Christmas Letters Part Three!

*All pictures are from weheartit.com.*

December 2013

Merry Christmas

Forgive me for being so late getting these letters sent out. This month has been very busy. Paul's baby sister, Annie, is getting married on Christmas Eve, so the majority of this month has been spent helping her get last minute plans in place!



(Annie's engagement ring!)


Alaric, Annie's boyfriend of four years, proposed to her on Christmas Eve, 2011. He originally told her he was unable to make it in for Christmas that year. He had her gift sent to her and instructed her not to open it until Christmas Eve. So Christmas Eve came, and Annie opened the gift. Inside was a note that read, "Close Your Eyes." Annie closed her eyes, and when she was told to open her eyes, Alaric was standing there. He got down on one knee, and he proposed! It was the most amazing thing I ever got to witness!

We are all so excited for Annie! I just can't wait to see this wedding, and I'm not a huge wedding person, but  I've been with her throughout the planning, every step of the way! Annie's going to look so beautiful!

The wedding starts at eight o'clock tomorrow evening. I'm so excited!!!!



(Annie's dress! Dreama says it's perfect for a Christmas Eve wedding.)



(The reception hall, decorated and ready for tomorrow's wedding!)



(The wedding cake!)


When did I become such a girly girl, you ask? I think it's because of all the time I've been hanging out with Dreama, her daughters, Allison and Ashley, and our sister-in-law, Annie.

Aside from the wedding, we've been busy prepping for the holidays. Paul and I finished our shopping for the kids two weeks ago. I had some time to myself yesterday to go pick up a few last minute gifts for him. While I was out, I also purchased birthday gifts for Leah's oldest twins birthday. All four of her children have a birthday this month. Her identical twin girls, Hannah and Katherine, their birthday is on New Year's Eve.

And now, I will give you some updates about us and our families.

Paul and I are doing great. We celebrated our eighth wedding anniversary in November. We have fallen in love with each other all over again. We renewed our vows on our anniversary. We were going to do it in November of 2011, but I wanted to do it when Daisy could be there. I took Paul's last name, sort of. I am now Tallullah Wallace-Harris. Paul also took on the "Wallace-Harris" last name. He said if my maiden name was that important to me, then it was important to him. He's such a sweetheart! He still completely annoys me. He tells the worst jokes, he follows me around like a lost puppy. He never takes anything seriously. He's always singing songs with the kids instead of helping them with their homework, and he's so messy! And I love him. I love everything about him!

Our children are growing up way too fast! Zephra turned eight on May 2nd. She's in the third grade now, and she loves it. She's made a lot of friends. She's always got some birthday party or sleepover to go to nearly every weekend. She's such a social butterfly! She must get that from Paul's side of the family because I'm nowhere near being a social butterfly. I like hanging out with my three girls, Daisy, Gabrielle, and Leah, or my family, which includes Paul's family. I consider them mine, too. Paul's a social person and he loves to entertain people, but like me, he has a small circle of friends. Zephra is still as headstrong as ever, something she gets from me for sure. We still go head to head at times. She is so much like me that sometimes I want to lock her in her room until she calms down. She has my temper, which can be rather explosive. She speaks her mind, just like me, but she also fights for those who can't fight for themselves. We were recently called to the school to talk with her teacher and the principal because she popped a bully dead in the face! (I can't help it, but I was so proud of her. Paul was, too. I didn't tell her that, of course, because I don't want her going around and punching kids in the face.) He was picking on a second grader, and she marched over and told him to stop or she would hit him. He said no, so she hit him.The principal said that the boy has been a model student since Zephra hit him! (Again, so proud of her.)

Zane turned four on May third. Did I mention he is four now? I can't believe he's four!!! And he's the male version of me! He looks like me, but acts like Paul, and he's a daddy's boy. (Both of my children like Paul more than they do me, but I think it's because I'm always the bad guy. Paul doesn't want to discipline them, he wants to make them laugh, and hug them, and give them cookies, and let them stay up an hour later than they should, but he does discipline them when they do something major. I know he hates to have to discipline them, but it's for their own good. He had to ground Zephra last week for lying. I could tell it hurt him, especially when her little bottom lip started to quiver. I felt bad for both of them.) Zane's so tall for a four year old, too. Most people assume he's Zephra's age. I call him my little vampire because he would rather sleep all day. He does not like to get up for preschool in the mornings. He gets that from me. Before I had children, I would throw things and verbally assault anyone who would try to get me up before noon, except for my dad, because he would pick me up, carry me to the bathroom, and throw me in the shower, fully clothed if I didn't get up. Paul has felt my wrath upon waking me before noon, but now that I have children, I have to get up. I have no choice in the matter. So I endure Zane's tantrums each morning, (Zephra used to be the same way before she started school. Now she gets up each weekday. The weekends are a different story.) Anyway, back to Zane. Zane, like his father, tells the same corny jokes. He rarely takes anything seriously, except for his sleep, and he's messy! I tell him to clean his room, and he replies with, "This is my room, and I like it this way!" (Paul taught him to say that, by the way.) I decided that Zane has a point, so I compromised. I don't force him to make his bed, but his clothes, shoes, and all but one toy have to be put away. I also make him clean up his messes in other areas of the house, and he's actually good about that. (Zephra, who was also messy, has now become as neat as a pin since she has friends over most of the time. She doesn't want them to think badly of her.) Zane really is a good kid. His preschool teacher says he's so quiet and well behaved. We've never had to go to school over Zane, yet. Paul says to give it time.

Zayden is two years old. His birthday was in July. He looks just like Paul. He has Paul's red hair and his biological mother's brown eyes. Zayden is such a sweetie. He calls me, "Mom" and wants to snuggle in my lap, and I'm perfectly fine with that. Zayden's story is a bit complicated, and rather than share what was a tough situation, I have decided to forget about it and put it behind me. What I will say is that Zayden is a lucky little boy because he has two mothers who love him very much. That's all anyone needs to know.

My parents are still going strong. They celebrated their thirty-first wedding anniversary in March. Mom is doing great. She's had several surgeries to repair the damage done from the accident, but the results were good, and she's showing significant improvement. She's able to do more, although Dad still fusses over her for the most part. Dad's fine. I worry about him taking care of Mom, Troy, and Scout, when he's home from college, plus working full time at the Wallace Architect Firm. We've all tried to talk him into retiring, but he won't hear of it. My oldest brother, Zack, has convinced Dad to cut his own hours, which is good. Zack has taken over some of the things Dad used to do there.

Zack turned thirty-three in January. He and his wife, Sarah, who will be thirty-two on Christmas Day, and their son, Captain, who turned eight in September, are good. They celebrated their tenth wedding anniversary on the twentieth of this month. They still live in town. Zack and Sarah have been a great help to our parents. I'm glad they stuck around.

My brother, Noah, is getting along well. He turned twenty-eight on June 2nd. This time of year is difficult for us, but more so for him. Ever since our brother, Liam, who was Noah's identical twin, died (December 11th was the third anniversary of his death), Noah hasn't been the same. Arissa, who was Liam's fiance, has helped Noah greatly. She and Noah have taken refuge in each other. They have been seeing each other for the last two years. They're inseparable, and they say they're just friends, but I will be surprised if they don't end up together.

Scout started college this past August at the age of sixteen. He graduated last May. (He skipped eighth grade.) Our parents were not sure if he was mature enough to handle college, but he's proven them wrong. He will be seventeen on April 10th. And my youngest brother, Troy, turned eleven in November. His birthday fell on Thanksgiving Day, so my parents had his party the day before.

Paul's family is doing well this year. He and his mother are becoming closer. They have both worked hard to repair their relationship, and it's paying off. Paul visits his mother once a week. He takes her to lunch, and they hang out, sometimes with the rest of the family, sometimes alone. Ever since Paul's father died, Paul's mother has been rediscovering who she is. She tried the whole "acting like a grandmother" thing, but she found out that she's adventurous. She takes Paul, his brother, Jeff, Annie, and Annie's fiance, Alaric, and all of the grandchildren to the family fun center. She plays paintball with Paul, Jeff, Annie, and Alaric, while Paul's brother, Keith, takes the younger ones to do something less dangerous. (Keith is so not adventurous!)

Keith, his wife, Dreama, and their children, Allison, Ashley, and Adam, are having a great year. Paul's brother, Jeff, who has Downs, is still living living with them. Annie lived with them as well until about six months ago, when she put the down payment on a cottage in Denver. (Keith and Dreama bought the cottage as a wedding gift to her and Alaric, but they won't find that out until Christmas Day!). Keith and Dreama just celebrated their twentieth wedding anniversary in October. Keith turned forty on September 15th, and Dreama turned forty-two on the 16th. Dreama's a psychologist, and Keith is a business tycoon.

