Full, busy holidays!

Our holiday was just so full, so I want to make sure I get everything down. SO going back to after my birthday, before Christmas....

My mom had these blank canvases at home, and she knows Quinnybear loves to paint, so she got her all set up with a paint station. Over the course of a week, Quinny painted my mom and Brandon/Shelby a canvas. I don't think I took any pictures of them though! Darn. But I was pretty proud of her... instead of just painting all over and making it abstract, she very carefully painted in sections, and each section was a different color. She was so careful to make sure the colors didn't mix on the canvas, and they turned out so well! She is so particular about things, and I love watching her brain work.

This was so sad, but I wanted to write it down because its a part of her development... Jon, Quinny and I were 'wrestling' in the bed, and Q jumped and jarred my neck... I could feel it instantly seize it, and tears came right away, even though I tried to hold them back. I went to shower, hoping the hot water would help right away. Apparently she sat like this the entire time I was in the shower, her head down on her knees, quietly waiting (the bathroom is the white door on the right). The second I opened the door, she ran to me and said "Mama I am SO sorry I hurt your neck" and looked at me with little tears in her eyes. I squished her tight and assured her that it was an accident and that I was okay and not in the least bit mad at her. Oh how I love this kid and her giant heart.

Lunch with my dad and Raquel and Taylor - all you can eat sushi! We always hit up this restaurant with them when we are in town - its my favorite spot! Quinny ate THREE rolls of sushi herself... yes 3 (1 california roll, and 2 sushi balls of rice with salmon... this kid loves sushi!)

My dad wanted to take Quinny shopping... Christmas was in 3 days and they already gave her a bunch of things (they sent them out early, remember?) so.... no, no shopping for toys allowed. She has grown so much this fall though and is already almost of out of her size 4T's, so I said they could pick ONE store and go clothes shopping for size 5 T's, since she actually needs clothes. When we got home, there was a mixture of size 5 and 5T's (yes there is a difference... possibly only a difference that a mother knows about haha), but I was shocked at how much different in length there was! Same store, same brand! The top two are both 5T, and the bottom is a 5. Crazy. But the girl is now well dressed and ready for winter in her big girl clothes!

Brooke and Alexis came over after school for a while

And then Colette and Chris had invited us to dinner, so off we went to go there! Auntie Colette pulled out a few of the toys that they left, and Q went crazy for the doll house. She arranged all the furniture precisely and set it all up how she liked it. Colette is incredibly Type A, so she says at some point "This is my kind of kid. I like how she plays!" which made me laugh. This was a night where my heart ached, wishing we lived closer and had more time. Quinny had so much fun there, and I wish she could experience what it would be like to see them regularly! But we soak up the time we do have! It was a really fun night

Setting up the Pet Shop stuff. Quinny also did gymnastics and ballet with Calynne, who is in competitive cheerleading and knows all sorts of moves! Cheerleading competitively is amazing - a mixture of dance and gymnastics. Calynne is so fit and has a lot of muscle!

My dad asked if he could do something fun with Quinny for the morning on the 22nd so they went to Ruckers. We had a bunch of last minute Christmas stuff to do, so it worked well. We dropped her off and then came back at lunch. She had a great time and spent the whole drive home telling us all about the games she played and the prizes she won. Auntie Taylor went with and spent the morning with them. Q loved it

I thought this pic was pretty cute. It takes some getting used to, having him around more and wanting to be involved in Quinny's life, but it is a very positive thing for her and I am glad about that! They had a great time together

And then that night at dinner time BRANDON AND SHELBY ARRIVED!!!! I cried earlier in the day, out of pure excitement about seeing them soon, for real. I was beside myself with excitement. An entire YEAR went by without us seeing each other - that is way too long. I missed my brother SO incredibly much this year. I am thankful for things like FaceTime and snapchat that allow us to be a part of each other's lives, but nothing replaces real face to face time. A year is too long. They walked in and I almost cried again. Shelby too - she was so happy to see us and gave Quinny a big squish! Quinny didn't play shy at all, which was awesome! It took her a few minutes to really start talking, but she gave them hugs right away and was giggling and happy to see them. Oh so good to be back together. So so so good. We stayed up really late that night wrapping gifts and just laughing together. My heart. So full.

The next morning everyone was soaking in the snuggles and the excitement of being together! My mom was just grinning from ear to ear, so happy to have us all together in her home. After the weight of everything that has happened this year, it was the perfect time for me to be with them. I don't even realize how much I truly need and miss these faces until I see them. These bonds run deep.