Jekyll & Hyde

Last night was a mess. The kids were tired & crabby, and on different schedules. Andrew cried and whined his way through dinner. Elliot skipped his afternoon nap so he was a fuss. Mari did not skip her nap, so while the boys were asleep by 7:30, Mari was an hour later.

Tonight was one of those nights when things just come together. We had a nice dinner, with all of us sitting at the table for about 1/2 hour enjoying ourselves. Holly stopped by after dinner with some advent calendars, which the kids (& Susan) loved, and will continue to love up until Christmas. After she left we hung out for about half an hour, listening to some nice Christmas music and playing. Before bed we read Todd Parr's Peace Book (The Peace Book, is the title), which I love, and the kids also enjoy. We were upstairs for bed by 7:30 and all the kids were asleep in a timely, relaxing manner. Nice.

Rain

We just got back from a fun trip to Des Moines for Thanksgiving, and to see our new niece/cousin, Hope. It was a great time and it went very quickly. I hope to get some pics up soon.

Still on EDT

We are still living on EDT, with the kids going to bed around 7 and getting up around 6. It is going OK. The only problem is that Elliot has not been sleeping well. We are hoping he is just teething.

Cleaning Up

We are getting rid of the following two items on craigslist. If anyone is interested, just let us know and I am sure you can have them for free:

Computer Desk

200 Disk CD Changer

Off to school

I take Andrew to school in the morning, which I really enjoy. At the beginning of the year, this could be a little challenging, as he was not always too into it. Now he loves going to school and he runs down the path when I open the gate.

Dairy Free

We are trying to get Elliot's bowels figured out, so Susan and Elliot are both off dairy for a little while. Elliot also has not been sleeping well, and we are hoping the lack of dairy may help with that as well. So far it does not appear to be doing much, but we will give it a few more days.

EST

I have a strong dis-taste for the time change. It really throws our schedule for a loop. I think we could get Andrew and Mari to adjust, but Elliot makes his own schedule. Right now, we are all upstairs for bed at 7, with the kids usually asleep by 7:30 or 7:45. This means that we get up a little early, and have a lot of time to kill in the morning. I don't mind this in the summer, when it is easy to get outside, but in the winter, it can get rather boring.

Early Bedtime

Elliot went to bed at 4:30 this afternoon, and appears to think that he is out for the night. Should be a fun one.