Day After Christmas

It has been a tradition in our family to spend the day after Christmas with the Taylors. This was a tradition when I was younger and has carried on through the years. Mawmaw used to tell me that Christmas did not occur for her until the day after because that's when all of us were there. *Sigh, I miss that lady!*

Once Mawmaw moved to heaven, we continued the tradition and spent the 26th of December with Pawpaw at his place near Bonham. Our traditional meal was brisket and sometimes ham when Mawmaw was alive, and it later turned into BBQ from a local restaurant once Pawpaw was in charge! LOL

My grandfather's health had been a bit shakey for the past couple of years. He had been in and out of the hospital, had a pacemaker put in, lived with my parents for a greater part of last year, etc. The Sunday before Thanksgiving, it appeared that he was not going to pull through. The family was called in, and we remained at the hospital the entire day. His will to live pulled him through, though, but he wasn't quite the same. He returned to us very weak, frail. He relied on oxygen to breath and a wheelchair to get around. We did not even get to celebrate Thanksgiving with him because he was in the hospital. Around the 1st of December, he was released into a VA nursing home, no longer able to live in his home even with assisted care.

He was able to get out of the nursing home for 3 hours at a time so we kept our family tradition and celebrated Christmas at his house with him on the 26th. We had the traditional BBQ meal and banana pudding for dessert. I don't know that Pawpaw ate much food, but it didn't take long for him to devour that banana pudding. :) He even spilled a bit on his shirt in the dash from the bowl to his mouth.

Those 3 hours were up quite quickly, and it was soon time to take Pawpaw back to the nursing home. It took my dad, my brother and my uncle to load him in the car. I don't know why, but I walked out with them. I was holding Elijah, and when Nathan stuck his head out the door, I told him to come give Pawpaw another hug. I felt that it was going to be the last time we saw him. The boys waved and blew him kisses. And, he returned to the VA facility.

The pictures from this gathering are quite sacred to the family, but here are a few I got to share...

Thanks to my aunt and uncle, Elijah now has this annoying...I mean, wonderful...toy called Elmo Live!

You can see Pawpaw in the back of this picture, behind Nathan.

On our solemn car ride home...I just didn't feel like talking much...God gave us this to behold.

Christmas Photos - only a month late!

Apparently some people actually read my blog...hmmmm, that's good to know because I've been wondering...and those people who do read it have been asking for an update. Geez, once a month isn't good enough?! I jest, I jest!!! Of course it isn't! It's just been quite crazy around here, and you'll find that out soon enough from the updates...

But, I couldn't update without at least including photos and info on Christmas. :)

Christmas Eve: We attended an afternoon candlelight service at my best friend's church in Plano - Grace Community. Since we got out right at dusk, and they are located right next to Deerfield, we decided to take the boys on a tour of lights. They loved it! After our short sight-seeing, or should I see "light-seeing," tour, we headed to Sean's mom's house for Christmas Eve dinner (tradition is soup, baked potato this year) and gift exchange with his grandparents and aunts. We headed home around 9 to get cookies made for Santa and get two very excited little boys in bed. For some reason, I didn't get pictures at Sean's mom's house...I kept forgetting once I started helping the boys open! But, here are a few other shots from the day...

These are Boo-Boo Kits that the boys and I made as gifts.

What was inside of the Boo-Boo Kit!

Look what Santa left Elijah!

Look what Santa left Nathan!

Christmas Day: Our morning started before sun-up on Christmas Day. Ugh! Be forewarned...apparently, I am not very good with the camera at that hour b/c I didn't get the best shots AND my point and shoot was on a wonky setting so some of those shots are BW! Anyways, we got up between 6 and 7, I believe, to open gifts as a family. Then, we went to Sean's mom's for Christmas breakfast and to exchange gifts with her, Sean's sis and brother-in-law, etc. From there, we went to my grandparents' house in Burleson for lunch. (The boys and I slept on the 1 hour trip there.) We stayed until dark to see my grandfather's Christmas lights, which he is very proud of! That evening, we went to my parents' house to celebrate Christmas with my parents and siblings. It was a very busy day, but filled with lots of love and family...we wouldn't have it any other way!

Ever seen Sean in glasses?

The boys with Daddy and Uncle Andrew

It was a long day for all of us!

Proof that I WAS there, even though it's a HORRIBLE shot! Thanks, Babe!

Warmed up to Santa

Well, we made 2 more visits with Santa since the last post. Elijah warmed up to the jolly old man quite quickly. A week after the previous visit, we went to the North Pole Express in Grapevine. Before we went on the train ride, we went to see Santa at Bass Pro Shop. Elijah walked right up! Of course, the candy cane bribe migh have helped! :) Nathan was being a stinker and refused to visit with Santa so this time, it was just Elijah.

