Christmas festivities

If I had the time, I'd be blogging like crazy because there are a million stories to be told about November and December. Stories about rats eating the electrical wires of the dishwasher, Grandpa and the Fire Department fiasco (just trying to be helpful), a stolen catalytic converter (shifty mechanics in the Philippines), falling mirrors (landlord), $616 spent during one trip to Trader Joes (consumables), dead rats stinking up the house (freakin disgusting)...the list goes on.

It's amazing that I haven't gone crazy in the last few weeks, getting a newborn interrupted 6 hours of sleep, trying to prepare for our move to Ethiopia while being Mom and hosting family during all this craziness. And seriously? Every time we are preparing to move overseas there are rodents involved.

On top of it all, it's Christmas time. My favorite time of the year. In Manila we would have had our tree and decorations up the week before Thanksgiving in following with their early and long holiday celebrations. I'm very sad that we will not be in America for Christmas this year.

We've been celebrating though. Every chance we get. My sweet husband brought home a little real Christmas tree for the girls to decorate when we found out our travel orders had been delayed and thus we are delayed leaving for Ethiopia. Now our leave date is up in the air. I know he brought this tree home for me just as much as it's for the kids. I desperately wanted to have a real tree for Christmas this year. The girls love this little tree. I have to admit it touches my heart too.So did the local community center's tree lighting celebration. Complete with Santa Claus arriving on a fire engine and Girl Scouts caroling. Driving around and seeing all the tacky Christmas lights on people's homes touches my heart too. Addie and Bella helped Kiki decorate her Christmas tree which is a dream come true for them since Kiki has an amazing collection of Hallmark ornaments. It was so much fun and made me miss unwrapping all our ornaments. I love rediscovering them every year and the memories it invokes. New memories were made at Kiki's house!

Thanksgiving

We made so many wonderful memories with our family this Thanksgiving. My entire family flew to spend the holiday with us here in Virginia. My house was clean, the girls were happy and entertained by their aunties and grandparents and I had a moment to breathe, eat, shower and feel like a woman again. It was glorious. It was a Thanksgiving to remember. This photo was an attempt at our family Christmas card photo. Too bad the lighting was kind of funny!

I also really love these pictures of Arabella with her Aunt Emily and Ashlynn with two of her grandpas and her Great Grandma Mimi!

Ashlynn at 4 weeks

In the spirit of Thanksgiving (coming all too fast this year); I am expressing my great appreciation for my youngest daughter's sweet temperament. Ashlynn is giving me so much to be thankful for. She's a beautiful baby girl and I adore everything about her. She smells sweet like milk and baby soap. She is warm and heavy in my arms. She puts this blanket of sleepy calm on me when she falls asleep on my chest.

I am extremely grateful that she likes her car seat and tends to fall asleep when we are driving; often staying asleep in her car seat long after we've reached our destination.

She is a good nurser, especially in the middle of the night. She took a bottle from her Father last night without any fuss. Hopefully she won't mind switching from bottle to breast here and there.

When she's well rested she falls asleep easily for her naps and stays asleep for a good long nap.

She isn't fussy unnecessarily.

She is soothed by a pacifier in the late evening hours when she tends to get restless and overtired.

She likes all the noise our family makes!

I am mostly thankful for the first real smiles she has given me in the last few days. Smiles that say "Hi Mom, you're the best!" There is nothing better than that.

ice skating

Our weekends have been jam packed ever since we moved to Virginia in August. We have not had one lazy day yet. This weekend was no different. Kiki visited on Saturday and we went ice skating!

Neither of the girls have been ice skating before. They both experienced Disney on Ice the weekend prior (thanks to Kiki!) so they had an idea of what to do. Addie immediately put on her "ice skating outfit" when she found out our plans. Bella obediently put on her ice skates when we got to the rink and did two laps, one pushing a bucket; screaming the entire time. She was not a fan. We put her Crocs back on after this photo. Poor girl hated it.Addie on the other hand did well. She loved every minute of it and dusted off the ice when she fell. By the end of our time at the rink she was skating by her self!To top it off we met Santa and Mrs. Claus. Addie walked right up and gave Santa a bug and answered all his questions. Bella wanted nothing to do with Santa (other than a peak from afar) so the photo is incomplete but at least I got my oldest and youngest in a great photo!

late Halloween

I'm not keeping up with the blog as well as I'd like to be doing. I blame it on our family of 5 status. Phew! The kids are kicking my butt on a daily basis.

Halloween was wonderful in our little American neighborhood. Auntie Brienne came over to hand out candy with us. The girls bounced around the house in anticipation of trick-or-treating when Justin got home from work. It reminded me of when I was a kid and I couldn't wait to get my costume on, light our pumpkins, and go out trick-or-treating with my Dad and sisters.

My one request for our first Halloween in America was a good picture of all three girls in their costumes.

Ashlynn didn't end up walking around with her sisters. She was happy once the lady bug costume was off and she was in my arms nursing and rocking again.

The pumpkin trick-or-treated for about ten houses and then declared that she was done. The angel on the other hand ran around with her Dad and the neighbor kids until bedtime.

Ashlynn's quilt

Ashlynn received a gorgeous baby quilt from her Great Aunt Mary K just as Addie and Bella did. These quilts are well loved in our family. They go with us in our air freight shipments so we can always have them. They've come in handy with out cold fall nights lately.

Ashlynn's quilt is the first my Aunt has done in pastel baby colors. It's a beautiful blanket.

count down

We knew all along that we would be bringing our new daughter into the world among some major transition for our family. The count down to moving to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia began the moment she was born. At 40 weeks pregnant I was torn between wanting Ashlynn to arrive already so I didn't have to be pregnant any longer, and her staying put so we as a family could stay put in America a little longer.We have roughly 5 weeks before we have to pack up and move to our new home in Africa and I'm panicking a little bit about all that needs to be done but cannot possibly done with a newborn, a two and a half year old and a four and a half year old.We knew that we wouldn't have much time in America to repatriate and enjoy being Americans. We knew that we probably wouldn't be allowed to stay at home with family for Christmas. We knew all these things and yet I am having a really hard time processing the upcoming move and all it's inevitable transitions for my children and myself. We've only gotten settled here in Virginia. I knew I'd feel this way and still it's hard.
5 weeks and counting.