Thanksgiving!

We had a very nice Thanksgiving this year!

I started the day by going to CVS at 8:00 a.m. for some of their "free after extra bucks" items. I won't go into a lot of detail here, but basically I used coupons to get some items more than free, which enabled me to get the diapers (which we needed) for cheap. My total for everything in this picture was $7.04. I did this in three transactions. Woo hoo!

Then we went to my parents' house for parade watching and Thanksgiving dinner. We had a very international Thanksgiving this year! Our friends from India, Pitch and Rosy, were there as well as a new believer from our church who is from Thailand. She came with her daughter. My brother came with two friends who are originally from Ghana. We enjoyed turkey and good ol' Yankee white bread stuffing.

Here I am at 14 weeks pregnant. Let's not have any comments about how small I am. This is how my body grows, and I have 6 more months to be pregnant, so I don't want to be huge yet!

Awww, what cute boys!

My parents trees still have most of their leaves, but we raked up what we could and jumped in them! We have had really nice fall leaves this year! Must have been good weather for them. I tried to take some fall leaf pictures, but the colors just don't turn out. Only in Texas do you have leaves still turning colors on Thanksgiving!

Ok, maybe you won't think this is as funny as we do...

This is how Daddy plays cars and blocks with the boys...

Let's play "the mall on black Friday!" This will be the JC Penney's store.

Here are the people lined up at 4:00 a.m.

Now we have built the "cashwrap" (where you pay), and we're putting the finishing touches on the sweater tables. Be careful, son! You're knocking over the security sensors!

This is the food court. It has this station with a pay phone, and ATM, and a place where you can insert your car title in order to get more money to shop with!!

Things are getting a little testy in the parking lot with two cars going after the same spot!

This video is a little "situation" requiring mall security. Jordan didn't know I was taping it, which is why I was able to tape it! I should have taped more; he was cracking us up!

Aidan and the Spirit of Gift-Giving

The progression of gift-giving as I have observed it in our house...

Age 1: Oblivious
Age 2: Oblivious
Age 3: I don't wanna give anyone a present, because then I might not get as many for myself!
Age 4: Gift ideas for others that I would like myself (i.e. wanting to give Mom a Lightning McQueen toy)
Age 5: No, I won't give you what you ask for, because I can think of something better...

We had this conversation in Target the other day.

Mom: Look, Aidan! You can get me one of these 25th Anniversary Cabbage Patch Kids for Christmas! I remember getting my first one in 1985.
Aidan: No...
Mom: Why not?
Aidan: Because you ask too much. You wanted one of these the last time we were in Target.
(There was a Target employee a couple aisles away who was snickering...)
Aidan: I'll get you this set instead, it's a lot cooler (points to a fisher price set with two silly looking dolls and a baby stroller).
Mom: I don't want that. I don't need the toys. I just like the other one because it's like one I had when I was little.
Aidan: Nope, I'll get you this one.

Wait 'til he sees what I'm gonna get him...

My Big Boy

So Gresham has gotten a lot of posts lately - I'll try to make it up to Aidan next week...

We had a "big boy party" on Monday night and said farewell to the pacifiers. I was tired of dealing with all the tantrums - the pacifier was not allowed out of the bed, but Gresham tested that rule several times a day, and it just wasn't worth it. Plus, I wanted the pacifier to be a distant memory by the time the new baby comes! We have 6 months until then, which is a long time when you're 2. He will have forgotten by then. At least that's the hope.

We had a nice dinner in his brand new booster seat (we put the highchair away!), and then brought the "sassies" out and said goodbye to them. Gresham put them in the trash himself, and then got to have a big bowl of ice cream. At bedtime, he told Dad, "Want sas- ... had ice cream."

Then, he caught a cold, and the rest of the week has been horrible as far as sleep goes! He cries for sassy every evening. He has woken up crying from his nap every day and has cried in the morning every morning except today. Hopefully once he gets over the congestion he will be back to his cheerful self! And surely the memory will fade soon!

Quotes of the Week

Mom: Aidan, I need you to dust the blinds.
Aidan: Well, I think it would be better if we had a monkey to do that.
Sure, great idea!

