A day at the zoo

On a cold day last week or the week before (the days and weeks are starting to run together) some friends and I bundled up our kids and headed for the zoo. We enjoyed elephants, and tigers, and whales, oh my! We were also lucky enough to see the reindeer who are anxiously awaiting Christmas eve.

I am still working on convincing Kendall she needs to wear a coat outside.

A day at the zoo wouldn't be complete without the kids begging to ride the carousel.

Our little girl

I feel really blessed to have a little girl in our home. Kendall is the exact opposite of Hayden in almost every way. In particular, she is really dramatic. A few days ago the kids were cleaning the toy room. (I use the word "cleaning" loosely.) After hearing some bickering I went in to examine the situation and Kendall exclaims, "Mom, Hayden is ruining my life!" Seriously? This was a few days ago and I still don't understand exactly what Hayden did to make her think that he was ruining her life.

She would also rule the roost if we let her. Tadj and I have been working on replacing all the doors, trim, and baseboards in our house and the nail gun and compressor can be noisy. One day Kendall was annoyed, "Guys, can you pleeeeaaaaase keep the noise down!" So Tadj asked her why she needed us to keep the noise down. Her reply: "Just keep the noise down" as she stomped away.

Kendall is also very outgoing (most of the time). At the grocery store she usually sings "I am A Child of God" at the top of her lungs with a slight change to one of the verses: "Lead me, guide me, walk inside me." But now with it being the Christmas season, her latest song is "We Wish you a Merry Christmas." Suprisingly enough, most people actually respond "Merry Christmas". I guess we are bringing Christmas spirit to the world one grocery store at a time.

On Friday Kendall was helping me unwrap candy canes to make christmas cookies. She hooked the tops of two the candy canes together and exclaimed, "Look, Mom, it's a hooker!"

We have been joking lately that we didn't know that "Beauty and the Beast" could be one person. But we love her dearly and are so thankful she gives us many reasons to laugh.

The Great Christmas Tree Hunt

For the past few years we have put up an artificial tree at Christmas. There are a lot of things to like about artificial trees but every year I feel like I am missing out on something. I have so many great childhood memories of hiking in the woods to find the perfect Christmas tree. Now that our kids are getting older I want them to enjoy the same thing.

So on Saturday we headed to a nearby National Forest, picked up our $10 tree cutting permit, and began our search for the perfect tree. I was counting my blessings that it was raining and not snowing since our car isn't meant for snow. After a couple of hours we were drenched and cold but managed to find the "perfect" 12' Noble Fir. So much fun!

When we put up the tree in our house we realized it wasn't as perfect as we thought because of a very big bare spot. But I really don't care because we had such a great time finding this tree and making new memories.

Closing a Chapter

Tadj and I had an agreement for many years about getting a dog. I really don't like dogs and Tadj loves them. Our agreement was that when I stopped working we would get a dog. This played a small role in my working for the last 7 1/2 years. I was extremely fortunate to have a job where I could work from home, part-time and in a field I love (Statistics).

But things change. I've known since the beginning of September that November 30 would be my last day of work. It feels odd to walk into my office and not check my work e-mail. I will miss the people I worked with and the brain stimulating work. But for now I am going to enjoy every minute of being with my kids without work lingering in the back of my mind. And I am praying for the patience to endure a dog that dear old Santa may leave under our tree. And thus closes a chapter in my life.