Goodbye 2009

2009 ended with a perfect day. First I met with Maria and Rachel in Charlotte.

The boys played great together.

I stole a kiss from my hubby

We went to Boyd and Genean's for dinner and games.

We cooked S'mores with Smith and Oa.

Enjoyed them
Alot!
Christie and EJ fell asleep 7 minutes shy of midnight

Noah made it til midnight but not to bed.
Good bye 2009. Hello 2010!

Happy 11 year anniversary to me

Fun filled day!
David and I can hardly believe it has been 11 years.
The past 4 years he was working on our anniversary so this year was great because...
we finally got to celebrate our anniversary together!

Seeing our beauty

If only all of us could see our beauty like a 3 year old does.

As we stood in the check out line at Shoe Carnival, Ella Joy gazed at herself in the mirror.
Then she ran to me and said:

"Mommy I was looking at the mirror. I was looking at the mirror and I was so beautiful."

May we all see this beauty that we each possess as children of God.

Bye Finn

Today Alice and Jared left for New Jersey.
It was fun to finally meet Finn.
The cousins had fun all being together.
JuJu loved her Uncle Jared.

Nothing Nicer

I can't think of anything nicer than sitting in a hot tub on a cold winter night and looking up at a beautiful star filled sky.

Chocolate

Is anyone else feeling all the chocolate?

Christmas Craziness

Christmas morning right before presents

Noah got his Bakugan

Ella Joy a new bike

JuJu a mini baby

This was just the first 15 minutes of our crazy Christmas day.
Notice the chocolate on JuJu's cheeks.
It is 7:30 in the morning.
She must have found Grandma Wanda's stash somewhere.
And snuck some goodies while everyone was distracted.

Santa's on his Way

I'm off to bed because Santa is on his way.

We're Ready

We've been building candy houses...



and eating them too!

We played Christmas songs and

arranged and rearranged the Nativity.

We even spotted a reindeer

prancing down the hall.

I think we are ready!

Trader Joe's

Wanda, Genean, Krista, and I all piled in the car for a trip to Trader Joe's.
So much fun!
Lots of good food!

Christmas Lights at the Zoo

Tonight we visited Riverbank Zoo with our Hainsworth cousins.
It was so much fun!
They had Santa there--who Noah talked with, Ella Joy ran from, and JuJu screamed at.
They also had a fire pit--brilliant idea--for roasting marshmellows.
Next year I will be more prepared with all the goodies to make S'mores.
It was a fun night--cold, wonderfully cold!

Survived!

Yeahh!!!!
I survived our trip and I am so happy to be home in SC.
It's wonderful to be with both of our families.
The cold feels so good!
Its the first day that I haven't sweated in 6 months.

Christmas carols are constantly going through my head.
We have been belting them out in the car.
We always get stumped on the lyrics to Frosty the Snowan.

Its beginning to look, sound, and feel a lot like Christmas!!!!
I can't wait for Santa!

Packing like Kids

I am loading up the van for our 12 hour drive to Columbia.
It's going to be a great day!...I keep telling myself.
It has been a 3 day process of cleaning, organizing, making lists of things to remember: clothes, Church clothes, Christmas clothes, shoes, diapers, wipes, medicine, camera, chargers for phone, IPOD, computer, camera, keys for neighbors, food for the car, toys for the care, movies for the car, and on and on
Why do we make life so complicated?

Noah packed his bag in less than 5 minutes.
What I found inside:
Most important--his entire Boy Scout uniform, "to show Papa Dean"
2 pairs of shorts
2 sleeveless shirts
10 pair of underwear
5 socks
Christmas PJ's

Ella Joy was even faster.
"Mommy I need to take my dresses."
"Ella Joy it is winter. It's cold. You have to wear warm clothes."
"I want to wear my dresses."

Walks out. Returns in less than one minute holding:

4 sundresses still on the hanger
6 pair of her new underwear
1 coat

"This will keep me cozy."
Way to solve a problem.

I wish my packing could be so simple.

Clorox Clean

My house is Clorox clean.
My mom has been cleaning, scrubbing, vacuuming, dusting.
She cleans places that I don't even know exist.
She vacuums drawers, cleans ovens, moves furniture.
She is absolutely the best cleaner I know.
The house wreaks of Clorox and I love it!

Sisters

Sisters are the best.
I am so excited to go home and see all of mine.
The sisters who I grew up with, the sisters I gained when I married, and my soon to be sister.

These sisters are the best of friends.
Ella Joy tells me often how much she loves JuJu.
Then squeezes her tight around her head and smothers her with kisses.
Sometimes when JuJu messes up her Polly Pockets
she asks if I will find her a new home.
But most of the time.... she absolutely adores her.

Can't wait to see all of my sisters!

Christmas Spirit

Ella Joy sported her reindeer antlers and a pink tutu today. She is super excited for Christmas and has a very detailed list for Santa. In one breath she told me:
I want a purple princess bike with a horn and a purple helmet with fire on it, a heart necklace that is easy to put on, and a beautiful tiara.

