live for this

this is the stuff i live for.

believe it or not, i got to enjoy him like this for 30 minutes.

best 30 min. of my day.

don't know what i did to deserve it, but i couldn't keep my eyes off of him.

i tried to only kiss him every so often, to avoid smothering.

our wiener dog growing up hated that i kissed the side of his face so much that he would get up and move.

i didn't want the pork loin to get up and move, so i restrained myself.

i love his tummy.

i love his gushy chest.

i love his cabbage patch arms and the dimples on the tops of his hands.

i love the day after christmas.

the grandparents asked for these.

christmas eve:
white elephant gift follows.
i totally scored with what i got to keep.

brennan scored too.
christmas day:

i've never made jello salad before. it was really good.

things i learned on christmas:

white elephant gifts are funny...and fun. whichever.

the real work begins at 9:30pm on christmas eve.

if you run out of wrapping paper at 10:30pm on christmas eve, it is really great if you live in your cousin's basement.

"it's a wonderful life" is really sad.

i don't think i want to finish watching it.

maybe the ending is what makes it so wonderful?

i'm just as excited to wake up on christmas morning now as i was when i was 10.

doing all of the present clean up, all of the cooking, & all of the clean up from the cooking was a lot of work, even when you have a husband that helps with everything.

all of the work was worth it.

being home for the first time was bitter sweet. i missed my family, but it was really relaxing to be in my own home.

by the time it's dinner, not only am i not hungry, but i'm not in the mood to make dinner.

brennan ate mostly jello and cool whip for dinner. he doesn't eat on holidays. too much action.

there is no need for dessert on christmas. my dessert didn't turn out, and we still felt like we'd eaten dessert all day...b/c we had. yum, neighbor treats...

little boys are really funny with cars and play tools.

and boxes.

kids and boxes are funny.

my tummy makes a great hill to drive cars on. especially the Taz big wheel mega truck. ask brennan.

spending my remaining birthday money on the scout master's stocking and special holiday foods was worth the money. the baked brie made my holiday perfect.

so did a foot rub from the scout master.

glory be, my feet were sore.

almost 2 yr. olds can open one gift and play with that gift for a good 30 min-an hour before realizing there are other gifts they can open with MORE toys in them.

and then they can forget this newly learned fact and repeat the original pattern.

the scout master is really good at picking out socks and earrings.

grandparents and great grandparents are great at gift giving. brennan is a happy man. so am i. muchas, MUCHAS gracias family. thank you just isn't enough.

parents don't need to open gifts on christmas for it to be fun. besides, there is no time to open gifts for yourself anyway.

i loved pushing our couches out and letting brennan play in the big open space all day.

nemo may have been replaced by the "puppy movie." aka "101 Dalmatians." (thank you adam, kels, & jess).

my cell phone battery will not last past 3pm if i talk on it all morning.

if you plan to eat dinner at 6:30pm, it is smart to get dinner started before 6:14pm.

cheese fondue needs to be warming 1 hr before eating and meat fondue oil needs to be warming 30 min. before using.

if i want to make the rice pudding for dessert for christmas next year, i need to make the 1st part the night before, as the directions noted. trying to "hurry it up" two hours before will not work. the rice will not just "hurry up" and soak up the milk and sugar.

there are zero pictures of me on christmas day this year. at least i have my hannah montana wig picture as christmas memorabilia (big thanks to mary. rockin' white elephant gift girlfriend!).

i don't want to hear the mirah carey song again until christmas day next year. i may even need to skip her song next year all together.

all i want for christmas is exactly what i got: sean, brennan, and baby to be.

and my brie cheese. yum.

okay, okay, and the gifts were really fun too;-)

this means this.

this means:
this!

the pre-christmas day baking.

1. sweet potatoes (ryan tradition)

2. ham rolls (ryan tradition)

3. egg casserole (christmas morning breakfast, gibson fam tradition)
...

except i'm short cream cheese and cheddar cheese.

still don't know how this happened.

my list was meticulous.

oh well.

sent the scout master to the store.

as we speaketh he's fighting the christmas eve crowds at the grocery store.

ok, maybe it's not that dramatic.

good thing i figured this out at 9:30am, not 9:30pm.

bless him.

pork loin is crying at the door b/c he got left behind with me.

i think i'll try to wrestle some clothes on him while dad is gone.

i can smell his diaper from here.

his hives are gone this morning.

or lessened.

did i mention he made quite the spectacle scratching himself "THERE" at the aquarium yesterday?

all i could do was laugh...

and think of michael jackson.

b/c brennan looked like he was doing one of mj's dance moves to scratch.

merry christmas:-)

keep 'em coming

i love neighbor treats at christmas.

keep 'em coming people,

keep 'em coming.

