images of emma’s first christmas at sonnystone; above is the traditional million-piece puzzle that her mom finally completed the night before they left.
that’s emma with her toys, watching backyardigans.
cousin lauren, her husband, dave, and her daughters, alex, berkley, and briley.
emma and her friend, raymond
cousin ali with her boys, ben and noah.
we had a christmas picnic on the tv room floor.
uncle mike and aunt jess
grandpa with his girl
pulling up to visit with aunt jessica
her favorite toy, an empty coke bottle.
from: wink
to: all sonnystoners
merry christmas and happy new year. thanks for dropping by and visiting.
babies grow so fast….it’s only been 32 years since this little gal emerged, 31 years since these pictures were taken. i’ve gushed enough recently about how much i love my daughter, and i meant every word of it. she knows…
happy birthday, melissa. see you soon, darlin’.
i am so excited to report that melissa and emma will be flying into sonnystone on the 26th!! they’ll arrive in nashville by 7:30am and be here around 10:30! I AM REALLY EXCITED!! boychild and wife will be staying the 25th-27th, so we’ll be able to have all of us together for an old-fashioned gift-giving extravaganza! emma will be staying until the 31st, so i hope everyone can come by at some time to celebrate with us. i’m thinking even aunt donna can sneak in a visit before she leaves on her mission trip!
i am so grateful!!!!!!!
don’t bother me about their unfair labor practices, i’m lost without walmark superstores. the selection, the prices and the general middle-class gaudiness suits my christmas needs to perfection. not only did i wipe out 80% of my shopping in one fell swoop, but i got in and out in about an hour. the other 20% is about emma, and if she were closer i could make that into 40% in about 30 minutes. i’ll confess that i will probably not stop buying just yet, but i could if i had any self-control.
and just think of all the little asian children who will be able to keep their jobs in workshops, thereby assuring them that they won’t have to be adopted by the pitts.
back home again in indiana…..surrounded by boxes of christmas decorations…. ethan, the serious twin, asked me, “why did you go so long to see your baby?” started right in on the children’s christmas program and have got the christmas spirit strong. i’ve got a long list of people to catch up with and chores to do, but it’s all fun.
we heard from dr. ky, the brilliant surgeon, and she says the fluid may be reabsorbed, so we’ll just do another ct in a month before doing anything invasive. yay!
i’ve stayed around and played around this old town too long, autumn’s almost gone, yes, winter’s coming on….i am so bewildered by my confusing, conflicting emotions re: going home. on the one hand, i’m so homesick and have been for weeks; on the other hand, i am so going to miss being here. emma has taken it upon herself to do a lot of night-crying in an effort to make me not miss her, but i don’t think it’s working–especially since i’m not really responsible for figuring out what to do to comfort her. she’s about to get her two top teeth and i really think it must be disrupting her usual sleep. since i’ve been here she’s gotten 4 teeth with minimal discomfort, but these last 2 have been real bullies. she’s also learned to crawl, pull up, clap her hands, and she plays by herself really well. we’ve become best buddies and i can’t believe i’m not going to see her for months now. and then there’s my daughter, my best friend and confidant, with whom i can share witticisms and observations, who i love more than anyone in the whole world. i’m going to miss her so much. i’ve missed husband and home and am looking forward to getting back to real life, but…..
i’ll be leaving on the 6 a.m. flight saturday morning, coming into nashville around 7:30a. you can bet that casey has the house and grounds prepared for my arrival and it will sure be great to sleep in a bed again. i hope wink remembers me. we’ll be putting up our christmas decorations, start practice with the children for the sunday school extravaganza, start back to work at the lutheran school monday, get my hair done tuesday, visit the reitz home victorian christmas the 16th and sis and i have 2 nursing home gigs the 19th and 20th. christmas will be here before i know it.
the ct scan showed a “pocket of fluid” under melissa’s incision and they’ll probably have to aspirate or drain it at some point. it’s causing a little pain, but has been stable for a while now. i hate that they didn’t do the ct earlier so i could be here to help out when the procedure is actually done, but it will probably be done on an outpatient basis and she’s already had her friend offer to watch the baby for the day. my mission, to keep her hernia from recurring and/or her bowel resection from pulling loose, has been accomplished and this development actually has nothing to do with the innards i came to protect. it’s just one of those things that we can’t control—like everything, i suppose.
i really had the best weather here for the majority of my stay. today it was in the 50’s and i strolled emma down to a playground to swing. it’s turned bitter-cold now–another sign that it’s time to go home, sit by the fire, and enjoy the season.