Hope Santa pays attention to detail.

Christmas Service

A good friend of mine is a teacher for Teach for America. I asked her if Noah and I could come and give her class a Christmas party. She works in a struggling elementary school in downtown Miami. She was excited to have someone from the community come and celebrate the season with her class.

Together Noah and I organized food, games, music and then headed to the school to have fun. Noah was very excited to visit. He wanted to make sure the kids had a lot of fun. We started with musical chairs. They were excited to dance around to Christmas music. Next we played Christmas Bingo. They used M&M's to mark the pictures. Noah helped them find matches as I called out different Christmas items. At the end they all got to eat their M&M's which they were thrilled about. We finished with a snack of cookies, crackers, and juice. Noah helped pass out the food and pour drinks.

The children were so cute! They were happy to have visitors. Many of them gave us hugs before leaving.

Noah asked my friend if we could come back again.

"I want to go back and give them another party in January."

"Maybe a Valentine party in Febraury," I suggested.

"I need to get their names so I can bring Valentine's."

Great idea.

I think he is catching the JOY that comes from serving others and what this season is all about.

Unfortunately I left the battery to my camera at home and my phone wouldn't upload to the computer so no pictures.

Christmas Preparations

Sometimes thinking about everything that I need/want to do before the 25th can make my head spin. Thanks Genean for the phrase.

But I am conscientiously trying to simplify and enjoy the reason for this wonderful and busy time of year. More than anything I would like my children to feel the joy that comes from making someone else happy.

Tomorrow Noah and I have planned to do something special. My hope is that he will feel what this season is all about.

Come back to see what fun we have!

Sunday

The day of REST.

Bascom Palmer Christmas Dinner

Jenny's asleep already because she's worn out from boogeying too much, so I promised I would post for her tonight. Jenny and I got to have a real date. Good food, music and dancing, friends to talk to, warm weather overlooking the beach. We really need to get out more.

Sunday morning, Jenny here. How amazing, David posted for me. I think I remember mentioning something from my half sleep world about my blog but I sure didn't expect him to do it. I must be really nice while I sleep. Maybe I should try asking him to do other things from my "honey do list" while I slumber. Would they all get done so promptly and quickly?

We did have a great time.
2 dates one week.
Amazing.
Notice my little black dress.
Yes, this is The dress I wear to everything--weddings, dinners,
I am sure it has made it to several other posts.
It is the perfect dress for me.
Capped sleeve, knee length, and gathering across the midsection that conveniently hides my baby pooch. Cheap polyester fabric that doesn't wrinkle and washes beautifully.
Of course, it wouldn't be a classic Jenny advertisement without mentioning the price--$9.99 from Parisian's liquidation sale.

I am sure she will continue to make her appearances--most likely Pat's wedding in May! Congratulations Pat and Melissa on your engagement!
Finally after 11 years another Stier joins the wonderful world of married folk.
I am thrilled to have Melissa as a sister!

Family in town

My Mom, Dad, Ryan, and Haley all arrived today.
I am so excited for a fun-filled weekend.
And even more excited that my Mom will be here all next week.
She is the best grandma.
As soon as she arrives she starts pulling clothes out her suitcase
for Ella Joy and Julia.
Ella Joy loves clothes.
She squeals, hugs the clothes, and then immediately strips to try on each new item.
Tonight in bed Ella Joy told me, "I love Christie. She's the best grandma."
I have to agree.

Resident Dinners

David and I went out for a work party at
Monty's--a fun seafood place in South Beach.
We met up with other residents, fellows, and interviewees.
We ate crab legs, coconut shrimp, and the best key lime pie.
So nice to get away, eat good food, and have some time to away.
And what makes it even better-- our nice date was on the hospital.
Free dinners.
Almost free dates.
Will there be a time when I don't get excited about these?

High and Low

My high: chatting with the super friendly cashier at the Costco photo lab. Despite Christmas craziness he was kind, helpful, and very merry. Thanks Luis for helping me feel the Christmas spirit.

My low: sitting in traffic for 1 1/2 hours to drive less than 20 miles to visit a friend and take Noah to scouts while listening to Julia scream for 45 of the 90 minutes. So glad I don't have to fight Miami traffic on a daily basis.

Its beginning to look a lot like Christmas!!!

Not making the cut

We started our annual Christmas card photo session at the beach.
Ella Joy was less than cooperative.
I promised my little ponies, polly pockets--still no smile.
We returned home and tried pajama pictures on the sofa.
Surely we can quickly snap a picture of all 3 on the sofa.
Julia would not sit still long enough for the camera to flash.
In the end, they ended up wrestling on the floor.
Ella Joy was smiling.
Julia was laying and laughing.
Noah joined in.
Finally I captured all 3 smiling, happy.

Jacobs Family Christmas card 2009 done.