Allison is seventeen now! She will graduate high school May of next year. She and her boyfriend of two and a half years, Nicholas Glassman, spent the summer in Los Angeles, California. Nicholas, who's twenty, runs his father's sister company there. He's a business major at UCLA.

Ashley is seven. She's a sweetheart. She's on the honor roll at school, and she and Zephra are such close friends. They've been inseparable since Keith and Dreama came here to New York to spend the holidays with us. (They live in Denver.) 

Keith and Dreama had their first son in April of 2011. Adam turned two on April 5th this year. Keith is thrilled to finally have a son. Adam is adorable! He has Dreama's auburn hair and blue eyes, but he is as shy and as quiet as Keith!

Jeff is twenty two. He wants to get married to his girlfriend, but Keith and Dreama don't think that's a good idea. They did turn the attic of their six bedroom Victorian home in Denver into an apartment for him. Dreama thought it was a good idea for Jeff to feel independent. And Jeff has really done well. I think he's trying to prove that he can live in an apartment by himself. He keeps the place clean, he's cooks his own food. He's even had Keith, Dreama, and the girls "at his place" for dinner. Annie and Alaric are great with Jeff. They take him and his girlfriend out on double dates, which is really sweet. Jeff says that he feels like such a grown up now. (I think Jeff is my favorite! I remember the first time he saw Zane, he cried. He said, "Is that my nephew?" And I told him it was. And he asked if he could hold Zane, and at first, I was reluctant, but Jeff has been so good with Zane. They're buddies now. Jeff is probably the most precious person I have ever met. He's great, really.) He invited me and Paul to come to dinner at his house for New Year's Day, so we are! I can't wait, honestly!

Annie, who's twenty, is so happy! She's been caught up in her wedding plans. She's such a sweet person. She has been walking around, well, more like floating dreamily, with a huge smile on her face.

Paul's sister, Roseanna, the oldest at forty-two, and her daughter, Jaiden, who is twenty-three, are doing well. Roseanna is still single, but she's been seeing a really nice man for the last two years. She brought him in last Christmas to introduce him to us. He's a few years older than her, and has a daughter who's twenty. She and Jaiden have been like sisters since the day they met. It's good that Roseanna has a nice guy for once. The last one was very mean to her and Jaiden.

As I mentioned earlier, we have been getting ready for the holidays. See the pics below.



(Our newly redone living room. My sister-in-laws, Dreama, and Annie, helped decorate.)


We put up our tree on December 1st. Paul wanted a real tree this year. I was concerned about how Zephra would react because she has allergies and asthma, but she's done well. The kids had a blast hanging ornaments. Keith, Dreama, and the rest of the family came over to help us decorate.




(Our newly redone dining room.)


 My father and his triplet brothers, Turner, and Harper, came over, painted, and totally redid the dining room for me two weeks before Thanksgiving. I love the color! Paul, his brother, Keith, and my brothers, Zack, Noah, Scout, and Troy, hung the stars and snowflakes that Dreama, Annie, and Allison made, above the dining room table. Keith, Dreama, and the rest of the family, purchased the pillows and Christmas decorations for the dining room. Dreama, and Annie, and my nieces, Allison and Ashley, and Aunt Amy put the place settings on the table. That was my Christmas present from them to me. Uncle Harper and Aunt Isobel purchased the table, chairs, the new place settings, and the white doors, and Uncle Turner and Aunt Amy got us the fireplace. Uncle Turner helped Dad install it.




(Our family room, where Paul, Zephra, and Zane will fall asleep on Christmas morning, among wrapping paper, ribbons, boxes, and bows, while I clean it all up.)


We have a fake tree in our family room, where Paul spends most of his time, watching his huge television. He and the guys usually get together and watch most of the games here. They watch the first game of the season at Ryker's house on his television, which I think it's the same size as ours, and they watch the super bowl at Peter's because he has a theater sized screen at his house, complete with reclining seats, and a huge buffet of food. It's almost set up like a sky box, you could say.

We helped Keith and Dreama decorate their home here in New York. We also helped them decorate their Victorian home in Denver. We spent Thanksgiving with them and decorated on Black Friday. (The pics of their place were taken at their New York home.)




(Keith and Dreama's living room. I love the ice skates on the tree.)



(Keith and Dreama's kitchen. I love their kitchen.)



(Keith and Dreama's sitting room. Dreama has such a great sense of style. Sometimes she makes me wish I was less of a tomboy.)



We got to see Annie's new place. It's gorgeous, and somewhat bigger than I expected to be a cottage.



(The foyer at Annie's cottage.)



(Annie's sitting room. The wood burning stove makes the cottage smell so wonderful!)



(Annie's Dining Room/Kitchen.)



(The downstairs bathroom of Annie's cottage.)



(Downstairs, spare bedroom.)



(The utility room. This is Annie and Alaric's little dog, Honey. Alaric got Honey as a gift for Annie three years ago, but he had to keep her at his house. Now, Honey lives at the cottage with Annie, and Alaric when he moves in. Half of his stuff is there now.)



(I think this used to be a barn, but it was converted into some sort of rec room or living area.)



(Bench in the rec room.)



(Annie and Alaric's family room upstairs.)



(Annie and Alaric's bedroom.)



(The upstairs bathroom.)


Annie's cottage is so cozy! I loved being there! I can't wait to go back and visit.

My brothers and I went over to help Mom and Dad decorate their home for Christmas!



(My mom and dad's dining room, where we will have Christmas Dinner this year!)

The dining room is the focus of our visit there, so Mom always goes all out. Paul, the kids, and I have Christmas dinner here every year. It's a tradition. My brothers pop in and out throughout the day. We sit and eat. Then, we eat throughout the day. Then we eat more.



(The family room at my mom and dad's.)


The family room is where we gather to watch Christmas movies after dinner. We usually lie around like beached whales and fall asleep. That's Dad's chair by the fireplace, where he will fall asleep with all four of his grandchildren piled on top of him. The men usually fall asleep first. My dad is the first to go, then Paul, then Zack, then Scout. Noah's usually in the lead, managing to stay up the longest. Then, there's the snoring competition, judged by the women, usually me, my mother, Sarah, and Zephra. Paul snores the loudest, so he usually wins. And what's worse is he's usually sitting beside me on the couch, so I can't hear the Christmas movie we were trying to watch in the first place. Dad comes in second place. He will wake himself or one of the grandchildren with his snoring. Zack's usually in third place. Troy takes fourth place. Noah and Scout do not snore, but Scout talks in his sleep, so I feel sorry for his college roommates. He has talked in his sleep from the time he was a toddler.

After our corporate nap, Mom and Sarah serve coffee and dessert. Then, we reluctantly stagger into the front room, trying our hardest to wake up.



(The front room.)


The front room, or the sitting room, is where the gift exchange takes place each year. Most of those gifts are for the grandchildren. My parents take that whole, "spoil the grandchildren and send them home" thing very seriously. Gifts are handed out to Captain, Zephra, Zane, Zayden, and my youngest brother, Troy. Then, Dad gives me, my brothers, Paul, Sarah, and Arissa an envelope with a check for $500.00 each. We get a few homemade gifts from Mom, but the focus is mainly the grandchildren and Troy.

I think I'm going to skip the long, drawn out part of the letter about our year and all of the boring stuff. Instead, I'll highlight the important months.

