The Christmas Season 2007

Looks like the only way I am going to get this post (these posts) done is to take the lead from Dorothy and do them all at once.

Nancy and her boys hosted us once again for the Cookie Decorating Party. I just love this tradition, and I hope it continues for a long time.
We definitely have two distinct groups in our little (growing) posse. The older kids relished in the cookie cutting and decorating. There were sprinkles and icing and flour everywhere. Nancy is certainly a great sport for subjecting her house to the messes these kiddies make. And while all that was going on, the babies enjoyed sleeping and nursing. It's not a bad deal for them either. Now that Reeves has grown out of his egg allergy, we have the freedom to use ready-made cookie dough. For those of you with children with a milk allergy, Pillsbury products generally are milk free. We use so many of them now that every time Reeves sees the Pillsbury Doughboy, he points to him and says, "ReeRee's crackers!" Oh yes, brand recognition is alive and well at our house.
We headed down to PR the weekend brfore Christmas to visit with the Willis clan and exchange our gifts. J&V hit a gigantic homerun with the Mack they gave Reeves. Even now, there has not been a day that goes by without his playing with it. It has also worked as a great behavioral tool when it gets taken away. Who knew? A gift for the child and the parents!
We have a tradition in our family of spending Christmas Eve with the Humps and Smiths. This year the Smiths were all out of town, so we moved our get together up to the 23rd, after church. It was actually quite nice, particularly now as the number of children in the group has doubled since last year. Reeves, Henry, and Leeze all play so well together. Lolly even added a four legged friend (and another Henry) to the group. I think Reeves, in his heart of hearts, loves him, despite the fact that Lolly's puppy's sole goal in life is to "eat ReeRee." I never knew five pounds could be so frightening. He felt pretty safe when Pops rescued him and held him above the fray.
On Christmas Eve we headed out to the country to celebrate with the Bairs and Moyles. We had a great time. We were showered with so many gifts that there are still some hidden away for a rainy day. Reeves and Preston were drunk on wrapping paper, boxes, and toys. It is so much fun to watch them play together, and equally as much fun to send them upstairs or outside to give us a little peace and quiet. So far there have been no broken bones or stitches needed, so our plan seems to be working! This was the first Christmas for Bennett and Caulder. They both took it is stride, chilling out in someone's arms or the swing. I now bring the Bumbo seat with me almost everywhere as Bennett has an insatiable desire to be right in the middle of everything, and since we tend to spend the most time in the kitchen, we can just plop him right up on the counter and let him watch. (I wonder where he got this personality from?) Growing up, Julie and Bryant had wanted to have children close together, and it is such a blessing to have these two little ones be only (exactly) four months apart.
Christmas morning was actually quite calm at our house. Santa didn't go overboard, mainly just filling the Disney Corporation's coffers since Cars and Toy Story are such big hits around here. I swear, one year, I'm just going to give the boys big empty boxes and a couple of rolls of wrapping paper. Those always seem to be the most played with items on Christmas mornings. We headed down to Gams and Pops' for the big family Christmas. As has been the case for the past 32 years, it did not disappoint at all. Mom always tells us that "it's not going to be a big Christmas this year" and "I hope you're not disappointed." I really think she just does this out of habit now. She and Dad always know just the perfect gifts for us, some are just for fun and some are for self improvement and some are so meaningful they bring tears to your eyes. We had a little of all of it this year. Grandmother and Poppa gave the most special gift this year to Miller. As he is a freshman at the Citadel this year and Poppa's namesake, it was truly fitting that Poppa should pass on to him the picture of the entire corps from his senior year, 1943. It was a very sincere moment, and one that we will all treasure forever. Despite the dark and lack of an actual soccer ball, Reeves and Miller were able to get in a bit of practice before it was time to head home. I'm beginning to think that Miller has an agenda with my son - soccer or bust. It's OK by us.Willy Wonka got just about all the lovin' he could handle. We had the Bearsch family with us too, so he was getting it from both sides! Bennett got to have his diaper changed on a table that was passed down from his great-great-grandmother which was on top of a rug handed down by his other great-great-grandmother. It seemed only fitting then, that his great-grandmother should oversee the whole process. Only in our family! Dad gave Mom the gift of fire for Christmas. He's so old fashioned. I just hope she uses this power for good and not evil. I'm sure she will. Of course, we can't forget the final gift Mom got Dad. What do you get for the man who refuses to own a cell phone and who uses a computer only to play solitaire? Why, a portable navigational GPS computer, of course! I was going to throw in a pair of stiletto heels for him as well since I figured they'd get about as much use as this thing would, but apparently he has turned it on and even figured out how to make it work. Wonders never cease, and we can all sleep easily at night knowing that he'll now be able to find his way to the office and Yeamans without getting lost anymore.
Lol, Me-anne, and RayRay even indulged me when I asked to take this silly picture. The spirit was strong with these three.
Christmas this year was a wonderful, special, family and friend filled season for us. We are so blessed to be able to enjoy it each year with those who mean the most to us. Our children have made it so much more special because each year brings something brand new to them. Reeves is beginning to understand the reason Christmas is so special as he would often tell us that Christmas Day is Jesus' birthday. It's easy to forget that amidst the hustle and bustle of presents and parties. Thank heavens we have the little ones to remind us every once in a while.

