Becca the nurse

Becca is the nurse who has gone to school with Eden since August. December 6th was her last day working with us and we are so sad to see her go! She has been so good to Eden, and Eden really grew to love her. We will miss her, but we are grateful for her help in transitioning Eden into preschool!

And speaking of preschool, Eden is LOVING it! The first couple weeks were hard for her when I would say goodbye, but now she runs from the car and I have to beg her to say goodbye to me! :) She has a great teacher and really cute kids in her class who love her and want to include her in the things they do so I'm so grateful for that. I have seen some tremendous progress with her in the short time she has been there so I'm so grateful we made the choice to put her in this year. She has gained so much confidence and has overcome so many fears. It's been a huge success!

Christmas Celebrations!

The weekend after Thanksgiving, we tore down all the fall decorations and began the Christmas festivities. Eden was great about helping decorate the tree this year... at least for about 10 minutes until every branch at her level was full.

Bentley was quite entertained by the lights and ornaments while we decorated.

Brad put lights on the outside of the house, and he had two little helpers who waited patiently at the window while he was on the roof.

I helped Eden write her letter to Santa and then she got out all her stickers and glitter and decorated it very thoroughly.

And each year the kids get a new ornament for the tree which is a fun tradition my parents used to do with us. Bentley got one that has his all his birth info on it, and right now Eden is really into Snow White so she was super excited when she opened hers. Check out this face.... priceless!

Last year Eden got the Rapunzel ornament so she has been carrying these two girls around quite a bit.

Ruby found a very cozy spot under the tree, but as presents have made their way under there she has been forced out!

This year we also have the "Elf on the Shelf" who has started visiting our house. Eden has been TOTALLY into it! His name is Tuduh, which is a weird word Eden made up a while ago and then decided it was an appropriate name for our elf. It has been a lot of fun. First thing she wants to do when she wakes up in the morning is go and find what Tudah is doing (so most these pictures she is not dressed with some awesome bed-head). Here are some of the things Tudah has been up to.

Christmas with little kids is so much fun! I love this time of year!

Thumb Sucking

From the time she was tiny, Eden loved sucking her thumb. I remember fondly how much I loved sucking my thumb as a child and remember how hard it was to give up! So I was nervous when Eden started sucking her thumb, but it was a life saver and the best comfort for her through all the hard things she has experienced. This past year, we have had less intensive medical stuff and it's been on my mind that I needed to wean her from her thumb. I realized that if she had her blankie, she would definitely want to have her thumb in her mouth, so we had to start there. She knows now that the blankie is just for bedtime and she has done well with leaving it in her bed, so that meant that she usually was only sucking her thumb at bedtime too.

Well, a couple weeks ago I took Eden to the dentist and we were talking about her thumb sucking. He said it isn't really a big deal until the permanent teeth start coming in, but if she can stop sucking her thumb, it would be best. So when we got home from the dentist and got up to her bed for naptime, here's the conversation Eden and I had:

Me: Eden did you hear what the dentist said about sucking your thumb? He said you should stop doing that.
Eden: Why mom?
Me: Because it's not good for your teeth. It can make them stick out and look crazy.
Eden: But I like my thumb mom, and I need to put my string up my nose (as she sucks her thumb, she twists her blankie string around in her nose).
Me: Well Eden, you can still put your string in your nose, and find something else that comforts you, like rubbing your cheek with your thumb. You just can't put it in your mouth anymore.
Eden: Ok mom, I'll try.
Me: Do you want me to put some tape on your thumb to help you remember?
Eden: Yeah.

And that was it! I put some tape on her thumb and left her to her nap. Fortunately, we have a video baby monitor so I came downstairs and watched how she would handle it. She laid there for a bit looking at her thumb, and then she just put her string up her nose, rolled over, and went to sleep!

That same day, when bedtime came around she jumped into her bed, grabbed her blankie, and without even thinking she stuck her thumb in her mouth. Before I could even say anything, she pulled it out, made a spitting noise and then laughed and said, "oops, I don't suck my thumb." She then ASKED me to put tape on her thumb so she wouldn't forget.

In my mind I'm thinking, "Is this really happening? Is my 3 year old really that mature and logical?"

Well the answer is yes because since that day, she asks for tape on her thumb when she goes to bed and she hasn't sucked it since.

Here's to hoping Bentley will give it up just as easily!!

First time sitting on Santa's lap

At the ward Christmas party, Eden was so surprised when the program ended and the curtain rose and there was Santa! She was so excited to go tell him all the things she wanted, which included a Barbie Princess Castle and a scooter. As we waited in the line, she got more and more nervous about actually having to sit on his lap. She was so brave though. It was super cute because once she was on his lap she was so nervous she could barely talk, and her voice was so quiet and shaky. She did it though, with some interpreting help from me, and she was so pleased with herself and excited that she got to tell him what she wanted. She is so precious.

A tribute to Erin

At the end of July, Erin moved in, and last week she moved out. It was a sad day... we are still mourning her loss. She added such a fun, edgy spunk to our house and Eden really loved having her around. We sit down to dinner and Eden points to Erin's chair and says... "that's where Erin sits, where is she?" She still asks for her a lot and when I tell her Erin doesn't live here anymore she just sighs and says, "I miss Erin." Fortunately, she still lives close and we will see her often. :)

And Ruby misses her snuggle buddy too.

We love you Erin! Thanks for the fun long visit to our house!

Siblings

I love to watch my kids interacting (well, most the time). Bentley loves Eden and laughs at most things she does. Eden deals with some jealousy moments, but she is such a good big sister and loves to help "babysit" Bentley while I'm in the shower or something.

I had to wake Eden up for school last week and she obviously wasn't ready! I put her favorite Snow White music box in her bed because she usually likes the surprise of waking up to the music playing. In this case, Bentley wanted the music box, and Eden just picked up her pillow and tried to hide under it. ha ha poor girl

My heart fills full of love for these two. I'm so extremely grateful to be their mommy.

Dr. Eden

One of Eden's favorite things to pretend play is to be a doctor and have a patient that needs help. (it's no surprise, she is VERY thorough and knowledgeable in this "play"). She always looks in their ears and says, "Yes, I see your tubes." Then she looks in their eyes, after they get drops in them of course. Then she listens to their heart and takes their temperature. Sometimes they even have to get a "poke" and then she says, "all done, good job." And just like at her visits, in the end they always get a sticker. Here is one of her lucky patients who got a very thorough check up, and he must have been especially good because he got lots of stickers!

Notice he has gauze where his trach should be? And a tourniquet around his leg?

In some ways, Eden's medical challenges have matured her beyond her years. She loves to play doctor though and is so understanding about it all. She is so precious.