BUMMER!

Did you realize that my last post was my 100th post....100th post ever?! If I was a better blogger, I would have made a big deal about that. I would have done something like a "Look back on the last 100 blog entries". A montage of sorts. But....but...I'm not a good blogger...in fact...I really suck these days. It's not that I don't want to write...I just don't. :) But I will...it's my New Year's Resolution ;)

SNOW!!

Imagine, if, for most of your life the world has been green. Sure, the leaves changed colors and fell off the trees, but it was such a gradual change and you had such a short memory that you didn't really notice.

Imagine you went to bed one night and the world was as you knew it.

Then you woke up and the world was WHITE! Everywhere WHITE! Coming from the sky - WHITE!!

Yesterday morning I woke up Eleanor for day care. She was her chatty little self. Telling me stories about her dreams from the night before and her plans for her day at Patty's. I carried her into the living room, where we were greeted by our large picture window. Eleanor stopped. She stared out the window. Yes, something was different. She looked at me. Looked outside. Looked at me. Looked outside. It was SO funny. I could just see her little mind working. What happened? How did this happen? She was so quiet on the way to Patty's, just looking at everything and taking it all in!

I can't wait to take her outside to play in the snow for the first time. She is going to love sledding! Here's to hoping for a snow day tomorrow!

Next year all our troubles will be miles away...

...I couldn't listen to that song last Christmas without bursting into tears.

I don't often go back and read old posts of mine. However, I just can't help think about where I was one year ago today. 37 weeks pregnant and yet receiving the worst news possible. I can't help read last year's post without huge tears in my eyes.

And yet, look how much we have to be thankful for. I have the most amazingly beautiful, most amazingly wonderful daughter crawling around my floor right now (nevermind the fact that she is unfolding all the clothes!) and my husband is upstairs. Cancer free. Much unlike last year at this time.

Sometimes I get so mad at Nic. I get so mad at our relationship. So much has changed. And then I look at us and I am so proud of us. What can't we handle? What can't we work through? Sure we are different today than we were 365 days ago or 365 x2 days ago. But why wouldn't we be? Who can go through life and stay the same.

Nic looks back on last year with fondness of his entire family being together. I can only look at the emotional upset. OK, that's not true or fair to say either. I learned the extreme power of prayer. I learned how even strangers can help you in your lowest point. I learned how lucky we are as a family. I also joke to people...having chemo the first year of your daughter's life can be a blessing. Hopefully we slowed down a little. Hopefully we learned, to treasure every minute. We got to sit back and truly enjoy and watch our daughter grow.

And now...now we move on. And now, December 2nd is just another day.

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas!

Bring it on Christmas. I'm ready for you! The tree is up, it's lit, and it's decorated!

The stockings are hung by the chimney with care...oh wait, what's that? No chimney? No problem!After messing around with our stockings for three years, I finally found the solution! This summer I was reading a magazine and saw the above idea used with picture frames (or something) and I decided - why not stockings?! How cute!! I took a birch branch, tied some pretty ribbon around it and hammered in some nails. Dear St. Nic, please do not fill the girls' stockings with too much...I'm not sure how stable this creation is!

Moving on...see the large frame on the small table under the stockings? Check out my Thanksgiving craft:

What a bunch of turkeys indeed! I made my entire family, Eleanor included, dip their thumbs in yellow, orange, red and brown paint. Viola! Turkeys are made!

And just in case you weren't sure when Christmas was:

I actually got this idea from my friend's sister. It took me 2 years to actually act on the idea, but here it is! A muffin tin advent calendar. Each year, I can just replace the kisses (or whatever candy I want) and reuse! It could also be fun to use pennies, dimes, quarters or other little trinkets and toys...don't want too much candy during the holidays!

Oooohhhh, that Etsy store looks better each day!