First Snowfall!!

I'm FINALLY on Christmas Vacation... seriously didn't think I would make it to this point a few times. Unfortunately, (for him) JW is having to work this weekend but it is a blessing to have work available! The kids and I have spent the day playing and organizing the house. When Luke woke up and he saw we had a few inches of snow he was soooooo excited! I promised him when Charlotte took a nap we could go out and play. He kept asking me, "My baby sleeping?" as she crawled past us on the floor.. "ummm no... does she look like she is asleep?". But he kept asking anyways! Finally she took a nap and I got him all bundled up. We threw snowballs, tried making a snowman, made snow angels, he literally rolled around in the snow, and soon was getting snow in his gloves and decided it was time to go inside. I think we probably spent more time getting him bundled up than we did actually being outside. But that was okay with me! It was still fun.

Getting Ready for Sinterklaas

Since J.W. is from Holland we will be celebrating Sinterklaas this weekend! This is the first year we are trying to follow more of the true Dutch traditions and having Luke and Charlotte put their shoes out by the fireplace and sing Sinterklaas songs so that he brings some treats overnight. From what Tante Essie has told me, kids in Holland do this off and on over 3 weeks!!! We started this week and I'm not sure Luke totally understands and he is a little confused by Sinterklaas and Santa being different people... but he is pretty much game for anything that will result in finding chocolate in his shoes! Today we also received a BIG box from Oma Janny and Opa Henk that Sinterklaas accidently delivered to their house instead! How nice of them to send it over for Luke and Charlotte! We took out the cookies, treats, and chocolates for Luke but we left the presents still a secret until December 5th! He found a big hollow Sinterklaas on the counter and came running to me saying, "Look Mommy, it's Holland! I found Holland!" hmmm I guess we have been talking about Holland and dutch traditions with Sinterklaas coming up but he is a little confused still! I guess it will make more sense as he gets older that Holland is a place!

Please enjoy JW (in a lovely *ahem* camo hat) singing Sinterklaas songs with Luke mumbling what I think sounds like the "ABC's" except he may be saying ABD and 'Appy, appy, appy' over and over??!! (Note to self- need to work on the ABC song...)

Sinterklaas Kapoentje,

Gooi wat in mijn schoentje! (throw something in my shoe?)

Gooi wat in mijn laarsje, (throw something in my boot)

Dank je Sinterklaasje! (Thank you Sinterklaas!)

If you want to know more about Sinterklaas traditions in Holland, I found this Wikipedia link to be pretty informative! http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sinterklaas

Flying by...

These last few weeks have felt like they are flying by. I can't believe we are halfway through November!!! It's been a rough month so far. My Auny Jayne (and faithful blog reader) had a heart attack a few weeks ago and is still in a coma and on a ventilator. For awhile, it seemed touch and go as to if she would wake up at all, but now we are hearing some positives. So we continue to pray that she pulls through and is back to her knitting and quilting self soon! It seemed like Luke and Charlotte were coughing and/or had runny noses for the last few months. Now they seem pretty healthy and I am thankful for that! Hopefully, we can keep the flu at bay! Charlotte is now 8 months. Wow, she is really starting to interact and making those first steps towards communicating and it warms my heart! She claps when you tell her to or she claps and looks at me and her little eyes say, "Aren't you going to do it too??" or "I'm doing it Mommy!!" (she knows how impressed I am!) and also she started waving "hi" in the mirror a few weeks ago... now she is REALLY doing it when you tell her say "hi" or "bye" she waves with one or both hands haha and just smiles so happy because she knows it makes us smile. She is pretty good at walking along the couch or tables but she has to hold on. She FINALLY started crawling on her knees this week... a REAL CRAWL! She still goes down to her belly though since that's the fastest for her. Luke loves it when she "chases" him and does a really pathetic "Awww.. baby's not doing it" when she won't go after him. Charlotte still likes to be held a lot. Right now we are having sleep issues because I am realizing that at 8 months she is old enough to sleep the whole night in her crib... but she realizes that she is 8 months old and can get what she wants if she just cries! She wants to sleep in between mommy and daddy in their bed and that's what happens every night at some point. I've been talking with JW about getting the carpet installed in her room so that we can finally put her crib in there and help her get used to sleeping in her crib all night. Mommy's gotta get a whole nights sleep at some point this year!! It's starting to wear me out. Luke must be going through a growth spurt lately because he is eating alllll the time. He will eat his dinner really good and then still be asking for more all evening! I'm trying to give him peanut butter sandwiches or cheese or fruit to try to fill him up and he keeps wanting more!! He's such a big boy now but of course he still is my baby hehehe. Here they are tonight in a video... Luke's going crazy with his Wheelie Bug from Oma and Opa and wanting Charlotte to chase him. She starts out on her knees but then goes to her belly fast. She just started waving consistently so I was surprised she did it right away when I said it! So cute!!!!!!!!! Love these kids!