Another example of how Caden is just like me: when he saw he was getting a hot dog for lunch, he started giggling and clapping his hands. When I wasn't getting it cut up fast enough, he started saying, "Biite" and signing "Please."

Ah, it's been a long time since I've blogged. I kept meaning to, but then a child would scream or I was trying to pack, or I was in KY with no internet. Anyway, we're back home now after a wonderful visit with the family! We had a party every night and then a great Christmas Eve! That was our day with Tim, Laura, Grace, and Holden. They came over for lunch and stayed until late so we got a wonderful visit! The boys are both blessed beyond measure and had so much fun! It's fun for us that Corban is starting to get Christmas. He definitely knows that Christmas is Jesus birthday, he kept telling everybody that he and his Daddy got the Christmas tree for Jesus birthday. But he's also starting to get Santa. We are doing Santa - some in his family don't, but I told him if he took Halloween away from me, I was doing Santa. I feel like I grew up doing Santa presents and I still knew the importance of the real reason we were celebrating.

Mom and Dad's new house is really nice, it was great to get to be there and not trying to go back and forth between other places. It was still a bit of a "camping" experience because they aren't totally finished with the inside work. We were mostly in the partially finished basement where she has a TINY kitchenette, but our bedrooms are all upstairs - no doorknobs on any doors! The boys both slept pretty well the whole time we were gone and have done decently since we came back. In fact, the little one is just now waking up and he went to bed very early last night. He's not "sick" but I don't think that he feels very good. Poor baby :(

Today Johnny is fishing, I'm hoping he doesn't get snowed in! We've got about 3 inches on the ground down here (he's up near Erie) and I'm debating going out to Target and the mall this morning. Friday we're having the group over for New Year's Day dinner - pork roast and sour kraut. I think Thursday we're just going to stay in. Di asked us over, but it's so hard with the boys, and we wouldn't be able to stay the whole time anyway. I can't believe that it's almost 2010! Didn't any year in the 2000's sound like they would never get here when we were younger, and now we're a decade in. I can't even begin to go back and do a "year in review" like Kim did (you must keep an incredibly detailed calendar!), but I know that my boys are growing up so fast and that we have been blessed as a family this year. We have a wonderful family, wonderful friends and church family, and God has given us all we need. There might be some things we wish we had sometimes, but when we think of what we do have, we can't help but acknowledge that all the good things we have been blessed with are not of our own doing, but come from Him. That's pretty comforting, that He is the one in control, not me!

One week until Christmas! Of course, by this time next week, my Christmas will pretty much be over. We're coming in on Monday, having the Brunker get-together that evening. Tuesday evening will be the Jenkins side I believe and we're doing our family Christmas on Christmas Eve. We'll just have a few things for the boys on Christmas Day then. Does anybody know if the Horse Park is open with the lights on Christmas Day? If it is we might think about heading up there. This has been a pretty decent week for us. Tuesday we had Bonnie keep the boys in the morning so that Johnny and I could finish up the boy's Christmas and then we were even able to eat a nice lunch together. Since then I've just been doing my normal thing. I didn't bake at all this year, and I'm totally fine with that! I'm finished with the wrapping and just have to wash clothes and pack, which I will do this weekend. I've been having to try to get out of the house quite a bit this week because the church's computer is being worked on so Johnny has needed to work from the house, which is next to impossible with the kids around. I'm headed to the gym for the third day in a row in a few minutes when Johnny gets back from running some errands.

I just listened from the other room while Corban and Caden did the "hot dog dance" at the end of Mickey Mouse Clubhouse - they sang along too and it was funny!

We had a good MOPS this morning, it was the Christmas brunch. A local minister spoke to us for a few minutes and then we wrapped the presents that we had bought for a local neighborhood ministry. Both boys were really good I think, so that always make me feel better. We came home and Johnny helped us get lunch around and the boys down for naps and then we watched a few shows while I wrapped presents of my own! I have emptied 5 rolls of paper - mostly leftover rolls from last year - in the last two days. The boys are loving their swords! No big plans for the rest of the week except Johnny is going hunting again on Saturday.

Kim, I'm not planning to buy any uggs for anybody, but I must say that they are probably more utilitarian up here than down there. I am looking for something really warm that I can pull on when I have quick trips to make around town.