Gresham: (In Chick-fil-A, sitting next to Mom) Mommy right here! (pointing) Mommy right here!

Gresham: (From the grocery cart) Her name is Mommy. Her name is Mommy. I Gresham Thomas Dees. Her name is Mommy.
* I can't remember if he was really saying "her" or not - he doesn't use pronouns that well. But it made sense, whatever he said!

Gresham: My truck!
Aidan: No! I wanted it first!
Gresham: No, me first!
Aidan: I wanted it before you even wanted it!

Saturday Morning with Gresham

Two Year Old Manifesto by Gresham

I am two.

No one is the boss of me.

Hey, I don't even really have control over myself!

If I want something, I will have it. If I can't have it, I will scream. If screaming doesn't work, I will throw myself on the floor and kick. If I don't feel like a fit, I will run and hide somewhere. If Mom wants me to go somewhere, and I don't want to, I will have instant jelly legs. That is the power of being two.

I'm cute and I know it. Since everyone thinks I'm cute when I say new words, I use that to my advantage. Today I told Mommy, "Need sassy!" (pacifier) and she gave it to me. (Mom- This is true...)

If I have something, it must be mine. If I put it down and someone else picks it up, I will scream because it's still mine. If I use a library computer, then even when I get down, no one else should use it because it's "my pooter." (Mom- Also true...) If I want to try on Mom's shoes, then I should be able to. If Mom is having a snack, I should have a bite. Or several bites.

Note from Mom: Anyone who wants to understand total depravity should live with a two year old for a few days! Yesterday, Gresham was crying because I wouldn't let him do something at the breakfast table that would have resulted in him choking. It reminded me how much we are all like two-year-olds... we have such a limited perpective on what God is doing in our lives, but when things don't go our way, we throw a fit... just in a much more refined way than Gresham's... My children are definitely a tool in my sanctification!

Aidan's Artwork

Can you tell what this drawing is? Aidan did it today - it's a football field. I was really excited about it because he doesn't like to draw or color very much, and so he doesn't do it very often. Now that we are doing kindergarten and doing so much writing, his coordination has improved, and he has really started to enjoy doing artwork. He also wrote his first story last week, but the picture of that didn't turn out... I'll try again later.

A Good Day and A Bad One

I'm enjoying this pregnancy countdown thing that I put on here, but I think that it looks a little freaky today... long spindly legs and stuff...

Anyway, yesterday was a great day! I actually felt pretty decent. Jordan had to work a closing shift, so after naptime I asked Aidan if he would like to go rock collecting. He was very excited about that! He and Gresham both love rocks. I used to collect fossils as I kid, so I can enjoy rocks too. We went to the "fish park" (the playset has a giant plastic fish on it), and went down by the creek and collected rocks. Then, we walked along the walking trail for a while and happened upon some construction vehicles working on a drainage project. We watched a front loader move some rocks and an excavator dig a trench (I bet you didn't know I was so up on my construction vehicles!). Gresham was thrilled. Aidan has seen stuff like that before, but not Gresh.

We came home and made dinner, and then found a full-length Raffi concert on youtube. (Raffi sings kids songs with just him and his guitar - he's a little new age, but most of his songs are okay, and he's easy to listen to.) Actually, the concert was split into 9 parts because I guess you can only load 5 min. videos on youtube.

Rocks, construction trucks, songs about "shaking my sillies out"... what more does a person need?

Today was not as fun. Our day started at 5:30 a.m. when I got up to go to the bathroom and discovered that the smoke detector in Aidan's room was beeping. Jordan went to go put in a new battery, which we have never done before (oops... I honestly thought for some reason that these particular smoke detectors were not battery powered...) In the process, all of the smoke detectors went off, and well, let's just say that if we ever have a fire, we won't be able to miss it! Thankfully we were all able to go back to sleep.

I have been soooooooooo tired all day, and not feeling as well as yesterday. This afternoon, Aidan rode his bike into the neighbor's basketball goal, and fell, and landed on his face. He is going to have a huge bruise over his eye (on top of the stitches that he got 2 years ago) that will look very pretty when he sings in front of church tomorrow with the children's choir! By the time he went to bed, the whole area had become pretty swollen, and his eye is partially shut.

