During the week before Thanksgiving we got to see my brother Zach for a few hours, and Eden got to meet her second relative outside of her parents. We went to lunch and later took some pictures and watched The Office together – a nice, relaxing visit if too short.
On Thanksgiving we had a wonderful potluck dinner with a whole bunch of friends. Delicious food and good times were enjoyed by all. We also watched Elf on the biggest "magic box" (any television, computer, or in this case, projector screen) Eden had ever seen. It was cute seeing her stare at the screen with big eyes. She was a hit as always. I think the only time I held her was to feed her. I also think our little extrovert is going to introduce us to more new people than we would ever get to know on our own. On a side note, it was Thanksgiving last year that we found out we were pregnant with Eden - crazy.
On Friday we were able to spend a few hours with Peter’s dad and his wife who were in California visiting family. It was fun to catch up with them and introduce Eden to another one of her grandparents. Saturday we had another potluck dinner with friends where I learned that strawberries dipped in sour cream and then brown sugar taste really good. You wouldn't think so, but they do actually.
Last Thursday I finished and turned in my final assignment for my graduate degree. I've already heard back from my professor about my grade so I can officially announce that I will finally graduate with my Master's! What a weight off my shoulders! I enjoyed many aspects of graduate school and definitely learned a lot, but I am so, so, sooooo glad it's over. Especially now that I have Eden. I know multi-tasking is a valued skill in our culture, but I personally think it's overrated. I'm all for focusing on just a few important things at a time. And I really want to enjoy these last few weeks with Eden before I go back to work in January.
On Friday, Peter, Eden, and I packed up and headed to Murrieta Hot Springs to the Calvary Chapel Conference Center for our church's annual retreat. Because we had a baby we got our own room, but it was kind of funny because it was a room with 6 twin beds! The facilities and grounds were very nice - much nicer than we expected. We definitely weren't roughin' it out in the boonies. I was a little concerned about how easy it would be to participate in the activities with Eden, but I think Peter and I found a nice balance that allowed each of us to get some rest and some time with friends. The retreat center has pools for the natural hot springs scattered all over its property, so I got my first experience relaxing in one. It was interesting because the pools are naturally all different temperatures - the first one we tried was so hot that one of my friends named it The Mouth of Hell. We found a much nicer one on our second try. We also got to try an 80-person hot tub that was on the property. Honestly, I liked the hot tub better - the temperature is more consistent, it doesn't turn your silver rings colors (oops), and it doesn't reek of sulphur. I suppose the hot springs might be better for you since they're not full of chlorine, but really, that sulphur smell is quite an obstacle. Once again Eden took the new surroundings like a champ and got lots of attention.
We got back from the retreat on Sunday night, and Eden and I tried to take it easy on Monday. Monday night, however, was Peter's holiday party at work, so we put Eden in her new Christmas dress (she was the most adorable thing I've ever seen) and headed to the dinner. I think we finally hit Eden's limit for new activities (poor baby) because she became the exact opposite of her usual extroverted self and cried anytime a new person came up to her! She passed out toward the end of the evening. Thankfully, the rest of our week is quiet except that she gets her second round of shots on Thursday. Poor, poor baby!
I was hoping things would slow down for us a bit, but I don't think that's going to happen. We are flying to Missouri a week from Saturday so I'm basically trying to cram all Christmas shopping, decorating, card mailing, etc. into the next few days. I'm already realizing that I'm just going to have to let some stuff go or else I'll stress myself out and go insane (and probably take my family with me). So if you get your Christmas card in January, I apologize! I'm simultaneously excited and scared for our trip. It will be great to see our families, but the whole four-month-old-on-a-plane-during-the-holidays does not sound like fun. I also imagine living out of a suitcase for 10 days will be a bit of a challenge - after all, we filled the car with stuff just to take Eden to a fancy conference center.
I'll try to post again before our trip, but that may not happen if things continue at this crazy pace. So just in case, I'll end by wishing you all a merry Christmas and happy holidays! I'll try to post some pictures of Eden from the last few weeks below.
Acting squirrely:
Back from a walk with daddy:
Who me?
Visiting with Uncle Zach...
...and Grandpa Hough!
Working hard with mommy on her final project for her Master's degree:
2 comments:
she is so beautiful...
you just tell us when, and you are welcome to come over for lunch or dinner when you are here. we don't have anything going on right now that couldn't be moved. And we would love to see you!
I know I'm prejudice but this has to be the world's cutest baby girl. I simply can't wait to give her a big hug. 10 days and counting!!! Love you. Gramma
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