Amundsons

I have been on Maternity leave since the end of October. While I have had a lot of amazing quality time with my girls I have also had a lot of well... time. I needed a project. Meanwhile Charlotte's plastic dollhouse had broken and I wasn't interested in buying another one that would do the same. Christmas was coming, and I have really had a sense of wanting to do instead of just buy. So I did the math: Extra Time + Christmas + need a project+ 2 girls = lets build a dollhouse I forgot to factor in that I am not at all crafty and haven't really worked with wood since a puppy dog napkin holder in Junior High, and oh yeah Jake would add that I also tend to get in over my head with almost everything that I start. So mid-November I found a dollhouse "kit" online. I ordered it from a man named Frank who lives in Utah that puts together these kits himself. Below is what came in the mail along with 10 pages of instructions. WOW... in over my head much??? Seriously ...

When we were up in Wisconsin Jacob and I took Charlotte to an Art Museum in Oshkosh. During the holidays they decorate each of the rooms to look like a scene from the Nutcracker Ballet. She is all into Ballerina's lately so we thought it would be fun. It was lovely, in a "ohh that was nice, but probably wont ever go back type of way". This is mostly due to the fact that 3 year olds aren't really into looking at old stuff that they cant touch, and there weren't any actual ballerina's just decorated rooms. Bet she will love it in about 60 years. We did get to read the story .... which was perfect because this weekend we got to go and see the actual Nutcracker ballet at the local University. This one had real live ballerinas and sugar plum fairies and dancing chocolate from Spain .... oh so much cooler. We went with our good friends the Beachy girls and once the ballerinas headed into the Land of Sweets, Amy pulled out candy canes for the girls to suck on....

Downtown St. Louis has horse-drawn carriages that (for a fee) will give you a ride around town. Charlotte goes bananas every time she sees one wanting to get on, and we always say maybe someday... well that day finally came. The park near our house has a Christmas light show and you can ride in a horse drawn carriage as you look at the show. She was giddy. Claire is actually in this picture but you cant see her because she is under 5 blankets (poor new-born baby!) After we then headed over to the local tree lot to pick out our Christmas tree. Jacob is my "light man" , he is really good at putting the lights on. Growing up in a family that pretty much just throws them on the tree I had no idea regarding the art of lighting a Christmas tree. He wraps it around the trunk and gets is deep and even. Perfect. I however am the " put Christmas away in January girl" , and well... Fortunately Claire helped him out. We decorated some Christmas cookies while Claire and ...

So one of the questions that I have been asked a lot lately is "How is Charlotte, now that she is a big sister?" I wondered that myself quite a bit before Claire was born, after all Charlotte is almost 4. Her world was all about her for a really long time, and I wasn't sure how she would do once she had to share that world. It has been 7 weeks and she has ROCKED IT! I am so proud of her and can't believe what an amazing big sister she has become. The minute she gets home from pre-school she runs into the bathroom to wash her hands so that she can hold Claire, then she will sit still and hold her for a good 15 minutes. Not bad for a girl with a 10 minute attention span. Her new favorite activity is reading books to Claire at night before bed, she talks about how the toys, clothes, towels, bassinet etc. that used to be hers are now Claire's. She helps give her a bottle, a bath and a snuggle. If Claire gets fussy or an outright angry cry starts, Charlotte shows...

Claire had her first expedition to the great white north for Thanksgiving. She was fabulous in the car. She was easier to travel with than our dog. The 3 year old however, oh so much more difficult than both combined, you could even throw in a goat and the 3 year old would still win. Here we are at Jacob's favorite restaurant Friar Tucks. We have NEVER been to Wisconsin with out eating here at least once. Charlie enjoying the deep fried Cheese... Claire enjoying the plastic nook. Jacob watching Football with his girls And Thanksgiving wouldn't be perfect without a carnival grade cotton candy maker that Abbie rented. Its a long story. Yummy????? Charlie literally shoving the jello into her mouth. Carrots didn't get shoveled in with quite the same intensity. See you later plastic Dora sippy cups, hello fancy pants glass. Breaking the wishbone with Baba... someone is really wishing for a "pink and purple dollhouse" from Santa. Hope you get it Baba. and...

First doctors appointment... as you can see this was a non-shot appointment . First H1N1, so we dont get the baby sick... First time meeting a lot of relatives... First bottle (Charlotte got to do the honors)... First sister snuggle... First bath (yep, she loved it...) Really starting to LOVE this crazy little face! as is she :)

I am not going to say that it takes becoming a parent to appreciate your own, cause I don't believe that. It did take me about 25 years to appreciate them, but it didn't have to do with having my own kid. That being said having a baby did remind me just how amazing my girls grandparents are, and how grateful Jacob and I are for these amazing parents of ours. After all they did raise some pretty amazing kids themselves! Nana Papi Baba Grammy Of course we cant just call them grandpa and grandma anymore- that would be too normal, and these guys are anything but normal. We wish you lived closer, but so thankful that you all made it out to see her, and that you kept another crazy little girl so busy she didn't even notice she isn't the center of the world anymore .