He's Lucky He's So Cute

The last few nights have been absolute wars with Reeves. He has practically refused any and all food that has been put before him at supper. He has refused to do anything I have asked him to during those awful late afternoon, early evening hours. We had a 30 minute standoff with him on Monday night. It all began, of course, with his supper and quickly escalated. After repeatedly saying "NO!" to his dinner, I told him that that was fine, but he wasn't getting down until he did eat. Then, oops, he spilled his peas. I told him to pick them up and put them back on his plate. Well, I can't really remember, it was either that or please cut off your right hand. Whichever it was, his level of horrified reaction was the same. So, here we go with the power struggle. "Pick them up, please." "NO!" "Pick them up, please." "NO!" You get the picture. So I left him there, mostly for my own sanity, and sat in the den to feed Bennett. This is when Reeves decides to pick up a pea. "I won," I thought. Nope. The pea was instantly deposited on the floor. So I put Bennett down, and now, for my sanity and now for his well being, I picked Reeves up and put him in his room. Eventually he was allowed to come out. The pea finally gets picked up. I feel good about my parenting because, although it has taken forever, he has learned his lesson. Then his father called. For some reason, the last thing he wanted was for me to be on the phone, despite the fact that I was nursing Bennett and wasn't able to play with him anyway. As soon as I got off the phone and put it on the arm of the chair, he picked it up and through it on the floor. I can't remember, but I might have screamed at this point. There was definitely some praying going on. So, back to his room he went. He's lucky I've even let him out by now. I was so mad at him. To make matters worse, it didn't get any better when Bryant got home, and I really hate this because some days, this is all Bryant gets to see of Reeves. Although I know he knows that Reeves isn't always like this, I wish he could have some good quality time with him, but there is no sweetness when he's acting like a turd.
For some reason, dinners have recently been like this. He doesn't want to eat, so we have this power struggle. Why doesn't he realize he won't ever win. I don't have the patience of Job, but I do have the time to wait for him to eventually give in. Maybe one day he'll figure this out. Rather than go into more boring detail, suffice it to say that Tuesday night was not any better.

Rollin', Rollin', Rollin'

Well, the milestone I'd been looking for finally happened on Friday night. We were at the Bair's. I had put Bennett down in the crib. He had fussed a couple of times, and Julie had checked on him. I, of course, the dutiful mother, had put him down, and down he would stay until I was ready to get him. (Yes, he is happy, but I can also assume he's happy when I can't hear him. What a wonderful parenting secret.) Anyway, when I went to get him up to go home, he was on his tummy. Julie had already gone home, and with a fussy infant of her own, I didn't want to hazard a call over there on the off chance that she was grabbing a few blessed moments of sleep. The next morning we confirmed that she had not rolled him over because he woke up in his own crib on his tummy. I can't believe it. I knew Reeves had already rolled over by this age, so I was getting a little concerned that not only had Bennett not done it, but he had made no indication that he was even remotely interested in it. These poor children. Bennett's not even 6 months old, and I'm already comparing them.

Caroline and I had discussed this, and she had mentioned that EFR had had a problem with M rolling over in his crib, and then crying because he was not able to roll himself back over. Poor EFR. Reeves had never done that, and I could only imagine how frustrating that would be. Stupid me. Now I don't have to imagine. For the past three days and occasionally for naps, Bennett has greeted the day with maddening screams. He's stuck on his stomach and is not happy about it. Luckily, it's not at an ungodly hour, so it's not that bad. Why I keep wanting this child to hit all these milestones, I'll never know. I guess it's just one of those silly maternal instincts where the well being of your child wins out over your desire for peace and quiet.