• February, Ryker's father had a heart attack. (He's doing so much better now.) February was also Daisy's birthday. She turned twenty-six. She's doing great! Not only did we celebrate her birthday, we celebrated her second year in remission. The second year anniversary happened on March 11th, which is also her daughter, Ashtyn's birthday.
• March, Paul turned twenty-seven on the second. The guys took him out for BBQ and then to a boxing match. March 11th was Ashtyn's second birthday, and Daisy's second year in remission. We went to help celebrate Ashtyn's big day. 
• March 31st was Peter and his twin, Kate's birthdays.
• April 26th was my twenty-sixth birthday. We went to an extreme sports place with all of my friends. I had such a blast climbing rock walls, riding zip lines, and paintball! The girls and I beat the guys in a paintball match.
• May 2nd was Zephra's eighth birthday, and May 3rd was Zane's fourth birthday. We usually do their parties together since their birthdays are a day apart and they both have the same circle of friends. The party went well. 
• Leah and Ryker's third wedding anniversary was the 29th.
• June 12th was Daisy and Steve's third wedding anniversary. 
• June 27th was Ryker's 26th birthday. We went to his house and spent the day hanging out on the beach, playing volleyball, surfing, and lounging around on the beach.
• July 4th was also spent at Ryker and Leah's on the beach, doing most of the same things we did at his birthday party. 
• July 12th, Zayden turned two. He had a great day! 
• July 21st, Gabrielle and Peter's son, Phoenix, turned two.
• August 29th was Steve's twenty-sixth birthday. The guys went to Vegas. I had a feeling that was not a good idea. Since we starting going to church, things have been different at our house, and I mean different in a good way. Paul didn't want to go and gamble, and he quit drinking since alcohol ruined his father's life, and nearly ruined ours. He almost didn't go, because he didn't think Vegas had anything to offer. But I talked him into going, mainly to help Steve and Ryker keep Peter out of trouble. So what do you do when you go to sin city, but you don't drink or gamble? You eat! And you check out the lights. Since Ryker is such a foodie, he and Paul hit all of the five star restaurants. They spent every free moment in the hotel gym burning calories. They also walked around the city at night to check out the lights. Paul was somewhat disappointed in Vegas. I have no desire to go, really.
• September, school began for Zane for the first time. He attends preschool. He's learned so much already, but Zephra always tells him what she learned each day, so he's picking it up from her. 
• Zephra started the third grade. Like I mentioned before, she loves school. She gets up without a fight now, and she's excited to tackle each day. 
• Peter and Gabrielle's son, Logan, turned three on September 4th.
• Leah's birthday was September 10th. We took her to the tea room. It's tradition for us ladies to start out with a party at the tea room and move to another location of our choice.
• October was Gabrielle's 26th birthday. Peter took her out of town for the week, just the two of them. When she returned, Daisy, Leah, and I, took her to have a day at the spa! 
• October is also a big deal for the kids because of Halloween. Paul and I are not comfortable with the idea of Halloween. Our church has other activities for the children to participate in where they can still dress up and get candy. The problem is that Zephra wants to dress up as a zombie, or something equally gross. Every single year, I ask, "Zephra, what kind of costume do you want?" Her response is something like, " An ax murderer," or "A cheerleader with her arm hacked off." So we have to sit her down and talk to her and explain to her that she can't wear something like that to church. This usually ends with her shouting and Paul trying to calm her down. In the end, we can convince her to change her mind, although this year, she was dead set on being Darth Vader, so we gave in. At least the costume isn't bloody or gory. Zane usually chooses a superhero costume. He was Batman this year, and Superman last year.
• November 20th was Daisy and Steve's son, Declan's sixth birthday, but he was so sick, so the party was rescheduled for the thirtieth. 
• Thanksgiving was okay, as okay as it can be when your oldest is sick, your middle child falls down and hurts himself, and your youngest is at his mother's. (We all missed Zayden so much!) Zephra had a cold. She was feeling miserable and cranky. She sat with her little arms folded and didn't want to do anything. Zane was running through the house with Troy and Captain. When they came to the dining room when we called them to eat, Zane, who was in his socks, ran in, slid across the hard wood floor, and slammed right into a chair. He cut his nose and ended up with a knot on his forehead. Paul immediately scooped him up while I grabbed some ice for his forehead, and Sarah ran into the bathroom and got some things from the medicine cabinet to clean and bandage him up. He cried for a good twenty minutes. We weren't sure if we should take him to the hospital because he would not calm down, but his cries turned to whimpers, then eventually quieted. I took him upstairs to my mom and dad's room, and put on cartoons on their bedroom television. Paul brought up a couple of plates of food. He fed Zane off of his plate, and Zane was hungry, which was a good thing. Paul went downstairs to take his plate down. I stayed upstairs with Zane and watched over him. He fell asleep ten minutes later, due to the adrenaline crash that followed his traumatic experience. I snuggled with him and ended up falling asleep. Paul woke me an hour later with the news that Zephra had spiked a fever. So we took her home and put her to bed. Zephra was well in time for Declan's birthday party on the thirtieth, but Zane had caught what she had. Paul stayed behind with Zane, and I took Zephra and Zayden to Declan's party.

I've told you about December and the wedding plans, so I guess I'll wrap this up. I need to get the kids to bed. Tomorrow is the big day!

Have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!!!

With Love and Appreciation,

Paul, Tallullah, Zephra, Zane, and Zayden

Christmas Letters Part Two!

*All pictures are from weheartit.com.*

December 2013

Merry Christmas!



(The tree downstairs in our house.)



(Our living room tree.)



(Our living room tree, complete with presents!)



(The tree in Hannah and Katie's room.)



(The tree in Madeline and Gregory's room.)


Hello and Merry Christmas to you!

I hope everyone is having a great December surrounded by your loved ones this Christmas season! Things have been busy here in Casa de Tenenbaum! Of course, with four children, things never slow down, and December is our busiest month. We have two birthdays ten days apart for four children this month, plus Christmas is right in the middle of their birthdays.

Things have changed around here. All four children are walking now, which means I'm getting plenty of exercise chasing them. Maddy still prefers to crawl, though. At first, we thought something was wrong with her legs, but we figured out that she liked being carried around. Every time she would crawl, we would either pick her up and carry her, put her in her stroller, or pick her up and stand her on her feet. She loved the attention she was getting.

Twins, Hannah and Katherine are two now. (They are identical, by the way. We had them tested this year.) Both girls have exceeded most of their two year old peers in height. (Ryker's 6'5, and I'm 5'10, so I'm assuming our children will be on the taller side.) They're both such daddy's girls, too, although Hannah prefers me when she's sick or upset. Hannah's doing well. She wants to learn to read so badly. She loves reading, and she'll often bring me the dictionary and ask me to tell her the words and what they mean. Katie's doing fairly well. Despite being diagnosed with juvenile diabetes last year, she's as active as Hannah. She's gotten use to the routine of insulin and finger sticks and doctor visits. Sometimes, her glucose will bottom out, which is scary. She had a couple of seizures due to having too much insulin last year. She hasn't had any further seizures at this time, and we're hoping it doesn't happen again.

Madeline and Gregory are one. They're doing great. They're both on the same level as most of their peers. Gregory is our little explorer/daredevil as I mentioned previously. I have a hard time keeping up with him, but he has to be constantly watched or he will climb things and try to jump off of them. Maddy is like Ryker in the sense that she's content to sit in one spot and look at one toy or one book. I always know where Maddy is because she's not as active or as adventurous as the others. She's also a Mommy's girl, so she loves to be in whatever room I'm in. Gregory doesn't prefer one of us to the other just yet. He's content to be with either of us when he's winding down at the end of the day.

Ryker's enjoying working from home for the Rinquist, Rupert, and Wallace Law Firm. Having him work at home is so much easier on all of us, especially since I am doing my residency at Wallace Memorial Hospital. (It's going very well! I love it!) We turned the spare bedroom downstairs into an office. He's home the majority of the time with the girls, which means not having to rely on a babysitter when my parents are working, and when his parents are out of the country visiting relatives, and when one of the kids is sick, which happens often when you have four of them, he doesn't have to miss work. He still goes into the office to meet with clients, and handles lots of cases in the courtroom, but having my family or his family watch them for two or three hours is much easier on everyone than eight to twelve hours. His secretary, Meg, still works from the office, so she keeps him informed on everything and faxes what he needs to the fax machine at the house. Sometimes the kids can be a distraction for him, but when they're really fussy, his mother will come and entertain them, or my mother will spend her lunch hour at our place to look after them long enough for Ryker to make phone calls and get some work done that the kids may have prevented him from doing.

My family is doing well. My parents celebrated their 29th wedding anniversary this year. My father's playing with the idea of retiring as chief of medicine of Wallace Memorial Hospital, but I doubt he will go through with it. He could if he wanted to, but I know what a workaholic he is. He would be bored to tears. My mother, who's an obstetrician for those who are just joining my Christmas card list, is now the head of the women's health division at Wallace Memorial Hospital. She's doing a great job. She still sees patients, just not as many as she did before taking over the women's health division. My brothers, fraternal twins, Achilles and Aidan, are in their junior year of college. They both made the Dean's list almost every semester. Achilles is a business major, and Aidan is psych major. I think Mom and Dad were a little disappointed that neither of them went to med school, but Achilles said, "You have Leah. Isn't that enough?" My little sisters, twins, Veronica and Victoria, started second grade this year. (My parents had no trouble conceiving me, but they had to use fertility drugs for the second and third pregnancies, resulting in two multiple births, which consisted of my siblings, Aidan and Achilles, and Veronica and Victoria. Veronica and Victoria look identical, but they have never been tested.)

