Merry Christmas!

As we near Christmas day, we just wanted to wish our extended friends and family a very Merry Christmas!

Cookie Baking has Begun!

Until today, I have been lacking the motivation to get started on some Christmas cookie baking.  Well, actually, maybe I'm still lacking on the motivation, but I did it anyway.  :)

Lily and I started some of it while Abby was at school.  We made sure that we did things that Abby said she didn't mind missing... or things that we're just beginnings of the process.

First, we made snickerdoodles.  I have to admit, I've only ever made them when I lived at home with MY mom.  I looked for the recipe online.  I didn't have Cream of Tartar, which it calls for, so I googled what to do.  Do you know?  It turns out that it works with Baking Soda to rise.  The only suggestion I could find was to use vinegar or lemon juice instead in a certain proportion.  I tried vinegar.  They taste great, but I'm not totally happy with how they look after they baked.  They are a little flat.  Next time I need to make sure I just buy some Cream of Tartar.  

We also made sugar cookie dough for cut-out cookies.  It's now in the fridge cooling so that we can make those later with Abby.  Not sure if that will happen today or tomorrow.  We've been so busy.

I'm not sure if any other cookies will be made.  What about you?  What cookies are on your annual list?

LASIK done.

I'm writing this from from the other side.  All done with LASIK (the second time!).  

Yesterday was my enhancements surgery to correct what was left of my prescription.  As I wrote earlier, I started with a -6, and went in yesterday with a -1.  Hopefully now, I am perfect.

Like last time, last night was pretty rough.  My eyes just must be really sensitive to it.  I know they are to light and I think that does NOT help.  I could barely keep my eyes open for more than a couple seconds most of the night because light was bothering me.  So far this morning, so good.  A night of sleep helped tremendously.  One eye feeling better than the other, but I'm guessing that will come....

I have a postop appointment this morning in about an hour, so we can confirm that everything looks good.  Thanks for all the prayers, I felt them.

Rips

Abby was so excited after gymnastics practice tonight.  She had to show her hands at me.

Big news.

She has rips.

You know, like "real gymnasts."  From the bars.

(and don't doubt because they aren't bleeding, her coaches confirmed)

I know you can't see them here, but we took a picture for posterity's sake.

My little gymnast.

EDITED TO ADD:

Abby started to tell Matt about her rips and I got so many  more details.  She has 3, plus blisters.  She can't wait to ride the bus tomorrow because there are 2 girls on the bus who are also in gymnastics who have rips but Abby has never had any and she can't wait to share that she now has them too.  

Getting in the Spirit with Santa

We've been getting into the Christmas Spirit around here.  I'm finding, however, as I get older that Christmas sneaks up on you even when you feel like you get prepared for it early.  Why is that?

We now have our decorations all up, including our tree.  It's beautiful.  This is our first Christmas/winter in the new house so decorating it was a new experience.  The tree fits so much better in our new house.  It felt like it took up the whole living room in our old house.

On Saturday, we got up early and headed to Conner Prairie for Breakfast with Santa.  Conner Prairie is a living historical museum.  They have a great event, and we went for the first time last year.  It is a members only event, but since we are members we wanted to take advantage again this year.  

Best song ever on the way there in the car...  :)

Delicious breakfast.  They have great food, it's a buffet with lots of choices.  Matt and I pigged out and the the girls did okay.

And, the main event, Santa!  

I love how you can see the girls really talking to him in the pictures.

When we got home, the girls got a little lesson in shoveling, the extra inch we had gotten since Matt had last shoveled.

And, this afternoon we are heading to see Frozen.  We CAN'T wait!!!

I hope you are having a great weekend too!

Day 2 of being dilated, and here's why...

I posted this picture yesterday.  I'm not usually one for selfies, but my eyes go all out when they get dilated.  Lily said I looked like an alien.  

It is now 24 hours later, and I still look like this.  At least almost.  They're minimally better, but not much.  So, here is what's up...

A little over a year ago, I had LASIK.  I have always had very poor vision.  For those of you who understand prescriptions, I wore a -6.0 contact.  That's a pretty strong prescription.  It was impossible for me to function without glasses or contacts.  

Surgery went great.  I've had some dry eye problems, but that's pretty common.  I now take Restasis eye drops.   My vision was perfect a day after the surgery.  Six months after?  Not so much.  It actually takes up to a year for your eye to heal all the way, and I'm one of those few whose surgery wasn't a 100% success.  I should preface that by saying that my vision is still light years better than it was before.  I can function with out correction if I have to.  BUT, I'm now in corrective lenses of -1.0 with an astigmatism.  

Yesterday started my very short journey to (hopefully) my enhancement surgery.  I had to have a full dilation exam, where they use stronger drops than normal (which is why I still look weird).  My eyes should be back to normal sometime today.  And, next Wednesday, I have my official "consultation" to make sure my cornea is thick enough to correct again.  If so, I have my second LASIK surgery next Friday!  It will be at no cost.  I am nervous about many parts, mostly because its the second time around.  Keep me in your thoughts, and I'll keep you posted!

This year's Lego Friends Advent Calendar

Last year, for the first time, we bought a Lego Advent calendar and it was so much fun.  We bought the more traditional City version.  It has a little window that you open each day with a small little lego "trinket" that you put together, and by the end you have a whole scene, with the last day being Santa.  Of course, some days are better than others.