Shaggy No More

I finally gave in and took Reeves to get his hair cut on Tuesday. He'd been looking a little "surfer dude" for a while. Once he started wiping his hair from his forhead, I knew it was time. Now, he could almost make it at The Citadel. He loves having his hair cut but is afraid of the shaver at the end. Despite Cindy's repeated attempts to make it fun - it's a bumblebee that buzzes - he's still not so sure. And to be honest, I don't know that telling him that a bumblebee is landing on him is necessarily the best way to ease his fears. Reeves last haircut was before school started, but leave it to the two year old to remember that Cindy has lollipops in her drawer for him. This is really a good idea. If he's good and sits still, he gets a lollipop. Where it falls short is that she has Blowpops in there. It takes him about an hour to eat this thing, and the mess is much more than I want to deal with. The next time we go in, I'm dropping off a bag of DumDums the day before!

Reeves' New Bike

For his second birthday, I asked my parents to get him a Radio Flyer tricycle. He still can't reach the pedals. He does love climbing on it and pushing it around, but as far as transportation goes, it's a bust for at least another 6 months, depending on growth spurts. Friday, they stopped by the house and dropped off this "new to him" bicycle. We weren't home at the time and didn't return till that evening, so it wasn't until almost bedtime that Reeves even saw it. When he did, it was all he saw or wanted. His other toys meant nothing to him at that point. Of course, we had to tell him that he couldn't ride it that night, but the next day, Saturday, he could ride it all he wanted. Unfortunately, we woke up to a cold and rainy Saturday - that lasted roughly 24 hours. Poor Reeves! The bicycle was on the back porch. Everytime we absentmindedly opened the back door, there he was, running between our legs to sit on his soaking wet "new bike". We felt so bad for him because we knew there was no chance he was getting on that thing that day.

Finally, with the help of his "artwork" and a little Mary Poppins, we were able to make it through that rainy Saturday. When we got back from church and lunch on Sunday, he jumped out of the car and ran to his bicycle. It fits him perfectly. Even the pedals are within his reach. The joy this recycled toy has brought into my son's life is amazing. He still doesn't quite grasp the concept of moving his feet in forward circles to get it to go, but I know it will only take a few more practice runs, and he'll be doing laps around us. Here I am trying to get him to understand that he must transfer pressure from his bottom foot to his top foot. (Next we're working on the theory of relativity.) I might have confused him even more by using my hands instead of my feet to do this.

Thanks, Gammy and Pops, for the wonderful surprise. He loves it, and the fact that it's blue (his favorite color) makes it even that much more special.

Rainy Days and Thursdays

Reeves' school had a little (big) sewer pipe burst last week, so school was closed on Thursday. This didn't really affect us since we're MWF, but Henry needed somewhere to go. Jenny brought him by on her way to work in the morning. I know Reeves and Henry play very well together, but Thursday was a dream. Having Henry here was just the thing we needed. The whole day was cold and rainy, so there weren't going to be many (any) jaunts outside to work off some energy, and as anyone who has ever done it knows, a toddler inside a small house all day is never a good thing. Luckily, Henry was there to distract Reeves, and himself, from the fact that they had not really "done" anything all day. We did do lots of activities, though, and having Henry as a partner made each thing even more fun for Reeves, and vice versa. First, we painted. Oh how they loved that. They painted boats and horses and snowmen and dogs, as you can see. Why is it that the palette ends up looking almost better than the artwork? I'm starting to go with Gwen's practice of using coordinating colors only.
We had a picnic lunch in the den, followed by a Popcorn Picnic viewing of Mary Poppins. (I am getting just a little tired of Cars.) Finally, we made cookies. The boys loved getting all dressed up in their matching aprons. (Thank you , Caroline, for these. I was glad not to have different colors for them to fight over!) I do think it's high time I get some new cookie cutters. Star, gingerbread man, and snowman (was there a theme to the day?) are the least Christmas-sy ones I have.
Bennett made appearances throughout the day. As much as he loved sitting in the Bumbo watching them make cookies, I think his favorite was to be in the swing watching them play. Every once in a while, they would actually acknowledge his presence with a "Hi!" or a pat on the head, and this would make his face light up. I can't wait to see what these big boys will think of him when he's old enough to run around with them.

Bennett at Five Months

Benny, Benny Boy, what an angel you are. People ask me all the time if you are "always this happy". It hasn't been until recently that I am confident and comfortable in answering that yes, you are. This is not because you aren't. It has simply been because I have been so fearful of jinxing whatever angelic spell was cast on you when you were born. I kept thinking that all this happiness is just a phase, and I didn't want that phase to ever end. Well, it's been five months, so I'm finally pretty certain that I can say that you are "always this happy"(knock on wood).