Ryker's parents are doing okay. His father had a heart attack. He's doing much better now. It came as a complete surprise because his father isn't overweight, doesn't smoke, he keeps his cholesterol under control and walks everyday, rain or shine. The doctor said it was considered mild. Ryker said he would hate to see a severe one. His mother is doing well despite everything. Her husband's heart attack was a wake up call. She and Ryker are so much alike. They both prefer being at home more than anything, they're both great cooks, and they both like to lie around, reading books. Now, they are being more active. She and Ryker join his father when he goes for his daily walk. I think the heart attack was a wake up call for all of us, really.

My dearest friend, Daisy, is doing better. She is in her second year of remission. Her strength and energy are starting to return, and she's enjoying being able to do "mom things" with her two children. Her life is nowhere near normal still with doctor visits and testing every three months, but she and her husband, Steve, are thrilled for what little bit of normalcy they are experiencing.

That's about it for updates on our families. On with our year!

January: This month is usually our slow month, and this past January was no exception. We had tons of snow that month, which forced us to sit inside and do nothing, which is what we wanted to do in the first place. But it's difficult to do nothing when you have two sets of twins. We're usually saying "NO," and "STOP THAT," at some point to our two year old twins, Hannah and Katherine (Katie), or one year old twins, Madeline (Maddy) and Gregory. Most of those two phrases are reserved for Gregory, our little explorer/daredevil. (And I have no idea where he gets that from! Ryker and I are so not adventurous! The most adventurous thing we did was go to Rio for our honeymoon.) The most exciting thing that happened that month was that Gregory scared us half to death by climbing to the back of the couch in the living room, and falling right onto the hardwood floor. He busted his forehead, which looked scarier than it really was. We thought he broke his arm the way he fell on it, but it was just bruised. Ryker and I packed up all four of them and rushed to the hospital. I sobbed all the way there. I was worried that everyone would think I was a bad parent. But other than a few x-rays of his arm and a band aid, he was perfectly fine. Needless to say, we had carpeting installed at the end of the month.

February: February was definitely the worst month out of the year for us. The first week of the month, I got really sick with a stomach virus and ended up being hospitalized due to dehydration. I spent the night there on IV fluids. Several hours after I got home the next day, all four kids became sick. Then Ryker woke up in the middle of the night, sick. So we spent Valentine's Day at home. We had crackers and Sprite for dinner, and took turns taking care of four sick toddlers.

The following Friday night, the 23rd, Ryker's parents offered to take the children for the evening so Ryker could take me out for a late Valentine's Day dinner. We had wonderful time eating French food and talking. We finished off dinner with coffee and dessert at an intimate coffee house down the street from the restaurant. I was tired, so Ryker stopped by the house, took me in, and left to pick up the kids from his mom and dad's. He called me ten minutes later. I answered the phone, just expecting him to tell me he was on his way home. I said, "Are you on your way?" He said, "Leah, my dad's having a heart attack." He was very frantic. I was shocked. He said they were waiting for the ambulance. Since my parents live right across from the hospital, I called them on three way to explain what happened and see if Ryker could drop the kids off with them. They were totally fine with it. I told Ryker to call me when the ambulance arrived, and I would meet them in my car at the hospital. Ryker's father spent the last six days of February in the hospital, and that was only a mild heart attack.

Daisy's 26th birthday happened two days after the heart attack. I left Ryker long enough to help Gabrielle and Tallullah with the surprise we had already planned, then went straight back to Ryker's side at the hospital. Daisy understood completely. She's such a sweetheart. After all she's been through, she spent the rest of the week making meals for us and the kids, and sending them to the hospital with Steve.

March: March was like a lion this year, snowstorms, thunderstorms, flooding, but nicer weather arrived more toward the end of the month. Ryker's dad spent the majority of the month going to doctor's appointments and rehabilitation. We kept our schedules free aside from work in case his parents needed us.

March 2nd, our friend, Paul, celebrated his 27th birthday. He and Peter, whose birthday is March 31st, usually celebrate together. (They're like brothers.) Ryker, along with Peter and Steve, took him out to eat at his favorite BBQ place. They embarrassed him by having the servers sing to him for his birthday. Then, the guys went to a boxing match.

Daisy's daughter, Ashtyn, celebrated her second birthday on the eleventh. Ryker and I took our brood over to help her celebrate. Ashtyn loves other children, and she enjoyed having the girls and Gregory there. She was introducing them to her big brother, Declan, and he laughed and said he had already met them. He was trying to teach them French. (He is very smart.) Hannah paid close attention. Katie busied herself with her hat, which she put in her mouth. Maddy fell asleep. Gregory walked around, exploring Steve and Daisy's house. Declan gave up on giving a French lesson and took Gregory throughout the house, with Ryker watching them, showing him the downstairs.

March 31st, Peter and his twin sister, Kate, celebrated their 27th birthday. They went out to dinner, but the guys got together the following weekend to give him the gifts from all of us.

April: Due to all of the crazy weather, April was when things began budding and growing, which meant allergy season had arrived. Hannah and Katie inherited Ryker's allergies, so the three of them sniffled, sneezed, and coughed their way through the month. Maddy, Gregory, and I were fine. (Maddy and Gregory take after me and my side of the family, but Hannah and Katie are Ryker through and through.) I decided now was the time to start potty training, since Gregory and Maddy had shown an interest. Hannah and Katie were mostly potty trained by Thanksgiving last year, and I am happy to report that they are doing very well. They were wearing pull ups to bed, but after a few months of neither of them wetting the pull up, I tried a few nights of them wearing "big girl panties" and they have been successful for the most part since. But Gregory and Maddy were not interested in the potty when I Ryker and I trained Hannah and Katie. Now, they are. We bought two more potty chairs because Gregory said he wasn't using a "girl's potty". And I couldn't blame him. Hannah and Katie's potties had cute little pink bears on them. So far, Gregory is getting the hang of it. Maddy seems bored and somewhat disinterested. She will go and sit on her potty when Gregory goes, but she hasn't figured out that you're supposed to put your pee and um...other things in it, to put it politely.

Tallullah's 26th birthday was the 26th. Tallullah is very adventurous, so we took her to this new extreme sports place. It's a huge building with rock climbing walls, and zip lines, stunt driving, and obstacle courses, stuff that was right up her alley. The guys thought it sounded awesome, so they came with us. It was more fun than I expected it to be. I didn't do all of the extreme things. I did climb the little rock wall, as did Daisy and Gabrielle. The guys, except for Ryker, had fun on the zip lines. Ryker climbed the second highest rock wall, while Paul and Tallullah scaled the largest one. They also had a paint ball field, so we formed teams, girls against guys. Us girls actually won! It was so much fun.

May: This month consisted of Zephra and Zane's birthdays. (Their birthdays are a day apart, so Tallullah does one party for both of them.) The kids all had the best time!

May 29th was our third wedding anniversary. We spent the weekend before, the 24th through the 26th, in Los Angeles to celebrate, while my parents were nice enough to watch all four children. (We're still giving Ryker's parents a break after everything his father has been through.)

June: This is probably one of the busier months. We usually go on vacation, but this year, we decided to stay home. Ryker felt apprehensive about leaving his parents. His parents didn't even go out of the country this year to visit their extended families in Israel and Cambodia. (Ryker's mother is half Cambodian, and his father was born in Israel. Ryker has four half sisters in Israel from David's previous marriage. He has his grandfather and aunt in Cambodia. We've been to Phnom Penh and the surrounding area a few times, but we have yet to go to Tel Aviv because his half sisters have been great about coming to visit us. We plan to go with David and Monica next year.) So we stayed home and lounged around in our private beach backyard. Ryker took Hannah and Katie into the ocean this year. They had a blast!

June 27th was Ryker's 26th birthday. I asked him what he wanted, and he said he would like to grill out and have our friends over to hang out on the beach. I didn't want him to have to cook on his birthday, but he's very talented at cooking, and he loves it. I'm very surprised he didn't ditch law school to go to culinary school. (I've gained fifteen pounds since we got married! Even after losing all the baby weight from both pregnancies, I still wasn't able to lose those fifteen extra pounds!) I didn't let him make his own cake, though. I made a beach themed cake with Daisy's help, and left it over at her and Steve's place. They brought it with them when they arrived. Daisy, Gabrielle, Tallullah, and I lounged in our swimsuits on the beach. (I used to wear a bikini, but since I've had four kids in two pregnancies, I wouldn't dare now. Daisy, Gabrielle, and Tallullah still look awesome in their bikinis. Yes, I'm a bit jealous, but I love them anyway!) The guys surfed, all except for Paul, who entertained all of the kids by taking them on a seashell hunt, and enlisting their help to build several sandcastles. He even built one for Gregory, so he could stomp it and act like he was terrorizing a huge city. Paul is great with children. (I'm sure if it were up to him, he and Tallullah would have six by now!) Paul and Tallullah's daughter, Zephra, and Steve and Daisy's son, Declan, who are the oldest of out the children, helped Paul out tremendously. My parents and Ryker's parents came later. They stayed for dinner, which consisted of steaks, baked potatoes, and a large veggie filled salad with homemade croutons, real bacon bits, and several homemade dressing choices.

