Tuesday, December 1, 2015

Happy Thanksgiving!

The Collett house has been very thankful this Thanksgiving: we are thankful for our family that we got to see over Thanksgiving break, we are thankful for the family that we didn't get to see, but held close in our hearts, we are thankful for safe travels, good food, and especially patience and grace as Tony and I took on the challenge of traveling with two sick little ones.

But, first let me back up a little bit and fill you in our November. We spent most of the month, or so it seems, dealing with some type of sickness: Harper got a stomach bug that lasted over a week, Jack also had a turn with the stomach bug, and I was the last one to get the stomach yuck (after the kids were well and ready to play) while Tony was out of town- thank the Lord for Durinda who was a big help. My stomach bug also lasted a week and left me feeling pretty miserable going into Thanksgiving break. We did, however, manage to get some cute pictures of the kiddos hanging out amid all the stomach yuck...

They tried on hats and Harper even found the energy to dance around

 We took the kids to dinner one night when they were feeling better- we thought. Tony had a little snuggle bug...


They played doctor (very fitting)





 We made a trip to the grocery store- Harper had to have her bag with her and this is what she did when I asked her to say "cheese!"











The Tuesday before Thanksgiving (two days after I started eating food again- not just rice and chicken broth), Harper started to get a runny nose. Tony and I knew with this girl that our best bet is to start treat symptoms early and often, so at the  first sign of a cough Wednesday morning, I had her on her nebulizer as I packed to leave town.

The kids did great on the ride to Uncle Bubba's farm, and were very excited to play with their cousins before bed. Tony and I were hopeful we could get the kids down to bed and all get a good night's rest...that was not to be.  Jack woke up around 11:30 coughing and crying; he and I ended up sharing a twin sized blow up mattress.

Needless to say, we were not all well-rested for Thanksgiving day, but we made the most of it. The dinner was fantastic, the kids had a great time playing all day, and took good naps. Harper even took her mask without complaint and the kids made some dinner for us as well :)




The day ended for me like this: kids in bed, glass of wine, and gluten free pumpkin pie made by my awesome husband. I was very thankful Thanksgiving went well.

Friday the weather, which was predominately rainy, dried up momentarily and the kids got to see the cows before we headed out. Harper then ran around announcing that she wanted to see "more animals!"  Our trip to the farm involved a little more coughing and sick kid issues than we had hoped, but overall we had a great Thanksgiving and we can't wait to see the Colletts again.

Saturday we went to Nana and Pop's house to see our "big cousins" and spend some time with Nana and Pop, Uncle Tanner, and Great Granny. We always have fun when we're together and Saturday was no exception. Harper and Sloane played great together and Jack followed Wyatt around declaring "Wyatt, you're my friend!"

While we were there, we also tried our hand at a family photo using the timer on the iPhone. Here's our best picture; please take note of Jack's little face- what a silly boy!

Sunday was our last day before Tony and I headed back to work and we spent the afternoon putting up the Christmas tree and decorations. Jack was beside himself exclaiming "I decorated the Christmas tree!!" each time he put on an ornament. Harper also got into the act putting on ornaments and telling Jack not to touch the tree. I wish I would have taken some pictures, but Tony and I spent most of our time rearranging the four or five ornaments hung all on the same branch, or trying to make sure no one stepped on a ornament hanger- it was a little bit of chaos.

We are also embarking on our first year of Elf on the Shelf. Our little elf has been named Noel (despite the other naming nominations of "Owl" by Harper and "Santa Claus" by Jack), and Noel observes each day and then flies to Santa each night to report on Jack and Harper's behavior. They have spent the last two mornings getting up to hunt for the elf- Jack said "where is that silly old elf!?" and they run to say goodnight to Noel (and the Christmas tree) before bed each night.

I have no idea what December holds for us, but I'm hoping that we will all be in better health and can enjoy the holidays. Before I close for tonight, I have to give a nod to two important things that happened on this day:

On this day 2 years ago, Harper and Jack were baptized. They did great and our family was there to support the kids and celebrate.

On this day 7 years ago, we welcomed our little four-legger, Abby. Our family wouldn't be complete without Abby and as I type this, she is curled up beside me. This girl has been through many ups and downs with us, and she was thrust into the role of "sister" without having any say, but she has been loyal and loving to us every step of the way. Deciding to adopt Abby 7 years ago is one of he best decisions we ever made- we love you, Abs!


Wednesday, November 11, 2015

Happy Halloween!

I can't believe that I haven't posted on this blog in almost a month. There was a time when I used this space to update the status of my two little precious ones, and I was vigilant about typing every night- it made me feel like I was doing something, even when I was miles away from Harper and Jack.

