Sara 14~less her hair

Today is Sara's 14th birthday and it is the day she has chosen to give something away for her birthday~~her hair.

Sara has not had her hair cut since we adopted her 4 years ago. This is one of the first requests that she asked of us when we first met her. She later explained that on a yearly basis, the kids are lined up and their hair is cut off. She tried to hide one year, but was found.

Now she is emotionally ready and this morning was the great cutting of the hair. I took her to a salon that my sister uses and off 12 inches went. I thought she was going to cry, but now that it is done, it is SOOOO cute, even though she looks older.

The hair will be mailed to Locks of Love.

Christmas #2

Next we drove 5 hrs to my parent's house for the big family Christmas. First we ate until we were ready to burst, then we had to do the dishes, then the gifts! It was so much fun and we had a great time laughing.

Next the card marathon began. The men at the kitchen table, the rest of us in the fining room and if need by, bring in the card tables too. Of course you can not play cards without chips, dips, and many, many other sweets, topped off with soda!

Christmas at home

We first had Christmas at home. Sara bounced into our room at 6 AM, threw on the light and announced it was Christmas, Santa had come, and time to get up! I quickly told her to turn off the light, leave quickly, and let us get some sleep. Remember to self:set time limit on wake-up call.

So, according to Ruth, she promptly went upstairs,turned on Ruth's lights,jumped in bed with Ruth and hit her over the head with the pillow until she stirred, I believe it was 9X.

Well, we did not get back to sleep, so we commenced with Christmas. The big gift this year was a WII- and according to the girls, it is about time.

Happy Birthday to me

Yes, today is my birthday. Sorry, there are no photos but believe me, I am still gorgeous hehehe

Jeff got me some Sapphire earrings and a matching necklace, along with tons of flowers and my favorite.....a slice of cheese cake of which I do not tend to share.

Sara's 14 b-day party

We had Sara's 14th Birthday Sleepover party and the theme.....ZEBRA. They played games, did mirror frame crafts, ate, did junk food, and stayed up late.

Jeff's Birthday

Dear Jeff turned the great 55 today and now gets many more discounts. Anything to save a buck for all those who know me. We had a little birthday party for him and the girls made him birthday cards.

Brace Face at our house X2

This morning both Ruth and Sara went in for their braces. They were not totally thrilled with the process and are still not eatting much. I am pressed to think of soft foods that they like and can eat.

Ruth just got the top set for 3 months until they get ligned up enough to do the bottom. Sara will get her 4 teeth pulled in January-two at a time and one week apart.....oh the injustice hehehe.

Christmas photos

We were working on getting a photo for the almost annual Christmas card and you can see how much these girls love each other. It took a while to get a winner, but I think we did.....now, see if anyone gets one before or near Christmas.....don't hold your breath.

I am thinking about sending out the "real" girls this year...we will see.

Turkey Day

We went to my Parent's house for Thanksgiving and almost everyone attended. We had once again a wonderful dinner and I so wish I could eat it all day long! We had crafts where my mother blew out extra large eggs and the girls decorated them for Christmas ornaments-photos to follow. Niece Julie was learning to sew, the usual card games, and we made turkeys out of oreo cookies, malt balls, icing and candy corn. All in all it was a fun weekend.

And did I say my girls were little angels most of the time......

SCHOOL PICTURES

Way back on Sept 3, the girls got their school pics made so here is how they look.

Good medical news

On Friday we took Ruth to get her spinal X-ray (no photos allowed) and Sara for her EKG. This photo is the only time they got Sara to stop giggling~~the girl is so ticklish. Got word back today that all is well and Ruth will go back in 6 months for her next one. With Scoliosis, it is monthly or yearly X-rays to make sure the situation does not get worse until they stop growing around 18.

Nature's Art

What else can you say but Thanks God! So glad we took time to watch a most beautiful sunset display tonight.

Yes, we are those kind of people...

So on Sunday, while Jeff was in town to help, we put up most of the fall/halloween decorations and had Jeff help us take the Christmas tree down from the attic. Why is it that only Jeff and I got cut/splinters? Note to self-next year wear garden gloves to handle the monster.

It was a little hard to decorate with it being 80 outside, but I put on the christmas music and we got the lights on. Some people are already putting outside lights on before it gets to cold. We have to do a final mulch cutting of the year before we put ours out so we are hoping there will still be some warm weather.

Orthodontist visit

Today the girls went to see the orthodontist for the first time. Of course their dental problems are opposite-Ruth's are too far in and Sara's too far out. SO, Sara will need to have 4 teeth removed to be able to pull the teeth back. Ruth's bottom jaw is not keeping up with the top one, so she will need to wear rubber bands attached to her braces to help pull these teeth forward-----20 months for both and even with ins.....can you say cha-ching, who emptied the money tree...again.

Since we were already there, we went ahead with the necessary 8 spacers between the molars to make room for the braces. Sara's teeth are so tight, they were very difficult to put in. Ruth's are so far apart, she only got two on the bottom.

They also took a panoramic X-ray of Ruth's to see where her 12 yo molars are, and they are about to come in. It was funny watching them getting the molds of their teeth. Of course Ruth was calm and quiet with no drama......Then there was Sara with drama to the hilt. As usual, I get the parting comment, boy, I bet this one keeps you on your toes aka~~she is hyper~

Dr. time

This evening I finally took the girls to the pediatrician to begin their HPV series of shots. I wanted this to be in use for years before I subjected my girls to it. The entire visit was interesting. Sara was first with the physical and she is SOOOO ticklish that she could not sit still, or be quiet. I mentioned her getting faint everytime she ran hard, so we had a blood test done and she is anemic so we will add iron to her diet in pill form. She is also scheduled for an EKG next week. She had to get her shot in her leg because her arm is so thin-but she is up to 81# and excited about that---what a confused girl!

Next was my very quiet Ruth. She had a migraine to begin with, so I felt so sorry for her. She was so still and quiet as usual. When it came shot time, I did not even know she had gotten it because she did not even flinch. Then we checked her spine and the Dr. showed me in more detail her scoliosis-which begins with one leg being longer, and then the rest of the body adjusts by twisting some. We have X-rays every year to make sure it does not get worse.

The girls go back for the second shot in 2 months, then a third I think a few months after that. This will prevent a certain type of cervical cancer.

MISC

Western day, Nerd day, and doing homework. All is well here.

HALLOWEEN

Well, the decorations are out, the candy is bought, the costumes are decided on, the weather is great, time to go!