl that's working on her potty training!), coloring stuff, tea set, Princess microphone with amp

I made a lot of gifts this year.  I made each of the grandmas (3 total) scrapbooked calendars, lots of post it note holders, magnetic boards (for pictures or recipes), and for the girls at work- gumball themed candy jars.

I didn't get pictures of everything but here are a few of the pictures I did take.

Merry Christmas Take 1

Christmas Eve :-)

We started our morning on the hunt for Lula.

It took the girls a while but they finally found her.   Today is her last day with us.  When Santa comes tonight to leave presents for the girls he will be taking Lula with him back to the North Pole.  We had so much fun with her and are hoping that she returns next year.

On Christmas Eve we celebrate with the Parmley side.  We all gather at Grandma and Grandpa's.

When I was younger we would always spend Christmas Eve with my dad's side of the family and Christmas Day with my mom's side.  It worked out perfectly (we thought at least) because then we got to see everyone during those two days.  When Brian and I started celebrating holidays together it was perfect because his family celebrated together on Christmas Eve.  My kids would continue the same type of tradition that I grew up with.  One small thing....my dad's side still tries to get together on Christmas Eve and because I have a family of my own now it's harder to see the Miller's on Christmas Eve.

I keep teasing (but really I am serious) my aunt that we should do a Christmas in July type of celebration so that we can all get together and make it a little easier for us all to see each other.  It sucks to loose touch with your family.  Even if you typically only saw them on Christmas, it is still your family.

It always makes me sad that I had so many cousins growing up and in the grand scheme of things we don't know each other very well.  Well, take that back- some of my cousins know each other real well.  They went to the same school or their parents got them together to play when they were little.  I don't ever remember doing that.  We would see them on holidays or at family events.  Occasionally at the cabin but never just because (at least I can't recall a time).

Anyways, my cousin Scott hosted Christmas Eve at his house this year and I decided for once to say no to something.  I usually take on too much and run myself crazy trying to be in 3 places at once because it's hard to tell someone no but this year, I had to do it.  I decided to not even give it a thought.  I couldn't make it.  I had too many things to do to assure that we were ready for Grandma's and this year, I didn't want to be up at 2:00 am on Christmas Eve/Christmas Day wrapping presents. 

So, we didn't go.

I saw pictures today from the party and I have to admit, it made me a little sad.  My sisters were all there.  Kas and Tin were all dressed up and looked so adorable. 

I am sad I missed it but I had to.

We watched the Vikings game today and after it was done we headed out.

About an hour in Jennifer and I decided that we should probably attempt the kids picture before they got too wild or crabby.

Started out pretty strong, all but Courtney.  She wasn't in the mood.

Appears my camera wasn't either- shoot!

Grammy wanted a picture with the kids so they all piled on.  Courtney didn't want to get closer so we had to work with what we could.  Pretty sad that this is my best shot with grandma.

Courtney finally decided this wasn't so bad afterall so she scooted a little closer but by then Hailey had had enough and disappeared.

She sat pouting on the chair and was NOT happy that we were trying to talk her into taking more pictures.

Hailey saw this picture a few days later on my camera and said "Mom, me no cheese."

She came and sat with me and was pretty happy so as long as the camera was still out we tried for a picture.

A little while later it was time to open presents.

"Kids, how about we take a picture of all of you and then we can open presents?!"

They must have forgotten about our attempt upstairs because they all came over and plopped in front of the fireplace.  This time Hailey and Courtney were the first ones there and it would take some coaxing to get Justin, Adam, and Hannah.

Hey- this is not as easy as it looks ;-)

It's like hearding cats trying to get all these kids to sit still long enough for a picture.

I don't ever remember our parents having to go through this to get a picture and looking back at the photos, I remember seeing pictures of kids- standing stick straight, in a line smiling.   Wonder if the digital era has anything to do with that- these poor kids are ALWAYS taking pictures.

We attempted a family picture and now Miss Hailey is showing everyone how she really feels about all these pictures today.

Like this picture of Brian with his parents and sister.  Such a nice family to be a part of.  I sure am lucky that they treat me so well and have always welcomed me.

One last picture before it's time to open presents.

A few of the gifts we received included:

Brian- Buffalo Wild Wings gift card, wood chisel set, wire stripper/cutter, cast iron pan for use on the grill.

Amy- necklace, 31 Storage Tote, quilted Christmas Tree skirt, iTunes gift card

Hannah and Hailey: Barbies, Barbie car, movies, My Little Ponies, Princess table and chair set, Chutes and Ladders game

Let the shopping begin!

Brian and I are both off today which means that I can finish my Christmas shopping once the kids go down for a nap.  Woo Hoo!

I got most of my crafting done, just a few minor touches left.

The weather has been amazing still.  It has gotten to 39 degrees this week and we are still without snow.

I feel kinda sad- kinda.

It's even been nice enough weather for fishing.

I have to admit.  It was actually enjoyable being out in the crowds today.  The sun was shining, the people were happy.  Everyone was hustling and bustling around but they were all smiling. I am happy to report that as of 5:00 this evening (after waiting in the Walmart checkout line for over 30 minutes- ick) that I bought my last present.
The Parmleys are participating in Christmas after all!

