Four Generations

We had New Year's Day dinner with GP (Chris' paternal grandmother) and managed to remember to take a generations picture.  Chris a little blurry, so we'll definitely be taking another, but I thought I'd share what we captured:

Chris' grandmother is a remarkable woman--small in stature, but big in spirit (and humble, to boot).  It is nice to be close in proximity to her and get to know her better.  Grace and Addie were especially pleased to be given permission to pick a candy cane from her tree to take home.

Addie & Grace

Despite having her around for four-and-a-half years now, Addie never ceases to amaze me... From the questions she asks, to the random, astute, comments she makes, I often find myself in wonder at her.

Most recently I have been amazed to see her growing maturity and unselfishness.  For a period of time she and Grace would bicker and quarrel over who got to have whichever colored plate, cup, or toy was "better".  It was rather frustrating and becoming a little problematic, so we made "Sharing" the focus of at least one Family Home Evening.  Both girls made immediate efforts to improve; however, over the last  while I have repeatedly observed Addie look at the two objects offered, think about the choice, and ask for the color that she knows is less preferable to Grace.  I've seen her, on more than one occasion, start to say "pink" and realize that Grace would like that color cup and change to "green" instead.

This girl is also a sponge.  She asks questions and recalls with ease the responses we give her.  It is amazing to hear her respond to our questions, or overhear her talking with Grace, and speak so knowingly (and correctly) about things we've only discussed in passing.

This expression reminds me of my youngest brother, Eddie.

I love to see her innocence and her sweetness.  If she and Grace are playing and Grace falls or somehow hurts herself, Addie is so quick to comfort and soothe her little sister.  I love to see how she looks after, includes, and loves Grace.  When we were pregnant with her, discussing our guesses regarding whether she would be a boy or a girl, and our hopes as to the kind of oldest sibling s/he would be, I remember specifically talking about our hopes that our little baby would be the type of oldest sibling to set a good example and tone for the other siblings to follow.  Although still young, she is already setting an example worthy of emulation.

Our little Grace is quite the wonder.  She didn't talk for a long time, then she grunted, then she talk-grunted, then she began to talk in earnest and hasn't stopped since (even if we don't always understand what she's saying). ;)  It is so much fun to hear her talking and expressing as it finally gives us a glimpse into her thoughts and intentions.

Her facial expressions, her silly antics, her non-stop talking--this girl knows how to work a crowd.  Dinner-time is when she really gets going, and although it's sometimes difficult to get her to stop and eat, she never ceases to amuse us.

We worry sometimes that we focus or note Grace's silliness too much.  As fun as that side of her is, it is also a lot of fun to see her growing and developing in other ways--much of it in Addie's wake.  It is obvious she loves (adores even) her big sister and she plays alongside Addie, doing or attempting to do, everything that Addie does.

I have really enjoyed seeing Grace be sweet to her animals, dolls, and younger children.  As we prepare for the arrival of the new baby it is reassuring to see her being sweet and kind to little ones and her "babies" (animals and dolls) and to also see her being considerate of the baby in mommy's "ut'res"--giving the baby in my belly hugs and kisses.

It is sometimes hard to believe that "my baby" won't be the baby for much longer... but it also seems so natural when I consider how much she has grown and changed in the last year, becoming more independent and helpful each day.

Kaitlyn & Sasha

We were excited to have Chris' sister, Kaitlyn, join us from London (before departing to Turkey) for a couple of weeks.  Not only was it fun to have Kaitlyn around, but her friend, Sasha, had a change of plans and also joined us for a week during the Christmas holiday.

We didn't actually take many more pictures of, or with, them except those in this post (save a few lovely ones of Kaitlyn which I am holding hostage for future blackmail purposes), but that's not because we didn't enjoy having them around!

Addie and Grace both love having big playmates.  

Sasha quickly became a part of the family.  The girls loved playing with her, and the rest of us enjoyed talking with her late into the night about a variety of topics.

Of all the much loved activities, the girls really seemed to love "attacking" Kaitlyn most of all:

While here, Kaitlyn had her 25th birthday.  It was fun to celebrate with her by enjoying some Russian food and a really delicious cake.