NOTHING done {a small lie}

i think i might be pregnant.
this means three things:
1. Dr. N willing, i will be having a baby in 7 weeks instead of 9, like i did with brennan.
2. i have an excuse to do less (whether or not i take advantage of this is my own joy or demise).
3. my closets are super organized (usually done after the hours of 10pm).
with brennan's arrival due a month later than this one, i had EVERYTHING done by christmas.
except washing the clothes.
i wasn't a believer until the day before my induction in the washing of brand new clothes.
i love the way a new shirt looks.
andrea and bree convinced me i needed to.
i'm still not sure i needed to, but it gave me something to do and completed the nesting process.
funnest 4 loads of laundry of my life.
would my child really have died had i not washed his clothes?
i don't think so.
with this one, due a month earlier than brennan, i have NOTHING done.
ok, that's a lie.
i bought a set of binky's at walmart, a panda paciplushie (you must have this if you have a baby), and a pink coat on sale at the gymboree outlet store for $8.99 (marked down from $36, go me).
i've realized that it makes the time pass much faster this way.
the longer i put off getting ready, the closer and faster the little loinette seems to come.
plus, i've realized that when i bring said child home from the hospital:
a. she won't be sleeping in a crib with perfectly placed bedding for quite some time (please no offense first time moms that are currently pregnant and have done this months ago. i was there. it was necessary to do for the first pregnancy, and it is the BEST feeling to do it. happy nesting!).
b. my boobs and a binky are really all she needs.
(yes, i give my baby a binky before 6 weeks of age. gasp! i do not believe in nipple confusion. i believe in the sanity of a mother to not be used as a binky.)
c. the bouncer and the play mat take under 5 minutes to reassemble from storage.
d. we can pick the car seat up from my mom's garage and install it the night before. until then, i'm using the space in the backseat for my groceries since the trunk is full of strollers.
(what am i going to do with my groceries when i have two carseats in the back???)
as far as the clothes washing, i'm sure i'll do it the week before.
until then, i have no where to put her clothes.
when "then" comes, i may still have no where to put her clothes.
this may take some creative organizing.
...
today's fears:
1. my body feels like i've already given birth when i wake up in the morning or have been on my feet a lot during the day.
what does this mean for what it will feel like when i actually do give birth?
2. i think i may have found varicose vein #2, just mm's away from varicose vein #1.
does this mean varicose vein #3 is coming too?
...
in other news...
the scout master has started studying for his board exam.
i still love mondays.
my most productive day.
we are all out of reese's sticks and baby ruths from halloween.
i've moved onto the peanut butter cups and butterfingers.
the peanut butter cups are wonderful (thank you keri).
i don't know why i used to love butterfingers so much.
they crumble all over and aren't nearly as satisfying as something with peanut butter.
halloween candy really is the gift that keeps on giving.
the budget is having a rough week with christmas menu items and two sippy cups breaking.
it's a good thing i had some birthday money left over.
it's just not christmas without the shrimp and baked bri.
worth EVERY penny.
brennan thinks curious george is the funniest thing around.
i give you,
a video clip:

stockings hung with care

grandma max was famous for her stockings at christmas.
if you were in the family, she made you one.
under one condition.
you had to be born or married into the family before any stocking making began.
it was bad luck to start making the stocking before a birth or before a wedding of an incoming family member.
our wedding in april gave grandma a run for her money in 2004, but she did not disappoint.
in fact, over the years it appears the stockings have grown in length.
sean and brennan's are a good 3 inches longer than mine, made over 20 years before.
extra oranges at the bottom of theirs?
a new pattern?
thicker yarn?
who knows?
just more room for santa to spoil them ;-)
when grandma max passed away in june we knew we were expecting.
i wished for a girl so i could call her max.
a name that meant grace, intellect, beauty, integrity, tact, love, impeccable grammar, and one hell of a cook.
pardon my french, as grandma max would say.
her motto with words was "less is more."
i hope baby max takes after her grandmother.
in all of her grace.
and i hope i can learn to knit.
or talk aunt mary into making one for our newest member.
new year's resolution?