I'm working on the December pictures. I have everything together except the trip to Oklahoma, and there are already over 100 pictures in the album. *Phew* December is very busy around here.

As far as life is going, we are doing great. We're enjoying some fabulous weather the last couple of days, and tomorrow is supposed to be really warm, too. It's like April in January! I'm not a fan of winter, so I'm super happy. Plus, the fact that everyone has been healthy for nearly two weeks puts me in a good mood. In December, nearly every day found at least one person sick. It's exhausting. So I'm enjoying the break from illness while it's here!

I started Oliver on rice cereal yesterday. That boy was born to eat, I think. He took to it like a pro, scarfing every bit of the cereal I made. I got a few photos of it, but they are still on the camera. The second time I fed him cereal (yesterday evening) there wasn't a drop on his bib. Everything went straight down the hatch. I'm hoping he's like many other boys...a very unpicky eater. Our girls aren't the pickiest eaters, but there's plenty of room for improvement. I was ever-so-slightly disappointed that Oliver didn't make horrendous faces at the taste of the cereal. I'm so glad he liked it, but it's still hilarious to watch them cringe at new tastes. Maggie did that, and it cracked me up. I know, I'm mean. What can I say?

Evie got a guitar for Christmas. Maggie likes to play with it, but she's not the most gentle person. We have to remind her constantly to strum it gently. Yesterday I found her strumming it with another toy. I scolded her and told her firmly that we only play the guitar with our fingers or with a pick. Tonight I caught her strumming with a plastic slinky. I got on to her and asked her what she is allowed to play the guitar with. (Not really expecting her to answer correctly.) She responded with "Fingers and a pickle".

We all took a trip to Big Lots this evening to buy some storage containers for our Christmas decorations. The girls were a little on the crazy side, so by the end of the night I was getting frustrated with them. Still, we had promised them ice cream since they had done a good job eating their dinner, so when we got home, they got to have their treat. Later, I ran a bath for Oliver, and both girls were in there "helping" me. (By "helping" I mean messing in the bath water, hanging on me, getting in Oliver's face, and being generally obnoxious.) I got Oliver in his bathtub, and Evie threw a little toy in the tub. I tossed it out and snapped at her. She told me, " I was only trying to be nice by giving Oliver a toy" and she left the room. I felt pretty crappy, so I called her back in and apologized. She jumped on my back and gave me a hug. "That's okay. *long pause* Thanks for the ice cream." Sweet girl. Then, later, when I was helping her put on her pajamas, she suddenly gave me a big hug and said, "I just love you so much. You're the best mama I ever had." Oh gosh, way to make me feel really guilty for being so irritated. In the end I do adore those kids.