12 Days of Christmas - Stander Style

Put this together after going thru all of my facebook posts from the year.  Thought it was funny.  I'm telling ya - it's going to be a Christmas Classic.  Generations to come will sit around the fireplace on Christmas Eve and sing this song.   

On the first day of Christmas, my true love gave to me

A failed Swiss vacation

On the second day of Christmas, my true love gave to me

Two new cars

And a failed Swiss vacation

...in the interest of time....I'm sure you know how the song goes

On the twelfth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me

Twelve great memories

Eleven dog messes

Ten planned parties

Nine family trips

Eight diva tantrums

Seven teacher meetings

Six-thousand Legos

FFFIIIIIVVVVEEEEE new babies

Four trips to the ER

Three days at Disney

Two new cars

And a failed Swiss vacation

Felt kind of bad I didn't send out a letter this year, so I had to do something!

Top 5 Facebook posts of 2012

Every year for Chirstmas, I send out cards with a fairly lengthy letter.  At the end of our annual letters, I always put the top 5 Facebook posts of the year.  I choose a few different people every year to vote on them.  Since I'm really not feeling the Christmas spirit and didn't write an annual letter, I totally phoned it in and sent out cards with a link to this blog printed on them - I know - shameless, lazy, and a little self-promoting - but at least I sent out something.   So here it is folks, the top 5 Facebook posts of 2012:

....drum roll....

5.  Kids upstairs playing.

Sam:  let's play pirates!

Caroline: or we can play bridesmaids

Sam: (long pause) OR we can play PIRATE BRIDESMAIDS!

4.  Nick's office had Go Texan Day and he was putting on his boots

Caroline: Daddy, you look like a cowboy....except cowboys don't wear sweater vests.

3.  After asking Caroline to do her chores and get ready for school:  "I do EVERYTHING around here!  You don't do a thing!"

2.  Stopped at a stoplight and 2 birds hit my car and fall to the ground.  Sam sees them flopping around and says "Shoot 'em momma!!!!"

1.  Sam: MOM!  I got it!  I got it!!!

Me: What is it?

Sam:  my booger!  I've been trying to get that thing all day!

Honestly, I have the funniest kids.  I couldn't make up this stuff if I tried.  They are so much fun and while they do fight and whine, the laughs are by far well worth it.   

two steps forward, one step back

What we thought was a done deal with being worried about Sam ended up being slightly preemptive.  After Dr. Fernandez told us Sam was fine and we didn't need to worry about anything neurological, I thought we were done.  I would be lying if I told you we didn't pop a bottle of champagne and do some serious celebrating.  It NEVER occurred to me that the blood work our doctor ordered would come back fishy.  Although the doctors we saw in November said "we don't think this is neurological" the blood work says differently.  

So, here we are again at the oh-so-familiar intersection of OK Avenue and Craptastic Way - waiting for some news.  I HATE WAITING.  This time, we wait until January 11 to see a different doctor to get the results of the extra blood work that he ordered and some genetic screening.  While we wait, we are desperately trying to cling to some sanity and get through the days without having a meltdown. It's hard not to get online and google everything the doctor told us on the phone.  It's hard to watch Nick get to where I've been for months - that something is not right.   We're just praying that something was wrong with the tests they ran and not anything with Sam.

I've been talking about Sam and his issues for so long, that I no longer cry when I talk about it.   Is that normal?  I guess it's our normal now.  It's part of everyday life that I tell him to stop walking on his toes or "don't sit like that" or "good job walking up the stairs by yourself".  His physical limitations have become part of our routine.  I feel like whatever the outcome in January, that will become part of life for us.  

Thought I would give everyone an update.  Keep Sam in your thoughts and prayers.  I pray that come January 11, we will have good news and finally start 2013 with a step in the right direction.