Family

First, the obligatory holiday greeting! We never sent out wedding announcements thinking, "We'll just send out a nice holiday card with a picture from our wedding..." but never got to those either. I promise to do better next year, and you will all have pictures of our baby girl wearing a goregous smile (because with Grant's and my genes individually, let alone combined, you know she's going to have one) and a headband with a really, really big bow or flower on it. I'm determined to build a wicked collection of headbands with humungous bows or flowers on them. Those are for the times I don't take her out in the onesie I saw at Wal-Mart and just know I'm going to have to buy that reads, "I'm a GIRL!"

We'll have a big, fun post on our holiday adventures. So far, we've managed a road trip that should take 5-6 but ended up taking almost EIGHT--and that was with GOOD traffic out of Chicago, and Grant and I have played Joseph and Mary for the first time a homemade nativity play (my nieces picking out parts for everyone figured I'm close enough to having the days accomplished until I give birth to give the appropriate effect).

As the time draws ever nearer (and although I'm not hoping that the doctor has missed the mark and I'll go into labor in two weeks instead of seven, I definitely want this bun to keep cooking I think I am nearing the as my dear friend from high school who recently had her first so accurately described, "Let's-Get-This-Over-With Phase") where our family grows by one, I'm ever contemplating what kind of family we'll prove to be as the years go by...

We'll Love them sooooo much. And we'll probably express that a lot, to them and each other. I'm worried that our kids will never invite their friends over because we'll still be making out in front of them when they're in high school. But, at least they'll know their parents are crazy about each other.

We'll have a boatload of Fun. It might take us a while to figure out our own family traditions to share with them (we still haven't decided about whether or not to teach our kids about Santa--Grant's for it and I'm the Grinch but like we need to know now anyway--it'll be at least another 3 years before the one that's coming will even catch on) but we'll work it out. We'll work hard to teach them important things like Right and Wrong, the Articles of Faith and how to responsibly manage money, cook, clean and do laundry for themselves before they leave the house. But they'll also grow up knowing the ways of the Force (and that we never watch the director's cut of those movies), the difference between garden variety orks and the Uruk Hai (and that we always watch the director's cut of these), the deliciousness of Chinese food and at least a few token words and phrases in Spanish (Grant's mission language) and Hungarian (my mission language) respectively.

We'll mess up plenty too, but hopefully they won't come out of it too scathed for normal function in society. We are a little worried that they might think that "boobicles", "burnination" and "ingorify" are actual words...and we're worried about bigger things too like disabilites/diseases or any number of the personal challenges they'll face that we'll have absolutely no control over being able to fix...but we'll cross those bridges when we get there, I guess. And I reckon that they'll still be able to look back on a decent family life if we keep making sure we Love them and have Fun doing it.

But...I digress and I have been informed there are children who are eagerly awaiting a Christmas morning celebration, so I'll wrap it up there.

Merry Christmas to all!