I've been excited for the holidays with my boys, but secretly dreading it at the same time. This is the first time that Connor will be gone for a week (at his Dad's), as he's to be there the first half of Christmas break. SEVEN days feels like an eternity. I've been openly talking about it with C for a while to help relieve any anxiety he'll have for being gone that long. He came home from school the other day and asked for paper and a pencil to write me a note. He wrote this:
(It reads: "I miss my mom when I am gone. I wish my mom could visit.")
He drew a picture of us talking on the phone and another picture of him crying. A few random hearts are on there too.
I was proud of him for expressing his feelings, yet my heart broke in a million pieces knowing he felt this way. It's so hard explaining to him that he "has to go," and that I'm not allowed to come visit. If he only knew how much it kills me to have him gone this long. If he only knew the anxiety I have worrying about where he is, what he's doing, if he's homesick, if he's able to express how he's feeling or if he's harboring his feelings, if he's brushing his teeth every day, etc etc etc. Praying I can keep busy and that my C is happy.
So as I sit and pray for the next 7 days to fly by faster than ever (he'll be home to me on Christmas day at noon), I am glad we got to enjoy some fun activities/holiday fun before he left. Here's a little recap:
Some of our faves (Danielle and her family) were in town from PA & we got to visit her family's new property in Alva. Lots of friends, fire, cows, motorized vehicles, and food made for such a great night!
I love how Ryder, Sophia, and Connor can always pick up from where they left off every time we get together (maybe once or twice a year). They had fun collecting sticks for the fire and helping with tossing them all in. It's crazy how big they are now.
Noah thought the cows were big dogs! These cows were a hoot! They came running when they saw giant marshmallows. The saliva that oozed from their jowls was pretty gross, but still super cool to watch.
While the big kids played, the Noah Monster explored as well!
The three musketeers!
We played a lot outside, then took a break from chasing Noah to check out the fish tank inside.
I'm so grateful I've met these girls! It's so nice to have such sweet friends and that our kids are sweet friends too!
The December fun continued when C and I had a special date at Lowes to build a Christmas train. I warned him I wasn't the handiest, but we rocked it. The train was perfection! We had fun scoping out the holiday blowups on display in Lowes then stopped at the Dollar Store on the way home, so C could pick out some gifts for some of his fave people, special just from him. While I was encouraging the theme of "giving" for Christmas, I still couldn't say no to C as he kindly asked to buy the Avengers and Spiderman Chistmas wrapping paper at checkout. Little things thrill him :).
The Noah Monster has discovered the fun he can have on the playground. Our neighborhood playground is one of his favorite places. Matt & I took turns chasing after him!
Sidenote: Matt always participates in the "No shave November." By the end of the month, I'm excited to see his beard gone. He's grown a liking to it, so it has hung around for December. Connor and I agree Matt looks a lot like Yukon from the Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer movie. :)
Last weekend was our neighborhood Christmas party. We had to make a reservation for the carriage ride & we came to find out the carriage ride was running a little off schedule, so our ride time was delayed an hour. Matt & I made the executive decision to nix Noah riding at 7:00pm since he was ready for bed and there was a good chance he wouldn't want to sit still on it anyway. I decided to stay with Connor (and his buddy, Michael) and sent Matt (and Michael's dad) home with the little kids (3 of them). The wait was well worth it, since the big boys were able to ride in the special seats up front, overlooking the horses. I'm so grateful we live in such a great neighborhood for the kids.
We decided last minute to try out the Lake Park Christmas activities. Nana met us for supper beforehand, then we rallied together to give Connor and Noah proper attention. C went all the way across the monkey bars on the playground for the first time (C was SO proud), while Noah ran all over like he owned the place. We ended the exciting outing with a family ride on the train. Matt & I were not sure if we should have Noah ride it or not, since its a very slow moving 2 mile ride on a teeny train. We were not allowed to get off at any time, so I just pictured my squirmy boy squawking & having no where to go. My mom (aka Super Nana) was pretty confident she could keep him interested on the train, so we went ahead & held her to her word! Noah didn't make a peep the entire time and I got to sit with my Connor. While the lights/ride are a snoozefest for the adults, the kids love it! So glad we did it!
This photo just makes me laugh. Noah picks up on stuff so quickly by watching us, especially while watching Connor. He shoots hoops after watching Connor and Michael. He dribbles a soccer ball after watching them too. He knows to grab a remote and hold it up toward the TV (in attempt to turn it on). He loves to hold a controller while C plays his video game, sit by C, and hold it up, all while babbling to C as if he's playing right along with him.
Now, hurry up Christmas!!!
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