July: We had everyone over for fourth of July. Once again, Ryker grilled out, this time it was just hamburgers and hot dogs though. Then, he helped my father set off fireworks on the beach. All of the children were captivated. After the fireworks were over, Katie toddled over to me, hugged me, and informed me that she had the best day ever. That's something I would have expected from Hannah. Hannah's like me, she will chat you up the whole day if she knows you will listen to her, she loves to be snuggled and cuddled, and she will say what she's feeling at any given moment. Katie's independent, and she NEVER says what she's feeling, so it was a very pleasant surprise.

July 21st was Gabrielle and Peter's youngest son's birthday. Phoenix turned two that day. Gabrielle and Peter hosted a party for him at their home, Black Manor. It was a good day for Phoenix, but he ended up spending the night at Wallace Memorial due to a scare where he wasn't breathing well, but he's fine now.

I had to take some time off in July because Ryker was handling a HUGE case, and he had to be in court for almost three weeks straight. My parents were out of town, and Ryker's parents helped as much as possible, but I still wasn't comfortable laying it all on them.

In August, I reluctantly let Hannah and Katie go to daycare. Since they're just three months away from their third birthday, now is a critical time for them to develop social skills that are detrimental to their mental growth and development. It's a great daycare center, and the staff does not just watch the children, they introduce the basics of preschool, letters, numbers, colors, and memory exercises. They even teach sign language! I didn't think Maddy and Gregory would benefit from it just yet. The older girls being in daycare helped Ryker out tremendously. He was able to get more work accomplished. His parents were starting to miss the kids, so they would come over and entertain Maddy and Gregory. They even started picking the girls up from daycare so Ryker wouldn't have to stop what he was doing. We sat his parents down and asked if they were sure they were ready to take on the kids again, and his father told us to stop fussing over him and let him enjoy his grandchildren. So we did.

Steve's birthday was August 25th. The guys took him to Vegas. Steve had not been away from home other than work since Daisy got sick, so the guys thought it would do him some good to go on a weekend trip to Vegas. I think Ryker was concerned that they would end up having a "Hangover" experience there. Peter admitted that he was going to live it up. Steve was worried about being away from Daisy. Paul couldn't wait to see the lights. They had an experience for sure. Peter got plastered and hit the casino. He lost fifty thousand dollars, which Steve not only won back for him, but doubled it, and almost got himself in trouble. They were asked to leave the casino. Thankfully, Steve was able to get Peter out of there before he lost more money and challenged several people to a fight. (Peter thinks he's ten feet tall and bulletproof as it is, and it's worse when he's inebriated!) Paul and Ryker played a few slot machines, got bored, and decided to go check out some of the luxury hotels and five star restaurants that Vegas had to offer. The trip home was fun, and I say that with the utmost sarcasm. Peter was severely hungover. The flight was turbulent, so Ryker was motion sick. (He does not travel well.) Paul was disappointed because Vegas wasn't anything he thought it would be, and Steve couldn't wait to get home. Of course, they all laugh about it now. They still tell Steve that he should forget about the whole oncology career and become a professional gambler.

September: Gabrielle and Peter's son, Logan, turned three on the fourth. We took our four children over to celebrate with him. Logan was very happy to have them over. He got a brand new car that he can drive around in, and he took all of the kids for a ride. Maddy surprised us by wanting to be the first one to go for a spin. Like I said, she's usually very content to sit in one spot and do one thing all day. I think Logan was shocked, too, because he said, "Are you sure?" And she said she was. (My children constantly surprise me. They're great. Two sets of twins can be quite the handful, but I wouldn't trade any of them.)

September 10th was my birthday. When I came home from work that day, Ryker had a hot bubble bath, complete with rose petals floating on top of the water, waiting for me, along with the book I had wanted, and a glass of non alcoholic white wine. Ryker saw to it that I got in and got settled, then he took the kids outside while I laid in the tub and read my book. He had my mother take the kids for a few hours while he prepared steak and lobster tail with baked potatoes and salad. We had dinner on the deck overlooking our beach backyard. We ate and watched the sunset.

On the fourteenth, the girls kidnapped me and took me to the tea room, where they had an intimate tea party in my honor. They gave me some very nice gifts. We talked, laughed, and had a great time. When I got home, I was surprised to see my mother, Ryker's mother, Hannah, Katie, and Maddy, seated at the dining room table, where they held a tea party for me! Ryker, my father, and his father, took Gregory to the Barkely Academy high school football game. Gregory had the best time! He went on and on about it when they got home! He kept saying, "Ball, Mommy, ball, football, kick, fans." He was beyond thrilled. My little boy had his first guys night out!

October: Gabrielle turned 26th on the first. She was out of town on her actual birthday, but the girls and I took her to the spa for a day of pampering when she returned home.

Halloween is at the end of the month. Ryker and I are not extremely big on Halloween, but Hannah and Katie became interested because their daycare was having a Halloween party. So I took them out shopping for a costume. I was concerned about what they would want to choose, but I was pleasantly surprised. Hannah wanted to be a butterfly. Katie announced that she would also like to be a butterfly, but not the same one as her sister. I managed to find two different colored butterfly costumes. Hannah was a Monarch butterfly, and Katie's butterfly costume had a blue and purple design in the wings. When Maddy and Gregory saw the girls costumes, they wanted in on it as well, so I took them shopping. Maddy wanted to be a flower. That was easy enough. I found a sunflower costume. And Gregory decided that if his sister was going to be a flower, he was going to be a honey bee.

On Halloween night, we took them to our regular church, where they were having a safe trick or treat. (Ryker's mother is Catholic, his father is Jewish, and we are Christians, so we go to three different churches. So when I saw our regular church, I mean the non-denominational Christian church.) They also had a costume judging contest. All of the kids got something for dressing up, but Maddy and Gregory won first place in the costume contest! Gregory toddled over and accepted their certificates and their trophy and thanked everyone. He didn't understand that he had to give the trophy back so their names could be engraved on it. We convinced Maddy to go up and have her picture taken with her twin brother.She reluctantly agreed. She walked over. Gregory held one side of the trophy, and she held the other. The church photographer took several pictures. Then Maddy leaned over and kissed Gregory's cheek. They ended up using that picture on the front page of the church bulletin the following Sunday. Gregory was so excited! He exclaimed, "It's us!"

November: This is our month of planning for the holidays and for our children's birthdays. At this point, I've figured out what themes the children want for their parties. Hannah and Katie's party is the easiest to plan. Hannah likes pink and Katie likes purple. So I incorporate both of their favorite colors into the decorations. I get both pink and purple streamers, plates, party favors, wrapping paper for their gifts, and etc. This year, they're fine with a pink and purple party again. Maddy and Gregory's party is a different story. As they get older, I wonder how I am going to plan a party for them. Right now, they coordinate everything, like they did with their costumes. Gregory is sweet enough to let Maddy decide first, then he chooses something that goes with what she wants. I sat them down and asked them what they wanted for their birthday party theme. Maddy looked thoughtful, and she said, "A Christmas Birthday!" Gregory agreed. (Last year, Maddy wanted a red theme, and Gregory wanted a blue theme.) So I asked them if they were sure, and they nodded. I didn't think it would go over well because Christmas is just three days after their birthday, then Hannah and Katie's birthday is on New Year's Eve (which means that I will have four two year old children for ten days in December, but do I have a reality show on TLC, no). I talked to Ryker, and while his mother and my mother watched the kids together, we went shopping for the birthday parties.

While we were out, Ryker went ahead and purchased the groceries for Thanksgiving dinner, which was held at our house this year. We usually have two Thanksgiving dinners. We eat dinner with one set of parents on Wednesday, and the other on Thanksgiving Day. This year, we decided to combine them all on Thanksgiving Day. Our dining room table seats ten. Our kitchen table seats six. So we decided to bring our kitchen table into the dining room, put it in the corner, and let my little sisters sit there with our four children. Hannah and Katie can sit in their booster seats, while Maddy and Gregory are in their highchairs.

Thanksgiving Day went well for the most part. Katie was extremely crabby, and at times inconsolable. She wanted Ryker, but he was busy cooking dinner. I just wasn't good enough for her. At dinner, she threw such a horrible fit that Ryker gave up and put her in his lap so she would give our ears some peace. He was able to get her calmed down and fed. I feel like such a bad parent for saying this, but when she fell asleep in his lap, I wanted to break into the Hallelujah chorus! I don't think she felt very well, but I don't know. I never really figured out why she was so upset.