This year I bought early and got the Friends version.  We have only opened the first three so far, but they are so cute!

Day 1 was the character, Day 2 was the snowmobile:

Day 3 was the light post with holly on it:

If you are interested, the City site also has games and an advent mini-video for each day of their advent calendar (even if you don't have it, it would be fun).  We did it last year- here is the link.

You can also MiniFig your family, which I did, because it was fun.  :)  (and no, I'm not working for Lego, it's just fun)

What are you doing for fun around the house to prepare?

Haircuts and Sight Words

Yesterday was haircut day for the girls.  They were very overdue.  I know we do haircuts more than some parents of girls, but with their short cuts, they really start to look scraggly when it gets grown out.  The girls got to choose how much they wanted to trim off, and they both trimmed it back up to chin length.  I think they feel like new ladies today!

This morning, Lily and I are just hanging out.  Thursdays seem to be the one morning of the week that we regularly get to take it easy.  I look forward to it.  Today she is playing with her "Sight Word Flashcards."  I bought them a week or two ago because she was starting to get really interested.  As usual, she surprised me on how many she just knew all on her own.

Here is a stack of them that she says she knows with no practice this morning... 22 of them (then she counted them).  I still don't know how she picks it all up.  Kids are sponges.  Proof that lots of reading is effective, I guess.  :)  Read to your kids!

A Whirlwind Weekend and Beautiful Annie

We had a crazy, whirlwind weekend.  Abby had a gymnastics meet on Saturday at our home gym.  Because it was our home meet, we had to work a session.  I worked as floor timer during the same session that Abby competed so I got to be close to the action.  The team stretched right next to me, so I snuck in some pictures.  (Her team is the one with the white jackets and dark pants with TGC on them.)  Abby is the one in the front row on the far right (she has pigtails with one pink ribbon and one blue).

After the meet was over, we grabbed lunch or breakfast at Cracker Barrel (half of us had lunch, half breakfast).  Then, in the car for 3 hours to see our brand new family addition!  We went straight to the hospital to see my sister and new niece, Annabelle Jane, or Annie.

I took the chance while i was there to get her out of her hospital issued shirt and make her girlie.  She is adorable.  I could just eat her up.  It's a good thing I only have to wait until Thanksgiving to see her again.  The girls LOVED her.

On Sunday, we raced home, with me on Twitter following storm coverage the whole drive with the crazy Midwest storms.  Scary.  Here is one shot at the edge of the line.  Sun on one side and storms on the other.  Luckily the worst of the storm missed our area of the county.  Many prayers for those it did not.

Leaves, leaves, leaves

As I type this, Matt is in the back yard, tackling the fall leaves back there.  We teamed up in the front, and then I had to head in to feed Lily lunch.  After I finish the blog, I'm about to head back out.  

I think we are the last on the cul-de-sac to get to it.  With Matt being out of town for over a week, and our travel out of town 2 weekends ago, we just haven't had time.  This is our first year with leaves like this.  This is definitely the disadvantage of the big trees!  The only good part of getting to it so late is that most of the trees are done dropping leaves, so our work should last.

This picture is from last weekend, but the background gives you an idea of the back yard's leaves.  Totally covered.  You can't see the grass at all.

Here is the from, after we started today.  Matt was blowing the leaves out of the flower beds and I was raking.  We were surprised how many bags we filled in the front, and it wasn't even very bad!  I'm jealous of communities that can just rake them out to the curb and they come get them.  We have to bag them, and it's a lot more work.  In our city, you can put up to 40 bags a week out during November and this week some of our neighbors had a lot.  I'll be curious how many we get.

Well, I starting to feel guilty, so I better get out there to help....  :)

UPDATED TO ADD:  I helped for about 35 minutes and now we're out of bags so we had to stop.  So close to begin done, and yet, not.  

Checking in

So the problem with taking a break from blogging is that it is always awkward when you finally come back to it.  What will be your first blog entry back?  Ah, the pressure!  There are times where you think, "I should blog that, and then you think, eh, that's not worth it."

So, here we are.  How about a catch up?  Here are some of our big moments and/or favorite pictures from my last check in....

Abby received her third grade Bible at church.  A very big deal.

A crisp morning at the bus stop.  I love this picture.

Lily has entered that magical stage where she is very into numbers and letters.  She can count to 100 and knows a few sight words.  She is a sneaky learner.  She surprises me every day with stuff she knows.

Abby came in second at her first meet of the season.  She is growing and doing so well this season.  She has a meet this coming Saturday.  I'm sure she'll do great again!

Another favorite picture of the girls with family friends.  Crazy kids.

Lily and cousin Bella playing in the cul-de-sac.  They had so much fun with each other during this visit.

My besties Lisa, Ann, and me.

The evidence left by one phone stealer.

Our first corn maze was a super fun success!

Lily always "thought" she knew the right way.

Trick or Treat at a special event at our local high school.  It was lucky we went because our Trick or Treat got stormed out.  :(

Lily listening to tunes in the car line at preschool.  I swear I didn't turn it up too loud.

Fall leaves!

Little sisters, I tell you.  I sent this to mine and told her they were always a problem.

Believe it or now, snow today.  Bleck.  But the girls loved it.