ColdER? It gets COLD-ER??

When my parents and sister came to visit me for (I think) the second Christmas I was in Ukraine, they brought me a copy of the movie New In Town. It's a gem, if you haven't seen it. I love it because of how much I connected with Renee Zellweger's character when confronted with weather so vastly different from what she could comprehend, as that was my life in Ukraine come wintertime. Here's my favorite scene in the movie. I love it so much. It was so my life. 

The reason I mention it is because my brother-in-law, Tim, matched for his medical residency! 

What? You don't see the connection? 

That's fair. I'll back up. Tim is finishing his final year of medical school at UT Memphis, and, for what feels like forever, has been interviewing for residencies. I don't know how much you know about how matching for residencies works, but it is intense and complicated. It gave me horrible flashbacks to the Ph.D. process. Only I think it might be even worse. We've all been following Tim's saga for a while now. I can't even remember how many places he interviewed at. 15? 20? More than that? I lost count. Although, I would like to take this opportunity to mention that he interviewed at some truly impressive places, like Stanford, Penn, and Johns Hopkins. Yeah, he's a smarty. (Just like his brother. You know, the one getting his Ph.D. at DUKE.)

Anyway, I mention the New In Town clip because, much like Renee, Tim will be moving to Minnesota this summer. HE MATCHED FOR RESIDENCY AT THE MAYO CLINIC! Is that not incredible? He'll be training in Urology for the next several years with some of the top doctors in the world. Now, I'm not going to lie: we were hoping that he'd match somewhere closer (he interviewed at several places in the Southeast, which would have been reasonable drives), because Minnesota is just far. But, seriously: THE MAYO CLINIC. That's pretty top-notch. And, you better believe that I'll be dropping that into casual conversation. "You know, my brother-in-law? The one working at the Mayo clinic?" We've already taught Claire to recognize Minnesota on her map of the US, and she knows that it's where Takia will be living soon (side note: she can now recognize North Carolina, South Carolina, Massachusetts, Florida, Alabama, Tennessee, Texas, and Minnesota.).

All that to say, we are so proud of Tim and are really excited about the experiences that he's going to have over the next few years! Congratulations!

Super Tim!

Those ridiculously bright Boswell boys.

ALSO: Y'all, remember how I've mentioned Ibotta several times? I use it weekly and have made almost $50 since I started using it last June. WELL. I mentioned in my last post about it that the sign up bonus (after you redeem your first rebate) was $5. Friends, it is currently TEN DOLLARS (and I get $5 for referring you. Everybody is a winner!). You can cash out when you have $20 in your account, so the sign up bonus with my referral code gets you halfway to that point! And you can get rebates on stuff like produce, eggs, milk, and condiments. You should absolutely sign up, download the app, and start earning money back! 

Snow Days

We're back in the South, y'all, so we actually get snow days! With winter storm Jonas slamming the east coast, we got a bit of snow and a lot of sleet this past weekend. Claire, being the New England child that she is, LOVES winter weather (much to the chagrin of her winter-loathing Boswell kindred). I'm with Claire; I like having a nice round of winter weather. Thankfully, we have yet to lose power at our current location, so we're able to have really nice snow days. 

Our neighborhood is the perfect location for little kids to get out and play in the snow. There's very little traffic (even when there isn't snow on the ground), we live at the conjunction of a double cul-de-sac, and there's only one other family with a child, so it's not remotely crowded. We have a lot of retiree neighbors, so I imagine that they can enjoy the comfort of their homes while watching Claire and River (our neighbor) frolic in the snowy streets. Actually, I know this to be the case; every so often, a few of them will venture out to chat for a moment or two about how much fun the kiddos are having. Claire even made a friend with our next-door neighbor (who we rarely ever see); Brad, being the sweetheart that he is, cleared off her front porch, steps, and walkway, while Claire and I chatted with her. Claire was enamored with her wind chimes, so at the end of our conversation, she gave Claire a small wind chime of her very own.

This year was an interesting snow wardrobe year for Claire and me. Obviously, my winter wear is complicated by my current size (although I was able to cobble some decent stuff together), and Claire's snow gear is mostly outdated by a year. I just don't see too much reason to go buy her new snow gear for the 1-2 "good" snows we get each winter. So, we pulled together quite the ensemble.