In this last month, you have tackled and successfully made it through your first Christmas and New Year's. You were the Beau of the Ball at Christmas. Your unabashed cheerfulness makes you a delight to hold, and as such, there is never a lack of arms willing to take you. This suits Daddy and me just fine. We did Christmas Eve with the Bairs, and you were perfect - and gigantic compared to little 13 day old Caulder! You took everything in stride and loved watching your silly big brother and cousin run amuck in the house with all their new noise making toys. We went to church out there that night, and I did have to take you and Reeves out during the service. Although it was a children's service, you two were really the only little ones in there, and, despite how good you are, when everyone else is silent, you two are thunderous.

Christmas day was with the Phillipps/Anderson clan. How to describe your behavior this day? Basically, ditto. Except that you also went down without a peep for your nap and slept all through dinner - pretty much the best present you could have given Daddy and me. Oh yeah, and you and Reeves looked precious in your matching Christmas outfits. The same outfits, by the way, that Davis and Guerin sported last year. You are now the fourth child to use that one. Jodie, you got your money's worth on that! Thanks for letting us borrow them again!

Speaking of Superman and his brother, we spent NYE with them. You stayed up way past your bedtime, not that it altered your mood in the least. And you didn't even wake up when Daddy and I came and got in bed. Please keep being a heavy sleeper - at least until you're out of our house.

On the milestone front, you're kind of like 3M right now. You haven't done too much new stuff, you've just done the stuff you do do better. I might have been a bit overzealous in an earlier post when I mentioned that you had found your feet. You did, but you quickly lost interest in them. This month, they have become your favorite toys, and you like to play with both of them at once. And while it's true that you have laughed out loud before, now you cackle and giggle all the time. And you're getting louder. You are constantly reaching for everything now. Reeves has discovered this and will often dangle a toy just out of your reach. Fun for him, and fun for you for about a minute, then you want it. He sometimes gives in. You have started this new blowing bubbles and motorboating thing with your mouth. I love it because I know it means you are truly happy. There is always a grin behind that outboard. You also stick your tongue out a lot. It's the cutest little triangle of muscle I've ever seen. We are working on rolling over. Today you went from front to back, but to be honest, I think I might have happened to have positioned your arms in just the right way to make it easy for you. Milestone? Maybe.

Despite my desire to have you solely nurse for, oh, a year, it looks like we will be giving you your first bit of rice cereal this week. You're still sleeping through the night, but you reach for anything we are eating. I think you might even be licking your lips a little. Maybe we should just skip the cereal and go straight for steak. Well, maybe, if you had any teeth. I have a feeling you'll take to solids much faster and better than your brother did.

You did have your first trip to The Back to sit by a fire this month. You were mesmerized. Just like your father, you would have been content to sit and stare at those flames for hours. I see many more wonderful nights spent back there.

Bennett, you make us so happy. You brighten any day, no matter how bad it's been. Thank you for being such an angel. We love you more than you'l ever know.

Bringing the Politics Home

You might not have noticed it the first time you looked (I missed it too), but that is my godson right above John McCain. Reason enough to vote for him? Not so sure, but it's still pretty neat. And yes, Miller, I would like to know why you ended up on that stage with him!

Thanksgiving 2007

What a special day that was (all those months ago). We, as usual, had the big family feast at Big Laura and Rod's. It is so special to me when we can get everyone together like this. I can't believe I'm 32 and am still able to have family meals like this, just like it was all those years ago, except, of course, with the addition of a few wonderful new family members.

Reeves and I made placecards for everyone the night before. He was a willing accomplice at heart. Unfortunately, in practice, his poor finger got more of a workout than he was probably hoping for. I felt like a burgalar, covering up my prints. I was holding his finger, dipping and dabbing. To the outside world, Reeves prints were all over these things, but he and I know otherwise. I did let him do a few by himself, but leave it to my anal retentiveness to want the turkeys to ne as neat as possible. I really must learn to let go!