I skipped Black Friday shopping this year, instead sending money with my mother. My mom and Ryker's mom did their shopping together. It's become a tradition for them.



(Ryker's Mom and Dad's tree in their living room, and the beginnings of other decorations.)


Once Ryker's mother returned from Black Friday shopping, Ryker, the children, and I, went over to help them decorate their home for Christmas. Ryker made white bean chicken chili for lunch, his dad brought the tree up from the basement, and his mother and I unwrapped ornaments. We let the children hang the shatterproof ornaments, and they were all eager to help this year. (Last year, Maddy and Gregory were too young, and Katie, who didn't quite understand the concept, kept putting ornaments in her mouth.)




(Ryker's Mom and Dad's spiral staircase.)


I did the lighted garland on the stairway! I was so proud of myself! Maddy sat at the bottom of the spiral staircase and watched as I carefully hung the garland.

After lunch, Ryker and his father tackled the task of putting the trees together, then the eight of us decorated them. Hannah and Katie wanted Ryker to lift them up so they could hang the ornaments higher. And of course, Maddy and Gregory wanted to do that as well. (It's the whole, "Monkey see, Monkey do" law that often occurs when you have more than one child.) My precious little Maddy wanted to give the tree a hug once we were finished. Obviously, that was impossible.



(Decorations in Ryker's Mom and Dad's family room. They even got a stocking for me!)


Ryker's father helped Hannah and Katie hang the stockings. (The kids don't have stockings. Ryker's mother got them those pets that you can hide stuff in, and that serves as their stocking. They don't know that yet, but I know they're going to be so excited!) 

Ryker's parents insisted we stay for dinner. Of course, they have all of the things required for our four children. They have two booster seats and two high chairs, bibs, sippy cups, the whole nine yards. We used to just bring Hannah and Katie's things over, but when we found out I was having another set of twins , Ryker's mom and dad started buying things to keep at their place for the four grandchildren. We sat down to dinner around six-thirty. And as a treat to round out the evening, Ryker's mother made cookies. She enlisted the help of Hannah and Katie, who were thrilled. Maddy wanted to watch, so I took her into the kitchen. She was so well behaved. She watched quietly as her big sisters helped roll out the cookie dough. Hannah got to use the cookie cutter, but Katie was apprehensive about it. It was a good day.




(My Mom and Dad's sitting room tree.)

December: We decorated our house for Christmas on December first.

The following weekend, Ryker and I packed up the kids and went to help my parents decorate their house. Even though my mother usually has Thanksgiving and Christmas dinner catered, (everyone brings a side dish or two, and she still makes a lot of side dishes, but it's more convenient to have the caterer prepare the turkey or the ham for our large family for the holidays) she would rather us get together and decorate for the holidays instead of hiring a decorator. She always does something elegant and fancy for the sitting room, since that's the first room everyone will see when they come into the house. She decided to go with a predominantly silver theme this year. Last year, she did gold and cream, which looked awesome. And she always gets a real tree for the sitting room, too. Dad, Aidan, and Achilles go out, cut down the tree, and haul it back to the house because that's how much they love my mother. Ryker always puts the star on top. He's the tallest, so it just works out that way. It smells heavenly, especially when Mom puts cloves and cinnamon sticks among pine the branches.



(My Mom and Dad's family room tree.)


My parents let us decorate the family room. Since I don't live there anymore, Ryker and I simply help rather than tell them what should be done. Veronica, Victoria, and I, put this tiny tree together ourselves. We hung the personalized stockings (which were not hung when the picture was taken). Mine goes in the middle, Veronica and Victoria's stockings go on either side of mine, and then Achilles and Aidan's stockings go on each end.

We had dinner with my parents and siblings, which consisted of Chinese takeout. Mom and Dad had put in a full day at the hospital, and they just wanted something we could grab and eat.




(Ryker and I made cookies. We decided to let Hannah and Katie help, since they did such a good job helping Grandma Tenenbaum.)

Friday, after we put Maddy and Gregory to bed, Ryker and I decided to let Hannah and Katie stay up for an extra hour to help us make cookies. I washed their little dimpled hands, feeling a bit sad because I knew they would be turning three two weeks from now. And I sat them at the table, put their little personalized aprons on them, and rolled out the dough. (I found their little aprons online.) I gave them each a cookie cutter, and Ryker showed them how to use it. This time, Katie participated.

I iced the cookies, and Ryker showed the girls how to put sprinkles and colored sugar on top of them. Hannah did very well. Katie completely covered one cookie with sugar, so we had to take the shaker away. She wasn't happy. After the cookies were done baking and cooled, we let them each have half of a cookie. This satisfied them. They both went to bed without argument a half hour later.



(The cookies Ryker and I made!)

After we put the girls to bed, Ryker and I made cookies. They turned out beautifully.

Christmas is less than two weeks away. Maddy and Gregory will turn two in just three days. Hannah and Katie will turn three on New Year's Eve. It's a bittersweet moment. They're growing up, much to my chagrin. I admit, I had a difficult time when they arrived three years ago. I didn't think I would ever get the hang of motherhood (part of it was post partum depression, which I did not have the Maddy and Gregory, oddly enough), but I've found my groove. It's stressful at times, but I could not imagine my life without my four beautiful children. And believe it or not, I miss the baby stage at times. I don't miss the diapers and the spit up, but I miss cuddling them, and the bond that comes with breast feeding. I remember how excited Ryker and I were to see them take their first steps and hear their first words. I think the worst part of parenthood now is watching them grow up because it goes by so fast. It really does. I'm afraid I'll blink and miss a few years. The one thing I'm not going to miss; POTTY TRAINING!

And on that note, I will close!

I hope your year was full of surprises, good memories, and lots of precious time with your loved ones!

Merry Christmas, From Our Home to Yours,

Ryker, Leah, Hannah, Katherine, Madeline, and Gregory

Christmas Letters Part One!

It's that time of year, and once again, Christmas isn't the most wonderful time of the year here at the Townsend cottage. Rather than complain about how bad things are since Doug lost his dream job in August, I am going to compose a letter from the characters in my book series. The good news is that since our holiday isn't the most wonderful, you get to see a glimpse of how Christmas is going for my characters.

All photos used in my Christmas Letters posts are from weheartit.com. (I chose the ones that looked the most like how the picture of my characters homes that I have in my head.)

Despite the fact that our Christmas season isn't a happy one, my husband and I wish you a very Happy Christmas and a Spectacular New Year! We hope it's much better than ours!

Anyway, on with the letter!

December 2013

Merry Christmas!

I hope everyone is having a wonderful holiday season this year. I cannot believe it's already that time of year! We're slowly piecing everything back together since I went into remission last March. This year has been quite busy. I've regained some of my strength, but I'm not quite back to my "normal" self, whatever that may be. It's been so long. 

I'm enjoying being an active part of my children's everyday lives for the first time since Ashtyn was born. She's already two years old, now. She will be three in three months, which is so hard to believe. 

Steve's still working at Wallace Memorial Hospital, where his oncology practice is located.

Last year and the year before, I only sent out cards. I just wasn't up to writing letters the past two years. I'm sure you can appreciate why. So many things have happened since my last letter two years ago, and there are many new changes that I have to share with you, so I'm going to try to fit two years worth into this year's letter. Please bear with me.

Since Steve and I returned home from London, where I was receiving treatment, in September of 2011, we have tried to get back into the swing of things, but there's no real normal when you have cancer. Thankfully, our friends, Trevor and Benjiro, were staying here with us, and they helped us out greatly. We had an elevator installed in our home so Benjiro, who lost the use of his legs after an injury and has to rely on a chair to get around, could go upstairs to the second floor. Steve also found it easier to move me to and from the second floor in the elevator as well. (He was carrying me up and down the stairs.) Benjiro stayed with me while Steve and Trevor were working.

I was hospitalized in October 2011 for anemia, which was caused by the treatment. While I was there, I got some good news from the doctor. Treatment was actually making a difference! I was released after an almost two week stay at Wallace Memorial Hospital. The next day, Steve received a phone call from a lawyer in London. His cousin passed away due to an accident while I was in the hospital, and they were looking for someone who could take his three year old son. Steve and I discussed it. We both felt like there was a possibility that I would never be able to have children again. We called my parents and his parents, and we prayed about it. (I'm sure people probably thought we had no business taking on another child with the stressful situation we were going through, but I don't regret it, not in the least.) Steve and his father went to London to sign the paperwork and begin the adoption process, and they returned with our three year old son, Declan Steven McAuley, on October 31st.

