Kris asked me a few days ago if I would create another post about our family...I can't say too much has happened since our last one. However, I can tell of things we expect to happen very soon so I think this post will be a foretelling of things to come.
Kris is almost to the point of proposing his dissertation idea. Believe it or not, he first has to have his dissertation basically completed. So, he has been working very hard on that. His dissertation proposal defense is on December 7th. If Kris' committee accepts his idea, then he can start applying for jobs. Great news! That means he is almost done with his doctorate!
Kris has also been teaching a class for seniors that he personally designed. It's been very time consuming as he has no assistant to help grade homework assignments and tests. But he loves it because his niche is teaching.
(Kris recieving a teaching award from the Kelly School of Business in the spring of 2007.)
Alyson still loves school very much. She comes home singing songs, pretending she's Ms. Ruthie, and would prefer to write or color rather than play with her toys. I can't believe she is getting so big, growing so fast, and will be in kindergarten in the fall. That's something Alyson can't wait for-kindergarten. The last two times we have been to the library she's wanted to pick out books with stories about kindergarten or going to school.
When I checked on the girls before coming downstairs to the computer this morning, Kourtney stirred a little when I entered her room as she usually does. Alyson remained very quiet and still. Looking at Alyson on her side, curled up in a ball with her hands beneath her head reminded me of when she was about 4 months old and I took pictures of her sleeping. I still have one of these pictures in my wallet because I loved it so much. There's no doubt in my mind that almost anyone could tell by the picture and looking at her now, that it is indeed a picture of her. But sudden little subtleties have changed. Her face isn't so round, her nose is longer, her head of course larger, and she most definitely has more hair. Still, there's a part of me that will always think she is a little girl, my baby, as some parents choose to call their growing children. And there is nothing like the love a parent has for their sleeping child! I hate to see her grow up, and yet I look forward to the adventures she will have, and then again feel somewhat frightened because of some of the experiences I know she will have to battle through. Alyson has such a good, little spirit that I can just imagine she will rise victoriously to any occasion...
(Alyson at about 4 months old.)
So, back to telling you of things to come. Eleonore, Kris' mom, will be arriving in Indy on Monday. She is going to spend two weeks with us as she traditionally does around this time every year. I especially look forward to her visit this year more than I have in the past, and so do Alyson and Kourtney. It will be good to have a little variance in our lives after a few months of what have seemed very much the same. Work and sleep, work and sleep...The girls will love spending time with her, making her read stories to them, playing games, and going to McDonald's. We'll have a nice Thanksgiving dinner with "Mutti" and some of her life long friends who will be visiting us for several days as well. Then she will go home after her lengthy travels which include a visit to see her other grandchild, Leighton, in Maryland, (which she is currently doing right now) and then us here in Bloomington.
Two days following Eleonore's departure, we will have an ultrasound on the baby. Of course we hope to find that it is healthy, but we also look forward to seeing what it is. Neither Kris or I have a big preference. Sure, it would be nice to have a boy following two girls and no sons, but then again, we know all about little girls, and therefore, it would probably make parenting somewhat easier on us if we had a baby girl. Kris says that he loves his "daddy's girls" and wouldn't mind having one more. My gut feeling initially said that it is a boy, but lately my gut feeling hasn't been so strong. Two and half weeks and we will know whether to keep all the pink clothing, or trade them in for blue.
We also have another female pregnant in our household. Cloe is expecting her first litter of pups around Thanksgiving time. For all those who don't know, we breed Pembroke Welsh Corgis (bloomingcorgis.googlepages.com). We currently own three, Cloe, Kota and Gracie May, however, I gave Gracie to a friend in order to concentrate on bringing Kota, our adopted corgi, and the father of Cloe's litter, out of his shell. So although we still technically own Gracie, she is living with one of my best friends and her family here in Bloomington. We've had quite a bit of interest in this litter even though they will probably be unable to go to new owners until after the new year.
