Now the other side

I posted Christmas photos from the Heubner side, so now I have to do justice to the Trunnell side.
If you didn't know, Amber is a horse nut. She has clothing with horses on it, likes to paint horses, make horse, anything horses. So she was very excited to get this horse barn with a couple of horses from Grandma Muffie and Grandpa Mark. I think that Grandma B gave her some horses. (She also got a couple of horses from her parents).

Ashley got a doll, similiar to the American girl. She had a bed and wardrobe with clothes in it. I don't think she has let go of her yet. :)

Addie got a Little People A to Z zoo. It has 26 animals that make their sounds as well as say what letter they start with.

Alex got the engine to his train. He had the zebra, so grandma gave him the giraffe engine with the elephant and monkey. If you push the right button it will move around the room. He was very excited by that.

Just a few presents..

Oh yeah, just a few! Ha! Ha! Well, every year Bill and I discuss that our kids have so much and that our family is so blessed, and yet every year they all get so much for Christmas presents. Now let me say, this year I think we did better than ever at not ending up with just silly stuff and each one received something that they really, really wanted and would actually use. But we still always look at everything and ask ourselves, do we really need all of this? So if any of you have some cool things that you do each year to help your kids with this idea, I would love to hear them. We do have the kids go through their stuff every year and we do give a lot of the nicely used things to goodwill or garage sale them.
Anyhow, these are a couple of things that the munchkins got.
Alex got a walker/rider from Grandma Kris and Grandpa Frank. We really didn't think that he would be able to do this very well since he has just started walking around the coffee table and walking up and down the side of the couch. But surprisingly he did very well, only one fall. And he loved it. Bill couldn't get a picture of his face because he kept turning, but he was grinning from ear to ear.

Addie waited all Christmas for this present: a watch. At our family Christmas, and the Trunnell Christmas she didn't get it, and when she was asked if she got everything she wanted, she would say, well, I really want a watch. Aunt Sara came through and gave her a cool watch that opens up, although today she hasn't worn it because she doesn't like it on her arm. :) Kinda funny!

Amber and Ashley received several neat things, but they also had a shared present for the two of them. Aunt Sara bought them Design World. This is a game that you hook up to your TV and you design your own world (imagine that!). They were both thrilled and Aunt Sara even thought about the batteries, so we were able to have it up and running that night. So far we haven't heard any disagreements about whose turn it is, or who got to do this last time.

Our Christmas

This was Alex's first Christmas. He really enjoyed opening up presents, especially tearing the wrapping paper. I don't think that he really cared about the present underneath the paper, he just liked the sound the paper made when he tore it.

Alex had his big surgery today (circumcision). He was at the hospital at 6:30 AM and we left about 10:00 AM. He was in surgery about 45 minutes and everything went well. He did not like coming out of the anestethia at all. He cried for about 25 minutes straight. The nurse said that most children are disoriented and confused and don't know why they feel weird. They gave him some morphine to help him calm down and he finally slept about 10 minutes until the doctor came to check on the stitches. We got him home and he ate another bottle and then I rocked him to sleep and he slept for about 3 1/2 hours. This afternoon and evening he has been crawling around and playing, pretty normal appetite and attitude. Just as long as nobody touches his bottom.

Healthy

We are all healthy at our house now, and that is something to be thankful for. Alex had a bout with the stomach flu and spent 4-5 days with horribly bad diapers. Up the back, out the sides, out the front - it was all bad! Other than the bottle, he wouldn't take anything. Which was really frustrating because we have been working really hard to have him gain weight and I know he has gained about 4-5 pounds since coming home. I was worried that in 5 days he would lose what took us months to put on. Bill says that I have issues with food, because when we were dating and he would come to my parents house my mother and grandmother would always want to know if he needed something to eat?...to drink?...anything? :) He says that I am a food pusher like my mother and grandmother. I don't think that is true at all. I mean, just because I give Alex food when he fusses, whimpers, moans, blinks, sniffs, and breathes, doesn't mean I am a food pusher!! :) Ha! Ha!
So now we are back to normal, or whatever it is that we are everyday. We are looking forward to a nice Christmas break. We get out of school next Thursday at 2:30 and we go back Jan. 3rd. We have a couple of projects that we want to get done, but I think we will have several days to just relax and hang out at home. This will probably drive Bill crazy, since he would rather be going and doing instead of sitting and relaxing.
Sunday we will be having our church Christmas program. Everyone is involved, Bill and I have to say part of the Christmas Story. Amber and Ashley have some parts in the little kid program and Addie has to say one line with Ty, her good buddy and partner in crime (he went to the old babysitter with us). I am sure that will be very interesting. If anyone would like to come it is at 6:30 pm. No obligations however. I am glad though that we are doing this before Christmas week. I don't know, but the older I get the more I am irritated when things interfere with family time during the holidays. I don't like the scheduled programs that require the family to choose, do we go to the program or stay home as a family and create a special tradition that way. I much prefer Christmas time with the family at home, enjoying each other's company. Sara, you would approve of this I am sure.
Well, we are off to a basketball game tonight. Alex has done very well at the last two games. He has lasted through both varsity girls and boys games. He rather enjoys the noise and activity and just sits and watches everything on mom and dad's lap.
Have a safe weekend!

I have updated my blog to the beta-blogger. I hope that this works, since I cannot see the changes I made today yet, I am a little worried. I guess that I will have to wait until tomorrow and then see if it worked.
Oh well!

I Know it has been a long time

There are so many days that I think about posting, but so many of them, I end up doing something a little more important. You know, work, laundry, feeding people...:)
I have a couple of fun picutres for you to look at. Ashley has recently lost her third tooth. It is her second top tooth. She told me that now she could sing "All I want for Christmas is my two front teeth", for real. She now talks with a little lisp and when she starts a sentence, there is usually a little click, from her tongue hitting the empty space. It is very cute.


Both Amber and Ashley signed up at school to help the high school cheerleaders during a home basketball game. They were picked for last night's game. They arrived at 4:00 pm. at the gym and met the cheerleaders. They had their hair done, makeup done, and learned some of the new cheers. They got to practice using the big signs too. The cheerleaders gave them supper and then had powerade and popcorn for them during breaks. We went to the game last night to watch them and take pictures. It was great! They would come out on the court during time-outs and halftime and use the big signs and hold them up for the crowd. Ashley told me at one break that this cheerleading stuff is very neat, it's a lot of fun to do AND it gives you lots of great excersice. She thought those were two important things in an activity. I have a feeling that Ashley might be a cheerleader someday, to the dismay of her father. :) Although Amber had a great time too.


Alex is really growing. He is scooting all over the house. A couple of times I have seen him up on hands and knees and couple of days ago, he took a few steps with his hands and then went down on his belly. The other night we were doing laundry (Bill and I) and Alex decided to crawl over to us. He went under my legs and put his head right in the corner of the basket. He laid there and cried and cried. I am not sure if he thought he was stuck, or if he was mad that he couldn't move the basket with his head, but he wouldn't move back or turn around for the longest time. He just stayed there and cried. A minute or two later he turned himself around and crawled away. :) What a goofball!


Addie has decided that she is a big girl and the other day had to wear a real necklace. Not a children's bead necklace, or a necklace that would light up, but one of Ashley's "real" necklaces that has an A on it. She was very pleased and said, Mommy take a picture of me, so she posed. Addie is really becoming a big girl, but definitely still has moments of being a little girl.