What she's wearing: her fleece pajamas + additional fleece hoodie, 3 pairs of socks under her rain boots (thanks, Nana!), snow coveralls from last year (thanks, Aunt Donna!), this year's winter coat, 2 pairs of mittens (they aren't waterproof, so I layered), and her koala bear hat/scarf combo from last year (thanks, Aunt Sue!). She was well bundled...to the point that if she fell over, she needed help getting back up. Bless. Her face is also EXTREMELY sensitive to wind burn, so there's a layer of A and D on her cheeks.

Basically the extent of her range of motion.

There aren't any pictures of me, but I was able to pull together maternity leggings under a pair of jeans, Smartwool socks (after Ukraine and Boston winters, I swear by these socks), boots, long sleeved shirt under a sweater, a hat, and, surprisingly, my regular down coat. I could even zip it up. It's a smallish medium, so I was really proud of myself. Unfortunately, my time spent enjoying watching Claire play in the snow is coming back to haunt me. I'm in a good deal of hip pain (like, can barely move), thanks to all the careful maneuvering on the icy snow. Oi. Good news is that I didn't fall not even once.

Trekking around the neighborhood with our- equally well-bundled- friend and neighbor.

They both had a little difficulty in the movement department. All the parents got a kick out of watching them a waddle around.

We don't have a sled (intentionally. I don't want to store a big plastic sled to use once a year.). I took Claire out with a cookie sheet (which works fine!), but our neighbors took pity on her and pulled both kids around in their legit sled.

Then Jen (River's mom) got in on the action. She's tiny and adorable, so she could fit in there with the kids. I did not even consider trying.

This is a great shot of Claire about to do her favorite winter activity: snow eating. She's an odd child. She loves to eat snow. At one point, she was laying on her stomach on our porch, eating snow right off the deck. I didn't even bother trying to stop her. Parenting at it's finest, folks.

More snow eating. This was Friday before the snow and sleet really built up.

When it was all said and done, we got about 5ish inches of icy snow in our neighborhood. On Friday, we had just a couple inches of very powdery snow, but it sleeted on top of that for hours and continued to sleet all night, adding inches and a very slick top coat. You know how you can usually use the toe of your boots to break up packed snow? Not this kind. If you tried to kick it apart with your toe, your foot would just slip around. It was perfect for the kiddies to sled on (or rather, made it easier for the dads to slide them around). The continuous sleeting on Friday meant that our playtime was shorter than it might otherwise have been. It started hurting our faces, so we only played for about an hour.

Saturday morning "shubbling." (That's a beach shovel, by the way. When she saw Brad get out our snow shovel, she INSISTED on using hers, as well.)

The best I got when I tried to a get lovely, snowy shot in the front yard. Sigh.

Tools of the trade.

Helping uncover the vehicles on Sunday morning. We didn't end up getting to church, due to our extremely slick street. The main roads through Durham were probably ok, but we're pretty sure we wouldn't have been able to get out of our neighborhood. The ice/snow was about 4 inches thick on the cars and came off in enormous slabs.

Saturday morning shot of the undisturbed snow.

Brad was going to shovel off the steps, but we decided to let Claire slide down on the cookie sheet first. She wasn't entirely sure she enjoyed going that fast down something that steep. She's still thinking about it.

Sunday morning helper!

Action shot! If you squint, you can see the snow flying through the air.

The snow out our back door. There's a 4ish inch step down right there, so it built up quite a bit.

Just a dad and his ewok, checking out the conditions.

And then they decided to try sledding without a sled. 

It was a hit with the ewok.

I'm really glad we got a decent amount of snow, as Claire enjoys it so much. I was a little afraid that we wouldn't get anything, given the unreasonably warm winter we've had up to this point. Canceled classes also gave Brad a little extra time to catch up on some school work, which is always appreciated. Overall, it was a great weekend. Maybe we'll get one more round before winter is over. Maybe?