We were glad that we were able to have Kaitlyn around for the holidays.  It was, as always, fun to visit with her and catch-up in person, and we were all at least a little sad to see her go.  (Addie was probably the most sad, she broke down into sobs the night she said good-bye--just wanted to make sure you remember that KP! =D)

Christmas

It started with a note and some cookies the night before:

And the excitement really peaked when they came up the stairs...

And discovered these:

Which called for some immediate bonding time...

And then some eating of treats in the stocking:

Okay, so maybe not some, but all of the treats in the stocking....

One at a time...

Twelve chocolates later...

She went for the lollipops...

Opened a present that was wrapped like a candy...

And then ate her three lollipops at the same time...

Unfortunately, I'm serious...

Aunt K.P. found this bracelet on the streets of London.  Made of silk string, sterling silver clasp, with a sterling silver circle with a heart on one side and an "A" on the other, it was quite the find.  Addie's pretty happy to have her own real jewelry.

And, not to be forgotten, the present from Mimi and J-Pa... their very own tea set!

(And yes, Grace got started on her candy cane too... though it was "lost" as soon as she set it down to play with the tea set--very soon after this picture was taken)

Like lollipops, Grace likes multiple cups of tea at a time:

Oh the fun!

Note to Self:
-Some ideas, like hamsters as a present, are pretty good.  Others, like letting a two year old eat as much of her allotted candy as she'd like, are not so good.*
-There won't be a repeat of this sugar experiment.

*Those who aren't around us regularly or are otherwise unfamiliar with our parenting practices should know that:
1-This wasn't exactly a groundbreaking discovery (we have each been blessed with at least a fair share of common sense), 
2-Our girls do not get much in the way of sugar, basically ever, and
3-Addie handled the "experiment" quite differently than Grace, stopping when she'd had enough, and staying more emotionally and behaviorally balanced even with the copious amounts of sugar in her system.

Chris' Gift

I think it was in September that Chris started taking the girls to pet stores to look at the animals--specifically the hamsters and gerbils.  The acquisition of some type of rodent seemed inevitable, but I managed to hold Chris off until Christmas.  About two weeks before Christmas two little "girls" took up residence in our laundry room, where they stayed hidden until Christmas morning.

We brought the hamsters out at night after the girls were in bed to make sure they got some good people time in.  They definitely aren't this timid and restful when Grace and Addie are around:

In case you wondered... I call them Chris' gift because they were as much for him as for the girls and they were also very much from him.  (Not that I wasn't supportive, it's just he was the driving force behind these little ones.)

"Grandma & Grandpa Christmas"

All of Chris' siblings made it out to Utah the week before Christmas, so we dubbed the week (and more specifically the Wednesday of that week) "Grandma & Grandpa Christmas".  There were a variety of activities planned for the week to keep everyone pleasantly occupied.  The main outing was a tour of the Conference Center.  Which, obviously, makes one want to dance:

The kids got to see some of the paintings they are familiar with, in person:

There was lots of discussion about the artwork.  Especially between our two year olds:

It's fun to compare pictures at the water fountain...

Grace is still at the phase where she needs a little assistance:

Chris wanted me to take pictures of some of the paintings (either whole or part) because of things that are often lost in the reprint process, or else cropped out for some reason or other.  Can you name what it was we noticed here:

And here:

It was freezing, but we checked out the rooftop of the Conference center:

And enjoyed a nice view of the Salt Lake City Temple:

And then came Wednesday!  The cousins exchanged presents (each was assigned the name of one of the other cousins) and received a present from Grandma and Grandpa too.

Grace was rather fond of her midwife/doctor/nurse kit and was a little... concerned... if anyone tried to touch it:

Addie was in heaven with her princess dress:

And that evening the kids got decked out for their re-enactment of the Nativity Story.  Jillian was a shepherd, but enjoyed "Baby Jesus" while we got ready; while Grace was happy to be a wisewoman and carry the gold:

Addie was super excited that she randomly drew the assignment of Mary, as it was who she was hoping to be.  Ben made a great Joseph:

When Grace and the other wisemen joined the group she couldn't get enough of the baby:

After the narration ended, Grandpa got in the mix of things and talked with the kids about the birth of Jesus:

The kids all really loved making gingerbread houses, this is the one the girls and I put together (I put the house up, they decorated):

No Christmas would be complete without a few good stories:

Even if the audience dwindles on occasion...

Great GranMarnѐ joined us for a visit:

And the kids played and played: