Fall and Winter and Spring, Part 2

Here's part two of my attempt to catch up on our blog. We had a wonderful Christmas season this year - busy with a little one in the house, but so much fun preparing for baby's first Christmas! We picked out our tree at the usual "lot," also know as our neighborhood grocery store. Everyone helped decorate, starting with Nelle's first Christmas ornament and followed by all the rest of our baby ornaments. Norah and Maddie had an assist with the star (though Dan's face would suggest he was about to drop Maddie in the picture below [click on the pic for a closer look], everybody did remain safe through the entire decorating process!).

Picking out our Christmas Tree

Our neighborhood got into the spirit with "crane day," when we put Christmas lights in the tall, tall trees.  Norah looks forward to the crane ride every year, and this year Maddie got to join her and Daddy. Dan always assures me that everything is safe, but they do seem to go a little higher every year. Maddie was initially a little scared by the loud noises coming from the truck, but in the end she enjoyed the ride.

Nelle got her first taste of solid food in early December. At first, it seems like babies use more calories trying to eat the food than they actually get from whatever makes it into their stomachs, but she eventually got the hang of things. Since then we've cruised through yellow and green veggies, fruits, beans, meats, yogurt, cheese, and more.

We continued to get into the Christmas spirit with a trip to visit Santa (no tears this year... Nelle was too little to know what was going on and Maddie is a big girl now!), and a horse-drawn carriage ride. Norah had a pretty specific list this year (Doc McStuffins books, some new clothes, jewelry, Frozen gear, etc.), so she had quite a lot to tell Santa.

Norah's Christmas program at St. Anthony's was right before break - so cute to see all the kindergarteners and first graders all dressed up and singing some very sweet songs! At that point, it was so hard to believe that kindergarten was halfway over already, though obviously we're much closer to the end now!

We worked on a few more last-minute Christmas traditions at home - frantic shopping for me and gingerbread train decorating for Daddy and the girls. It seemed that a fair number of the candy decorations (and a bit of the frosting) were eaten before they actually made it onto the train, but that's all part of the fun.

Nelle continued to grow and show off all her new skills... she's trying out her balance in her five-month shot below. She loved taking in all the bustle of the Christmas preparations: her sisters had fun finding new ways to make her smile and giggle, and she was a great shopping buddy for me (my secrets were safe with her!).

Christmas Eve and Christmas Day were filled with lots of special memories. The girls' Elf on the Shelf, Ladybug, made cinnamon rolls on Christmas Eve morning before she headed back to the North Pole that night with Santa. We enjoyed a low-key dinner with the Devany side that evening, then got dressed up and headed to mass. Then, after a quick look at the Santa-tracker (he was just over Missouri at Norah and Maddie's pre-bedtime check - maybe even delivering presents to Ember and Autumn!), it was off to bed to await Santa's arrival at the McCoy house.

Every year, we say we're going to try to tone down the focus on the presents so we can spend more time enjoying the season and focusing on faith and family. We were a little bit successful this year, but our family room was still covered in presents on Christmas morning. Santa, Grandma and Grandpa, and Grammy and Grandpa Mike definitely came through on Norah and Maddie's lists! Since I wasn't fighting early pregnancy morning sickness (Christmas 2011 and 2013) and we had no pinkeye to worry about (Christmas 2012), Dan and I were really able to enjoy Christmas morning with the girls. The big girls always dart out to the family room as soon as they wake up to check out their stockings. Nelle was happy to watch all the activity. We spent a relaxing afternoon and evening at my parents' house, with more presents, more eating, and lots of great family time (including some nice phone calls to Dan's family). It was another wonderful Christmas on all accounts.

We stuck close to home for the rest of Norah's break, and we rung in the new year in our traditional low-key style - at home with a glass of wine and a kiss. 2014 was a memorable year for us, with our growing family and many new adventures. We thank God for all our many blessings. 2015 to be continued in the next post...

Fall and Winter and Spring, Part 1

Let me start this post with huge apologies Nelle's older self, for not carefully documenting your every milestone on our family blog. It's not that we haven't been making amazing memories - and even taking an appropriately equal amount of pictures - it's just that finding the time to sit down and write about them has alluded me. So here I am, trying to catch up on many months worth of growth and life!

When last I blogged, Nelle was getting ready to meet her Grammy, who came to visit from Missouri back in September. Norah and Maddie always love their Grammy time, but they grudgingly shared her for a bit with their (then) new baby sister.

Our fall was filled with school fun... soccer and field trips and lots of learning for Norah in kindergarten. Her teachers are amazing, so loving and patient as they help her and her classmates learn to read and write, navigate new friendships and social situations, and grow in their faith and love of God. Norah's soccer season was very low-key: one game a week, no practices, no score-keeping. She learned some of the fundamentals of the game and got some exercise, and Dan and I got a chance to meet some of the other kindergarten families. As expected, halftime snacks and post-game treats were always the highlight of the week. It was the perfect commitment level for us this year, especially with a newborn and toddler in tow.