Around here lately: January 2016 edition

It's about time for another round of Stuff That Claire Says. She cracks us up on a daily basis with the things she comes up with, and I just don't want to forget it. So, without further ado:

While we were at my parents' house for Christmas, Amiee wanted a video of Claire reciting Isaiah 9:6, while standing reasonably still, so she gave her a Hersey Kiss. Claire LOVES chocolate, so this was a good bribe. A few days later, Claire was sitting on the pull-out couch with Amiee when she (Claire) found the bag of Kisses shoved down in a crevice. Without preamble, she held the bag out to Amiee and immediately started saying her verse, clearly expecting a chocolate-y reward. She catches on quickly, this girl! A few days later, at the Boswells', she spotted a lone Kiss laying out, pointed to it and started saying her verse to her unsuspecting grandparents. We're going to have to work on the concept that scripture is not to be used solely for candy acquisition.

when asking to wear someone's slippers: "May I wear your footprints?"

as we drove through the Bristol speedway, looking at Christmas lights: "We're on the racer track!"

through the monitor, after being told that someone was coming upstairs to get her: "Mommy, I'm going to wait patientwy.: 

cheering Brad on: "C'mon, Daddy! Go for it!"

at the Boswells', reflecting on the creek while standing in the kitchen: "I can't see the creek because I'm gone."

said any time the concept of a nap is mentioned: "But it's such a good morning!"

when driving back to Durham after Christmas, studying a road atlas in the car: "Mommy, I don't know where we live. Could you show me?"

to our little 19-month-old friend who doesn't yet speak in sentences: "Kari Beth, what you talkin' about?"

to the same little friend who was whimpering about her mommy being gone: "It's ok, Kari Beth. She'll be back in 15 minutes!" (she totally made up an arbitrary amount of time)

when confronted with an idea that she isn't sure about: "Let me think about this..."

when Brad and I were jointly assembling some part of the new entertainment center: "Oooh! Let me help, everybody!"

we're working on the 23rd Psalm: "The Lord is my shepherd, I don't be want."

at breakfast one morning: "I think I have a baby in my tummy. I'm a little bit sick." (it's a little bit telling that she associates feeling sick with having a baby in her tummy...)

One of the songs that I regularly sing to her right before naptime is "Let Me Call You Sweetheart." I used to tap a beat on her back while I sang it, and I guess I stopped sometime along the way. Well, she decided to take matters into her own hands and will tap it out on her stomach while I sing. She is very proud of herself when she does this.

following church nursery pickup, which has been a point of contention for some time: "I was a sweet girl at church!" (this means that she didn't scream or cry long enough for the nursery workers to page us!)

her personalized name for Belle from "Beauty and the Beast": Clairzabelle

laying on the couch, sprawled dramatically: "I'm dying, Daddy, I'm dying."

what she calls the matroshka pillow that Laura Kay made for her: My troska

her explanation to the nursery workers: "Mommy doesn't feel like nice because the baby is kicking her." 

while pressing her hand to my stomach: "Baby, come over here and kick my hand!"

"I heard the baby kick my hand!"

after hearing me count out some measurements in the kitchen: "Good job numbering, Mommy!"

while discussing Saturday breakfast with Brad: "And cows eat pancakes."

Her little mind really does come up with the funniest stuff! I wish I could just record her full time so that I don't miss anything (well, there are some moments that I wouldn't mind missing...like those whine/scream fests that rear up periodically). Looking forward to what she comes up with next!

New Baby update

I've never been one for pregnancy update pictures, so I don't have any of those to post in an update. There haven't been just a ton taken of me recently, and of the few that have, I do not approve of hardly any for public consumption. That being said, here are two:

I'm sort of hiding on the left side of the armoire. I was back there putting something on the mantle when Brad said he was trying to take pictures.

I was trying to get Claire to cooperate. I did a great job, obviously.

While I may not have pictures, I can tell you a little about how things are going. I'm in week 27, currently. Almost finished with 2nd trimester, which is simultaneously mind blowing (at how much closer we are to having another baby) and not surprising (because I feel like I've been pregnant for a really long time). I found out about this baby at about 5 weeks (maybe 4), so we've known for a while, making time seem like it's crawling sometimes. I'll have my glucose test in about two weeks, which, to my mind, signals that we really are getting down to the end. 

