Cleaning Up Date

Today was a cleaning day at our house.  I went to school and when I came home there was so much to be done.  We got together bags of trash, bags of donations for the mission, and we had to put everything up where it went!  Mom and dad worked really hard and I helped some, too.  When I would get frustrated because I wanted to quit, I would just think of yesterday and how much fun I had going to Indianapolis!

Me, my parents, Myla and grandma went to Indy for a quick trip.  I got to go to Build a Bear and make a Brittany Doll (from Alvin and the Chipmunks).  I also got to pick out an outfit for her and I chose a brides outfit.  THEN we went to a Christmas store where i put on several puppet shows for my family.  THEN we got to eat at Johnny Rocket's.  THEN we walked through the mall.  THEN we went to the bookstore. THEN we went to Trader Joe's.  AND THEN we came back to Muncie!!!  

Yes, That is what I thought about when the going got tough today!!!

Precious on Many Levels

When in the midst of tantrums and stubbornness, it is important to cling to the precious conversations like the one we had tonight.

Lynley:  Mom, where are you guys going?

Mommy: Daddy is a deacon, so we are going to the deacon Christmas dinner for church.

Lynley: A what?

Mommy: A deacon.

Lynley:  I thought daddy was a Douglas.

Mommy: Yes, daddy is a Douglas.  But one of his jobs is to be a deacon for the church.  You know how some people are teachers and some people are preachers?  Those are jobs that they have and one of daddy's jobs is to be a deacon and help the people at church.

Lynley: You know what my job is?  I'm a missionary because I told Peyton about Jesus.  And I told Palmer about Him, too.


Yes, there are tantrums and there is a whole new level of stubbornness that this mommy didn't know was possible, but there is also a tender heart who loves Jesus and who knows that Jesus loves her.  Thank you, Lord, for that heart and for every adult who pours God's love into her each week.  Thank you for giving us these tender moments when we least expect them and exactly when we need them.

Getting Gifts is Fun, Giving Gifts is GREAT!

The last two days have sure been great.  Yesterday we went to Granny's house and Myla and I got Christmas gifts from Aunt Clata and Uncle Bob.  They are leaving this week to go to see their grandchildren in North Carolina, so we celebrated our little Christmas with them.    We had a great afternoon with everyone and then after nap time me and Myla went to Grandma and Grandpa Filler's house with Pa while mommy went to her children's team Christmas party!
Today has been super great, too!  Mommy went to school with me!!  She went on our Polar Express field trip, where we made picture frames, heard the First Christmas story about Jesus being born, sang some Christmas carols, talked to Santa and Mrs. Claus and played some Christmas games.  THEN we went to our classroom and had our Christmas party!  We had great snacks that the parents brought in and we all got a present from Mrs. Clinger (a great book).  AND THEN Mrs. Clinger and Mr. Andy opened presents that people brought for them.
I was SUPER EXCITED because me and mommy worked really hard on Mrs. Clinger's present this week.  We bought a shadow box and then we broke lots of crayons and then I did my VERY BEST writing and wrote Mrs. Clinger's name on paper.  THEN we glued down crayons into the shape of a big letter C with special glue.  The finished product was really special and I LOVED IT when Mrs. Clinger opened it!  She loved her present!!!  Also, I got Mr. Andy some movie money so he can go to the theater and watch a movie.  I love doing that so I think he probably loves doing that, too!!

Yes, it was a very special two days and I can honestly say that I was as excited about giving my gifts as I was about getting gifts!!

What Would Santa Say? (According to Myla)

Snowflake, our family's elf who tells Santa how we act, has been with us for a little while now.  I don't know what he is telling Santa each night, but I am doing the very best I can to make sure and give him smiling, cute faces each time he sees me getting into something I am not supposed to be in!!  I have the innocent look, which I use as I am heading toward something I shouldn't be getting into.  I have the, "let me blind you with my smile," look that I use when I am caught just after getting to something I am not supposed to be playing with.  I have the, "What's going on," look as I am caught red handed.

Yes, I am giving that silly elf (and my mommy) the best faces I possibly can!!!

