Our year in pictures

January (in Las Vegas)
February
March
April (with friends Noah and Macrina)
May
June
July (at Aunt Jess's wedding)
August (in South Carolina)
September
October
November
December

Things that made my day

Megan's friend Oscar turned five yesterday, and we gave him five dollars (in one dollar increments) in a card today. You would've thought he had won the lottery. He had a fistful of dollar bills, was running all over the house hollering, and insisted on counting them about four times. It was fantastic. :)

However, on the list of things that did NOT make my day would be the delightful Anchorage drivers I had the joy of sharing the road with today...like Mr. Green Nissan in the Wendy's parking lot, who--instead of waiting his turn behind me in the right lane like a normal person--pulled up in the left lane beside me, waited there for two minutes, then whipped out in front of me as soon as there was an opening in traffic. Also on my list is the 17 year old MALE who took the last "Expectant Mother" parking spot at my OB. Dude, I KNOW you are not pregnant.

Peaceful Days

What a wonderfully relaxing day. At least, it was until Dn. John left before bedtime to go to a movie with a friend and the kids both flipped out. But up until then, it was mostly peaceful. Marina took a nap in my lap while I read a book this afternoon, we spent the morning doing puzzles and took a short walk up to the church to run an errand. I didn't clean anything. It was delightful. I feel rejuvenated.

Tomorrow is my 30 week appointment with the OB. That's right, 3/4 of the way done!! Woot! I'm actually almost 31 weeks, but whatever. :) It seems unreal that I'm now at the point where I head to the doc every two weeks, instead of every month. The baby seems to have had another growth spurt, and has also flipped head down. He/she now kicks and rolls unmercifully, and you can see my stomach churning all over the place. Baby kicked me really hard today and I gasped a little bit, and Megan turned to me all alarmed and said, "Why did you gasp? Is the house on fire?" Wow, way to jump to huge conclusions, little girl.

Hopefully this weekend we can start on our rearranging projects. I figure if we do one a weekend, we'll have the baby's room ready, our new office space organized, and everything relatively settled by the time Number Three makes their appearance. First on the docket is putting some shelves into a poorly used closet, and re-purposing it for jam storage. Once the jam is out of the way in the utility room, that corner will be used for the computer so we can have the office for a bedroom again. It's a serious cascade effect that will alter almost every room in the house in some way, shape, or form. It'll be pretty cool once it's all done, and I'm looking forward to getting started.

A year ago

Just for kicks, I looked up my blog posts from a year ago to see what was going on then. It's interesting what has changed, and amusing what hasn't.

Roughly a year ago....

--Marina had just been diagnosed with all her allergies. Thank you Lord, that is no longer a topic of sobbing blogs, and a reason for nightmares and antacids.

--It was between -5 and 5 outside. So far, little change, although I did see the thermometer warm up to a balmy 12 this afternoon.

--When at prolonged temperatures below ten degrees, our septic system had the unfortunate habit of freezing and sending sewage stench into the living room. Also, no change. Double bummer on that one.

--We only had two kids to blog about. :) Very blessed and joyful change on that topic.

--Amusingly enough, we were also having internet problems a year ago. The last couple weeks has been fraught with them, but we got a new modem, and now all is well again.

It was fun to read about the kids' antics...although I seemed to be complaining about a record number of fits. Ah well. I suppose those things come in cycles.

Now that the insanity of Christmas prep has passed, I can graduate into the nearly-equal insanity of Christmas clean up. I think, at my current speed, it will take me a couple days, especially since 90% of it is gathered on various parts of the floor, and my ability to bend over is severely hampered at this particular moment. If only I had small people around to help me with such things....hmmm.... I think it's time to break out the M&M's. That's right, I am not above bribery, especially if it gets stuff done with a minimum amount of crying.

Oh yeah, we're having a baby

According to the baby website, our new little one is now 3 pounds, 17 inches long, and gaining an average of 1/2 pound a week. I am suddenly struck by a *slight* amount of panic as I realize that this pregnancy is winding down, and before long I will have three screaming children instead of just two (haha--but seriously, guess what the first two are doing right now??).