I also have an anesthesia consult coming up, to address some of the issues that caused so much trouble when Claire was born. For those that weren't reading my blog at the time, I had all manner of post-partum issues- almost all due to anesthesia. I have developed a pretty deep anxiety about it, even though that was almost three years ago. My doctors in Boston weren't able to come up with a conclusive reason as to why I had so much trouble, but the best guess is that the shape of my spine when pregnant is problematic. I asked for an epidural when in labor, and it took three attempts by two different doctors (three separate needle punctures) for it to take (and then it only worked for 30 minutes). Later, when my OB decided I needed a c-section, it took a third doctor three attempts (three additional spinal punctures) to insert my spinal block (which, again, did not work, leading to general anesthesia for the surgery). Post delivery, I developed a spinal headache from a wet tap I got during the earlier epidural attempts. To alleviate the headache, yet a fourth doctor attempted a blood patch (which is another spinal procedure). It took three punctures that time, as well, and I experienced relief for only two hours. 

All of the punctures and procedures really shook my nerves, and I developed a real fear of any future spinal intervention damaging my spine somehow. Maybe that's far-fetched, but for me, it's a concern. I'm planning on a scheduled c-section with this baby, which means I'll have to have anesthesia of some kind or another, so meeting with an anesthesiologist to discuss my concerns and options is helpful for me as I adjust. 

The baby is growing right on track and moves like a gymnast. I spend a lot of the nighttime hours awake, thanks to the roundhouse kicks that she's perfecting. Claire really enjoys talking to her and trying to get her to kick her (Claire's) hand. I'm not sure the baby actually has, but Claire's convinced that she gets kicked every time. The baby is really shy about moving for Brad, so he's only felt her move a few times, which is bizarre to me, seeing as how she moves ALL THE TIME for me. While it's frustrating not to be able to sleep, it's reassuring that she moves so much. At my last appointment, the midwife I saw checked the heart rate and commented that she's a "happy baby." I hope that's true.

During my pregnancy with Claire, my doctor was very attuned to my weight gain, and I ended up using MyFitnessPal like it was my job to monitor how many calories I was eating, hoping to keep my weight within the doctor's parameters. It was so stressful (and I found out later that I was retaining MASSIVE amounts of fluid, which added to the weight), and it made me pretty miserable. This time, the midwives have been encouraging me not to fixate on weight gain and just focus more on the quality of what I'm eating, and surprisingly, I'm gaining weight at a much slower rate. Yay!

We still don't have a name yet. This is very surprising to me, actually. We can't seem to land on just the right name yet. We talk about it periodically, but it isn't crunch time yet, so I guess we're taking it slow. Any name suggestions out there? We have a few that we've kind of narrowed it down to, but we're up for help, if you have any!

The baby isn't getting her own nursery, so I don't have a lot of decorating to do. For the first several months (while she's nursing at night, at the very least), she'll sleep in our room. Eventually, we're planning for the girls to room together, so instead of decorating a nursery, we'll be rearranging Claire's room to accommodate Baby Sister. We're working on some decor just for her (that will hopefully go along with Claire's themes). We didn't have a real nursery in Boston, so I never went all nursery-crazy and, rather, pulled together some fun things that were meaningful to me to surround Claire with. The goal is to do the same for New Baby. Maybe I'll take pictures of Claire's room to show you what I mean.

As far as how I'm feeling goes, I'm holding steady. The migraines have gotten quite a bit better, although I still get regular headaches and the occasional migraine (I missed church this week, thanks to one). The nausea is better. I'm still on regular medication, but it's able to keep things at bay much better in the 2nd trimester than in the first. I do have to stay on top of the medicine or it gets bad. I'm still extremely tired in the afternoons and haven't really gotten the fabled 2nd trimester energy boost (BUMMED about that. It didn't happen with Claire, either.). I've also started up some really uncomfortable sciatic-type pain. All normal things, so I'm not too concerned.

We're not having any showers or anything this time around (not living near family, having just recenty committed to a church, and having a rather scattered group of local friends), and thankfully, we don't need too much. Since we're having another girl, we're pretty good on clothing, which is nice. We've also had several family members give us some sweet gifts of clothes, hair accessories, and baby necessities. Thanks, family! We've registered for a few things, but mostly so that we can buy them with a registry completion discount after the baby comes. We're totally planning to cloth diaper again, but we know that the baby may not fit in them for a few months (Claire didn't fit until 4 months). Thus, we added diapers to our registries so that we can get a discount while we need them. Same goes with some nursing supplies that I used regularly last time. Grad school penny pinching, y'all! 