Today on the way home from MOPS Corban and I were singing "Jesus Loves Me." He does it really well by himself now and it just always makes me smile. After that I started singing "Away in a Manger" for the first time around him and realized that he was singing along! I asked him where he learned it and he said at Church. My boys are growing up so quickly! I can't believe how big they are and how grown up they are both acting. Pictures and video to follow hopefully!

Today I went Christmas shopping! I think I'm just about finished except for the boys. Johnny and I are going to try to go sometime together, but not sure if that's going to work out or not. He kept the boys this morning while I went out. He took them to get haircuts and then to the mall to play and eat lunch. Corban's hair is a little too short for my taste and Caden's could have used a little more taken off. Oh well. Now I have to wrap all the the presents and figure out how to get them to KY, and Thursday morning I've got MOPS. I'm looking forward to it, but it's a brunch so we're all taking food, plus the gifts for the MOPS workers, plus the kids. It's hard to get in the door with all of that sometimes! Saturday Johnny is going hunting ALL DAY again.

The other day Corban told me that Jesus was his best friend, makes me feel like I'm doing something right. They've both kind of been handfuls lately. I try to keep telling myself that Corban is only 2 1/2, but that doesn't help my attitude with him sometimes! Caden is generally such a sweetie, but he definitely has a stubborn streak - wonder where he gets that? (ha ha). Yesterday we had Luke, Nadine, Diana, and Joshua over. Caden called Luke "Mama" three times, and he never calls me that - he calls me "Daddy!" Corban was so excited to get to hold Joshua and is always very careful with him. Having my two and then a little one in the house makes me realize we definitely need to wait a while before we have #3 - I don't think I could be alone right now with the two I've got and an infant! And going out would be out of the question too!

Today was Caden's 15 month check-up. Yes, I know that he is 16 months old, but we had to reschedule one when we came to KY in August, so this is when it worked out to be. Caden is 31 inches, and 22 1/4 lbs. His height is in the 34% and his height weight is in the 14%. Still cracks me up how different his percents are from Corban, he never had anything below 75%. The doctor said everything looks good and Caden got 3 shots. One of them was the booster for his regular flu shot. They actually offered the H1N1, but I declined. I'm not against it, but he was getting 3 already, he doesn't go to school or daycare, and it's on the decline now anyway. My baby boy didn't make a peep when he got his shots. I don't thin he's ever really cried when he got them, but this time he honestly just looked at us. Again, much better than Corban's last shot. I didn't hold his hands tight enough when he got his flu shot last Tuesday that he reached for the thing and broke the needle. The nurse yelled at me and Corban freaked.

I'm hoping that Johnny will take Corban to go get our Christmas tree today. It's killing me that it's not already up and if we don't get it today it will be Sunday before we can. And at that point we will only have 2 weeks before we're leaving for KY. Maybe he can even get our outside lights up, I bought old school big colored lights for outside. For the last few years I've had lighted snowflakes, but they were crap and I didn't want to spend that kind of money again. I don't know about the rest of you, but I am sick and tired of spending money on stuff that doesn't last. And knowing that the same types of things (i.e. Christmas lights) used to last forever.

I also need a new crockpot. Does anybody have one that they're just in love with? I think mine that I melted might work, but I'm a little afraid to take the chance!

We had a pretty good week. We left Tuesday evening for Johnny's parents for Thanksgiving. They're in the house now that they are going to be caretakers of until the owners either sell or move back. It's a really nice house with lots of space inside and out. We were short on bedrooms - Johnny and I ended up giving Corban the king size bed in the master bedroom, put Caden in the closet in his pack and play, and we slept on a mattress on the floor in the loft. It was a good week though, John bought the 4 wheeler from the owners, so they spent lots of time riding around on that and Corban got to ride his tricylce lots out in the empty garage. Friday Libby and I went shopping early(ish) and then they all came out to the house and we had our Christmas that evening. It's fun to see Abby and Corban get excited over their new toys and the Christmas tree and all that.

Now I can't wait to get my Christmas tree and to get the rest of my shopping done. We'll be headed to KY three weeks from tomorrow!