All along, I figured I would get through Christmas and New Years, then worry about having a baby. Well guess what folks?? In a week, I get to start worrying. As of January 4th, we will only be two months (give or take) away from Boom-shak-a-lakka's birth, and that suddenly seems very, very close.

Yikes.

Flu days

So...we have the flu. It sucks. Last night I was up puking all night, and tonight it's Dn. John's turn. The only good thing about all of this is that we have seen Marina rise to the occasion of sweetness and caring. She was incredibly worried about me this morning while I was in the bathroom throwing up, and kept coming in to pat my shoulder and say, "I sorry Mama. So sorry. Feel better. You okay." Then when Dn. John started in this evening, she was standing outside the bathroom door crying for him. When he came to lay on the couch, she ran after him, snuggled up beside him, and sat and patted his cheek while he assured her that he was okay.

And then there's Megan. :) Her end of things consisted of having a crying fit this morning because, and I quote, "I don't want to listen to Mom puke any more!" and then this evening, refusing to use the toilet because it had been puked in. She ended up dragging Marina's potty chair into the living room and peeing in there, after demanding that we build a new bathroom, so we can have "one for potty, and one for puke."

It seems to be an 8 hour thing, and I am on the upswing. Hopefully Dn. John will make it through the night without any major incidents, but he's got a good 7 hours to go. My main and sincere hope and prayer is that the kids escape this. It is complete misery...especially with a 2 pound unborn child protesting violently every time I had to throw up. At least no one else will have to deal with that particular madness.

In any case, please keep us in your prayers.

Christmas with my daughters

Some of my favorite memories of the last couple weeks, as we get ready for Christmas...

--Megan's anticipation and excitement as we grew closer to her Saint's day on our Advent calendar

--Marina carrying around the Mary from her play Nativity set, and stopping every few minuets to shake her "hand" and ask, "Hi Mary! How are you?"

--Megan asking why the Wise Men rode camels and didn't just take a plane to see Baby Jesus.

--Making cardamom bread with Marina

--Hearing Megan correct me on the color of the Vestments for Christmas. "Daddy will wear his gold vestments on Christmas." "No Mom, he will wear the white ones. " (They learned about the vestment colors in Christian Ed this week).

--The huge burst of energy both kids had when informed this morning that we would be putting our tree up today

--Wrapping presents with Megan manning the tape dispenser and picking out ribbon colors

Swimming

I took the kids swimming this afternoon. We crashed a field trip from St. John's school, so we didn't have to pay or anything. LOVE IT. :) Anyway, Megan has really blossomed from being terrified of water that goes above her ankles, and was super brave. She had water-wings on, and pranced around in the kiddie pool, having a great time. I am so proud of her. I have her on the waiting list for swimming lessons, but there is apparently a year's wait, so we've got a few more months before she'll be able to start. I think it will be great for her though.

Marina, on the other hand....ah, Marina. That child is fearless. She had a life jacket on, and apparently felt that this made her invincible. She was having the time of her life, dancing and jumping in the water. Every now and then, she'd fall sideways and bob around swallowing water until somebody righted her. She's just smile, say thank you, and continue on her merry way. The best part was when her pull up exploded. I was out of swim diapers, and figured something was better than nothing, completely forgetting that her pull up would just absorb and absorb and absorb, until POP! Little tiny granules of diaper insides came spilling out the sides of her suit. I had to take her out and run her through the shower to get them all off. I'm sure she couldn't have cared less, she was having so much fun. Needless to say, there were some pretty serious tears when it came time to leave.

I also discovered today that my swimsuit is stretchy enough to accommodate my giant belly, which was a bit of a surprise. There were a couple Moms from the school taking pictures of all the kids, and I just sincerely hope that I am in none of them.