I think that's all of the information of interest. Any other 2nd trimester questions I can address? I'm doing a lot of reading up on preparing for a scheduled c-section, which I'm finding to be helpful, and I've started pseudo-nesting, I guess. Or maybe I just think the house needs a good cleaning. Either way, Claire and I have been working around the house. She's a great helper.

Thanks to everyone who prays for me and checks in on how I'm doing. It means so much to me. Looking forward to having new baby pictures to post for you!

Christmas 2015: Alabama edition

We left Johnson City on the 21st and headed to Sweet Home Alabama. Having gotten Chick-Fil-A gift cards from Tennessee Santas (thank you!!), we decided to stop at a CFA outside of Knoxville for supper on our way south. Picking a random CFA off of Google Maps turned into us going to the one located smack in the middle of the Turkey Hill shopping center. 4 days before Christmas. I'll leave to your imagination the CRAZY that was traffic. It was terrible.

To make that (extraordinarily long) stop even more fun, our mostly potty-trained child had a blow out in her pull up (Praise the Lord I still insist on putting her in double pull ups when traveling). Completely unexpected and unsuspected. It wasn't until I got her into the bathroom (not the nice, roomy, handicap stall with the changing table- that one was in use) and helped her pull down her pants did I find out about this blow out. It was just everywhere. Thankfully, I had a spare pull up and an anti-bacterial hand wipe or two in my purse. I had to do all of this with Claire standing up, which was, um, challenging. Oi. She was wearing leggings underneath a tutu, so I was able to (oh so carefully) peel her leggings off, and she was still "dressed," albeit oddly. Brad was rather confused as to why it took us so long in the bathroom, but when he saw my face, he figured it out pretty quickly. At least we got to eat Chick-Fil-A as a reward for the Mess That Was That Dinner Stop.

Christmas in Alabama was a little different this year, as my sister had to have surgery around her tailbone about a week before Christmas. This left her on her stomach or side full-time for the entire time we were there (plus a while before and after, bless). Mom and Dad set Amiee up in the living room on the pull out couch, so that she could still be in the middle of the action. Claire thought it was so fun that Bo (what she calls Amiee) had a compound in the middle of the room and spent a lot of her time keeping Bo company. She was constantly asking if she could go see/talk to/kiss/eat with Bo. Thankfully, Amiee loved it; otherwise, she would have just been trapped in place with lots of enthusiastic affection. Due to Amiee's immobility, we kept our Christmas outings and frolicking to a minimum, since Amiee couldn't participate in much of anything. 

Some of my frolicking consisted of going to the dentist and getting my haircut. I was very excited about both of these appointments, as I've had tooth trouble for about a year and a half (despite two different dentists giving me two different fillings on the same tooth in two different states), and the only haircut I've had in Durham was TERRIBLE. Like, genuinely bad. I'm not too precious about haircuts in general, given that my hair grows pretty quickly, but this one was just dreadful. So, having my favorite dentist take a look at things and the guy who has been cutting my hair since I was 11 fix things was awesome.

On Christmas Eve, Dad, Brad, Claire, and I participated in the Brassart family tradition of attending the Vespers service at church. It's definitely a favorite, and it was super sad that Amiee and Mom couldn't join. It's a sweet little service where we sing a few songs, Bro. Jimmy invites all the children up to the platform, reads the Christmas story, and we disperse. It's only half an hour long, which is unexpected for newcomers. Claire went for her very first Christmas two years ago, as a 10-month-old, so this was a vastly different experience, given that she's so much bigger. She really enjoyed looking around the sanctuary (it's quite large and has a lot of decorations up at Christmas), and my dad took her down to the front for the Christmas story. I was a little concerned that she would be overwhelmed or scared (she does that sometimes), but she seemed to really enjoy it. She's quite the extrovert, so I imagine she tapped into that facet of her personality.

The kiddies listening to the Christmas story.

Christmas carols with Poppy at Vespers.

Our traditional picture with Bro. Jimmy (minus Amiee :( ) Also, please note that I'm laughing and Claire's sticking out her tongue. This was the best we got.

