I thought I had it all worked out. I planned what thought was a reasonable amount of things to get get done this holiday season. I knitted some gifts this summer knowing that once Herbie arrived I wouldn't be knitting or sewing much. I scaled back the baking this year. I was so proud of myself for being realistic about what I could get done as apposed to what I wanted to get done. Yet here I am at 5 am on Christmas Eve, after having gone to bed at midnight, trying to finish things up.
To add to the fun the family has been fighting a cold. First Ruby had it and it turned into an ear infection. She finishes her antbiotics tomorrow. Then me followed closely by Chris. Then on Monday Herbie started coughing. I was hoping Herbie would avoid it because he was getting immunities from me. He by far has the most mild case. Since we don't know how to handle a healthy new born I went ahead and brought him in to see Dr. Dan. Herbie is a bit congested and has a cough. Other than that he is all smiles.
We are are all really happy about the way Ruby fought the cold off, too. This is the first cold and flu season that she will be exposed to things. Her preschool class is small, 8 kids. They wash hands a lot. Hopefully she'll continue to do just fine. It's time for her live the life of a normal kid.
Chris got an early Christmas gift. A new camera.
Our friends Heather and Kenny hosted a Chilli cook off last weekend. Ruby had a blast running around and playing with the piano.
As you can see above Ruby got a haircut. Last Saturday we had some Mommy and Ruby time. We got her hair cut, went to Whole Foods for a cookie, and did some Christmas shopping. Ruby was so cute. She held my hand in the store and didn't need to be strapped into a cart. She picked out her cookie. She sat at the table like a big girl and we talked about the fish in the fish tank. Afterward we picked out a gift for Daddy. She really is turning to a sweet little girl. The alone time together did both of some good.
We've been busy getting ready for Christmas. As ready as you can be with toddler and a new born. We put up a tree last weekend and Ruby was so excited. Her only reference for holidays is Halloween. As Chris was bringing the tree inside Ruby was running around saying "Merry Trick or Treat!". We turned on some Christmas music, made cookies, and decorated the tree. Ruby exclaimed many times "Ruby HAPPY". She loves the tree. She brought all of her engines over to see it. She told baby Herbie about it. Every morning she comes out and looks at all the ornaments and lights. She LOVES the lights. It's so much fun this year watching her get so excited. Herbie loves the tree, too. His favorite place to chill out is in his swing in front of the tree. The light mesmerize him long enough for me to cook dinner most afternoons.
Sadly we don't have any good pictures of the tree decorating. They are all to blurry. Chris has ordered a new fancy camera. So hopefully in the next few days we'll have some nice pictures of the kids and the tree.
Ruby really likes "making" things in the kitchen. I was baking cookies yesterday for our neighborhood's "Santa in the Park Hayride" and Ruby wanted to help.
I've had to start making most of Ruby's clothes. It's very hard to find bottoms that are long enough and fit her in the waist. This problem will only get worse once she is potty trained. With the bulk of her diapers she can wear 18 month stuff if it's on the small side. Without them she needs 6-12 month things, but they are way to short. Plus there just isn't alot of little girl dresses and skirts (Ruby's favorite things to wear) with Thomas, cars, trucks, and dinosaurs on them. I made the skirt she's wearing above. I also appliqued the Thomas, Henry, and James on her shirt.
Herbie is growing and doing so well. He loves to laugh and smile. He is such a happy baby. He loves to sit up watch his big sister run around. He's also started reaching for things. He can see a lot further now. He can recognize us from a few feet away. It's so different having a baby hitting all the milestones right on time.
Here are both of them sitting on Santa's lap.
Here are some pictures from this morning.
We've been busy. It's hard for me to find a few moments to sit down and post. Ruby and Herbie have worked it out to never both be satisfied at the same time it seems. That is until they are both asleep around 9:30 at night and then we go to bed.
I work very hard at keeping a very active Ruby busy all day. Getting her outside and letting her run insures a good nap (down time for Mom) and easier bedtimes. She is just a busy active girl. This week started with a short lived but intense stomach virus for Ruby. It made me appreciate Lysol wipes even more than normal. We kept her home from school on Tuesday just to be sure she was over it. Then Wednesday I had an appointment with a hand surgeon so Chris had the kids most of the morning. My left hand is in a splint which makes diaper changes oh so much fun. Thursday and Friday we've had some much appreciated rain. So, yesterday I was determined to keep Ruby busy even if we couldn't go outside.
Ruby loves to paint. She asks to do it daily. I try to honor that request as often as possible. It requires a bit more supervision than Herbie will allow most days. As soon as Herbie fell sleep for his morning nap I pulled out the paints.
Also Ruby's favorite outfits lately consist of a t-shirt (preferably Thomas) and a tutu.
My friend Kate brought lunch and her daughter Molly over for a play date with Herbie. Molly is 3 months older than Herbie. Ruby LOVES Kate. We went swimming at Kate's Mom's house this summer. So Kate is known as Swimming Kate. While there Ruby wanted to play in the grass but Kate said she couldn't because there was dog poop. So the following conversation happens often.
Me: "Ruby, Kate and Molly are coming over."
Ruby: "Swimming Kate?"
Me: "Yes."
Ruby : "Dog Poop."
After lunch we had "rest" time. Even if Ruby doesn't nap she does read in her room for about an hour. 90% of the time she does fall asleep. If not after and hour I let her out.
Yesterday was one of those days that she didn't fall asleep. So pulled out some Christmas craft stuff I got at the dollar store. Ruby really liked the glitter glue because she could "squeeze it!".
This was all followed by another play date. I would call yesterday a success. By 6pm when our pizza was delivered Ruby was talking about her bath and telling us she was tired.
Herbie is doing really well, too. He's allowing Mom and Dad to get more sleep. We've even had a few nights that he slept 10 hours. It's not a regular thing, but we'll take it. He usually wakes up once around 4 am. It's hard to be upset about it when flashes a smile and giggles. He has started full on laughing, too. Tickling his chubby tummy pretty much guarantees a laugh.
Since I mentioned my hand I might as well go into some detail. I have trigger thumb and de quervain's tenosynovitis. Both are fairly common during pregnancy and in new parents. It started while I was pregnant and then picking up two kids hasn't helped. It got bad enough that I couldn't bend my thumb. I'm wearing a splint for three weeks to see if it helps. If not I'll get a couple steroid shots (if Herbie's pediatrician says it's OK while nursing). If the shots don't help the next step is surgery. I really hope giving my wrist and thumb a chance to rest works.