Myla's First Weekend Trip

Last week brought some trials...I had a touch of bronchitis and did not feel the best.  Myla found the best thing to do is to pull all the ornaments off the Christmas tree.  Last week brought some fun.  I got to spend the afternoon with Uncle Bob and Aunt Clata baking and taking cookies to Pastor Bruce and then going to IHOP for lunch (pictures to come tomorrow).  Myla has been given "free reign" of the living room and our bedroom, so she crawls as fast as possible from one room to the other.  She always turns around and smiles at mommy when she thinks she is about to get away with something.  This weekend brought some great fun because we packed up the cars and headed to Brown County with Grandpa Dave and Grandma Donna!
Friday was great because Grandma Donna and Grandpa Dave were at school when I got out and I got to ride with them.  We started our trip and went to Five Guys for lunch.  It was such good food and daddy had never been there so he was really excited!  After lunch we hit the road again and drove to Edinburgh to visit some shops.  I really liked the shops that had clothes for me and Myla!!  I wanted to buy matching outfits for me and Myla.  There were great clothes everywhere!
After a few shops (we didn't stay really long because it was COLD outside) we got back on the road to get to our condo.  I was really excited when we got there.  The place we stayed HAD A DOORBELL!!  That was enough to put me in heaven, but on top of that we had a great deck.  Myla had her own bed, I got to sleep on an air bed...could it get any better?
So for a few days we ate REALLY WELL, relaxed and played!  Mommy and daddy had a great time getting away from Muncie and spending time with grandma and grandpa.  Myla did an AMAZING JOB.  We were worried since she has never really been away from home, but she slept all night in the pack and play, she took naps for the most part and even when she didn't get great naps she still remained happy.  She did a great job at restaurants and she kept us all entertained!!  It was just a really great weekend!
It was just what we needed before going into this very busy week ahead!  I will try to get you daily updates, but it might require lots of coffee on mommy's part!

Two for One

All the Christmas sales have inspired me to give you a two for one today....TWO POSTS IN ONE DAY!  Here is the second one.  I thought you might enjoy some pictures of me and Myla, who turned 7 MONTHS OLD TODAY!!!  I can't even believe how big she is getting!  Enjoy!

Tis the Season

Happy December!  I know we're late in wishing everyone a happy holiday season, but better late than never!  We've been having a good time in the Douglas place.  Thanksgiving was wonderful!  We spent the late morning and early afternoon at gran's house.  It was good to see Uncle Tim and Aunt Cince and Uncle Patrick because we don't get to see them much.  I actually got to sit on Uncle Tim's motorcycle and he promises sometime I can ride it!  I don't think he REALLY thought I would want to do it, but I certainly do!!  I am nothing if not a dare devil!  We missed Levi, Evan, Uncle Lawrence and Sara because Levi was sick, but we DID get to see them on Saturday for a dinner at grandma and pa's house!!!
Thanksgiving evening all the Sorrell side of the family came over to our place for a Thanksgiving dinner. I was really too excited to eat much, but I did have a roll, some yummy mashed potatoes and OF COURSE some dessert!!  We had a really good time!  Myla did a great job for her first Thanksgiving!  She even managed to squeeze in a nap between the two gatherings so she was pretty happy most of the time!
Daddy and mommy have been doing some shopping for Christmas.  Daddy even went out at 10:30pm on Thanksgiving to get ready for "Black Friday" shopping.  I am not sure what that is, but I do know my parents get pretty excited about it!
I have something so exciting to tell you!!  Last week someone came to our house!  She is a little elf who has magic!  We read a book all about her and how she watches us every day and then flies to the north pole (I call it the ice pole) every night to tell Santa how we acted and what we want for Christmas!  She also hides in a new place every morning when she gets back from the north pole and I have so much fun trying to find her!!  We can't touch her because she will lose her magic.  She can't talk to us because Santa has a rule about not talking to us.  BUT she does listen really well and I have been busy telling her what I want for Christmas!  I have also been busy being REALLY GOOD so she has good reports for Santa every night!  AND one of the coolest things is that I GOT TO NAME HER!!!  I chose the name Snowflake all by myself and I think she really likes that name.
What else has been happening?  Well, I got to spend the night with Grandma Donna and Grandpa Dave one night.  It was so much fun and me and grandma even went to see Happy Feet 2 at the theater.  I also got to go watch The Muppets with Grandma and Pa!!  I've seen way more movies than my parents have and I think it is kind of funny!  I've also already had a Christmas Party at Kidz Zone, spent a morning talking my Uncle Patrick into buying me a Princess Tiana Doll (that I love so much and play with her all the time), and continued learning to write my letters (I am up to the letter J).  I've also made my first snow angels of the season...WE ACTUALLY HAD A DAY OF SNOW LAST WEEK!
Myla is busy growing and crawling around and getting into EVERYTHING!  I don't think mommy has much time to do anything these days except to keep Myla out of the Christmas Tree!!!  We are so proud of Myla because she doesn't need her blanket to sleep in anymore and she is pretty much sleeping through the night!  She is doing a great job taking 2 naps every day (unlike me, she loves naps) and she is trying all kinds of food!
We're keeping really busy and definitely are enjoying this holiday season!  Mommy has made a deal with herself that she is going to start taking more pictures and she even put the camera on the table by her computer so she will remember!  That means hopefully I'll get some pictures on here for you really soon!