These two have a neat little bond. Colt figured out pretty quickly that mom couldn't pick him up but Grama would! At first he seemed so frustrated--but after a few days he'd just look for her when he wanted up instead of me. 

We read a cute little story in the friend magazine the other night that was about the authors Grandmother, then it encouraged kids to ask their grandparents their favorite Christmas memory. It was neat (for me at least) for Cannon to be able to ask Grama while she was here. The first memory she told us was heart warming and gut wrenching. She told us about how someone left a big box of food every Christmas and how much they looked fwd to, it always had peanuts and candy and a ham and it was such a special treat. I knew they were poor growing up but it was just kind of humbling to hear it as a favorite Christmas memory from a little girls perspective, and to think of someone doing it again and again, so nice. She also told us about the time when  her older brother bought her roller skates that she had wanted so badly, and about when she was a teenager and her dad being sneaky the time he made her a cedar chest and swapped it out for my aunts that was similar that was usually in the room. Anyway, it was neat. I wanted to jot them down here so I wouldn't forget.
Our friends the Belk's (met them at the park right after Easter before we headed to Utah for the summer-but they are awesome! We love them and we LOVE feeling like we have friends here, it was hard after everyone moved but slowly and surely we are making friends!) Anyway they told us about a Bounce House place and coupons that come on the back of our grocery store receipts so we hit that up with Grama. We had a great time-and we will be going back with the Belk's soon!

 

Saturday  Grandma Colt and I hit up the Jingle Bell Market and Cannon and Isaac did the Home Depot thing. Then that night we went to the live nativity at the church on the Corner--or course Frank the Camel was a big hit again. 

Saturday night Isaac and I snuck out on a date-cuz we could! We'd already eaten, and we didn't really have anything we wanted to do so we just went to Walmart and Christmas shopped for the boys. It was fun though to get to go together just the two of us. 

Cannon wanted to go so Grama told him they could go on a date Monday morning before she left instead. They went to McDonald's and got breakfast but little Mr. Hates to Eat, told her going to eat was not a date, so they stopped at Walgreens on the way back and he got a truck. So spoiled. I guess that's her job.

In the middle of the night Sunday night with Grandma headed back that next morning it hit me pretty hard-we're really not going home for Christmas this year. I was so sad. But its an up and down thing, sometimes I'm fine, sometimes I'm not. Isaac and I ... Well I could write a book or two on our differences in this department. Remind me again that I married the guy that didn't write home for SIX MONTHS when he was on his mission and it would have been longer than that had his dad not called the mission president. ~if I understand the story correctly~ So on one side I struggle--and on the extreme other opposite side, he struggles too. (Well from my perspective that is.) So back to Christmas, I'm ok with staying here-I know it's for the best this year especially with dissertation stuff, there are even somethings that I'm excited about! Ole Santa could've come anywhere but we're getting the boys bikes this year! ;) That would have been impossible if we flew and that drive is just awful! But I'm sad too, and sometimes I just cry. ISAAC. DOESN'T. GET. IT. Sometimes I get so frustrated that he doesn't get it-or his lack of emotion in general- but later on in the week I realized if Isaac were the author of this little family blog he would have plenty of opportunity and reason to type LYNDI. DOESN'T. GET. IT. (But the difference is he NEVER would--he's a better person than me though, Mr. Respectable, and that's why I married him) Anyway, I guess maybe its part of life-learning to "get it" for each other. I love him. We're working on it!
Tuesday I had a Post-Op appointment, that morning Cannon locked me out of my bedroom. Its just one of those simple bedroom bathroom locks but I couldn't pick it! Disaster. I was 1/2 dressed and luckily I had a pair of pants and socks in the dryer-my phone was in the bedroom but I found shoes keys and diaper bag in the living room so I emailed Isaac where to meet me and off we went. I just met with the nurse practitioner but she asked me how I was doing and I assured her I was great, the only trouble was how CRAZY itchy it was then I said "But that's normal right?" like I thought it was part of the healing process. She kind of squinted and said no, so then I showed her my belly and apparently all that redness wasn't normal either. Hmm. I just figured because it was gradually getting less and less red it was normal. I had a severe allergic reaction to "Mastisol" whatever that is. But under all the redness it was all blistered up and everything-kinda crazy. She gave me a prescription and I'm very happy to be on the mend for real now :) So now I no longer fit into the "No Known Allergies" category. But I'm happy to know, cuz all of the itching isn't fun. Colt rubs his belly (random but he does it all the time) I scratch at mine. Oh and the other thing I learned at the Dr. was I'm still not supposed to lift for 2 more weeks...I do the best I can that-yeah right not lift, but I try to make sure to lift with my legs and such.
One of the nights this week we snuck over to Patrick's house and borrowed his sander for the little Nativity project I've been wanting to do for months! Maybe we'll get it done before Christmas...maybe. We love Patrick, he sits behind us at church in our unofficial assigned seats and he's always so nice to help me wrestle the boys! Cannon was so excited to meet his new dog.

And Colt Liked his Rudolf.

Wednesday Jenna invited us over for a little play date with Rylee and JD (They are the a fore mentioned Belk's) It was so fun the kids had a blast and SO DID I! The only bad news is they are moving to the coast, but I just have to remind myself-we are going to be on the moving list before we know it too so just enjoy the friendships while they are here.

 

It seems like we are busy everyday even if I can't remember what we do. Today we went visiting teaching, I met a gal-on my list for a long time we can never catch- but she has family in Las Vegas and wants to go with us if we go out of Shreveport again. Perfect! And hopefully it was just the little connection we need! Tonight we went up to the park in Flowood that they decorate with lights. It was really fun. Santa was there and we got to ride a little train. It was a great family Friday night activity. (Another gal we went visiting teaching to told us about it so--good thing we went!)

 

And a couple random pics to end on:

I thought it was so silly Cannon trying to push the vacuum through all the mess on the floor-like he was kind of missing the point- but by time I grabbed my phone to take a picture they'd traded and it was Colton doing it. --all the same--

 

Cannon saw the guy that works here at the apartment complex picking up garbage and putting it in a bucket so he wanted to do the same thing with the leaves and his grapple. Said he wanted to service-how could a mom say no to that? I couldn't, and out we went. But notice the leaves...and the 5 or 6 we did pick up got dumped right back out :) oh well. 

Colt my cookie monster crawled up on the table and scavenged the leftover cookies out of Isaac's lunch box. (And who has leftover cookies anyway--not me or Colt)

 

Last but not least, putting the stools up to the tree makes having the tree in the play pen less than effective ...oh well.