Hi all!

Well Christmas is looming and I haven't even put up the tree!! How slack am I? Things have been a little busy and in the course of running around I have let myself get a little run down! I woke up with laryngitis this morning. Actually, I think that is God having a brilliant sense of humor. I was praying yesterday and asked that I would become more thoughtful about the words I speak and more soft in the tones that I speak them - and I woke up with laryngitis! I can just imagine Him saying "oh, she will get this one, she'll think it is funny!" Yet more evidence that it was God who created my sense of humor! And yes, I did think it was funny. I've been chuckling about it most of the day. I have been enjoying Christmas shopping even if I haven't done much else. In my opinion, it doesn't do to start the Christmas excitement too early with little ones. We have done our annual pre-Christmas toy purge though. Before every Christmas or birthday I put out a bag or a box and we go through the toys and the kids can choose some to give away. This promotes a giving spirit in the kids and keeps down the clutter - and I admit I do steer them toward toys I'm not particularly fond of!

Erin:
is thoroughly ruthless during a toy cull. She was tossing things in right, left and centre! I had to rescue a few of her brother's toys and there were a couple that I had to restrain myself from keeping just because I like them! We gave about half to the Unterberger family and half to charity (the ones that leave little bits everywhere or make noise went to charity - I like Katrina's friendship too much to do that to her! LOL). That night she told Jon that she gave some toys the the Unterberger kids and some to "the other kids, not the Unterberger kids, ordinary kids" LOL I guess that makes the Unterberger kids EXTRAordinary. She also thanked Jesus that she was "generous to the other kids" in her prayers which I thought was cute. She is getting MUCH better with the phobias she started having (it went from the bath filling, to pretty much all taps, the noise of the kettle and the noise of the microwave and a few other random things!). It was Jon that turned the tide. He spent a lot of time with her over the weekend and taught her that it is Mummy and Daddy that control those things and we won't hurt her. SHE isn't in control and she needs to trust Mummy and Daddy and relax a bit! She still gets a bit nervous and she asked to go jump into her bed tonight when I filled her bath - but that is light years from wetting herself in terror about it which she was doing last week!

Billy:
weighed in at 13.4 kg and measured 89cm tall yesterday - what a whopper!! He is off the charts in height - not in weight though the string bean. "Please Mama" is very much part of the vocabulary now. He has been getting away with yelling and whinging a bit too much lately though and I do need to bring that under control before he does my head in! I really don't know why I always melt with him! He is very cuddly at the moment. I told him he could wake Erin up the other day and he went over and patted her head and said "Hello!". She responded by wrapping a sleepy arm around him and kissing him on the forehead. I nearly called Jon right there and then and demanded he came home to make more babies because ours are so cute! Today we were over at the Unterbergers having morning tea and he was either cuddling and playing SO nicely or standing hollering at the top of his lungs for me or (once) whacking chooks with a stick! (I think he was trying to pat them) That's my boy, storm clouds or rainbows, nothing in between!

Christopher:
is 7.36Kg and 66cm long - so he's HUGE! I have moved him to the cot in Erin's room as he is sleeping through the night now and it won't be long and he won't fit in the bassinet anymore. He is cooking and laughing and smiling and still throwing up his on body weight daily - yes, that IS a lot!

The house:
Oh dear, guess who has fallen off the wagon? It is CLEAN washing on the loungeroom floor and the dishes are stacked neatly ready for me to take out to the dishwasher and I only swept the floor and changed the sheets last night so it isn't TOO bad - but I need to get on top again before it gets too bad. I have a piece of paper stuck in front of my sink with "It isn't finished until you clean it up. Shiny things will keep!" I have been easily distracted lately and going to bed FAR too late as well which throws the routine out which makes for a deterioration in quality of life for all! I need to go pull it all in line again.

Garden:
is growing fantastically! Flowers everywhere. I moved a ladybug larve off a flower that I picked on to another rose bush today and it was eating aphids before it had all it's little legs on the new rose bush! I love those little guys! The veg is doing well, although I need to get in to some cooch that is starting to come up - again! I have harvested cherries off our cherry tree and they were very yummy!

Craft:
I knitted Katrina a kerchief to wear on her head for her birthday. It is snuggly warm - just right for Dunorlan winters!

Jess