Oh My Heart.

Fluff, Jasmin and Baby Lucas were in our area and so came by for dinner tonight. I managed to perk up and not totally sulk after the Packer game (because I am a grown up) and we had a really wonderful time.

Last time Lucas was at our house was before their birthdays (Ellie is 51 weeks older than Luke) and she was a total brat to him - she'd pull toys out of his hands or yell at him for looking at her stuff. Tonight, she could not have been sweeter. She brought him toys to play with, she crawled around so he could follow her, she tried to convince him to go in her tunnel with her. It was so sweet to see the two of them together - he was impressed by her, and she was darling to him. Fluff and I joke that we want our kids to fist fight and wrassle like we used to back in the day (just kidding, we never flat out fist fought - just pretended to push each other into traffic on occasion) but it is so heart melting to see them love on one another. After eating he was sitting in the high chair, and she stood on the first rung so that she could stick her face right in his and yammer along. And when they were getting Lucas set up for his supplemental night time nutrition, she was so concerned about the owie on his tummy and how he was going to feel better. It just makes me so happy that they'll get to grow up being friends.

Hot Date.

Tim and I had a very eventful 24 hours, doing grown up things sans child. While Ellie was hanging out with Mimi and Pa, we saw not one, but TWO movies. IN THE THEATER. And we ate meals out! We held hands! We talked to each other! We slept in until 9am! It was glorious, and we are so, so lucky to have such great parents.

Ellie didn't seem to miss us too much - she went with Mimi and Pa to a childrens museum where she played pretend and saw some good taxidermy. She was very excited to tell me all about it when we reunited tonight at Emily and Dana's wedding reception/party/dinner/thingie.

So, Tim and I saw This is 40 on Friday night with friends of ours. The company was great, the food at dinner was good, but the movie wasn't my favorite - I'd say save it for a rental. Today we went out for breakfast and then parked our butts back in the theater seats for three hours of Les Miserables, which I highly recommend. I cried, of course, but not as much as I wept when I saw the stage play in college. But then again, I wept a lot in college for no reason, so it's not that surprising.

Ellie was so cute when we met up with her. She spent the first hour or so of the meal with her face stuck in mine, and I got a lot of good hugs. Sometimes, it's nice to miss each other. It's funny - there is part of me that feels like I should be taking every opportunity to spend time with her while she's an only child, but there's a larger part that says "TAKE TIME AWAY WHILE YOU CAN GET IT!" I know soon enough we'll be back in new baby prison, between the nursing and the not sleeping through the night and the wanting mama. I have also heard that two kids is three times as hard as one, so I don't anticipate Mimi or Gigi volunteering to take BOTH little brats over night all the time (though I guess we could farm out one kid to each grandma and then go on Hot Dates.)

We have a couple more fun days ahead of us. It's been so nice having Tim home for a week, even if it means I have absolutely no concept of what day it is. Dad asked me if we were coming over to watch the game in the afternoon, and I thought he meant the Rose Bowl, and was confused (because they are going to the Rose Bowl whereas we are not.) He meant the Packer game, because FYI, tomorrow is Sunday!

Also New.

The best part of the kitchen being 99% done is all of the other little items that we've regained around the house. They got the old appliances out last week so Tim has been able to park his car in the garage again. And with both Fat and Stupid using the cat boxes in the garage, we've been able to remove all traces of animal from the hall bathroom.

Our house feels instantly tidier and nicer. Sure, the garage box isn't completely odorless or dustless, but it's MUCH cleaner and easier to keep clean. The best part is feeling like I can clean the bathroom and know that it won't be filthy minutes later (because trust me, nothing makes a cat want to go make a mess like a perfectly clean litter box on a freshly mopped floor.) AND tonight for the first time, Ellie got herself a bath in an actual bath tub in our house. We used to do her infant tub in our bathroom when she was a wee sprite, and since then she's just been getting bathed in our stand up shower, either with one of us, or in a quick, private spritz before bed. Tonight when she came in and saw me filling the tub she said "it's my NEW tubbie bubbie!" That's right kid, brand new, just for you. I even washed the old, dead bugs out before I plopped you in.

