Plans change quickly in this family… we went from a leisurely day of online van perusal (ok maybe not leisurely) to Ken being upstaged (happily) by Mike, finding a van, getting insurance and THEN heading an hour + to mom and Mike’s to spend the night and get in to get registered in the morning. What timing!!! All this while Ken is taking apart Trinity’s crib – into a BIG GIRL BED… so she was slightly confused – here is  the crib, now it is a bed and now… we are going to Grandma’s???? So she is sleeping on the floor in our bedroom at Grandma’s tonight and then BIG GIRL BED tomorrow.

The plan for Christmas Eve is relatively simple – register new used van, get groceries we forgot/didn’t have time to get for Christmas Day, stop in to get some larger cloth liners for Echo’s diapers, go to church, have dinner, open presents, drive new used van home (and get there in one tired piece). We may just make it on all counts! But what a relief! We will be actively mobile again after over 3 months!!!!

So it is now past midnight, Echo is fussy and I am sure I have some sorting through to do of my manic pack job to get here to mom’s so it is off to bed for me and the littlest of our not so little family… Happy day before the day before Christmas!

Grandma and Echo snuggling before bed (note what Grandma calls Echo's pixie ears!)

So last night while re-reading the story “‘Twas the Night Before Christmas” we came upon the lines: “The stump of the pipe he held tight in his teeth, and the smoke it encircled his head like a wreath;”. Gavin had a very good question – he asked – why is Santa smoking when smoking makes you dead… uhhhhhh… good question Gavin. So Ken and I sort of stumbled around for a moment until we came up with the idea that it was not a SMOKE pipe he was “smoking” but a BUBBLE pipe. They just didn’t explain that in the story because this is an OLD story. I have to say I feel good about the fact he asked… after all we don’t want them to ever feel the need to start smoking, and to understand that it is NOT a good thing to do. But what a way to put us on the spot to explain it all away!

We really didn’t do much schooling today… it has become all way too exciting for the kids to focus on anything so mundane. Though we have kept up with our daily ornaments and whatever fun print out activity that is up on our favourite site. We managed a craft last night – I did all the sewing as the boys and needles with their excitement level seemed to be a trip to the ER waiting to happen… our very own forest of felt Christmas trees. We didn’t have any round beads so we had to use the 3 cornered but they turned out rather cute I think.

Just in need of some stuffing

So it feels like time has sped on by. We are basically ready for Christmas… groceries still have to be bought and such but the presents are under the tree. Christmas Day is always a special one for us. We spend it here at home together… there really is no where else I would want to be.

Our newest Christmas angel