December highlights {basketball, Ellie is 4, St. Nicholas Day, ER visit, Christmas preparations}
Get link
Facebook
X
Pinterest
Email
Other Apps
-
1) Basketball. the season got into full swing with the developmental Turkey Shoot tournament over Thanksgiving and then the regular league games for both developmental and JV. I have so many photos and videos from last year's basketball season -- this year, I was much more judicious with photo-taking but was still able to capture some fun moments. even though it's hectic with practices and games, we sure do love basketball season, and as I type this at the end of February, we just have another week left.
Greta and Cece both excel in defensive positions, and although their overall personalities are so different, on the court they have an identical tenacity that is really fun to watch!
Greta going for the rebound
not the best picture -- Cece in the white jersey jumping to block a pass
faithful spectators
2) Ellie is 4! she was so excited for her birthday and made lots of plans for her "party" -- but didn't seem disappointed with the fact that it was just our immediate family gathered for dinner, presents, and cake. her two favourite presents were her Toniebox (with an Elsa figure and a blank "creative" Tonie to record her own songs) so she can listen to her own music, and a VTech toolbox that the birthday bird managed to procure via Walmart+ delivery the day before when she mentioned that she really wanted "tools like Daddy" for her birthday.
the epitome of 4-year-old fashion
she requested pasta and meatballs. the Frozen decor has been stashed in our basement ever since Greta turned 4!
she immediately put on the toolbelt so she could carry around her tools for anything around the house that needs fixing
I would never have predicted that they all would be so interested in this toy!
believe it or not, this cake came from Walmart! they did a fantastic job!
seriously impressed with the detail
a few days later, with her new Angelina Ballerina doll from Grammie
Cece tied the gift ribbon in her hair
3) St. Nicholas Day. this also happens to be Elizabeth's birthday, so her whole day was exciting from start to finish! the girls used to receive their Christmas pajamas on Christmas Eve, but for the past few years, St. Nicholas has been bringing them so they can wear them for the whole Advent/Christmas season. Nick and I have matching pairs too, but somehow I never managed to get a photo of all of us wearing them -- you'll just have to use your imagination.
"thank you, St. Nicholas!"
4) ER visit. in the wee hours of the morning on Sunday, December 21, I woke up to hear the distinctive sounds of stridor coming from Victoria's crib. she had been absolutely fine the day before without any sign of congestion. when I checked on her, she felt slightly warm. she didn't seem to be in any distress, but I knew because of her previous ER visit and admission for observation in July that if she was demonstrating stridor at rest, she needed to be seen. I told Nick what was going on, and we headed out into the night. just breathing in the cold air on our walk out to the car helped quite a bit, and she wasn't nearly as tachycardic as she had been in July. I was just praying she would turn the corner quickly this time and we wouldn't be spending another overnight in the hospital!
somewhat confused about what was going on, but in good spirits!
fortunately, all of her vitals were stable and her breathing remained quiet. I asked the attending if I had really needed to bring her in this time since the cold air helped so much, and she said that that is always a good tactic to try to reduce the airway inflammation but that if things are so inflamed that she is having stridor at rest, she always needs to come in for a dose of steroids. they got her the meds (no breathing treatment needed this time!) and the nurses loaded her up with toys that had been donated to the ER specifically for the Christmas season. after a few hours, we were headed back home!
5) Christmas preparations. we bought our Christmas tree from the local high school marching band sale -- not quite as evocative as traipsing through a farm to cut down our own, but much more efficient and pleasant with children (especially since Victoria and Elizabeth were both wailing about how cold they were at various points of our fifteen-minute adventure).
"it's a Vickie-sized tree!"
an amalgamation of Little People, ancient and new
a liturgically appropriate sign at the fellowship hall for post-mass coffee and donuts
we were brave enough to pull out the Italian presepio (nativity scene) with all its terra cotta figurines (we didn't dare display it for the past few years). shockingly, the littles left it alone for the most part. see the Angel Gabriel flying overhead?
hygge, indeed
my practice manager gave the girls these precious bonnets that her daughter has outgrown
I literally cannot even
finally got the ornaments on!
I always love seeing this display near the girls' school. Santa and the nativity -- more apropos than most people probably know!
the best photo I could get while stopped at the red light
it's not really Christmas until I break out the Geiger family Christmas CDs that my mom recorded of us when we were young. my girls love trying to identify individual voices and are perpetually amazed to hear Uncle James and Auntie Krista sounding like toddlers (because they were!).
our neighborhood volunteer fire department drives around on a Saturday morning before Christmas, blasting the siren to alert all the families that Santa and Mrs. Claus are on their way, and then hands out candy to the kids. this year it was full size chocolate bars from Sarris, our local chocolatier!
Santa and Mrs. Claus in the golf cart
the school hosted a family movie night to watch The Grinch -- I had never seen the newest animated version from 2018, and it was super cute!
Cece and her BFF all snuggled in for the movie. Greta and her friends did NOT wish to be photographed ;)
another photo op after the movie
at work, we did a Secret Santa gift swap and my practice manager drew my name. she knocked it out of the park with a whole basket of my favourite things!
a whole bag of turgid grapes (we both agree surface tension is a critical element in the quality of a grape), the photo of the girls in the bonnets printed and framed, a candle that smells exactly like one of my favourite words and smells (petrichor: the smell just after rain), and a bag of my favourite brand of gummy bears! not to mention the shredded paper in the basket is from an old copy of Little Women. I just loved it!