Now that we have two toddlers who are running all over the place...well, life has happened. And the last week, boy has life happened. Harper got a stomach bug and started getting sick last week.  She was sick, then got better for a day, then sick again, then better for a day, then sick again (you get the picture). In fact, we even went out to eat a couple of times amid the sickness because we thought for sure Harper had kicked the bug and was better. Nope. A big, fat nope. By Sunday when she was still getting sick, Tony took her back to the doctor (we had already been once with instructions to let things run their course), got her some medicine, and now, finally, today, she's feeling more like herself.  I don't know what was worse, the getting sick, or the whining and general bad mood that accompanied it.

Last week while Harper was sick, we just knew that Jack was on the verge of being sick as well. Each time he got a funny look on his face, I would grab a bucket. Tony asked him "does your tummy feel funny?" So many times that Jack started just giving a look in reply. But Jack didn't get sick. He bounced around the house, brought Harper toys, watched tv with his sister, and sword fought his way through the house...until today. When he got sick....dang it!  So, needless to say, we are still dealing with this stomach bug that refuses to leave our house!

On the bright side, we did have a great end to October and a wonderful Halloween, and I have so many cute pictures of the kids to share.

We went to three different Halloween celebrations, the first of which was our gym Halloween party. Harper decided she wanted to go as "Doc McStuffins" (a cartoon doctor for stuffed animals and toys). I got her costume at a resale shop on a whim, and she was sold the moment I brought it out of the closet. This girl was committed to her character and hardly put her doctor bag down all night as she played.

Jack started out as a pumpkin, as you can see, but that quickly turned in to his Mickey Mouse pumpkin shirt and a scary mask. The masks were at the party and Jack was so excited to see them; he didn't take the mask off, despite him sweating as he ran round the gym. In fact, when we were riding home, Jack said "this mask is perfect for my costume!" He had already decided to be Frankenstein's monster for Halloween, and the mask was a monster mask- he was very excited.



Our second Halloween extravaganza was a fall carnival at my parent's church. We drove over Friday after work and got to have dinner with my family and Aunt Becky, Uncle Rex, and Great Granny before the carnival. The kids had so much fun seeing the family and Becky and Rex even showed up in costume.

Great Granny went with us to the carnival along with Nana and Pop. The weather wasn't cooperating, so all of the games and attractions had to be moved inside which made for a crowded carnival, but the kids still had a good time jumping in the bounce house, trunk or treating, and playing a variety of games. They were so wiped out that they slept all the way home and until 8 o'clock the next morning.




Saturday was Halloween, officially, and the kids had been waiting all month to be able to go trick-or-treating. Our friends invited us over to their house for a block party and trick-or-treating, so we loaded up the kids and their costumes and went to hang out.


Harper and Jack both had a great time trick-or-treating. Jack liked to look at all the houses, look in the houses, admire the decorations and pick through the candy. Harper liked talking to the people, wishing them a "Happy Halloween" and then running to try and catch up with the other kids in our group.

Jack's costume was a big hit and even found his doppelgänger roaming the neighborhood.

They got a great haul of candy, and since they've both been sick with the stomach crud, it's been going to good use to fuel mom and dad as they play nurse maid.

Aside from Halloween, the kids have done a few other noteworthy things in the past few weeks.


We took the kids to eat breakfast at our local pancake house- Harper picked out her own outfit. The kids also put down six silver dollar pancakes each!


They've also been going to a toddler gymnastics class and we got a few pictures of their "end of session ceremony". Both kids have gotten a kick out of class, and they're excited to go each week.



We took the kids to their first football game as well. Tony and I decided on a whim last weekend, when we thought Harper was feeling much better, to take the kids to the high school football game. The weather was great, the kids were excited, and our team won! We left at half time, but not before Jack got to see many people get "mooshed" as they were carrying the football. Harper and Jack also got to see the band, talk to some of the drill team girls, and watch the cheerleaders tumble (a request that Jack made after the first quarter. He looked at me and said "I want to see the cheerleaders now" ha!)


I'm closing with pictures of the kids and their favorite Halloween "thing."  Durinda takes the kids for walks quite often and when Halloween decorations started going up at the beginning of the month, they were thrilled to go by and see all the new sights. Jack took especial interest in the "big skeleton" at the end of the street. The skeleton became folklore at our house and Harper started requesting that we drive by and "check on the big skeleton" on our way to and from the grocery store or the gym. It got so bad that we would have to limit our drive-bys so the people living at the house wouldn't think we were stalking them.

So, before "Humongous" as Jack named him was taken down for the season, the kids and I walked down so they could get their picture taken with him. Please notice the giant skeleton eyes (which lit up red at night). I asked the kids if they were scared of him and they both replied "No, he's not scary!"  Ha!

Also...couldn't end without our girl, Abby. She's too cute :)