I need a breath....

This month has totally gotten away from me. I'm beginning to understand the holiday stress people come under. And it's not necessarily associated with the holidays, it just seems that everything has decided to crash-land in the last 12 weeks of this year. The girls are taking it in stride (mostly), and driving has become fun again with our graduation to the mini-van tribe. We went with the Honda Odyssey, due to the fact that Ben said it's "less nerdy" and more reliable than other models. And nerdiness is a huge factor for a man driving around in a mini-van. We like it, and the girls LOVE it. They have named it the "river-van-car." I've got absolutely no idea where that name came from.

End of semester crunch-time for Ben has arrived, and that's adding to the overall stress around the place. He has the luxury of spending Thanksgiving break at my Grandma's holed up in the basement formulating his term paper. I'm bringing lots of stuff to keep my kids entertained so Daddy can accomplish something while we're there. Because he's been gone more, the girls are missing him, and today I caught some distinctly "I'm trying to be like Daddy" moments...

Making "compooders" or lap-tops from puzzle pieces.
Playing trumpet...Ben has three mouthpieces, and because my children have already mastered the art of spitting, they actually 'play' really well.
When the trumpet gig was no longer fun, Ev pulled out the xbox controllers, asked for Star Wars, and proceeded to play the best a 3 year old girl can. She knows how to jump and shoot really well. Walking in the right direction (instead of into walls or corners) needs some work.

There are my cute children. And the Super bowl event of the week....Ultrasound!....is tomorrow afternoon. Last week this kid's heart rate was in the 130's...much lower than either of the girls. So that added to our boy hopes. Although studies say that heart rate is no indication of gender. We shall see. If you ask the girls if they want a baby brother, 90% of the time they will say no. They want a "baby sista."

My Dad and post-mission brother stopped in for a few days last week, and I've found out that Jilly's quite the 'Grandpa's girl.' She's loved being around both Grandpa's in the last few weeks. It's nice to see her becoming more friendly around people she doesn't see too often, instead of pasted to my side like she was for so long. Both girls were wary of their long-lost uncle, especially Jill. She had just gotten up the morning after they arrived, was walking toward the kitchen, when Bryson made an appearance in the hallway. She promptly turned around, walked/ran back down the hall to the master bedroom, and the protection of Mom.

This is where my life stands at the moment. Once I get through packing for Christmas vacation, I'll get my breath back. I hope.