Because we had the entire family there, we arranged to take a family picture. Luckily, Laura and Rod's yard provided the most perfect backdrop. We placed Grandmother and Poppa in the center and all gathered around them. After all, they really are the anchors of this family. None of us would be here were it not for them. At this point, I feel I need to note that, as difficult as it is taking pictures of multiple children, just because they're all grown up doesn't really make it that much easier. If I could have mainlined ridalin into these people, I would have. Their focus was everywhere!! Maybe it's more frustrating with adults because you have some expectation of order-following-abilities or maybe it's because this had been planned well in advance and everyone knew about it. Whatever the reason, Big Laura and I were pulling our hair out trying to get this set up. But that's the great thing about family. You don't have to be too nice to them. We just directed everyone (eventually) to their designated spot, ordered them to smile, and came out with a great picture that we will all treasure for forever. And, my how we laughed about this ordeal. Why is it that the frustrating, whacky times always seem to be the ones you look back on and laugh the most at. "Oh, remember what fun we had when we were driving you crazy? Ha-ha-ha! Good times!"

Carolyn had made the most festive centerpiece for the table. Completely edible, I suppose you could say we had three turkeys for Thanksgiving dinner this year.I think we would fry the rice and peas if we could figure out a way to do it! Carolyn has always had incredible abilities when it comes to flower arranging, and she is now sharing her talent with more than just family and the church. She has done flowers for weddings and other events, so please keep her in mind if you ever need an event to be extra special in the floral department.

We warmed up for our meal with a out of key and off tune version of some Thanksgiving carols. (I don't really know what else to call them. I think they were hymns, but my musical knowledge only extends so far.) Gams had chosen these, and try as she might, she can lead us to the water, but she can't make us drink. We love to sing, but we're no Von Trapp family. An ear for music just doesn't run down this branch of the Anderson family tree. Luckily again, our efforts were met with laughs all around, and isn't that what being with family is all about?

Dinner was gluttonously delicious, as always. Poppa's saying was never more true than at the end of that meal. "As the cannibal said, 'I done ate a missionary and feel sanctified!" I think we all had a bit of the Spirit in us, and it wasn't just the triptophan. After some football watching and wonderful chatting, we were all ready to settle down for our long winters naps.

Reagan reminisced about having Little Baby Miller sitting on her lap. Hmmm, not so easy as it was 18 years ago.

Bennett and Miller showed off their matching haircuts.

Thank you, Laura and Rod, for hosting all of us. We had a wonderful Thanksgiving.

Bennett's Four Month Stats

So, nearly a month ago, we took Bennett to his four month appointment. He weighed 12'13" and was 26 1/2" long. I have long since forgotten what his head circumference was, and I don't feel that I really need to go rummaging through my papers to dig it up. Let's just say it was 50th percentile. Anyway, we have all marvelled at how much bigger B is than R at this same age. This child has folds in his thighs. Reeves never had anything other than chicken legs (and even that is being generous. They were more like yardbird legs.) Apparently our accurate memory goes back only to about last week. Thanks to the blog, I was able to, amazingly, prove us all wrong. Reeves was not only heavier at his four month appointment, he was nearly two pounds heavier! He weighed 14'5". I can't believe it. Of course, Reeves was on supplemental formula at that stage, but still. Bennett is in the 15th percentile for weight. Conversely, he is in the 90th for height. Looks like B and I have adopted another one because these boys certainly didn't get those genes from us! We're holding off on starting his with food as long as we can. The thinking is twofold in this. First and selfishly foremost, it's so much easier to only deal with nursing him. I already carry around so much stuff that I'm not anxious to add to the load. Secondly, and in the interest of his health, given Reeves' allergies, it is best to wait as long as possible before introducing foods to Bennett. Siblings tend to have similar allergies, so maybe Bennett will be able to grow out of any sensitivities before we have to test them. He's still sleeping through the night, so there's no mad rush to add calories to his diet.

We go back towards the end of February. I'm interested to see where this one's weight will be then. I'm sure we will have started on some sort of food by then. Maybe he'll have moved up to 20th percentile by then!

Blog? What Blog?

Wow! I am seriously behind on posting! Let's see...New Year's, Christmas (and all the to-do surrounding it), Thanksgiving. Yes, my delinquincy goes all the way back to November. Great. Now I'll be in front of this computer for days, or at least I should be. I'm sure these boys will have other ideas. First and foremost however, I need to get on Bennett's Five Month Letter (which is today. At least I can pretend for now that I'm on schedule!). Oh yeah, and his stats from his four month appointment.

Happy Birthday, William!

I can't believe a whole year has gone by since you came barrelling into our family. You've kept up well with all this silliness, Wonka! Can't wait to see what this year brings. We love you!

Love,

Kak, B, Reeves, and Bennett