Christmas morning was crazy! I’m not gonna lie, there was a TON under the tree for Charlie to open. I thought I scaled it down this year (which I did), but it still felt like a lot. Maybe it’s just her age…she got overwhelmed about halfway through her stocking, and that wasn’t even the beginning. We ended up “misplacing” some of the gifts that we had bought her, and I’m glad we did because the gifts from family stood out, as they should.

The biggest hits were a life-sized penguin (from Santa), a Little People “Racin’ Ramps Garage” (from Auntie Janet), and her very own Camelbak water bottle (because she’s always stealing mine).Vann and I had all these grand plans for our first solo Christmas morning, but alas, not many of them panned out. By the time we even got to stockings/presents it was 11 am and past breakfastime. Vann kept his part of the deal and whipped up a delicious savory eggs benedict, but I’m afraid my monkey bread recipe is still sitting out on the kitchen counter, as we speak. I just couldn’t tackle it that day.It was very strange being “alone” on Christmas. I am used to “doing Christmas big”…I still get a Santa and I’m 31! This year, as I’ve said before, we were and are in survival mode, and it sort of felt rushed and unorganized (NOT for any lack of planning/effort on my sweet hubby’s part). I know that Vann and I will look back on this messy Christmas and laugh at all of the chaos and piled-up laundry. But, who can argue the magnitude of God’s blessings on our family. I know that when I look at my two beautiful girls, and I am eternally grateful!!

You might wonder how I’m finding the time to blog these days. When we started this blog, it was originally intended to be a way for the grandparents to see pictures of Charlie. Over the past 2 1/2 years, it’s become my little corner of the world.

Those who know me know that I majored in Theatre in college and had dreams of moving to New York (or any other major city) to pursue my career. I even made it into the final round of auditions for a prestigious conservatory in Denver…I wanted to get my Masters there. When I didn’t make it into the school of my dreams, I moved to Chicago with 6 suitcases, no job, and some cash from graduation. I showed up on my friend Courtney’s doorstep intending to crash for a bit and stayed for 10 months until we found a 2 bedroom apartment. Ten years later, I’m still in Chicago, married and the mother of two little girls. Life certainly surprises you, doesn’t it??!!

Back to blogging – I’ve always been a writer (a hack of sorts), journaling like a madwoman and writing epic emails to my friends in the middle of the night…I’m infamous for those, actually. So, even though I have no idea how to turn this unrealized dream of writing into an actual career, I have turned my little corner of the world into my “journal.” And lucky you, it’s all out there for you to read. That being said, blogging is so essential to my daily routine now, that I miss it terribly when I can’t make it happen. This is why you so often see 5 or 6 posts at once because when I do finally get a chance to sit down, I want to make it worthwhile.
Before I get into all of the fun Christmas pics and stories, we wanted to share a recent shot of Ella. Her big sister truly is the star of the show, and gets most of the stagetime, but little E deserves her time in the spotlight as well.I am happy to report that Ella went from 11 pm to 4:30 am this morning, not quite “sleeping through the night” but awfully close. If I were to sum up our lives in one or two words right now, they would be:Troubleshooting – we’ve discovered that Ella is a fussier baby than Charlie was. It’s so hard to compare the two because C was formula fed and E is breastfed, but Charlie was SUCH an easy baby that she spoiled us until she hit 18 months and became the curmudgeon that she is today. Maybe Ella will be a fussy newborn and an angel toddler. Who knows. What we do know is that she grumbles a lot and has a “witching hour” fussy time starting at 6 pm that lasts for most of the evening. How do you get a baby to drop a feeding when she won’t even GO TO SLEEP for any feeding in the evening?? If you know that secret, I may just kiss you.Survival – I am constantly encouraged by the amazing moms-of-two that I know. Future moms-of-two, take heart, I’ve heard it does in fact get easier…but right now we are in what we call “survival mode.” We decided that if the dishes are done and the laundry is fairly caught up, we are doing a pretty good job. That’s about all I can ask of myself right now. I can’t believe how fast the days go…it’s like we are on a constant loop of diapers, feedings, bathtime, and Curious George (God love him). It would make sense then, that I’ve had a bit of the blues this holiday season. How, you might ask, can I be sad when I have this brand new bundle of joy in my home?? Probably the weather, most likely being far from family this Christmas, and definitely being sleep-deprived…these are all contributors. Today I have a lactation consultant coming to the house. I’ve put it off (I’m a “lingerer” – meaning I’ve tried to muscle through any issues we’ve had) and am finally accepting the fact that I need help to determine what’s wrong and why it’s not second nature at this point. We’ve had some challenges that aren’t going away, and I don’t want to quit breastfeeding so I’m nipping this in the bud (no pun intended, honestly). I’ve heard it’s the best $200 you’ll ever spend. Hopefully, the next time I blog I will be singing a different tune. Until then, here’s my little grumbler. What a face!!

Charlie: Circa Christmas ’08

Charlie: Circa Christmas ’09

We are still getting the hang of our new camera, so bear with us as we learn! Tonight we ventured out for the first time as a family (that wasn’t Costco or Target) to attend our church’s Christmas Eve service. Charlie wore her “Bethlehem” bishop from Orient Expressed…

I’m not a huge jewelry person.

I like to keep things pretty simple…and given the choice between a Louis Vuitton and a pair of diamond earrings, I would definitely choose the bag. I have a great pair of CZ solitaires that look like the real thing. When Vann proposed to me, he told me that my engagement ring was it – there would be no upgrades…which is fine with me (he has spectacular taste).

All of that said, with the impending arrival of my second baby I knew I wanted something to commemorate the occasion. If you’ve ever seen this kind of jewelry, it can sometimes be really cheesy…and I’m picky, so poor Vann has been looking for just the right thing.

When this charm necklace arrived in the mail last week, I was in love. Wendy, my sweet high school friend, sent it to me. I think it really says something about our 14 year friendship, don’t you? She totally hit it out of the ballpark, and I will cherish it forever.

Not to be outdone, Vann bought me this locket the day Ella was born. What a sweet husband I have! It’s super sparkly and blinged out, just like the ring he gave me 4 years ago.

If you follow the Bischoff blog, you’ll notice a change in the quality of our pictures. We’ve been wanting a nicer camera for the longest time, so imagine our surprise when one showed up on our doorstep last week!! It’s a Nikon D40, a gift from Poppy, and as you can see, Vann has been busy figuring out how to use it.

Finally! We can snap all those moments you miss with a “point and shoot”. I’m so glad my hubby is a “manual reader” and is learning how to adjust the exposure and all that good stuff. The other night, when he was up with Ella, he watched the entire instructional DVD! Here are his first shots…pretty good, eh?