Update on Surgery and P.'s Big Boy Bed

Just wanted to let you guys know that K. will be having surgery on Dec. 21 (about the only day of the month on which we are not celebrating a birthday or anniversary) at the local children's hospital. Yesterday the ENT said her ears were very bad and she is suffering from some temporary hearing loss, though R. and I think that most of it is still selective.

As for P., well, he has taken to his new bed like a champ. And to ease the transition, P. has been sleeping with a giant stuffed Dora doll. K. suggested it to him, and Dora has been in there ever since. We have only had a couple of nights where he has fallen out, but we were prepared and put a nap mat beside his bed. We're very proud of him.

North Pole Limited

To kick off the holiday season we dressed in our Christmas pajamas and took a ride on the North Pole Limited - a train leaving Chattanooga and arriving at the North Pole only 45 minutes later...it was a magical train. While on the train we all enjoyed cookies, a "chocolate drink," the Polar Express reading by "Mary Winter," and once we arrived, a visit by Santa who gave us all a bell from his sleigh. Needless to say, my children will be talking about this trip for a while. I highly recommend this ride for little ones. We may ride again next year. We're very thankful that Mimi, "Aunt" Lori, Cousin J. and Cousin L. (cousins from each side of the family) were able to go with us. Below are pictures from our trip. P. and J. were more than excited about all of the trains around us. I could hardly tear P. away from the train display inside the railroad museum. Enjoy these pics...Happy Holidays.

More surgery & no more crib...

Yes, more surgery for K. No, not a plastic surgery, but her fourth set of ear tubes. I did say FOUR. The negative pressure in K.'s ears is so great that it is causing her pain. We hope to get this out of the way soon becasue she's off to visit the most awesome plastic surgeon in Tennessee in February, and we're sure that we're not lucky enough to go three entire years without a surgery in Nashville.

And it's no more crib for P. When Miss 'Melia went to get him this morning he was sitting in the floor of his room crying, not in the crib. Tonight will be his first night in the toddler bed (the crib with the front railing removed). Wish us luck. I'm sure this isn't going to be easy. K. moved into her toddler bed at the exact same age.

The Haircut

Tonight P. received a much needed haircut. It makes him look like such a big boy. I forgot the camera for the actual hair cutting, but was able to snap a few of him tonight. He's such a wild man that catching him still for a second was an impossible task. I did manage to get these two. Isn't he a doll?

Trick-or-Treating

This year the kids were very into trick-or-treating. They had a great time and collected more candy and special treats than they can (or that I'll allow) eat in an entire year. Below are a few pictures from the night and a few from my work. A lot of people dress up at work for the costume contest. My co-workers and I dressed as the cast of Grey's Anatomy (I was Callie Torres) and won third place in the faculty/staff contest.

Cooper

Last night, after we had made our rounds trick-or-treating, we came home to find Cooper in the yard beside one of our trees. He was hit and killed accidentally around 6:30 p.m., only minutes after we first left our house. We're all heartbroken to say the least. K. is having a very difficult time understanding why all of this happened. She was a bit hysterical last night and I stayed in her room with her until almost midnight. We had a good talk and talked about good times with Cooper. It certainly won't be the same around here without him. R. and I bought him as a puppy when we lived in Franklin six years ago and he was like a child to us before we had two of our own. I'm avoiding the outdoors today, and hoping that by staying in as long as I can will prolong my having to face the reality of him being gone. I know we'll be OK, but it may take a few days.

Our Trip to the Pumpkin Patch

We've been planning for more than a week to make a trip to the pumpkin patch today. It was the only day we didn't have to be at a lesson, practice, work functions or church. And it hasn't rained for months, but today, TODAY of all days, the sky broke loose and it poured. And with a never-forgetful four year old, it was impossible to explain that the trip would have to be delayed. She would not take "No" for an answer. So we loaded up in the car, after getting drenched (the sitter had parked in front of my garage spot) running to the car, and drove up the road to a local Baptist church that raises money for missions through its sale of pumpkins. This is what we saw.



There was no convincing K. that there was no one there to sell us pumpkins. She wanted to get out. Luckily, the doors were locked and she couldn't get out. :-) But as soon as it was 6 p.m., closing time for the pumpkin patch, the rain stopped, the sky cleared and the sun made an appearance - just our luck. We're going to try again tomorrow after preschool pick-up. Wish us luck.

By the way, this will be our second set of pumpkins. We had two earlier in the month and K. insisted we carve them right away. We did, and one week later they were mush. K. was nearly in tears as she thought someone had vandalized her pumpkin. It was only when she saw the "juice" leaking from it did she understand that it was rotten. Nice.