Decorating for Christmas

It is tradition in our family to put our tree up the day after Thanksgiving. However, this year we were a day late. But, it's up now! Jorie is our main helper in decorating. She LOVES to get out all of the ornaments and talk about each one..remembering back to when we bought them or made them together. And the ones she does not know about, she asks. Some are on our tree from when I was a baby! We always have a fun time decorating for Christmas. It will be here before we know it! Also pictured is one of Jorie showing off her new Christmas tree earrings. ;)

Funny girl

Jorie woke up this morning sounding a bit stuffy. So, I asked if I could look at the back of her throat. Without hesitation, she quickly turned around and lifted up her hair. I couldn't help but laugh. She didn't appreciate me and Ryan giggling either. But, it was really hard not to. Kids do the funniest things sometimes!

I finally got the pictures from the August photo shoot scanned onto the computer. Here is one of Jorie. :-)

Ryan's 8th grade picture!

Since I posted Jorie's school photos, I thought I'd post Ryan's as well. We received his just a couple days after we got Jorie's. Hard to imagine he will be starting highschool next fall!

SNOW!

We woke up Sunday morning to snow. "No!" "No!", Joshua exclaimed. ;) It came down most of the day on Sunday and it was beautiful to watch from inside our warm house. This morning Joshua and Jorie decided to go outside and play for a bit. They made a really cute little snowman. Also attached is a picture of Jorie and Ryan watching the snow fall yesterday afternoon.

First grader!

We received Jorie's school pictures back today. I was so happy with how they turned out!

A little update on Jorie's teeth. We went to the dentist yesterday for a dental exam and cleaning. So far, no work is needed and he did say that she should get her two front teeth in soon! Maybe in time for Christmas... (like the song!) :) We sure hope so. It has been 3 years! We are thankful that she will be getting those teeth. But, she will be missing at least 7 adult teeth. She will likely need implants as she gets older. But, the dentist said that with braces, we might be able to limit the amount of implants needed. We still don't know if her adult teeth will have the root resorption process happen to them. The dentist said it could be quite a while before we will know that. Please pray that her adult teeth grow in normally.

Elliott comes for a visit

We had cousin Elliott over yesterday. The kids had a blast together. We decided to let Jorie and Elliott help us rake up the leaves in our front yard. We had collected quite a few and we just have not had a chance to rake them yet! I had no idea how much fun kids could have with piles of leaves. They must have played in them for over an hour. Just throwing them up in the air, burying eachother in them and running and jumping into huge piles. Ryan came out for a bit. But, it was a bit too cold out for him. We all enjoyed some hot chocolate to warm ourselves up after playing outside. That is a HUGE treat for this family. Especially Jorie who looks forward to it every fall/winter. Sometimes, we make it and sit outside on the front porch drinking it under our warm blankets. :)

I am hoping we have seen the end of sickness here for a while. Since the first part of October, there has been sickness. I believe the Swine flu finally hit me (I was the last to get it!) this past week and it was AWFUL. I thought I had it back in October. But, I was wrong. It is a nasty flu and I'm glad that it is behind us now. I just hope we can stay well for the rest of the cold/flu season. We have had a very rough start to fall!

Snuggling

Just a couple pics of Jorie and Joshua snuggling with their daddy.

Our kind neighbors!

I posted this on facebook and I thought I'd post it here as well. We are so thankful to have such great neighbors!


Sometimes, it's just the smallest things that really touch me. Tonight was one of those times that someone's kindness just really made my day. Ryan is now 13 1/2 yrs old and feels he is too old for trick or treating. But, the truth of it is, that trick or treating has always been a challenge for him and something he couldn't really participate in, even when he was little. Most homes have steps to get to the front door. Even if it's just one step, that is enough to keep Ryan away. He wanted to trick or treat when he was little and we would make an attempt...usually just the houses on our street. But, due to the cold temperatures this time of year..... his body was unable to stay outdoors for very long before he would just go numb. Unable to walk or move to warm up, his body cools off much quicker than someone who is walking. Imagine just sitting outside in 30-40 degree weather and not moving...that is what it's like for Ryan. But, I think he also just grew tired of his dad or mom trick or treating for him. So, for the past couple of years, the neighbors next door to us have made up goody bags for Ryan. This just melts my heart. For them to even think of Ryan and to do something like that for him. AND, to place candies in the goody bag that he is able to eat...it just warms my heart. There are so many things that Ryan is unable to do. But, when people really take the time to think of him and remember him....that somehow takes away some of the sadness we feel when he is left out. So, thank you neighbors!!! :-)