Our final visit with Santa came a few days before Christmas. Our friend, Desiree Chapman (Just One Year Photography), hosted a Christmas celebration and took pictures of the kids with Santa. Elijah was leery at first, but he warmed up fast. And, you will notice...he isn't smiling a ton in these photos, but that's Elijah. He's very passive, and it just takes a lot to get him to smile.

Happy Holidays from the Lingenfelter Elves!

http://elfyourself.jibjab.com/view/ag4in9CPg98tTLBH

*Can someone tell me how to put the video directly on here so that I don't have to do just the link???*

Santa Picture

We took the boys to meet Santa about 2 weeks ago when he arrived in Allen. We stood in the cold for hours to see him arrive on a firetruck. Elijah was ALLLLLL about that - chanting, "Santa, Santa, Santa!" while waiting and peaking under the railing to wave at him while we were in line. He and Nathan could hardly be kept back when it came time to see Santa. But, alas, when we got up there near him, this is what we got...

Happy 2nd Birthday, Elijah!

I'm a day late on this post - Elijah turned 2 yesterday. But, since I was up until 5 a.m. cleaning for his party today and then up again at 10 a.m. to get ready for his party...I'm just a bit slow! LOL

Sean took the day off yesterday to celebrate with the family. The morning started off with donuts for breakfast. Sean took the boys with him to pick out their favorite donuts...$13 and two boxes later...we had a box filled with donut holes - Elijah's favorite - and another box of an assorted dozen. They even threw in some sprinkled ones for the birthday boy! After getting dressed, we headed to The Zone, an indoor bounce house play area here in McKinney. We thought it would be a special treat, but the birthday boy wasn't as thrilled. He did get in, but he had to be holding on to Sean or I for dear life the whole time. Apparently, he does not like the instability under his feet that a bounce house offers. LOL

After that time of fun (we DID have fun; Elijah just wasn't thrilled), we went to Toys R Us to use Elijah's $3 off coupon that he got for being part of the Toys R Us birthday club. We went in and told them it was his birthday - he got a crown to wear and a mylar balloon. As we were walking through the store, we heard an announcement over the intercom, "We have a special guest in the store with us today. Elijah is turning 2; you will see him walking around with his crown and balloon." And, as we walked through the store, other customers wished our little man, "Happy Birthday!" It was so sweet. He wound up picking out a huge dinosaur from Animal Planet. It's the size of a stuffed animal, but plastic and soft inside. He slept with it last night! And hey, it was only $8 so we paid 5 bucks for it with the coupon. From there, we came home for a lunch of PB and banana sandwiches (which Daddy thinks is weird so he had PB and honey). Then, it was time for the boys' nap...during which time Daddy and I cleaned house some more for the party today.

After naps and a viewing of WALL-E (which Pawpaw Link sent Daddy for his birthday), we decided to take Elijah out to dinner. We thought about going to Chick-Fil-A for a change of pace, but Elijah doesn't like Chick-Fil-A. Yes, that' right...we cannot get him to eat CFA. The last time I took him there, he held the nugget in his mouth until he gagged on them and then spit them out. But, the one place where he will down all 4 nuggets....McDonald's. Yep, that's where we wound up! Pretty funny, huh? He climbed up into the play area, got stuck and Sean had to (he volunteered, really LOL) go get him because Nathan couldn't.

Once home, we gave the birthday boy a bath and got him snuggled in bed. But before that, he'd gotten birthday calls from both grandmas, Geoffrey the Giraffe from Toys R Us and Mickey Mouse (something Sean ordered online with some Disney points he had from movies). Elijah loved all his phone calls.

Today was his Elmo/Sesame Street birthday party. All of our family and close friends were here. We had Little Ceasar's pizza for lunch, then presents and an Elmo cake made by my best friend, Amber. While Elijah loved all the gifts (which he maticulously opened, as I mentioned earlier), the party was all about the Elmo CAKE for him! (He got all upset the other day when he requested an Elmo cake from Amber and she couldn't produce it right then. LOL) And the cake is all about the ICING! He was a blue mess by the end (blue and yellow trim/writing). I have some pics I need to upload and will post later. We had some cute crayon candles that Amber found, and Elijah was yelling, "Crayons!" Our friend then pointed out to his son that these were "special" crayons - we don't light real crayons or put them on cake. LOL And, Elijah sang "Happy Birthday" to himself when the rest of us sang; it was very cute.

I took these picture of the birthday boy a few weeks ago at a local park. We used the one of him with all 3 Sesame Street characters on his birthday invites...Enjoy!