Steve and I fell in love with Declan from the moment he came home. He is an adorable little boy, intelligent, and his British accent just added to his adorableness. He looks a lot like Steve's paternal side of the family. His hair is wavy and the same shade of dark brown/auburn as Steve's father's. He has two different colored eyes. One of them is dark blue and the other one is dark brown. Steve explained that this condition is called complete heterochromia iridis. (Sometimes the word iridum is used instead of iridis.) And little three year old Declan told us that it runs in the McAuley family. I was so shocked that he had such information! 

Declan was thrilled to find out that he had a little sister. I think Ashtyn was just as thrilled to find out that she had a new big brother. They instantly bonded. Her first actual word, aside from "Mama" and "Dada" was "Declan". He got such a kick out of it that. He spends nearly every waking moment with her.

Then, on November 20th, just a few short weeks after he arrived here, Declan turned four. We threw a huge party for him. Unfortunately, I was having a bad day physically, so all I could do was lie on the couch and watch the party as it went on. Everyone took turns keeping me company, including the birthday boy. He walked in and sat down next to me. I told him to go back and enjoy his party, and he said, "But I want to take care of you." This kid has a heart of gold!

Christmas wasn't the best for me, but I put on a brave face for Declan, who thanked us profusely for every single gift we got for him. He hugged me, Steve, and Ashtyn, and said, "The best present I ever got was you." He made me cry! I could tell Steve was on the verge of tears, too.

We rang in the new year, 2012, with our four year old son.

The stress began getting to all of us in January 2012. Things were very difficult for a while, even Declan and Ashtyn were feeling the stress. At one point, Declan expressed his fears about losing us as his parents. He even went up to his room and started packing his things. When Steve went up to talk to him, Declan announced that he was moving back to England and taking Ashtyn with him. Steve got him calmed down, and we sat him and down and asked him why he thought he was going to lose us, and assured him that we were not going anywhere. Then, on Valentine's Day, for the first time, instead of calling us by name, he called me "Mummy" and Steve, "Daddy". (That later became "Mumsy and Dadsy" which to this day makes Ashtyn giggle uncontrollably.) That was one of the happiest days of our lives.

I celebrated my 25th birthday on February 25th, 2012, just eleven days after Declan called me "Mummy". I honestly did not expect to see twenty-five, but I did. That in itself is a miracle.

In March of 2012, Ashtyn turned a year old. Ashtyn had not expressed any real interest in any specific thing, aside from the color "red". She wants a red everything. She wants to drink out of the red sippy cup, wear her red dress, a red head band, red shoes, and she loves the ruby slippers in The Wizard of Oz. She'll say, "Ooooh, red," when she sees them. So we ordered red party decorations, and a red velvet and white checkered birthday cake with white icing. "Happy 1st Birthday, Ashtyn," was written in red icing, and we had the ruby slippers drawn in icing on the cake with edible red glitter on them. She yelled, "THANK YOU," the moment she saw the cake. It was totally worth it!

We had an intimate party for her, mostly just family. I was a nervous wreck because Steve and I were waiting for my test results.The phone rang when Declan helped Ashtyn blow out her candle. Steve practically dove for it and answered it before it could finish ringing. It was the nurse. She told us to get down to the office as soon as we could. The doctor wanted to see us in person. We left Declan and Ashtyn in the care of my parents and Steve's parents, and headed straight to the doctor's office. The doctor stepped into the room before we even had a chance to sit down. He told me that my bhcg level had remained at zero during the last three clean up courses, and that I was in remission. Then, he told us to take all the time we needed, stepped out of his office, and shut the door. Steve and I sat there in his office holding hands for about ten minutes before we could say anything. I cried tears of joy all the way home. And since our families were there for Ashtyn's party, we got to share the happy news with them. Ashtyn was too young to understand what was going on, but Declan was as thrilled as we were. After the party ended, I called Gabrielle, Leah, and Tallullah, and gave them the good news.

(While I'm thrilled to be in remission, I still have to go in periodically for tests. So far, we've had one scare, but everything is fine. The doctor is surprised at how well I'm doing. Steve thinks I'm taking on too much at times. He fusses over me. He's a natural born worrier. It comes with the territory, though. He's starting to relax more now.)

Our family took advantage of the down time we had from the middle of March until the end of August. I felt like we could finally relax since I went into remission. The kids and I spent time at home, playing games, coloring, drawing, doing crafts, baking cookies, and enjoying each other. Steve would join us when he got home from work each day.

Tallullah turned 25 on April 26th. Gabrielle, Leah, and I took her to lunch at her favorite barbecue place. Then we went to the mall. I was so tired. I'm still on the weaker side after everything I had been through, so Tallullah pushed me around the mall in my chair, popping wheelies, making engine noises, and being silly, which made the other people in the mall giggle at us. Despite how tired I was, we had a great day!

Trevor moved out at the end of May after he and his fiance, Amber, eloped. He lives on the other side of Forest Hills, just walking distance from us, with his wife and her three children. He's the head of the gastroenterology department at Wallace Memorial Hospital, so he and Steve see each other all the time.

Benjiro felt like he should move on as well, but he decided to stay close by in New York instead of returning to Japan. He's living in an apartment in Manhattan, he just started dating Elizabeth, and he's currently pursuing getting his US Medical License. (He's a licensed epidemiologist in Japan.)

Steve celebrated his twenty-fifth birthday on August 29th. (Yes, he's only 25 and an oncologist. He's a prodigy.) Gabrielle, Leah, Tallullah, and I arranged for Paul, Peter, and Ryker to take Steve out for his birthday. When they got back, we had a surprise party waiting for him. It was a great day.

At the end of August, Declan started kindergarten. He wouldn't turn five until November, but his preschool teacher felt that he was mature enough to handle kindergarten. He was actually working at a second grade level, but we wanted to see how he handled kindergarten. Declan is very creative, as well as intelligent, so he enjoyed some of the activities kindergarten had to offer, but he grew bored and restless, and he was starting to tell his teacher he didn't feel well so he could come home. We had him officially tested by the school counselor and found out that he has a very high IQ, and that he was working on a second and third grade academic level. We decided to let him go to second grade, but he did some of the same work that the third grade students did, such as spelling, reading, and math. He loves school now and is excelling academically.

September 10th was Leah's 25th birthday. Gabrielle, Tallullah, and I took her on a trip to LA on Labor Day weekend. We checked into this glorious five star hotel, where we spent three fun filled days and two nights. We took Leah to an upscale spa, where we were pampered, massaged, and relaxed. After the spa, we had an intimate lunch at the hotel right there on the balcony of our suite. It was such a beautiful day! We went shopping in Beverly Hills, got our hair and make-up done, and painted the town red. We had a great time!

Gabrielle turned 25 on October 1st. Unfortunately, Phoenix was in the hospital, but the girls and I brought her cake and gifts. We took her to dinner at a bistro down the street from Wallace Memorial Hospital, while Peter stayed with Phoenix.

Declan and Ashtyn experienced their first Halloween in 2012. He was "chuffed to bits" as he put it. He dressed up as a doctor, but not just any doctor, a surgeon. Steve ordered him some little blue scrubs and let him borrow his old stethoscope, the one he was issued in med school. Declan was over the moon! We took him trick-or-treating. Steve put my wheelchair in the trunk just in case I needed it, but I was able to walk around with them. Declan was glad that I was able to walk, but he offered to push me in my chair because he wanted to tell everyone I was his patient. I love that little guy so much! He's so funny! We dressed Ashtyn as a Monarch butterfly. She wasn't as excited as her big brother was. Declan would hold her little hand and walk her up to the door and show her off to everyone, proudly saying, "This is my Ashtyn." And Ashtyn would say, "My Declan." She did okay for the first half hour, then she started crying, so Steve carried her the rest of the way.

November 20th was Declan's fifth birthday. He had been living with us for one year and two weeks at this point. He didn't want anything specific. He said he had us and that was enough. He's such a good kid! Instead of decorations, he wanted us to make a banner of pictures of our lives since he arrived. (Did I mention that he's such a good kid?) We celebrated at home, just thankful to have each other, especially after all we had been through. He wanted to go to a museum and out to eat, so Steve took him out for his big day, while I stayed home with Ashtyn.

Thanksgiving 2012 was spent with my parents at their house. My mother and grandmother did all of the cooking. They let me help a little, but only from a chair at the kitchen table. My brother, Taven, finally brought his girlfriend of two years to dinner this year. She's very nice. Her name is Victoria, but she goes by "Tori". My brother, Tory's real name is Victor, like my grandfather, Victor, who also goes by "Tory", a nickname my grandmother gave him. Confusing, I know. So whenever my brother said, "Tori" or "Tory", two people turned around and asked which one they wanted. When my grandmother said, "Tory" or "Tori", three people asked which one she was talking to. It was hilarious!

