Kids and dogs

Christmas is almost here--already!

And the babies aren't new any longer. Emma turns a year old on Dec 18 and Autumn is now a year and a half.

Autumn can be so serious at times. Last month, with a serious face, she walked up to my brother and said, "Are you crazy?" Mind you, she had spent the rest of the time jabbering in Croatian or something--and then out of nowhere came that!

Yesterday she said to her great-pappaw (Larry) "Pappaw, are you a communist?" Now I tell you, no one talks about things like that, so where is it coming from? It just cracks us up!

There's something about celebrations that bring on sickness with the kids. Autumn wasn't feeling well on the day of her birthday celebration and was sick the day of her parent's wedding.

Emma had to go to the doctor's yesterday before we had her party. But in spite of it, she was her impish self. She wouldn't let Shelby or Dorinda hold her, wanted her Gammy instead. Her other grandparents were here and I took some pics of her with her other grandfather. And of course we had to have the messy cake eating pictures!

Shelby always takes over her goddaughter, Autumn, when she's around. Autumn loves her. Dorinda wants one of the babies to like her. We're working on that.

Holden and Carson played outdoors and then checkers on the back porch. The weather was hot--yes, it was December 15!

Diana said that Carson's teacher generally writes a note on his paper at the end of the week saying how he did. But in his hand writing at the bottom of the page it said, "Had a very bad week." He's eight years old and very affectionate to us.

We got Emma a large stuffed dog that comes with a blanket. You squeeze it and it growls. You squeeze it's hand and it barks.

Oh, you say Meow to Autumn and she says it back--or moooo and she's right with you.

The dogs like to hang around the babies to see what food they drop so they can grab it quickly! Both Zeus and Icarus got haircuts last week. Larry told them they look handsome and almost human again. Maggie loves the babies--we have to stop her from licking them. I think she thinks of them as puppies! The boys know when to duck and hide from the babies.

OK, time to do some writing--and go pick up sticks from the storm we had this morning. We have lots of trees!

Y'all have a wonderful Christmas and a very happy new year!
dee