(Cloe's pregnant belly.)
Cloe is handling the pregnancy very well especially considering the size of her belly! I was so afraid that she might have worms a week and half ago because she was so huge then and has become even bigger now. I took her to the vet, and although they couldn't guarantee she was pregnant without doing an x-ray, they said they were pretty sure she is by the feel and size of her uterus and the development of her mammary glands. Since then these parts have grown even more. Cloe's energetic nature has also somewhat diminished making her a much more calm, obedient dog. She's spent a lot of time sleeping and following me around the house.
I think the only person I really haven't talked too much about in this blog is Koco. She is doing well and growing fast as Alyson is doing. I have say that Kourtney is really into babies right now. Koco loves to talk about "our baby", what she wants to name it (Sally), and how she wants to have a baby too when she is married. Mutti gave Kourtney a gift card to Toys R Us for her birthday in September. The closest Toys R Us is in Indianapolis, so when we went to Indy to have lunch with Muttie while she had a layover at the airport last week, we also stopped at the toy store to use Koco's gift card. Boy, are there lots and lots of toys to choose from, and I really didn't want to be walking around the store all day! So, I asked Kourtney what she wanted while we were still in the car. She immediately said "a baby toy". "Do you mean toys for your babies at home," I asked. She emphatically said yes, so Kourtney spent her birthday money on a baby stroller, swing, high chair and a baby with long, blond hair (she named her Peggy) that she can accessorize. She's played with these things every day for the past week and two days. Needless to say, I think Kourtney is going to be a great little helper when "our baby" comes.
(Alyson got her hands on the camera and took this picture of Kourtney with one of her oldest babies. Notice how beautifully she colored its head!)
As for the Christmas holidays, that's still all up in the air as far as where we will be. Our traditional trip back to Grand Junction for Christmas may be nonexistent this year, or may be postponed depending on how quickly Kris can get out his application packets. The puppies could also cause a potential problem for our plans. Depending on their health, how many there are, and if we have them all sold, we may find ourselves really having our own little Christmas in Indiana. We will have to see what happens as time progresses and things happen. The only downside to staying put is that we won't be with our parents over the holidays or see one of my sisters and her family. It also means that we will be away from Grand Junction for about a year and a half by the time we return next summer. One thing is for sure. We will make the best of the holidays no matter where we spend them!
Well, that's all for now. We hope you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving and have a chance to be with some of those you love. Take care!
We hope you all had a wonderful Christmas shared with the ones you love and filled with only the fondest of moments.
Our three girls patiently waited for their sleepy head parents to get up before coming down the stairs on Christmas morning...But before they were allowed to make their entrance, we had to stick with tradition and sing "We Wish You a Merry Christmas".
Besides getting pajamas and stocking stuffers from Santa, the girls each got something that I made for their beds. Alyson and Kourtney saw some bunk bed tents in a magazine a while back, and with a few days of effort, I came up with these alternatives. The girls had no idea what the layers and layers of fabric were as they pulled the bunk bed panels from their gift boxes. The girls were happily surprised once they discovered what they were holding. I also made a quilt for Ellary's bed that coordinates with all the blue and brown that is in the room she will be sharing with Keegan.
Don't you think this is a great looking guy? Ellary also loved her new hat and gloves and wore them off and on throughout the day.
Our little Christmas Santa just kicking it!
Oma (Kris' mom) had a tradition of making prime rib for us every Christmas. This year Kris kept the tradition alive by cooking it along with the majority of Christmas dinner.
Making a gingerbread house has become a family tradition as well(second year running). This year we made things easy though. We bought a gingerbread house kit instead of making our own gingerbread. Oh...it saved us about a day of baking. Well worth it, although we had a great time making our own with Nana and Oma last year. Thanks for the happy memories!
We hope you all had an enjoyable Christmas and a happy New Year, and will stay in touch with us. Thank you for keeping up with what's going on in our lives!
