Christmas prep, losing my sanity, and other everyday craziness

We’re getting ready for company this week, on top of doing regular school with plans to take off the time between Christmas and New Years. We all are looking forward to Blaine’s sister and her family coming next week – and I’m using it as perfectly good motivation to deep clean. As fast as we clean, it seems to come undone, but things have to be cleaner in spite of it all. That’s what I tell myself anyway.

Today we visited the dentist. Seven of the kids – everyone but Stellan – and I had cleanings. Three and a half hours later, I left my sanity at the dentist’s and drove away. Oh my word. Twice a year I have to do this, but it’s one of my least favorite days of the year. The dentist is a friend, his employees are amazing, and my older girls get put to work as intern hygienists, which they love, but corralling eight children, including a baby who is entirely over it and far past nap time by the end is enough to push me over the edge. No cavities though! I’m told my kids get all their teeth late. Then the dentist looked into my mouth, saw my wisdom tooth that recently started erupting, and told me it’s all my fault. At thirty-three years old, fourteen years past the average age that they show up, I have to have my wisdom tooth out. The other is still hiding. Two more are nonexistent altogether. I’m not sure what that says about me.

I told Elliot to put something in her purse yesterday. She frowned at me, wanting to keep her toy in her hand yet, apparently. “Umm… no thank you.” It’s by far the most polite I’ve ever been told no, by a two year old no less.

Stellan has begun to inchworm along the floor. He’s happier now that he can move, even if it is slow. He’s also cruising furniture and pulling to standing. He’s almost eleven months old. The other day he had a magazine. Sterling took it away and put it on the coffee table. He left, and Stellan wasted no time to pull himself up on the coffee table and resume his magazine perusal. Stellan: 1. Sterling: 0.

Stellan has also slept through his 3am nursing this week, eating at midnight and then not again until six. Sleep is a beautiful thing. I would think I’d feel normal. But… no. Someone recently asked how many calendar years I’d spent not pregnant since marriage. 2012 is the only year since 2002 when we were married that I didn’t spend at least one month of the calendar year pregnant. When you put it that way…

Christmas shopping is done, gifts are wrapped. (And have been for weeks – it’s a first for me!) I was up until after midnight as night sewing an “Ooh! That would be cool!” quick addition to the kids stocking gifts but I don’t plan to wrap them… maybe just because then I’d have to wrap more. Bleh. Good enough.

I hope you each have a very merry Christmas. I’ll share pictures of ours soon!