Week in Review: One year older and a foot of snow deeper

What an exciting week:
* Brent finished tax finals for the semester
* Brent turned 28 years old on Dec. 17 - HAPPY BIRTHDAY!
* Gwen gets really good at smiling and attempts to laugh
* Danielle thinks it's Christmas because we got 15+ inches of snow in DC
* Nicole and Brent go on a quick dinner date!
* Pearl is thankful for her winter jacket Nicole got her
* Church is cancelled due to snow - yes, family in Denver can make fun of us
* Danielle is counting down until Christmas, visiting Arizona, and seeing her friends Aspen and Taven in Vegas

Make a Smilebox scrapbook

A National Christmas

      Merry Christmas!  This year, we will be having "a national Christmas", which means we will be staying in the nation's capital for the holiday.  Since Gwen is still so young, we will avoid the crowds.  Our plans involve rest and relaxation, especially after Brent's semester ends.  

      Danielle is finding new ways to occupy herself while I rest or help Gwen.  The other morning I turned the TV on to Disney channel and told Danielle I was going to rest in my room for a little while.  When I came out about 45 minutes later, she had her safety scissors and had given most of her My Little Ponies very eccentric haircuts!  At least it wasn't her own hair!  So, needless to say, we are having more structured time in the mornings these last few days, and we've been having fun together.  I got her an uppercase letters workbook, and we are having a fun time doing a little "preschool" each morning.  

      I think/hope Gwen has made it through her 6-week growth spurt.  Sometimes she eats every two hours, and other times she'll go 4 1/2 to 5 hours.  Either way, she is getting pretty good at falling sleep quickly after eating at night, so I appreciate that.  Like her older sister, we think Gwen is quite the cutie!  She began smiling at us about two weeks ago when we play games with her, and she is almost laughing at times.  

      Brent and I are really looking forward to Christmas vacation.  We are going to Arizona for New Year's to see the Pettinger's and the Nelson's.  Then we are off to Las Vegas for a few days to visit our friends the Reed's.  That's what Christmas time is about for us - spending time with family and friends.