Another Week Gone...

What a week! Somehow we have managed to fit at least two weeks into one - at least it seems that way. As you know Grace helped Daddy rake up the leaves this weekend:

I'm ready to work! Let's go!

Daddy, you hold the dustpan and I'll push the leaves in.
It will take me two hours...  your back is in great shape right?



OK, so I'm not so good at raking yet, but I can
throw them in the bin really well!

Supervisor Gracie driving around to inspect how many
more leaves need to be raked... (A lot!!)

Grace heard that Mark had helped wrap presents, so she wanted to help too:


She brought me that red bow, then tapped herself on
the head so I would stick it in her hair. Silly Gracie.

Daddy insisted on getting a picture of me with the kids, since I'm always the one behind the camera:


Grace cried in the first four pictures. Mark cried in the
last three. At least we got one to turn out. Sort of!

We took the kids to the park, and reached another milestone for Mark - he got to sit in the stroller instead of being in his carseat where he can't see! He and Grace thought it was great fun.


Yo, Ho, Ho, Ho, the stroller life for me!
(Gracie just appears to be bursting into song in the picture) 

Grace was really upset about having to go to the park again...

Look mom, now that I have all my teeth, I can ask
for somethin' else for Christmas!

Mark got to swing, and he loves it. Even when we pushed him at a decent pace, he never looked worried or scared. Cutie.


Look ma! No arms!

Grace, on the other hand, is scared of the "bridge" connecting the play structure. She is actually frequently afraid if the ground doesn't "appear" solid. For example, we have been in a number of stores with very shiny tile or concrete floors. When she realizes the floor is reflecting the lights from above, she stops immediately and then asks for me to pick her up. If I ask her to walk toward me, she gets scared and will timidly (if at all) walk over and beg to be picked up from the ground. Since the playstructure has holes in it and the bridge portion has a little "give" to it, I think that freaks her out. Here is how she gets to the slide:


Where there's a will, there's a way! Even if it's a little
closer to the ground than usual...

The kids are still learning how to play together, but they laugh and entertain each other quite a bit now. I walked into the play room last night and found this:


See Mark? You don't have to learn to hold your
own bottle, no matter what mommy's blog says!

Um, Grace? I think I may need to learn if this is the best
service I can get...

I'm pretty sure you're supposed to tilt the bottle...
not my head.



Aw, who cares if we don't get it perfect?
Mommy will do it for us anyway, right???

Lastly, we had gone looking at Christmas lights in town last Saturday. There is a house here that has an amazing display. They also have a Santa who gives out candy canes. Gracie got her second candy cane (the first was at the parade) and I saw her take a bite... and then I didn't see the candy again. I figured she must have just dropped it with the wrapper, as neither was to be found. She didn't complain though. We came home, and she saw the reindeer that Daddy had put up in the yard that day:

Overheard: "Hi Mama reindeer! *kisses* Awww... *hugs*"

She loved the reindeer, and went to each one to pet it, hug it, and give it a kiss. We finally had to head inside, as I discovered where the candy cane had gone, and why I couldn't find it earlier:

Well hello there mister candy cane! Was Gracie saving
you for later?

There really is no need for this picture. I just couldn't
resist her cute red curls!

I hope your week was filled with sweet surprises too. Only one week until the Christmas festivities begin! We can't wait...

We will be on the road Christmas Eve, so for the first time, I may miss my self imposed deadline next Friday morning. Since we will be out of town with family for Christmas week, I will not keep to my regular schedule, although I may be compelled to share my little elves with the world...