December 25th!

CHRISTMAS EVE

Ready for visions of sugarplums in our new snowman pjs from Gran & Pa.

11pm. Room is ready.
Enter Tiny Tots (but not until about 9am, OK?)!

7am. Look! Presents, Ma! It's a LentilLand! Wa-Hoo!

A few days prior to Christmas, Rochester
warmed up enough for Frosty to visit!
It had been too cold to pack any snow,
so this snowman was a real treat.

Max & Mae slept through most of Christmas morning, so Quinn got lots of attention and enjoyed unwrapping EVERYONE'S presents. Mike was happy to receive 3 new saw blades this year and a creme brule torch. I got a new flat-iron (bad hair days, be gone!), and tons of much-needed chocolate. The missionaries spent some time with us Christmas day, and we had an amazing dinner with Ryan & Lindsay Christmas night. It was a true "family" day. We got some good video of The Q opening presents that I'll try to post after my nap. That's all for now.

Christmas lesson

Once every few decades, rivers flood their banks. Rarely, it snows in Florida. Occasionally, planets align in orbit. Very infrequently, all three of our kids are down for a nap at the same time. In one of those moments of good fortune, I finished working on my Christmas lesson (to be given in church later today) while Molly played with her Christmas present. That's right folks, it's December 23rd. She was suspicious that I bought a ceramic hair iron and she begged to open it today 'for the Sunday before Christmas'. We'll just have to wrap it back up and put it under the tree tomorrow.

Team teaching with Tom Fleming in Gospel Doctrine, I finished the book of revelation last week and had this Sunday free for a full Christmas theme. I've enjoyed reading about Frankincense and Myrrh and the capacity of middle eastern inns but most of all I've gained an appreciation for the importance of Christ's birth. In the middle of gifts and treats and the radio (which has been playing holiday songs since October), I'm glad to be reminded so frequently of the real meaning of Christmas. Here's wishing you all a Merry Christmas full of meaning.

Double Trouble? Double the Fun!

Everywhere I turn I see TWO!

Two car seats. Two highchairs. Two cribs.
Two BABIES!

Twins are twice as nice.
Love you, Max & Mae!

Snow, Snow, Snow

Max, Mae and I all have colds so I'm home with them today while Molly conducts in Relief Society. I just put the twins down to sleep and have a few free minutes before catching a nap myself. Quinn has been having a great time in the snow. We've had a few inches each night for the past three nights and Rochester really looks like a winter wonderland. The snow is piled up on our deck and is still lingering in all the trees. As you can see, Quinn is keeping the snow mowed nice and short. Another favorite thing to do is take his plastic sharks out swimming in the snow. Of course, this also involves dipping them in and licking the snow off. We're staying warm and dry in our house and managed to put up some Christmas decorations this week. That has seemed like a major accomplishment between our busy schedule at home and my busy schedule at work.

For the past week, I've been working in the newborn nursery at Rochester Methodist Hospital. On my call nights (every fourth night) I attend any high risk deliveries (c-section, premature, etc...) and take care of the newborn baby until they are stable enough to go to the nursery, go with their mom to their room or over the neonatal intensive care unit. It's never dull and I'm glad be at deliveries again. It's been about two years since I was in my OB rotation. Being on hand when these children are born is a precious experience. About never being dull; occasionally I get a page in the middle of the night that a baby has been born and they need the pediatric team there right away. After throwing on my shoes, sprinting down the hall, grabbing our box of resuscitation equipment and sprinting to the OB suite (usually and fortunately, in the few minutes between the call and my arriving, the baby has worked things out and is doing fine), it's a little hard to fall asleep. I usually end up wandering down to the cafeteria (open from 2 to 4 a.m.!) and getting some very early breakfast before being able to fall asleep again. I'm enjoying the month but definetely glad when nights are uneventful.