And one with Brad. Bro Jimmy insisted.

Sweet friends who even brought Claire a Christmas present! She loves it.

After the service was over, I was trying hard to say hi to and hug lots of favorite friends that I hadn't seen in a while, but it's HARD when it's Christmas Eve and very crowded. I felt like I didn't get to give anyone any real quality attention or conversation. However, I found out that my child is quite popular among a lot of folks that she'd never met. I guess her presence on social media has sparked a lot of interest in family friends who had never had a chance to meet her. THANKFULLY, she rose to the occasion and spoke to everyone, smiled a lot, and gave hugs when prompted (this isn't always the way things pan out, so I was relieved). I sort of felt like she had celebrity status. And, I think she rather liked it. How disconcerting... She also enjoyed running around the sanctuary (as it emptied) with the child of a high school friend of mine (how weird is that??).

After Vespers, we headed home for our traditional chili supper (in the midst of a not-so-traditional tornado watch), which we paired with a "Happy Birthday, Jesus" cake. To say Claire loved it would be a massive understatement. She continued to love it for the next few days as we polished off cake leftovers. So. much. sugar. She didn't go to sleep until after 10. CENTRAL time, which means 11 Eastern (which her body clock runs on)...

...and then she woke up before her normal time (7:00). I guess that's normal for kids on Christmas Day. The rest of us, however, were tired. Because we're grown-ups (that's code for getting older. And one of us suffers from pregnancy-induced insomnia.). Brad and I kept Claire contained as long as we could (about half an hour), and it was hard work. She'd been walking around for weeks, singing "ARRRE YOU READDDY FOR CHRISTMAS DAY TO COMMME??" from the Curious George Christmas movie, and it had finally come! Her enthusiasm was terribly cute and contagious. 

We participated in another Brassart Christmas tradition: the Christmas story before opening gifts. She waited far more patiently than I expected while Daddy read the Christmas story (as in, the real one. From the book of Luke).

Amiee's dog, Winnie, was also there for Christmas! Winnie is adorable, and we all enjoyed having her around. Claire particularly enjoyed playing with both her and Bingley, my parents' Corgi (who is also adorable). For those who want to know (and most people do), Winnie is a Miniature Teddy Bear Goldendoodle. She has her own Instagram account, which I highly recommend following: Winniewoodle. It will brighten glum days.

Here's Claire being possessive of Winnie. Poor, Winnie. She was such a good sport. Also, notice Amiee's pillow fortress. Partially used to prop her up and partially to protect her from Winnie and Claire.

Then we did presents! We all got lots of fun stuff (ahem, I got a Harry Potter adult coloring book and I love it), and Claire really enjoyed the unwrapping/taking turns process. She got a xylophone (just like Betsy from Curious George!), Disney princess dolls (she hasn't actually seen Disney princess movies other than Frozen but she really likes her dolls), a View Master (remember those?), and some rain boots (BIG HIT). Alabama Santa also brought her another pair of boots that are cuter than any of mine. What's the deal, Santa? Amiee gave Claire a complete set of Ramona Quimby books, which I am pumped about reading with her in a few years. Amiee has been starting Claire's bigger kid book collections, and it's awesome. She now has Ramona and Anne of Green Gables (which I am almost counting down the days until she's old enough for us to read...not really because her getting older makes me sad). 

Brad and I are totally turning into parents (I mean, other than the fact that we already have a child and another on the way), as evidenced by our favorite gifts: Costco membership renewal and museum membership renewal. Yippee! We can go spend the morning at the museum and follow it with a hot dog from Costco. Perfection. We also each got massages (!), which we totally loved. Thanks, Alabama Santas! Oh, and my dad picked out gifts for Amiee and me- all by himself- that are fantastic! They're candles in beautiful tea cups. Good job, Daddy! New Baby even got a few gifts.

Love.

Claire took this one. She's working on her photography skills.

She took this one, too. Brad wasn't actually angry; he was mimicking Claire's favorite face to use these days. Also, this is the only picture I got of Amiee the whole time. At least it's a cute one.

Brad got another kitchen tool that he enjoyed wielding. Have I ever written about Brad's culinary skill set? If not, I should.

