A Gutt New Year

Having little children has taken some of the pizzazz out of our New Year’s Eve celebrations. Throwing large parties are on hold, as are going to most parties. We don’t sled at midnight and watch the fireworks over the lake. For two of the last three years, I’ve had a newborn or been very pregnant. But, there are some merits in ringing in the new year in your pjs, with someone you love. We were even able to watch the fireworks over the lake from our bedroom, while our two little girls slept in the surrounding rooms. However, leading up to the big count down, we had some serious play time with Ella and Lily.

We took every cushion, pillow and blanket from the living room and threw them in a giant pile. Then we all wrestled and rolled around. Ella was slightly apprehensive at this, but Lillian was in complete heaven. We left it up through New Year’s Day for more fun. Stollen really liked sleeping in the pile, but then he became the hunted, with Lily as the hunter!

 

I have a feeling that 2011 is going to be a great year. We are blessed with two healthy, active girls. We live in a wonderful neighborhood with so much to do. We are surrounded by great people, attend a wonderful church. Loran has a career that challenges him and in turn, he is thriving. And because of his great achievements at work, I’m able to stay home and help these two little girls learn life’s ropes. The future looks bright. I’m excited to see what this year brings!

Lily’s also into bigger and better things. I dug out the sippy cups. It’s about that time where she has to start weaning off the bottle. She took her first cup really well. I think I’ll replace one bottle a day with the cup per week and by February, I think she’ll be on cups exclusively. Of course, that could change. Ella had to go completely cold turkey with the bottles. So begins, morning cup of milk following the rest of the day with bottles. Lily did well with her first cup, it’s different for her, but she handled it well. I think I have the most problem with it. I have a hard time saying good bye to bottles. To me, they are the very essence of baby-hood. Even most breastfed babies have a bottle here and there. Adults can wear diapers, Emo teens suck on pacifiers, we use blankets our whole lives and those healing from oral surgery and Loran in college “enjoy” baby food. Saying goodbye to the bottle means saying hello to the toddler. I can handle seeing Lily use Ella Sit and Spin today as a walker and push/walk across the room, but seeing that cup in her hands gets me a little choked up.

Tally Ho 2011!