To unpack or stay packed, that is our question. We have the liver enzymes on the way down (yeah!) and a new tentative date of December 28th! Three times is a charm we suspect, and now we are not doing anything that we originally thought we were doing – thanks to some new research. We are doing ultra-low dose steroids and I am having my kidney removed laprascopically, which will make the healing process so much easier!

Things here have been crazy busy per always and time is flying by faster than these nasty Wisconsin winter winds! I have once again not been able to get a successful Holiday shot of my two little ones, I am now deeming every photo Christmas card that I see with two or more kids a Christmas miracle…Ours usually start out all calm and lets make it fun (ho, ho, ho) and then it slowly leads to the idle threats of “look at the camera — for the love of ”…needless to say the later does not ensue many hot chocolate faced smiles…and we will once again, not be doing Christmas cards this year since the date is so close to Christmas, but have high hopes for next year (I promise).

Gav is officially such a little boy. I know this because he is now into trucks, which is so funny to watch him play with, I like it when he thinks that he can sit on the dump truck part and the wheels squeal out from under him and he ends up shocked sitting on his bottom scolding the “naught naughty” truck, with the finger wag and all. He has developed just enough energy to be a little sassy and now does everything and anything to stay up just a few minutes longer before bedtime…from grabbing your face to make you look him in the eye to starting up his new favorite fake laugh (which of course if irresistible to not laugh at) and reverse psychology is working wonders on his eating. “Don’t eat mommy’s yogurt”-gulp! Boy, definitely a boy.

Lulu on the other hand is a straight up posh girl…thanks to my cousin Julie’s visit and the purchase of her first Fancy Nancy book, she has taken on a new persona…she is now “The Lovely Lulu”(but of course she is not 100% on this new nickname, she said its fine for now but I should work on it). In the morning after the tubby I hear requests for “posh” outfits…everything is posh, ‘the fancy word for fancy’. However its hard to take her new founded attempts at sophistication seriously since she has a severe stuffy nose…does anyone know how to teach a four year old how to blow out…Its like this terrible torment for me, I can’t seem to get her to blow out, its always in, no dragon breaths out or feel the air on your finger underneath, nothing is working…seems so simple, but apparently nose blowing is an art.

The cold does not deter her or Gav from their new favorite activity, singing and dancing and giving a concert while standing on top of the laundry basket, laundry baskets provide hours of fun at our household. They put on the best show I’ve seen in years…but then again Jay and I don’t get out to much (: Lauren is obsessed with coloring and now has perfected her triangle reindeer (just for one of the million letters that we have sent to Santa this year) and the family picture, where she even gives Gavin his mohawk (because he is “Bad to the Bone”.) Maybe I should turn that into a Christmas card, hmm its a thought…

Anyway, I will leave you with my bedtime conversation with Lauren…

Lauren:”I know where I came from (very hoighty toighty with arms crossed and eyebrows raised)—-a stork made me”

Me: “No baby, God made you”

Lauren: “But how, (see brain working here) he doesn’t have any tools up there”

Me: “With his own two hands”

Lauren: (ponders for a bit) “I know he must draw them and cut them out and then has the stork drop them off”

Me:(thankful that puts off any uncomfortable questions) “Interesting theory”