Hanging with Nana, post-present opening.

Due to all the tornadoes hitting the southeast on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, the weather on Christmas Day was extremely rainy and there was quite a bit of flooding throughout the county. My grammy, aunt, and uncle were going to come over for Christmas afternoon, but with standing water in the streets, we all decided it would be best if they stayed put. After Tennessee Tornado 2008, our family does not play fast and loose with severe weather.

Despite all the yucky weather, our college friend, Nathan, drove up from Birmingham to meet us for lunch on the 26th (the weather had calmed down a lot). It was so fun to catch up with him (even if Claire was being a toot that day) and share queso at one of our favorite Huntsville Mexican restaurants. Three cheers for friends who stay friends nearly a decade post-college!

Much movie watching took place while in Alabama; partially because we have a lot of Christmas movies we traditionally watch and partially because Amiee was immobile and had few other outlets. We watched the original 3 Star Wars again with the family (not out of tradition but because the new one had just come out), and of course, Claire clamored for multiple viewings of Jimmy Fallon and crew doing their Star Wars thing. Bo, being the doting aunt that she is, obliged many times. We also worked our way through All I Want for Christmas, White Christmas, Home Alone 1 and 2, and Family Man.

Because of Claire's deep and abiding love of Christmas lights and decor, my parents made sure that she got to go to the Galaxy of Lights at the Botanical Gardens and to a nearby outdoor mall that goes all out for Christmas. She absolutely LOVED it.

Gi-normous reindeer made of lights.

Mesmerized.

Telling us about the star. That shines down on Bethlehem where Baby Jesus was born.

Kisses for Poppy.

And to make things even more fun, there was a TRAIN!

We did Christmas with my mom's side of the family a couple days after Christmas and then with my dad's side a couple of days after that. It was fun to watch Claire play with my cousins' children (all girls on one side, 3 girls and 1 boy on the other) while we got to catch up with cousins, aunts, uncles, and my grammy. Also: Mom and Dad gave the cousins on Mom's side hula hoops for Christmas and made sure they had one for Claire, as well. She became extremely attached to her "circle," to the point of insisting that it sleep beside her bed at night (next to the ukulele from Ray Ray). She has a problem, y'all. She got really fun and thoughtful gifts (as did we) from our extended family, as well. Including a tractor blanket made by little cousins. They had seen a picture on Instagram of her riding Grandpa's tractor, knew she liked tractors, and made her a pink John Deere blanket. So sweet.

Little cousins on Mom's side. Claire actually cooperated for these pictures. I was floored. I think it was the positive peer pressure.

Just hanging out and eating apples.

The blanket inspiration picture.

Kisses from Grammy.

With Grammy and the little cousins on Daddy's side. Getting this shot was kind of miraculous. Brad took it, so GOOD JOB, BRAD!

We had a fantastic time in Alabama, despite the lousy weather and Amiee being out of commission. Both sides of our family are so incredibly wonderful, and we miss them so much. Thank you, Mom, Dad, and Amiee for such a lovely Christmas week. We had so much fun with you and were very sad to leave. Can't wait for your next visit!

And...I leave you with a doozie of a Claire story. Throughout Advent, Brad and I worked with Claire on memorizing Isaiah 9:6. She did very well memorizing it and really enjoyed reciting it for people. She still asks to recite it during evening prayers (even though we've moved on to learning Psalm 23. We let her say it every time, by George). Amiee got a great video of her saying it and posted it to Facebook and Instagram, if you want to see it (and you follow Amiee). Anyway, a family friend came over one night to visit Amiee, and while she was there, Claire quoted Isaiah for her. When she finished, she oh so dramatically, put her hand on her chest AND BOWED HER HEAD AS IF SHE JUST FINISHED A SHAKESPEAREAN SOLILOQUY. I was simultaneously overcome with giggles and horrified. I made sure to clarify that we did NOT teach her to dramatize her recitation. Oh my. It was such a spectacle. I kind of wish I had a video.

Now look at that: I finished up all the Christmas posts before January is even over. Who am I?? Here's hoping and can keep up the regular blog posting. (crosses fingers)

Oh! And here's a picture of yet another item that Claire became inexplicably attached to:

She kept calling it "Poppy's Robot." Who knows why...