Christmas Is... (2010 Edition)

Games at grandpa's house until way past the children's bedtime on Christmas Eve.

New warm soft cuddly jammies to sleep in.
One little boy not falling asleep until way past Santa's bedtime.
Santa stuffing stockings anyway because she can't keep her eyes open anymore.
(Yes, Santa is female at our house)
Same little boy waking up at 1 am to see if he missed the fat man.
Then again at 3.
Mom and dad telling him we're not getting up until 6.
Waking mom and dad up at 6:24 to say we slept in!
Stockings
Presents
Bows
Lights
Love
Each other, all filled with excitement.



Homemade rubber band guns.
Home made play dough.
Home made scarves and aprons.
Sock monkeys.



(Seriously, I'm in love with them.)
New clothes and shoes and books.
Farm toys and an army base.
My favorite gift of all: siting on the couch watching my kids play together and feeling this new little one all wriggly inside me, knowing I don't have to share this baby for another 3 months.



Bubble baths.
Finding out that if you turn the jets in the tub on that it multiplies your bubbles by a million.
Eating stocking suffers for breakfast and lunch.

Not feeling guilty since the stocking were filled with dried fruit and nuts and rice crackers and cheese (and only a few sweets as well).

Afternoon naps all snuggled up with my lover.
Being content to not go anywhere all day long.



Christmas dinner with grandpa.
Eating Christmas dinner on the same china that my grandmother served Christmas dinner on when I was a child.




Reading Luke 2 by the light of the Christmas tree.
A big glass of eggnog before bed.
Having all the kids in bed and asleep by 7:30.
Dreaming about next year.
But most of all, Christmas is love.

Christmas Time is Here

Wow, December has flown by. Tomorrow is Christmas Eve and we are all just ready and waiting for the festivities to begin.
We have had such a fun, but busy month.
First of all, my baby boy turned 3.
I really can't understand it since he was just born last week.
He could not be prouder to be such a big boy.
Man, I sure do love that little person.

Speaking of little people, my nephew Bradley became a father last week.
What a cute little bundle.
I really can't understand that either considering he just turned 12 last month.
OK, not really, but it sure feels that way.
I feel like time is on the fast track again and everyone is aging, except me of course.

And speaking of tracks, last week we took the kids to Temple Square to see the spectacular lights and nativity.
They thought the best part was riding Trax to get there.
Those little boys were in boy heaven on that train.
It was crowded since it was rush hour.
I felt like I was back in Montreal on the Metro again.
I have to say I was in heaven on the train, too.
There were not enough seats for all of us and I insisted on standing, just like the
sardines-in-a-can-Metros of Montreal.
Wow, I can' believe I've been back from there for nearly 11 years.
Surely I can't be getting that old.

We have really enjoyed this Christmas season.
Time at home as a family, waiting for this new baby to get big enough to come out.
We have baked together, brought baked goodies to friends and family.
Doodle thinks that is the best part of Christmas. She is such a giving girl. As soon as we had cookies out of the oven she had a plate of them standing on our neighbors door, ringing the bell, smiling from ear to ear.
We have been busy making gifts for each other.
That is my favorite part of Christmas.
I love seeing the kids get excited to give something to their siblings.
I love the sparkle in their little eyes as they hand each other their gifts.
Priceless!
This year I made each of them sock monkeys.
I hope they like them as much as I do, I'm kind of in love with them.
I also made them each an apron, for all the helping they do with me in the kitchen.
So we are ready and waiting for the big day to come, when we all get to give each other our gifts.
And we get to think and talk about the best gift ever given.
The gift of God's Son to each of us.
The gift of healing and forgiveness and eternal life.

Speaking of eternal life, on Sunday we all met at the grave to remember Mr Bird's mom, who passed away 3 years ago that day.
Again, where has the time gone?
It feels like she was just here with us yesterday.
Sometimes I still expect to see her in the kitchen putting the last minute details of our family meal together.
It is at this time of year I am particularly grateful for the gift of eternal life.
I am so thankful for the sweet knowledge that we will be with our wonderful angel mother again. I miss her so much.
Merry Chirstmas, everyone!

