What's been going on around here...

Here's a quick photo recap of the last couple of days.  It hasn't been overly interesting, but I am pleased to report that we're holding our own.  There have been no major meltdowns (on any of our parts), and I consider that quite an accomplishment.

 Daddy's idea of getting a Kinect system to keep everyone occupied on these cold, dreary, wet winter days has been a very good one.  Santa thought about bringing this for Joshua for Christmas, but until we saw how much he loved his Nintendo DS and how he is starting to get a grasp on the whole hand-eye coordination thing, we weren't sure if he was ready.  The kids love to play the sports games (especially bowling and boxing), but their favorite part is when they get to make the characters dance after doing something good.  So when Jason came home with the Nickelodeon dancing game the other night, we knew it would be a hit.  And boy, was it ever!  The kids were hysterical.  And, for the record, Joshua has some moves!  We're thinking this is Libby's genetic contribution because he surely doesn't get it from either of us. 

On Thursday, I got my driver's license back at the two week post surgery mark.  And Mara and I didn't waste any time getting OUT of the house!  I needed some time in the office to get things re-organized after our quick exit on the night of the 5th. We also had a list of stops to make- gas in the van, checks to the bank, stuff to pick up at the accountant's office, groceries at Walmart.  It was a jam packed day, but oh so nice to be out and about.  To make matters more complicated, my easy, breastmilk by bottle baby who goes 3-3.5 hours between feedings decided she wanted to go a more conventional route on Thursday morning and nursed like a champ before we left.  So, that changed the whole routine, although I was pleased at her progress and happy to ditch the pump for the day.  We made it back home around 4:00 with mostly all of our list accomplished.  What amazed me was how much I had missed Joshua and Lauren while we were gone.  And I quickly remembered how much I hate the re-adjustment back to work after being home with them so much.  Although they make me crazy sometimes, I count it such a blessing to have the flexibility to have this time with them at home.  That is due mostly to my team at the office and how wonderful they are.  And don't think that I take a moment of it for granted.

 Lauren and I have been enjoying our "girl time" in the mornings while Joshua is at school.  She is such a sweetheart, and continues to love her sister to the max.  We spent a lot of time this week reading books, putting together the same three puzzles that she absolutely loves (note to self, for sanity sake, get to Target and find some more of those!) and playing games like "I Spy" and Hide and Seek.  She has been an excellent bath helper with the baby and a very big laundry helper.  We've had great conversations and I'm absolutely cherishing the time to spend with her one on one while the baby is sleeping as much as she is.

 This beauty continues to melt my heart a little more each day.  The falling in love has been extra special this time, with a super sweet baby who makes it oh so easy.  All of the worries I have had (and trust me that there have been multiple freak out sessions over the past 42 weeks) about whether or not I could handle being a mother to three children, and how we could possibly find a balance in our little world here where everything managed somehow to get done, and what adding a third child to our family would do to Joshua and Lauren have turned out to have been a silly waste of time....but isn't most worrying?  In the midst of these little hissy fits I've had, people always said that we wouldn't remember what it was like without Mara here once she got here, and that she would complete the picture for us naturally.  And they were all right.  We are so very blessed.

And since all of my posts seem to include some sort of nudity, check out what I found yesterday afternoon when I finished folding a load of laundry.  Batman on the DS and a just-about naked Lauren playing on my iPhone.  Lauren had updumped an entire smoothie all over the kitchen floor, in her hair and on her clothes and smelled distinctively like a strawberry until bathtime last night.  I did finally convince her to put on some clothes before supper, but she would have been perfectly content to sport just her Dora underpants.  Batman turned back into Joshua at suppertime too.  Which was good because I was a little intimidated about sharing the dinner table with a Superhero of Batman's caliber.

We're tucked in for the day today, although wishing that Daddy didn't have to run out this morning for a funeral.  As the first real winter snow falls outside, I am so grateful for the good weather we have had recently and for the fact that we brought our winter baby home from the hospital on a 55 degree day instead of one like this.  There is probably 4-5 inches on the deck now with a few more hours of steady snowfall expected.  Josh and Daddy have a special evening planned tonight with Earl and Cooper to go to the Bucknell basketball game.  I'm excited for them to have something special to do together- just the guys.  Joshua has been sure to point out lots of times that there are no girls allowed.  I'm not so sure that's going to fly with Lauren when it comes time for them to leave, but we'll see.