Tag: Holidays

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That’s a wrap!

We are in the final hours of 2018, and it has truly been a magnificent year. Some of you might be thinking, how in the world is that possible?? You have 5 kids!! But that’s just it. They make my life magical and give me the most important purpose there is. I’m their Mama.

Let’s review, shall we?

  • We had twins.
  • I’m not usually one to brag, but I think I’m doing a pretty great job with 5 kids.
  • I figured out the logistics of getting us all to/from school all year, whether it was walking, driving, or carpooling.
  • Summer vacation was awesome with everyone home. Lots of playing with friends on the block (kids and parents!), walks and runs, library visits, collecting sea glass.
  • We learned what a vacation as a family of 7 is when we went up to Iron River this summer. It’s doable, and it was fun!
  • We got to watch a Brewers playoff game from a suite. It’s kinda nice when your cousin is the manager. 😉
  • We bought a second house.
  • The twins went on their first flight out to Tucson to meet their great-grandparents, which was so very, very important. The logistics of that one were a little torturous, but the family time spent together was priceless and worth every single second.
  • We took another family vacation up north to Eagle River. It gets easier and better every time.
  • We’ve been enjoying our first holiday season with 5 children. That does not sound normal to me – we have 5 children. Maybe someday it will, but still not yet. Both of my parents are 1 of 4 children, and I always thought man, that’s a lot of kids. Ha, silly me. The universe heard that and remembered it.
  • Ryan got a big and extremely well-deserved promotion at work.
  • I finished my sea turtles tattoo for the kids. Very important, I know!
  • We watched all our children grow every day, and my heart gets more and more full by the second with all of them. It was a year full of firsts for the twins, and it’s so amazing to get to experience all these baby firsts over again in double. Each day is something new and wondrous for them.

And now here we are, the very end of 2018. I think the sign of a good year isn’t completely dependent upon what you’ve accomplished, what you’ve done, where you’ve gone, but how you feel at the end of it. And just like the title of one of my favorite Christmas movies, it’s a wonderful life. I’m happier than I’ve ever been, our family is complete, and we are heading into the new year on a high note.

Cheers, 2018, and thank you so much for everything you gave us. Here we come, 2019, all 7 of us!

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Merry and bright

This was a great Christmas. It was the twins’ first Christmas, and I realized that they are the first out of all our children to spend their first Christmas here at home. For all the others’ first Christmases, we were down at my mom’s house. As much as I love spending the Christmas holiday down there when everyone is back, being at home and not having to go anywhere or really do anything at all is very, very nice. Especially now that there are so many of us!

On Christmas Eve, the big 3 got everything ready for Santa and the reindeer – cookies, egg nog, a carrot, and reindeer food in the front yard. Then Della read us The Night Before Christmas, a tradition that we started last year. Lana was able to read some, too, this year. She’s been working on that little book for the past month to try to be able to read it for us on Christmas Eve, so I know she was very happy and proud to be able to do her part.

When I woke up on Christmas morning, I saw there was a weather alert on my phone – snow had supposedly started overnight, which was not in the forecast at all. In fact, on the late news on Christmas Eve, they even said we were going to have a brown Christmas. I honestly felt like a kid when I peeked out the window and saw a white Christmas! I couldn’t believe it. It was the perfect way to start the day.

I made sure to get up early when the twins did so I didn’t miss a second of the kids’ excitement, and it was awesome from the start. They all got a nice little haul from Santa this year, and Daddy even got each of the big 3 a good book. The babies watched the unwrapping madness from their jumpers so they didn’t get trampled or do any trampling (Avit, ahem), and all they wanted was to get in their highchairs for some Cheerios. They were both too big to wear the little Baby’s 1st Christmas hats that we had, but they did wear matching Santa bibs for all the meals. That counts, right?

Then the day was spent playing with the new goods, watching Christmas movies, generally relaxing, then hosting Ryan’s parents for Christmas dinner. It was a wonderful day, and I hope all the Christmases out there were just as great.

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Gobble gobble

I took the kids to Peoria with my mom for Thanksgiving this year, and it was a most excellent visit. We got to spend time with both sides of my family, which is always so much fun. The kids got to see relatives they know well and those they only see a couple times a year, and they loved playing with them all again.

Ryan didn’t have as many days off as the girls so he couldn’t join us again, but hopefully he can make it next year.

Thanksgiving has long been my favorite holiday, but now with kids, I can’t help but feel the Christmas spirit get stronger again every year. And this Thanksgiving celebration, full of laughs and the love of family, was the perfect way to kick off this most magical season of the year.

 




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Deck the halls

And all that jazz…

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Our tree is up, tiny, and perfect for this year. I wanted a small one so Morrison doesn’t constantly trip and fall into the thing, ruining umpteen ornaments. Next year we’ll probably be back to full size. I think it turned out splendidly.

I’m pretty sure this is the earliest I’ve had all of our Christmas decorations up, and it feels great. Now we can just sit back, enjoy them, and soak in the spirit of the season.

Happy holidays, everyone!




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Thankful, always

Thankful for a beautiful 6 year old whose kind heart and amazing mind inspire me and make me prouder every day.

Thankful for the most incredible 4 year old I’ve ever known. Her fairy spirit knows no bounds, and the inner workings of her mind are some of the most indescribably magnificent places humankind has ever experienced.

Thankful for an adorable little almost-18 month old whose smile lights a room, whose laughter brightens the darkest hours, and whose hugs make everything better.

Thankful for the man whom those 3 miracles call Daddy, without whom none of this would be possible.

Thankful for the time to be everything to our children, day and night.

Thankful for the health and strength to be everything to our children.

Thankful for family near and far, here and beyond. No matter how frequent or infrequent the contact, all are forever a part of us.

Thankful for friends old and new. Those friends who are always there, who know your secrets, who will keep you laughing until your sides ache and your cheeks hurt, and who make it seem like no time has passed at all when you meet again.

Thankful for friends, neighbors, and good people who believe in and value the same things. The importance of knowing you are there for our children, too, cannot be put into words.

Thankful for this house that becomes more and more our home every day. Our children came home here, are growing up here, and are learning life here. It is ours and they are safe here.

Thankful that our children are already realizing this is what’s important in life; that not everyone has what we do even when so many have so much more; and to be thankful and grateful, not greedy and selfish.

So very thankful, always.

Happy Thanksgiving!