There was a little girl

There was a little girl
who had a little curl
right in the middle of her forehead
And when she was good
she was very, very good
And when she was bad
she was horrid.

--Henry Wadsworth Longfellow


So happy to say that I think that Ella Joy is finishing up this crazy compulsive wiping stage. I know there will be others. But what a feat to have survived the last month of some serious craziness.

I love this picture because it reminds me of the good, the very,very good.
She is so sincere in her compliments and her affections.
She will tell me with unrestrained enthusiasm "you the best mommy ever!"
And then hug me as tight as her 2 little arms can hug.
I sure love this little girl!

Tonight it was the Crockpot

So I have burned my fair share of meals. I tell David that it is because I am a multitasker. Surely I can run and flip the laundry while that pancake is cooking, or I can vacuum the living room really fast while the potatoes get a little more crispy.

To be completely honest, the smoke alarm went off quite a bit at our old house. So much so that the obnoxiously loud noise no longer scared Noah or Ella Joy and we actually had a fire alarm routine in place. Noah would run and open the backdoor and fan out the smoke while I quickly turned on the oven fan, then grabbed a broom to turn off the alarm.

I am proud to say that the fire alarm has not gone off once since moving to our new home. However when we came home from Church the BBQ chicken was "well done." We tried to make the best of it by smothering those tough pieces of meat with cole slaw, hoping to cover the burnt taste. In the end, David and I both felt a little sick. And to make matters worse we had invited a friend to come eat with us. He ate but didn't ask for seconds. Who can blame him.

I thought about feeling bad about this one. You know that pathetic feeling that comes over when you feel like you just can't do anything right. Well not tonight. I won't be taking the blame for this one. I have accepted fault in the past and I am quite certain I will have to accept fault in the future. But not tonight.

Tonight it was the Crockpot.

I love Annie

This is a Stier family favorite. I am certain that all 6 of us have every song and line memorized. We used to act it out. I would play Annie, of course. Becky was Miss Hannigan and Duffy. Shelly always played Molly. Usually we could rope Pat into playing Daddy Warbucks, Rooster, or Punjab. I remember Becky and I trying to imitate the gymnastics tricks. We figured out the double cartwheel but we could never quite get the handstand on the knee trick. Anyways....

Last week I saw the DVD for sale at Target for $3.99 and I couldn't resist. Let's just say we have already watched it a few times. Ella Joy knows all the characters names and can't stop talking about the mean lady. She is very jealous of Annie's locket and is planning on asking Santa for one for Christmas. Noah likes it as well. All week he has been singing Its a Hard Knock Life and he of course has already planned out what he would do if he got chased up a draw bridge by Rooster. He says he would slide back down past him and then runaway. Good to know.

So we are passing the Annie love from one generation to the next.

Schmoozing

Julia is learning young that a great personality goes along way.

Thanks JuJu for using your sweet charm on Chris (the super nice worker) at the Cool de Sac (an indoor play cafe). He liked you so much that he treated us to a super huge brownie topped with icecream and whipped cream. Amazing!

Bread Buddy

Today Ella Joy and I baked bread -- my one claim to Molly mormondom.
I love baking bread.
I love the smell.
I love the kneading.
I love the cute little buns.
The one part I don't love is the clean up.
So I put my compulsively clean 3 year old on the job and she was amazing. She cleaned til there was not a single piece of goo (dough) left on the bowl or hook. I will continue to employ her services. My mind is already busy thinking of other cleaning projects I can put her on.

Compliment of the day:
Noah told me that my pizza was delicious. "Its better than Dominoes."

A huge compliment from the boy who grows anxious everyday around dinner just thinking about what he might have to eat.

May I have your attention please....

for the month of December I am going to do a post a day. Yes, I know this is a lofty goal for me the bi-monthly blogger. However, 2009 is coming to a close and I want to remember something about each day! So I invite my family and friends to try and be as attentive as EJ's ponies and I will try to accomplish my goal. Happy December!

Happy 1st Birthday JuJu

Today JuJu turned 1. I can hardly believe a year has passed. She has been a perfect baby. We all adore her. Even Ella Joy who had a hard time with her arrival to our family now expresses often how much she loves JuJu. Ricardo is one of JuJu's greatest fans and is planning on marrying her in 20 years. He absolutely adores her. Although JuJu was sick we did our best to celebrate her first birthday. We had chocolate chip pancakes for breakfast, played at the park, and sang with the neighbor children. Nonna brought over her special birthday cake which she has made for everyone's birthday since we moved here. Have I mentioned how grateful I am for all of our wonderful neighbors! This weekend we will celebrate again when David is home. Happy Birthday, JuJu!








JuJu's Favorites
1. Rocking her babies outside
2. Num-num
3. Rice and lentils
4. Sliding at the park
5. Open doors that go outside
6. Bathtime
7. Icecream
8. Dogs
9. Hide and seek with Noah
10. Daddy