We ended the day with Gresham falling trying to sit in a chair, and he put a gash in his chin. He did one of those things that little kids do where they are silent powering up for a huge cry, except that he didn't start crying (or breathing) for several seconds, and his lips turned blue. I was yelling at him to breathe!

Ahhhh, all is quiet now! I am glad that God provides good days along with the bad ones... it helps me to appreciate the good ones all the more!

He's a boy of the 21st century!

Today we were in the van on the way to the park, and Gresham said, "e-mail!"
"What??," I asked.
"E-mail! E-mail truck!"

It was in fact a mail truck!

Doctor's Appointment #2

Today was our second dr. visit. We didn't hear the heartbeat, and so the doctor did an ultrasound just to make sure. It's a little early to hear the heartbeat with the doppler, so it wasn't a big surprise or cause for concern. I couldn't believe how much our little one had changed on the ultrasound since the one that we had 4 weeks ago! At our first appointment, the baby was smaller than a grain of rice and was the same shape as well. Today, I saw a head, body, and arms and legs, and the baby was moving. He/she had a nice strong heartbeat!

I brought the picture home and told Gresham, "Look, here is the baby!" He said, "Awww!"
Aidan just said that the baby looked like a shirt.

Anyway, I'm 10.5 weeks now, and things are going well! I'm still holding out for the end of the first trimester, although I know that the sickness won't end for another few weeks after that... we can make it!

Some random funnies from our house...

Jordan to Aidan: "Son, you really shouldn't pick your nose while you're setting the table..."

Gresham: Bankie! Sassy! (asking for blankie and pacifier, which stay only in the bed)
Mom: Why do you need blankie and sassy???
Gresham: Bankie cuddle. Sassy in mouth.
Mom: Well, yes, that is what you do with those things...

Gresham in the car: Look Mom! Chick-a-way! Look Mom! Moon!

My favorite thing that Aidan says right now is "at one point." Today he said, "Wow, we got a lot of toys out of my toy chest! At one point, I was in the toy chest throwing things out!"

Aidan: So if a lady has a baby in her tummy, and she doesn't have a husband, does she have to go get one so the baby can have a dad?
Mom: Ummmmmm, she has to have a husband first before getting the baby.
Aidan: Oh, why?
Mom: Ummmm
Aidan: So who told you that you were going to have a baby?
Mom: No one told us.
Aidan: Well then, how did you find out?
Mom: It's kind of complicated...

The boys in their costumes

On Wednesday night, we went to the Countryside Fair! The boys were excited about it for days leading up to it. Gresham had no idea what it was, but he knew it was something to be excited about! They had a great time playing games and riding on the hay ride. Unfortunately, they wouldn't stay still long enough to get any decent pictures!

On Friday night, we went to Grandpa and Grandma's house and had dinner and went trick-or-treating. This is the first time we have gone trick-or-treating. It was fun to go in the neighborhood I grew up in - we went to only houses of people we knew. This was a hard decision to decide to go, but Aidan really wanted try trick-or-treating, and we didn't really have a good reason to not go. We explained to Aidan that Halloween is overall not a holiday that we like, and that we weren't going to dress up as anything ugly.

Here is Aidan the Knight.

Gresham kept wanting to get into the candy that Grandma had by the door to hand out. I made his dinosaur outfit myself! I was so proud! I bought a thermal set at Target, and added felt spikes and made the tail. Gresham is really obsessed with this huge remote-control dinosaur toy that they have at Target. It must be a hot toy this year, because this same dinosaur has been in the JC Penney and Toys R Us toy catalogs that we have gotten in the mail. The display one at Target growls and moves. Gresham loves to look at it (and loves to look at the catalog pictures), but he is also scared to death of it. It's pretty funny. He talks about "big dinosaur" every day, and always asks to see it when we go to Target, but then when we get to that aisle, he gets scared and actually starts shaking. What a nut!

All ready to go! I've got my candy bag, and my blankie!