Flashback

OK, so I am not going to try and be a superhero and provide an in-depth play-by-play of the past 8 weeks that I've been absent from the blogging world.  Let's just say things have been busy! :)  Here's a brief, fly by summary of the last two months:

Our dear Brooke turned 3 in early December.  This girl has brought so much joy to our lives.  She makes us laugh with the quirky comments that come from her mouth (ex. "That's not appropriate! (appwopwiate)).  She loves playing pretend.  This is such a stark contrast to Grant when he was 3.  He was all about puzzles and blocks, while she wants nothing to do with them.  She would rather just play with her dollhouse and dolls, dress up in tutus and leotards, and be a girly girl (while still liking to kick the soccer ball around with Grant every so often).  She likes Dora, Clifford, Berenstain Bears, and Strawberry Shortcake.  She loves to read books, draw, and play play-doh.  If given the chance, she would wear her pajamas everywhere!!  She thoroughly enjoys going to daycare and playing with her friends there, but would also love to be able to go to school with Grant if given the chance.  Brooke is very a very independent child who can be quite stubborn at times.  She is also very particular (hmmmm...not sure where this comes from? - must be her dad! :)).  For example, if her socks do not fit just right with the line perfectly across her toes without any "excess" sock hanging off her toes, she pitches a fit.  This, too, shall pass. :)  Brooke - we love you dearly and love watching you grow!

We moved in to our new house on December 10, and I am finally at the point of feeling somewhat "settled."

Brooke still needs to work on learning the layout of the house yet, as she's mistaken the dining room for her bedroom on a few occasions.  Ha!  Check this out - 

Yes, this is not made up.  She fell asleep in her chair while we were eating dinner.  She's been known to fall asleep while eating and sitting in her chair (I've posted about that a few times already); however, this is the first time she's actually used the chair for a pillow.  Unreal.  Crazy girl!

The holidays flew by, and we really enjoyed time with family and friends.

This was the best I could muster up for a family picture and for Christmas decorating this year with the move.  We put ornaments on my 6 foot slimline tree that normally sits on the porch outside.  Oh well!

The Petroelje immediate family (so excited to "officially" add Allison to it come April!)

Unfortunately, I don't have any pictures from my side at Christmas.  The best I can do is a pic of Brooke and Brielle in the tub!

Silly girlies!

Our friends Eric and Marcy were home for the holidays from China, so it was so great to see them at our annual friends Christmas party (celebrated New Years Eve).

The flock continues to grow!

Love these ladies!  So blessed to have them as friends!

As he does each year, Santa made his appearance.  This might be the last year, though, that Eric can pull off playing Santa.  This is the second year that Grant has asked "Where's Dad?" when Santa shows, and he even went so far as to say "Mom, Santa sure looks a lot like my dad!"  Yep - his cover is going to get busted if we don't find a replacement!

And...a few hodgepodge items that I just wanted to post about:

We spent some time at Craig's Cruisers to use some gift certificates that the kids got for Christmas.  What a blast!  Had a riot riding the indoor go-carts.  Unfortunately, it was so dark in there that my camera did not take good pictures of it, so all I could get was the kids on the Frog Hopper!

It sure has been a wacky winter here in MI.  A few weeks ago we received a beautiful snowfall, and this was the absolutely gorgeous view out our back windows.  Wow - God's amazing handiwork.  Unfortunately, it all disappeared the other night with a thunderstorm that lit up our bedroom like a Christmas tree in the middle of the night (still working on getting some blinds put up at the new place - hopefully we can get around to this before it gets light at 6 a.m. and our kids are up with the roosters).

Had to get a picture of my Grandma L. holding Grace!  I hadn't had the opportunity to take any of her with Grace yet, so I had to snap a picture when she was over the other night.  Grace shares her name with my late Grandpa L.'s mom (my great-grandma).  Love this lady dearly!  She's 83 years old but has the spunk of a 30 year old.

A few weeks ago I found this message crafted out of the magnetic letters we have downstairs and got the biggest kick out of it.  It's courtesy of Grant.  He did it all by himself.  Gotta love the mind of a five year old and his heart for the Lord!  Too cute!

We had to take advantage of the snowfall this past weekend, so the kids and I headed down the road to our local elementary school with my parents and went sledding.  We had a great time.  My dad's body might still be recovering from having to ride over the ramp that was built in the snow so many times with the kids!

And last, but definitely not least, our sweet Grace.

She has been growing like crazy lately!  She's becoming a much more laid back baby and is starting to settle into a routine.  She is our spitter, but it's so unpredictable whether she's going to erupt with projectile spit up or if our clothing will actually stay clean because she keeps it all in.  I've made the move to a sensitive formula, and that seems to help her gassiness and evening fussiness.  She turns 9 weeks old tomorrow and is such a sweetheart.  I went back to work last week Wednesday, so she decided to give me a back-to-work present by sleeping through the night from 10-6 the night before my return.  I paid for it when she decided to get up 3 times the following night, but hey, it's the thought that counts, right?!  The past few nights have been good again, as last night she went from 9:30 to 5:30.  She's smiling like crazy and is loved on by her brother and sister, neither of whom have really shown a ton of jealousy with her around.  Like the other two kids, she is not a fan of the pacifier (which isn't as fun to deal with now, but I love the fact that I don't have to break the habit later).  She likes to be swaddled when she sleeps, and loves to sit in her bouncy seat or just lay on the floor and interact with us.  Love this little girl to pieces and can't imagine our family without her!