We are on the final countdown until the Howells get back. Megan was telling the nurse at the doctors office yesterday all about Luke, and her Aunt Stasie's new baby, and how they were FINALLY going to be here on Friday. She is about to climb the walls with anticipation. I'm thankful we have a birthday party to go to Friday morning, because I have no idea what time they get in, or even if they will be up for a Rogers invasion that day at all. I'm going to have to distract her. :) Maybe we'll put up the tree Friday night...or bake Christmas cookies. We'll figure something out.

Speaking of baking, I've got to get my bread going so I can pull it out of the oven before going to see Harry Potter tonight with my little sister. Now that I look at the clock, I'm not entirely convinced that there is enough time...hmm. Maybe it has become tomorrow's project.

Megan's Nativity Play

Seriously people, she was so stinking cute, I can hardly stand it. I don't think it's on the video, but when her performance was done, Marina started shouting, "Yay Megan! Yay Megan!" over and over again. It was really sweet. Meg had a little grin on her face when she heard Marina's cheering.

Sledding

My daughters discovered sledding today...along with the joys of having Daddy home on a Saturday after we've gotten four inches of fresh snow. They built a snow fort, and have been sledding and frolicking in the snow for almost an hour and a half.

I think I will buy them a bigger sled, though. :)

Today's words to live by

Let no one ever come to you without leaving better and happier. Be the living expression of God's kindness--kindness in your face, kindness in your eyes, kindness in your smile.

--Mother Teresa

Salmon Fried Rice

3 cups cooked brown rice
2/3 cup peas
1 onion
1 Tbsp. butter
1 pepper (any color)
1 salmon fillet
steak seasoning
3 eggs
thyme
1/2 cup soy sauce

Season the salmon fillet with the steak seasoning and bake. Once cool, strip the skin and break into small chunks.

Dice the onion. Melt butter in skillet and cook onion over medium heat until brown and caramelizing (takes about 8 minutes). Dice pepper and add to onion. Cook until softened.

Heat up a couple tablespoons of oil in a wok, and toss in the rice. Beat the eggs in a bowl (like you were scrambling them) and add to rice. Stir until eggs are cooked, then add soy sauce. Add onion, pepper, and peas. Gently fold in salmon chunks. Season with thyme.

**This recipe is great because you can add any vegetables that you happen to have on hand. Corn or asparagus would also be really good.

Uh oh

I just had a slightly terrifying realization...in three months, I am going to have three kids. THREE. We woke up late this morning, and I was trying to get Megan out the door for preschool (trying to hurry that girl is about as useful as training a cat to ride a bike, and equally successful), Marina was running around like a loony (she is the only morning person in the family), and I was standing there in my pajamas, realizing that Megan had to be at school in ten minutes, and I had no idea how to do this. So, I threw my clothes on, wrapped Marina up in a quilt, and herded my little brood to school. As I arrived at preschool (which is only about 100 yards away) out of breath and harassed, the knowledge that in a few months I get to add an infant to the mix made me want to just climb in my bed for the rest of the day.

It's going to be a heck of a ride.

St. Nicholas

Last night, when we came home from St. Nicholas Vespers, we found that our very own St. Nicholas had left gifts for the girls on our doorstep. This is the third year in a row that someone has done this, and we truly don't know who they are.

I have no idea if you read this blog or not, but if you are our St. Nicholas, thank you for your generosity and love. The girls love their new teddy bears, and we are saving the candy canes to put on our Christmas tree.

God bless you, and may your kindness be returned to you 100 times over.

Spinach Artichoke Dip

Guess what is bubbling away in my oven right now? :)

Spinach Artichoke Dip

8 oz. cream cheese
1 cup sour cream
1/3 cup Parmesan cheese
2/3 cup grated cheddar
10 oz. frozen chopped spinach
1 can (12-16 oz.) artichokes
4 green onions, chopped

Beat cream cheese until smooth. Add sour cream, parmesan and cheddar. Thaw and drain spinach, eliminating as much water as possible. Drain and finely chop artichokes (I use my food processor; it works like a dream). Add spinach, artichokes, and green onions, mixing well. Place in an 8x8 baking dish and bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes, or until heated through and bubbly. Serve with Triscuits, wheat thins, or chips.

Crumbled bacon would also be a delicious addition.