Norah's class took field trips to the library and the fire station soon after school started.  Kindergarten field trips are quite a productions, with a flotilla of booster seats, SUVs, and almost as many parents as kids. I've had fun going along on them, as they give me a chance to spend time with her and her friends and see some of the things they're learning.

Maddie, too, went through the fall loving school. Her teachers tell us she's quite the good listener and that she always pays attention. While we see our fair share of this at home, too, we've also had some definite two-year-old moments with this one. Maddie is confident and opinionated and determined to keep up with her older sister. This will no doubt set her up for success later in life, but right now it means that if she doesn't want to do something (eat her carefully chosen and meticulously partitioned lunch, put on the shoes that she was begging to have thirty seconds earlier, wear any outfit other than her favorite brown shirt/brown leggings/brown socks combo, etc., etc., etc.), she's not afraid to say no and walk away - with attitude! One day in the car - after I asked her to do something - she told me, "Mommy, I'm hearing you." (As in, Mommy, I heard what you said, but I'm going to tell you right now that I'm not going to do what you're asking.) Another day, when I apparently wasn't giving my full attention to her, she said, "Mommy, I need you to look at me with your eyes and listen." (Where have I heard that before?) She can make us both laugh and want to cry in the same moment, and her excitement for life is infectious.

Nelle, for her part, spent the fall growing and growing. By early fall, we were getting lots of smiles, and she was enjoying the company of her big sisters more and more each day. She started really sleeping through the night around the time she was two months old (nine or ten hours some nights!!!), making for a VERY happy mommy and daddy. We still didn't have much luck with regular naps in her crib, but I think most of that was my fault and not hers. While it may have been feasible to schedule my day around Norah's naps, it is nearly impossible for me to do the same with Nelle. Luckily, Nelle was quick to adapt and was happy to sleep in her car seat or in the Baby Bjorn as we made our rounds of various drop-offs, pick-ups, and older sister activities.

 

With her namesake, Great Grandma Nell

In October, we made our usual trip to the pumpkin patch. We like to go to a family-run you-pick patch outside of town, where there is also a hay ride, corn maze, and haunted house - in addition to lots and lots of pumpkins. We seem to pick the hottest day in October every year, making the trip seem a little less like a Halloween activity and a little more like a summer trip to the farm. The girls always love running through the fields to find their pumpkins, heat or not.

Nelle's 1st Pumpkin

We did a few other Halloween-related activities at school with Norah and Maddie and at our local children's bookstore...

Halloween Parade at St. Anthony's (Can you count the Elsa costumes? Frozen was big this year!)

Dress-up day at Terrific 2's

...before heading out trick-or-treating on Halloween.

Norah and Maddie ended the night with lots of candy, and Nelle enjoyed going along for the ride.

In November, we celebrated Nelle's baptism. We were very fortunate to have many of our family members with us to welcome Nelle into God's family, including some who made quite the trips to be with us. We know she'll have lots of support in her faith life, since she has so many amazing role models who love her.

With her parents and Godparents

With my Godparents

Also in November, Dan and I celebrated our 10th wedding anniversary. How have ten years gone by so quickly? In that time, we've lived in three states (plus one additional state and a foreign country for Dan, courtesy of the Army), had four apartments/houses together, had five jobs between us, had three beautiful girls, and one amazing love story. Given Nelle's age and our busy lives, a big trip wasn't exactly in the cards this year, but we were able to sneak away for a nice dinner. (I know that this may not seem like the grandest of times, but to me it felt like a slice of heaven. Not that I don't love spending time with my kids, but more than ever, I appreciate a little break and some time with my honey!) I hear the 11th anniversary is the year to take a big trip anyway :)

November fun continued with Dan's birthday and Norah's Thanksgiving celebration at school...

...Then a brief interlude for some four-month-old-cuteness...

Look at her new grasping skills!

 ...Followed by a trip to the beach for Thanksgiving.  Nelle got to meet Great Grandpa Ray and all of us enjoyed some beautiful weather and fun family time. The big girls, as usual, convinced their Grandpa to take them in the water, and Nelle enjoyed watching them run and jump in the waves.

 

While we were there, we took an outing to the Seymore Center, which is an aquarium affiliated with UC Santa Cruz. It is much smaller than the Monterey Bay Aquarium, but perfect in size for younger kiddos. Maddie loved the touch tanks (Norah was a bit less adventurous than her sister), Norah liked the whale skeletons, and all three girls loved looking at the fish.

Given the already long length of this post and the week it has already taken me to get this far (in five minute starts and stops), I'm going to go ahead and call this part one of catching up. Check back (hopefully) soon for our Christmas and spring adventures!