My Guys

I am very behind in my blogging. Life just got really crazy for us there for a bit! We just finished Elijah's birthday party today, though, and I think we're just ready for Christmas and New Year's now...oh, and my 30th birthday (Ugh!).

I just had to take some time to brag on my guys, though. I am so proud of all 3 of them!

Youngest first...Elijah turned 2 yesterday. I can't believe my "baby" is entering his 3rd year of life. Wow! How did THAT happen? His vocab has grown by leaps and bounds, as I mentioned. There are a few things that I still have to interpret, even to Daddy. LOL But, most of the time, he's pretty clear. His most recent accomplishment has been learning to catch a ball. He's been able to throw for a while, but catching has been troublesome. That is until righ before Thanksgiving when he caught a ball that Sean threw to him. What a big boy! I took him to the doctor the Wednesday before Thanksgiving, and he's huge - most of you who have seen him in person already know this. He weighs 30 lbs. - over average - and is 37 inches tall (off the charts). I was told that he is the size of a 3 year old! Geez, son!!! Elijah is my little perfectionist...everything has to be lined up just right and perfect. When opening gifts today at his party, he maticulously took every.single.piece of paper off the gifts. Very organized about it. Actually quite funny to see in a 2 year old. LOL Here's a recent photo of my big boy...

Nathan is growing by leaps and bounds too. I have already mentioned how he is memorizing Scripture in his new "big boy" class at church. He already has 3 verses under his belt (since the end of Oct.) and is currently working on two verses for the church's Christmas program on 12/21 (Citipointe Church - meets at Clark High School in Plano, 10 a.m. - would love to have you join us). Just to tell you how amazing his memory is...my sis and brother-in-law got a Christmas Story ornament a few years ago. It's the scene of the boy with his tongue stuck on the poll. Nathan was over at their place 2 years ago when they got it (after I had Eijah and was rehospitalized; he was 2 at the time). We didn't make it over there last year during Christmas so it has been 2 years since he's seen this. Well, when we started talking about decorating for Christmas, he started talking about this ornament. We were all amazed that he remembered something that he saw once 2 years ago. Heck, I'm shocked he remembers anything from 2! My memories don't start until 3!!! Here's a current picture of my biggest "baby"...(shhhh! Don't tell him I said that! He IS 4, you know!)

This is Nathan and his best bud, Grant, at Sean's 30th birthday party last month...

And finally, THE BIG MAN! LOL Sorry, I meant to say the OLD MAN! Ha, ha! Love you, Babe! I have to give him a hard time because he turns the big 3-0 next Saturday. :) I just told him that he was entering his last week of his 20's, and he gave me that SHUT UP smile. Anyways....there is a point to me mentioning him...LOL Most of you know (or maybe you don't) that Sean is an engineer, but technically, he's an engineer-in-training. What's the difference, you ask?! Well, there is a process to become a professional engineer. First, you must receive a undergrad/grad degree in engineering (any kind). Sean received his bachelor of science in electrical engineering (his first job pursuit) from UTD in Dec. 2004. At the time, Sean had many years of experience (since high school) in CIVIL engineering - just a field that God opened the doors into in high school. While he was out of a job for 7 months in 2004 (fun times - I was expecting Nathan!), he pursued work in the electrical engineering field, but to no avail. The field was still recovering from 9/11 and was not interested in new hires. After getting a new job in the civil engineering field, he took the next step by taking his EIT (engineer in training) test in April 0f 2005. Once approved as an EIT, one must then work 4 years of apprenticeship under professional engineers. At the time, that seemed soooooo far away....BUT, coming this spring, Sean's 4 years will be fulfilled. It is then that he will complete his final step - taking the big exam to get his professional engineering license. It is then that he will be Sean Lingenfelter, PE. He ordered the books and registered/paid for the exam last week (his company is compensating). Even though it is still 6 months away...okay, 5 months...he is already super nervous. So, any prayers lifted this way for this matter are greatly appreciated. You should see the books he has - wowzers! I am just super proud of him for making it this far and for pursuing his dream. He would really love to be in land development someday, but until then, he is following where God leads. Doors are opening already for him with his position on the P&Z Committee. I am anxious to see what God has in store. Here's a new photo of the birthday boy that I somehow conned him into taking for his own surprise birthday party...

In general...Our finances are being stretched right now (our garage door broke this a.m. and Sean's insurance just went up at work), but as an old song says, "Things are looking right for a miracle. Ain't no reason I should get hysterical - open up the door; God, you've done before. Things are looking right for a miracle." And hey, what a better time for a miracle right here at Christmas. Things are definitely lining up for one! :)