Pony Tail

Everlee has been with us for five months!  Her hair has grown!  It is long enough now to put in the cutest of pony tails.  Styling it is *super fun* since it is so fine and shiny. (Plus, she's bucking you like a bull.)  Oh, but it's worth the effort.  The band must be elastic not to slide, you have to pull hard, secure the hair band six times or so, but overall, it looks good most of the day.  Our life right now is much like her new hairstyle:  Pulled tightly into place with only a few wispy strands falling out.

Since mid-Novemeber, my last post, ours days have been filled.  Our best friends came with their five children for Thanksgiving (AWESOME) and from then on, it was a sprint to the finish in December.  The day after they left was Penn's 4th birthday and his party.  The following day, or as Goochy would say, "tomorrow-tomorrow," was Beck's all important, morning-long, sedated MRI.  That day deserves it's own entry.  The day after that, Penn and I flew to San Francisco just the two of us... cue Will Smith... in hopes that one-on-one time with Mommy would dig him out of his dark place.  (Paired with the purpose of visiting my sister, of course.)

Then... two days stranded in Chicago O'Hare which meant touching snow and sleeping on the ground at the USO, Terrific Kid, school parties, Christmas performances, a surprise (to Mom and Dad too) home visit from Santa one night, welcoming another adoptive family home, shrinky dinks, ornament crafting, Cheryl's surprise 60th in Florida, Waldman Christmas, Christmas Eve church service and our annual caroling with the neighbors on the back of a flatbed, real Christmas, Legos mania, Everlee's 3rd birthday, Brent going back to work, mini van shopping, removal of the dying Christmas tree, aquarium with friends, welcoming the New Year, the start of piano lessons for Beck, speech therapy for E, and the overlapping seasons of flag football and basketball.  Other than travel, we tend to lead a slow daily life of school and play, but the month of December and into January is certainly an exception.

A perfect example of their personalities:  Penn in costume, Everlee mad that she's trapped, and a focused Beck checking off the grocery list.  

 After saying "No" to a second candy cane.  

Thankfully, the holiday break was also a break from the littles' bickering.  It was a lovely change of dynamics in our home.  With Penn distracted by both Dad and brother home, harmony came upon us.  Harmony people.  Harmony. I loved every second of it.  We meshed, laughed, and made happy memories, distant from the ones of an overwhelmed mom harping on them two weeks prior.  This wack-a-doodle family of five pulled itself into a decent looking pony tail. The tangled, unmanageable ringlets have straightened with the season and are currently under control.  Let's hope the elastic holds.