What a sweet gift. It's so fun to receive "specialized" things that someone has picked out specifically to match your interests/likes. Those bonnets are adorable. I bought a Little House-style sun bonnet when my daughter was younger and it was THE CUTEST THING. Gah. I just love looking back at those pictures of her. Also, I cannot believe she was ever small enough to wear it. I think I handed it along to someone else. I don't keep kids clothes, but I kinda wish I had kept that as an heirloom. I think I bought it off Etsy? Eeks. A trip to the ER is never fun, but I'm glad she was seen promptly and didn't need to stay for an extended time. Christmas must be so fun in your house <3
The best part about the Secret Santa gift was that she was just as excited to give it as I was to receive it, because she KNEW how much I would love everything in it!
Oh my goodness. Those pictures of Belle in the bonnet must be absolutely adorable. I still have bins and bins of baby clothes (because, apparently, we keep having babies!) but there are a few outfits I will definitely have a hard time parting with, including the little elephant sleeper with matching hat WITH ELEPHANT EARS that all my winter babies have come home from the hospital wearing).
I love your Christmas posts too and how abundantly you embrace it! I feel that every moment of magic we can find in this world is worth the time and effort!
All your girls are so seriously cute! It looks like you had a grand holiday- even with the ER visit. My kids are also defenders on the basketball court- I love seeing them stick close to their opponents and get in the way. My son also strategically fouls for his team - playing kids much bigger him makes it easy for a foul go one way or another. Great foul shot, C! Getting those points can win you the game!
Thank you! Of course, the photos shared on the blog are the cutest ones... my camera roll is full of weird faces/awkward angles ;)
Your son has a great strategy for defense. It is really fun to watch them "see the court" and predict where the ball is going to go. So much of basketball is being in the right place at the right time!
1) wedding! on the first weekend in June, Nick's cousin was married in an absolutely beautiful ceremony (he played the organ for the wedding, and then chauffeured some of the family to the reception in the station wagon). it's always so much fun to spend time with his family, and the reception venue was stunning -- held in the grand hall of the train station, which has since been converted into apartments and an event space.
this is a strong contender for the 2025 Christmas card the last day of school was Friday, May 30, and the very next day, we dropped off Greta and Cece with Nick's parents to drive down to Ocean City, MD, first thing Sunday morning, while Nick and I followed with the babies after Nick played for two morning masses. I've been to Ocean City once before, during the summer of 2020 when social distancing rules were still in effect -- most restaurants were open for takeout only, and those that were open for dine-in required patrons to wear masks while walking to their tables. it was fun to go back and have a more normal beach experience! many thanks to Nick's parents for generously inviting us to come along.
Easter was "late" this year, April 20, which has the added benefit of slightly warmer temperatures. it always seems incongruous to me when Easter falls at the end of March and all the pretty Easter dresses are covered up by coats and we might have to choose snow boots rather than sandals! this was the first year Elizabeth was allowed to be more involved with hands-on egg dyeing and she was so excited. I bought the "deluxe" PAAS kit with extra supplies to make glittery and foil-bedecked eggs and somehow, by the grace of God, did not end up with glitter all over the house. I don't know how this one was so blurry but you get the idea! Greta's pastel eggs Cece's jewel-toned eggs I debated once again about which Easter mass to attend. we have attended the evening vigil once before , but that involves a lot of faith and perhaps a dash of insanity to attempt solo with young kids. so we typically go Easter morning, but I asked the older girls about it and they...
What a sweet gift. It's so fun to receive "specialized" things that someone has picked out specifically to match your interests/likes.
ReplyDeleteThose bonnets are adorable. I bought a Little House-style sun bonnet when my daughter was younger and it was THE CUTEST THING. Gah. I just love looking back at those pictures of her. Also, I cannot believe she was ever small enough to wear it. I think I handed it along to someone else. I don't keep kids clothes, but I kinda wish I had kept that as an heirloom. I think I bought it off Etsy?
Eeks. A trip to the ER is never fun, but I'm glad she was seen promptly and didn't need to stay for an extended time.
Christmas must be so fun in your house <3
The best part about the Secret Santa gift was that she was just as excited to give it as I was to receive it, because she KNEW how much I would love everything in it!
DeleteOh my goodness. Those pictures of Belle in the bonnet must be absolutely adorable. I still have bins and bins of baby clothes (because, apparently, we keep having babies!) but there are a few outfits I will definitely have a hard time parting with, including the little elephant sleeper with matching hat WITH ELEPHANT EARS that all my winter babies have come home from the hospital wearing).
I love your Christmas posts too and how abundantly you embrace it! I feel that every moment of magic we can find in this world is worth the time and effort!
All your girls are so seriously cute! It looks like you had a grand holiday- even with the ER visit.
ReplyDeleteMy kids are also defenders on the basketball court- I love seeing them stick close to their opponents and get in the way. My son also strategically fouls for his team - playing kids much bigger him makes it easy for a foul go one way or another. Great foul shot, C! Getting those points can win you the game!
Thank you! Of course, the photos shared on the blog are the cutest ones... my camera roll is full of weird faces/awkward angles ;)
DeleteYour son has a great strategy for defense. It is really fun to watch them "see the court" and predict where the ball is going to go. So much of basketball is being in the right place at the right time!