What a happy and busy Christmas we have had! Although we are a bit exhausted from all the festivities, we have enjoyed the time with family celebrating the birth of Jesus. We have continued to work on potty training, and Emmy finished out the week at daycare with a 3-2 record (she was dry 3 out of the 5 days). Potty training has been a bit trickier this time of year with the excitement and non-routine of the holidays. We have spent extra time in the car, and we have had to use several public restrooms and even a port-a-potty! Sometimes, Emmy will be defiant and insist "No, I not go potty." In these situations, we keep M&Ms on hand and use a piece of candy simply to lure her to the potty. On the positive side, she is going on the potty more than not, and she will even say "I not go pee-pee in underwear." Overall I am thankful for those early-December snow days and the jump start we were able to get on potty training. It is still a work-in-progress, but I am proud of our little girl!
After working through the 21st, there wasn't too much extra time to prepare for the holiday. In the last days leading up to Christmas, we fit in a day trip to Star to watch the Wake Forest bowl game with Granny and Paw Paw (the Deacs got a win over Memphis - yay!); we also visited Great Grandpa Bobby, attended our church's Candlelight Service on the 23rd, and had candy canes for dinner and Waffle House for breakfast!
On Christmas Eve, we went over to Grammy and Grandpa's for more delicious treats. The adults open their presents on that night, and Zander, Maddox, and Emmy were great little helpers as they assisted us with our gifts. Emmy didn't quite understood what all the fuss was about, but she matched her cousins' excitement for opening the packages and getting ready for Santa.
On Christmas Day, Emmy woke up at her usual time around 7:15AM, and she was excited to see her new play table and chairs from Grammy and Grandpa. It was magically delivered sometime after she went to sleep! It is perfect for coloring and playing make believe with her stuffed animals. She immediately started sitting them in the chairs and laying them on top of the table. In her stocking, Santa brought some of her favorite things: pouches, fruit snacks, and Smarties.
We then headed over to the Houstons' to have breakfast with Grammy, Grandpa, Aunt Megan, Uncle Zack, Maddox, and Zander. The boys were excited to show us what Santa had brought - new bikes! Emmy got some cute summer clothes from Great Gma Nancy and a fairy dress-up outfit.
Around 11AM, we headed to Star to see the Kennedys. From the hustle and bustle of the morning, Emmy was already on her third pair of pants for the day. Her mismatched outfit in these photos will forever remind me that 2018 was the Christmas we were potty training!
Emmy and her cousin Ellison are only 4 months apart, and it was so sweet to see them playing together. They loved reading with Granny and making a mess in the play room. I also got some cuddles with my newest niece Whitlee, who is now 5 months old.
We returned to Kernersville today, and after getting the house back in order, we set up a corner of the sun room with Emmy's toy box and her new table. She got the toy box from Granny and Paw Paw last year, and even though the toy box and table were received two Christmases apart, they match perfectly. I envision Emmy spending a lot of time in this little corner of the house!
We had one last Christmas tradition to complete 2018: our annual after-Christmas Starbucks and Tanglewood Lights. It's been a fun tradition that we started a couple of years ago, and this year Boomer and I had a gift card for our fancy drinks - score! Shortly after we entered Tanglewood Park, as we were sipping on our drinks, Emmy said she had to go pee-pee. I whipped out of line at the next turn-off, and after getting Emmy out of her car seat and hustling to the port-a-john, she had changed her mind. Being in a car for two hours while potty training was certainly risky, but luckily before leaving the park, we stopped at another port-a-john and had success there! I am already looking forward to next year when Emmy is even more interested in the lights...and also fully potty trained! :)
We didn't seem to get a particularly fantastic picture of the three of us this Christmas [...see below] From our family to yours, we hope you had a wonderful holiday! And let us not forget the true reason for the season!
"Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord.
This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger."
Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel,
praising God and saying,
"Glory to God in the highest heaven,
and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests."
Luke 2:11 - 14
Thank Usss very much,have a wonderful rest of the Holidays.
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