Christmas Eve/Day

A few of my favorite pictures from the past two days of celebrating:

Ellie's favorite new game is running up and down the drive way at top speed - here she is racing towards Tim

Before present opening, having a Badger dance party with Lisa

Deeeelighted with her many new bunnies from Auntie Bee (I hope all of those bunnies are fixed... otherwise I'm in deep trouble.)

Absolutely thrilled with her tent from Auntie Sara. This morning I had to convince her that she wanted to open her presents from Santa first, THEN go play in her tent. I think when all was said and done, she would have rather just gone straight to the tent

Santa put a sparkly baton in her stocking, and I told her "it's for twirling." Instead of twirling her baton, she twirled herself!

Taking a quiet moment to read some of her new books before everyone arrived

The Eggman fries eggs for croque madams

Then shows Ellie how to make her new cars into ice cream trucks

Mom gets a new iPhone and ignores the rest of us to play with it. FIGURES.

Pa does a stint in the tent with Ellie and Bitty Baby

John has a food coma

This party is getting crazy!

We take 25 different photos and this is the only one that's not blurry, and where everyone has their eyes open

Then after a nap, we went over to Mimi and Pa's for an evening of loud, family craziness. There were quiet moments though, like when Pa helped Ellie draft her will. Planning ahead never hurt anyone!

And then she took Tim to the cleaners on the PS2. A perfect day all around! Plus a Christmas miracle - I actually shared some frosting with her. It's true love.

Quick Hits.

Ellie is napping. All of my food for this evening is prepped and Tim is doing the last minute clean up. I need to go lay down (turns out, I'm 6.5 months pregnant and tire easily, who knew?) but here are my two favorite photos from Christmas thus far:

That elf is drunk! ELF! NO MORE EGGNOG FOR YOU! Get away from the fridge!

Rockette's have nothing on this family.

Holiday Post Part 1.

Warning, lots of photos ahead.

Yesterday our friend Nicole held a cookie decorating party, so the kids could get to work on their cookies for Santa. Ellie was dressed in her little elf hoodie (of course) and got to work smearing frosting around with a small spoon. I told her that she needed to "paint" with the frosting, so she went to town.

Then I told her to taste her paint. She first looked me like I was insane, and then went insane with joy over the delicious taste.

Tonight we were over at Mimi and Pa's for the annual Parmordsen party, which featured delicious food, the debut of Mimi and Pa's new kitchen, and a visit from Santa!

Surprise! Ellie wanted nothing to do with him when he arrived.

She did consent to take a candy cane.

But she was sure as heck not going to sit near him. No siree.

She did calm down enough to go claim her present, of course

And when all was said and done, she was willing to give him a high five. Just no sitting, thanks.

"Oh crap mom, he's right behind us, isn't he?"

I'm excited that Tim has the week off. This morning we got to go on a "flamly" walk, and we'll probably have many of those in the next few days. You know, in addition to wrapping presents, buying last minute presents, and getting all of the holiday groceries purchased. Good thing we have leftover cookies.

Final Daylight Kitchen Photos.

Our long odyssey is so close to complete that I feel confident in posting these last few "after" photos. I will, of course, add the trash cabinet and laundry sink photos when that's all done. Because I know you'd be sad not to see them. 

But here's our final results, in day light:

General overview

From the other corner. Not to ruin the suspense of the trash door photos, but that set of four drawers at the corner near the slider will become a top drawer and then a door. It'll look like the sink cabinets

The threshold piece. It's slightly raised, and Ellie loves jumping over it

My beautiful, wonderful, technologically advanced appliances

New counterspace! Basically, my entire goal in redoing the kitchen was to get some actual space for working and cooking and chopping. Now, I have many, many square feet. As you can see, we are also trying to keep less "stuff" on the counter tops, which I think helps make everything else look nicer.

Between the plumbing, the full granite back splash and the new laundry room work we went over budget, plus obviously this has taken more than two weeks. So in many ways, it's your traditional home construction project. But it's all been worth it. Possibly because I don't have to cut a final check until January, ha!