My Aching Heart

Lately my heart aches more that it ever has my whole entire life.
I can hardly stand it any more.
(This is where I start whining...again.)

Anytime I eat, the pain starts filtering in.
It's just one little twinge of pain to begin with.
Then the pain spreads.
Soon my whole chest feels as though it is on fire.
It hurts to breath, let alone hold myself upright.
I guess it's the pregnancy heartburn.
I don't remember it being this bad with any of my other children, especially this early in the pregnancy.
But I'm trying to be optimistic here.
So maybe this is really a good thing.
The heartburn makes sure I don't ever over eat.
The heartburn hates sweets, of any kind.
This is the first time in my life that I could (and do) pass on chocolate (but only sometimes).
Plus it makes sure I don't eat any scrap of food after 7pm.
Night time snacking has vanished for me.
The good news? Perhaps I will not gain 500 pounds before this little one makes its grand entrance into the world.
So I want to know, if I'm not eating pounds of chocolate by the week, why are my cheeks growing disproportionately large (both pair)!

My Obsession

Can you tell I'm obsessed about this baby's gender?

Well, I am.
I have looked into every old wives tale in the book.
The Chinese calendar says it's a girl.
Did you even know the Chinese have a calendar to predict the baby's gender?
I guess if there's anyone more obsessed with gender, it would be the Chinese.
It calculates the mothers age at conception and the lunar month during which she conceived.
See?
Makes total sense to me.
But then I have friends who practice foot zoning (don't ask).
One of them looked at my ankles and told me it was a boy.
Then there are all the online quizzes.
Take your wedding ring and dangle it with a piece of thread over you belly.
If it swings in a circle, you are having a girl, but if it swings back and forth it's a boy.
Yes, I actually did this!
The verdict?
Both.
I did it more than once to be sure of the results and it was different every single time.
If the heart rate is over 140 it's a girl.
At my last check up the baby's heart was going faster than Speedy Gonzalez.
At a whopping 160 it must be a girl, right?
Then there's the whole if you're carrying high it's a girl, but if the baby is really low it's a boy.
I have all kinds of issues with this one.
How can you tell if you're carrying low or if your uterus is just sagging to your knees (along with everything else) because this is your 5th child?
So ya, I'm low. I guess it must be a boy.
There is even a question about the hue of your urine.
Huh?
I really did not know how to answer that one.
I guess it depends on how much I've had to drink that day.
I love the question about if you feel more attractive or less during the pregnancy.
I actually laughed out loud.
There's an old wives tale that says it's a girl if you look less attractive because the little girl steals her mothers beauty.
Really?
Are they serious?
If that's the case I must have 5 girls stuffed in there.
I look tired and puffy all the time.
I don't even look good with makeup on anymore.
Forget about even having the energy or desire to put makeup on.
My cheeks are starting to look like a Cabbage Patch doll.
And it's only going to get worse during the next 17 weeks.
I always look like an over stuffed turkey by the time the baby comes.
Even with my boys.
Then there are questions about position and the type of undies the father sports.
yada, yada, yada.
At the end of the quiz the all knowing world wide web gave me a 67% chance of having a girl.
Pretty funny considering that just the fact that I'm pregnant, I already have a 50% chance of having a girl.
Not that convincing if you ask me.

Long story short, I can't believe any of it.
I do, however, have an appointment for my very last ultrasound of the entire pregnancy tomorrow morning.
The fact that an ultrasound tech will be looking directly at my little one and all it's little systems is making me antsy.
She will know my baby's gender.
SHE WILL KNOW!
No guess work, it'll all be in black and white, clear as night and day right in front of her face.
It is going to take all the will power in the universe for me to not peak.
Darn you Mr Bird and that stupid agreement!!!
What was I thinking?
I have talked to lot of women who have decided to not find out what they were having and they tell me how much fun it is.
I think they mean it's fun AFTER the baby gets here.
Because honestly, the waiting may just kill me.
One of them never found out with any of her children (she has 5) and said you could not pay her to find out, she likes the surprise.
Well, I've got news for you Mr Bird, I AM NOT THAT WOMAN!

Nevertheless, I am a woman of my word.
(maybe)