Mirror, Mirror on the floor

Lula was sporting a new skirt today and as you can see was really happy with how pretty she looks.

Today I have the day off.  With the kids being home yesterday I still have a lot to do before this weekend.
To bring a little personality to Christmas this year I decided to craft some of the presents which means that I am extra stressed out with the thought that I won't get everything done.  I know, I know.  I bring it upon myself but I just can't let it go.  This is the stuff I like to do.  Anyone can shop for gifts....homemade gifts- I love them!

48 hours left. 

I can do this!

Christmas is never going to happen...

I am going to start by admiting that I am not the most organized-do-things-ahead-of-time-with-plenty-of-time-to=spare type of person but I also don't feel that I am horrible.
I think Brian would disagree but that's ok.  It's all about perception :-)

I at least usually don't feel so unorganized.

This year.  I am a mess.

Not sure why Christmas seemed to sneak up on me.  It's the same date every year.  Everyone's talking about it, sending wish lists, comparing gift ideas, etc.

Here I am a few days before Christmas and of the 35+ people that I have to buy for, I am done shopping for 9 of them.  That means that I need every moment that I have left to finish up.

I don't want to get into it here but work has been crazy.  Things at home have been busy.  Kari and Andy are home which puts another spin on the anxiety level (will I see them enough, can I eat with them tonight, I should be stopping by, I should be calling, I should be spending time with my nephews more, etc, etc, etc).
Don't take that the wrong way- I wouldn't send them home if I could- it's just a mom-sister guilt thing, I guess.

I decided I needed to take some time off of work so that I could get this stuff done so Christmas could happen this year.
Today I had a meeting from 8:30-9:30 with a clinician that has been having trouble.  After that, the day would be ALL MINE :-)
Well, 9:30 came and went and at 9:45 we found out that his meeting was cancelled and he had more time to talk.  Somewhere around 10:50 Brian sent me a text telling me that Jackie just called.  Hannah is sick and needs to be picked up from daycare.

Seriously?!

By the time I got home Hannah was feeling ok.  She has thrown up a few times but mostly just complains that her tummy hurts.  I soon find out that Jackson is also out sick today.

I spent the rest of the morning and early afternoon working (don't lecture me.....) and then decided it would be best if I caught up on the blog.

That brings me to now, 1:55 pm.  Hailey will be waking up soon.  I am not one present closer to Christmas but DO have tomorrow off and hope to get a lot done - if the kids cooperate and stay somewhat healthy.

I can't lie....I am stressing out a little bit.
Not sure I can pull this one off.

Lula didn't help things this morning.  She sure made a mess last night :-)

Wish me luck!

Peek-a-Lu

Lula was a little tricky to find today. 

Tonight I needed to finish up shopping for Jackie's Christmas present.  I had most of what I needed but still had a few things I wanted to add to her gift.

Me:  "Hannah, what would you like to get Jackie for Christmas?"
Hannah: "I don't know, mom.  She likes all kinds of things."
Me:  "Like what?  Does she like to read?  Does she like to listen to music?  She drinks coffee doesn't she?"
Hannah: "Yes!  She drinks coffee and loves to put baby powder in it!"

I'm thinking she meant cream?!

What a long day....

Kari and family arrived safely last night!

We were up until almost 2:00 am and then I had to be up early this morning for an 8:00 meeting.  I decided to get up (the earlier the better) so that I would surely be out of the house when the kids woke up (since we were sleeping at Kim's).
After work today we all met up at my sister's place and decided where to go for dinner.
After dinner the girls and I headed home to have treats, jammy up, and head to bed.

When we got home we saw that Lula had been waiting for us.

They're coming! They're coming! AGAIN!

Last night the girls opened the circled door on their advent calendars which could only mean one thing!

Today is the day the family is back!

Even though Kari, Andy and the boys were just here this summer,  we are all SUPER excited to see them.

Doesn't really feel like only a few months have passed.

The kids are super excited and each time I even mentioned Kas or Tin, Hailey starts to giggle and smile big!

 Lula was easy to spot today :-)

Over the river and through the woods to Northtown Mall we go

It sounded like a good idea at the time.

"Do you girls want to go and see Santa today?"

We packed up and headed out to the mall.  We got there around 10:45 and the line was already wrapping around the Santa display and down the hall. 

I have to admit.....I wasn't expecting this.  I guess I should have known better but at the same time I figured that everyone probably already went to see him.  Obviously not the case.

Earlier this morning I asked Hannah what she was going to tell Santa that she wanted.

Her response "Don't worry mom, I will just tell him."

We went through that about 5 or 6 times before I finally just gave in and stopped asking.

Around 12:40 it was finally our turn!

Hailey did pretty good in line.  She kept waving and acting like she was planning on sitting by him.

That was until we were next in line.  She buried her head in my shoulder and when Mrs. Claus touched her and rubbed her back she shot up and moved her hand away.

I walked her up to Santa but it only took about 6 seconds before she was screaming.

So Hannah braved this one on her own.

Maybe next year Hails :-)

Santa: "What would you like for Christmas this year?

Hannah:  "Ummm, a puppy and a rocking chair."

And Lula?

It took a little longer to spot her this morning :-)