Christmas of 2012 was much better than last year. I was feeling much stronger. I baked all sorts of goodies to hand out as gifts. Declan helped me decorate gingerbread men while Ashtyn decided to coat herself thoroughly with icing, which made Declan giggle until he cried. She had it everywhere! After I bathed her, Declan and I made cookies and Chex Mix for Santa. He even wrote a note to Santa, telling him that he left the milk in the fridge for him so it wouldn't spoil. He's so funny!

We spent Christmas morning together, talking, laughing, opening gifts, and singing Christmas Carols. 

We spent New Year's Eve of 2012 together at church, where we rang in 2013. Instead of facing the year with fear and trepidation, I couldn't wait to see what would happen next!

Our 2013 has been the best year so far! My 26th birthday was February 25th. It was another miracle to make it to my 26th birthday, and for that, I am thankful. Ashtyn's second birthday was on March 11th. She's walking and talking nonstop now, but I'm strong enough to keep up. And Steve's 26th birthday took place on August 29th.

The annual events took place as they always do, but they were all so much more special this year. We celebrated with our friends on our birthdays, we got together with family and friends for the holidays to exchange gifts, we attended our friends children's birthday parties, as well as theirs, celebrated their successes, and helped them through the hard times, the way they helped us. We celebrated these big events like they might be our last, and we truly cherished each other each and every day. I didn't have to wait until the holidays this year to realize how truly blessed I am.

Declan started third grade this year. He still loves school and is academically gifted. His teacher is already talking about letting him go to the fourth grade. I'm not sure if he's ready. I know I'm not ready. We compromised by letting him join the fourth grade class for Spelling and Math. Steve and I don't want him to be bored, but we both feel that his social skills are important, and may be ignored if he moves up another grade level. We have him eat lunch and go to recess with the first and second graders three days per week. He also goes on certain field trips with the first and second graders, depending on where they're going. He wants to be a crossing guard so bad, but we feel he's way too young for that right now.The kid has a lot of his plate these days, but he loves every minute of it.

For Halloween this year, Declan announced that he wanted to go as an oncologist. You could tell how proud Steve was to hear that! I wasn't sure how to dress Ashtyn, but she surprised us by saying she wanted to be a sock monkey. She wasn't as cranky this year. She walked with her big brother every step of the way and thanked the people who gave her candy.

November 20th was Declan's sixth birthday. He was too sick to enjoy it. I felt so badly for him. He just curled up in a ball on the couch and slept. He didn't even feel like having cake or opening gifts. We had originally scheduled his party for the 23rd, but we decided to reschedule it for the following Saturday, November 30th. We spent Thanksgiving at home, since Declan was ill. My mother brought some food and dessert to us and spent some time with Ashtyn.

Three days before the party, Steve, who never gets sick, came down with whatever Declan had. So with the help of my parents, we had to call everyone and tell them that the location for the rescheduled November 30th party had to be moved to Chuck E Cheese. My mother and I hosted the party while Steve stayed home in bed. Thankfully Ashtyn and I didn't catch whatever it was. Poor Steve is still on the weaker side. The good news is that we were still able to make the trip to France. We're spending Christmas in Paris with Steve's mother and father. We brought some of Declan and Ashtyn's gifts with us to open on Christmas morning, like new clothes and pajamas for both of them, a baby doll for Ashtyn, and a teddy bear for Declan. I'm sure Grand (Grandpa) and Glam (Grandma) have purchased some very nice things for the kids. (There are so many gifts that I'm sure some of them will have to remain here!) Once we get home, we will celebrate Christmas all over again. That gives Declan and Ashtyn something to look forward to, and it extends Christmas just a little longer. They still have gifts to open from Poppy, (my father) and Nonni (my mother) too!

After a seven hour and fifteen minute flight, first class, we arrived in France this morning at 8:25 at Charles de Gaulle Airport. We had breakfast with Steve's parents, Declan and Katerina (our Declan was named after Steve's father). Then, we took Declan and Ashtyn around the city. We went shopping. We stopped off at Katerina's boutique so she could show off her grandchildren.

The kids wanted to go ice skating. It was Ashtyn's first time. She handled it well. She's growing up. And it makes me a little sad. She giggled every time she fell on her bottom. I watched from a park bench as Steve, Katerina, Declan, and the children were having a good time. I decided to go out on the ice. It looked like so much fun. I used to go ice skating all the time. It wasn't long before I was showing Declan and Ashtyn tricks and jumps. They were very impressed. We had such a great time. I was so tired, but it was totally worth it.

We had such a busy day that we were ready to go unpack and take a nap. Steve's Mom and Dad took us to their place. After we unpacked our things, Steve, Ashtyn, and I napped for a couple of hours while Declan stayed in the study with Grand and Glam and worked a jigsaw puzzle.

Once our nap was over, the six of us sat down together and had a late lunch. When we finished eating, Declan announced that he wanted to go sledding. The grounds of McAuley Manor are quite large. We bundled up the children and ourselves, and went outside. I sat on the patio with Katerina while Steve and his father took turns pulling the sled around the yard, and carrying Ashtyn up and down the hills. Ashtyn was terrified the first time she went down on the sled. She started crying at the top of the hill. Steve asked, "Do you want to get off the sled?" And she's sobbing and saying, "no." By the time they got to the bottom of the hill, Ashtyn was squealing with delight. After the sled riding was over, the six of us built a snowman.

It was growing dark, so we went in and had some hot chocolate. We spent the rest of the day relaxing. Steve went to bed early. And I'm here, composing this letter to all of you, our cherished family and friends. Before I go, I'll enclose a few pictures. (They are in no certain order.) The top picture above is of Declan and Ashtyn, standing in front of Grand and Glam McAuley's tree next to the grand staircase.

(Declan and Ashtyn's tree. Declan wanted a red, white, and blue tree this year.)

(Peppermint hot chocolate that I made. It was my first attempt, but it turned out great.)

(Poppy and Nonni Rupert's sitting room tree. "Poppi" and "Nonni" are what my children call my parents instead of "Grandpa" and "Grandma".)



Poppy and Nonni's living room tree. My parents still hang my stocking over their fireplace, even though I'm married and no longer living with them.)



(The tree and stockings in Poppy and Nonni's sunroom. I know what you're thinking, "Why do Braxton and Rhiannon have five stockings when they only have four children?" Good question. Aside from me, there are my brothers, identical twins Taven and Tory, and my sister, Coreena. There are five stockings because one of them was for my brother, Colin, who was Coreena's twin. He was stillborn. My mother bought the stockings while she was pregnant with Coreena and Colin. Rather than return one of them, she kept the fifth stocking to honor Colin's memory.)



(Our neighborhood, viewed from the second floor hallway window.)

(Our tree in the sitting room of our house, and a bit of view into the formal dining room.)



(Baskets by the sitting room fireplace.)



(Our living room tree!)



(The rec room in the basement.)


(Our rec room in the basement decorated for Christmas.)



(Our family dining room, just off of the kitchen, decorated for the holidays.)



(A closer view of the decorations and tree in the family dining room.)



(Decorations by the back staircase in the hall beside the kitchen.)



(The study on the second floor of our house.)



(The fireplace in our study.)


And now, I will share some pictures of the trees here at Grand and Glam McAuley's spacious home in France. There are at least twenty trees here. I've only snapped pictures of a few so far.



(One of the trees here at Grand and Glam McAuley's house.)

(Grand and Glam McAuley's study/library.)



(The tree in the family room.)



(The tree and stockings in the playroom that Steve's parents put up just for Declan and Ashtyn. All of those gifts are for them, too! This room used to be the sewing room, where Steve's mother made her first wedding gown ever. A year later, production was moved to her boutique in downtown Paris, which was the first of many boutiques. The former sewing room sat empty until last summer, when it was turned it into a playroom for Declan and Ashtyn. Her first wedding gown sits in a glass case in the basement of her boutique. People from all over the world have begged to purchase it, but she refuses to sell it. A king and queen, she won't say from where, recently offered her one million dollars for that dress. She still declined.)



(Steve mother's tree at her boutique.)



(The tree in Grand and Glam's master bedroom. The whole master suite is decorated.)


Declan walked over and said, "Mumsy, I want to look at the rest of the trees." And Ashtyn just climbed into my lap and is looking up at me and smiling, so Katerina and I are going to show them the other trees and put them to bed.

That concludes the events and happenings with our family, but I look forward to writing to you next year. May your holiday season be filled with blessings and miracles!

Have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!
The McAuleys

Steve, Daisy, Declan, and Ashtyn