If I were on top of things...

Our Christmas cards are scheduled to arrive "by end of day" today, so hopefully, that'll mean I start getting them sent out tomorrow.  Since I'm already behind schedule, there will only be the Christmas card-- no nice write-up like the ones I've been reading in my overly put-together friends' cards.  Girls, you give me a lot of aspire to.  In lieu of a note enclosed in the card, here's what I would and should have written for our end-of-the-year update:

Michael-- Michael has been doing an amazing job this past year at Investortools.  As a family, we love the company, which puts a wonderful emphasis on caring for its employees and their families.  As is no surprise to this proud wife, they are beyond pleased with Mike's work.  So much so that, as of January 1st, he will become co-manager of his department.  This promotion came really (REALLY) fast and is an honor and a blessing.  I'm so thrilled that Michael is in a place where he can thrive and grow, and a place that truly appreciates how blessed they are to have him! 

Heather-- It's been another fun year of stay-at-home-mom-ing!  My days are filled with laundry, dishes, sippy cups, diapers, and-- recently-- lots and lots of spit-up.  But they're also filled with three amazing and gorgeous kiddos.  Despite the seemingly thankless chores that come with it, I love my job! :)  I continue to adore sewing-- more and more so each day.  I find that I feel a little sad at the end of a sewing-less day, so I try to snag at least of few minutes, each afternoon, during naps.

Riley-- Riley started in preschool at Wheaton Bible Church.  She goes two days a week and LOVES it!  Her mom loves it, too, because I get to see her growing and thriving.  She's become more social, more interactive, braver (she'll go down slides by herself-- woohoo!) and more self-motivated.  Outside of preschool, she's shown a clear desire to figure out letters and words.  She knows her alphabet and is getting better and better at identifying what letter words start with.  I love seeing her love of knowledge, and-- my goodness-- kids at this age are little sponges!  She learns so fast!

Noelle-- Noelle loves doing everything her big sister does.  She tries to sneak into the classroom whenever we drop Riley off, and she even tried to make a cameo in the teachers' Christmas card picture. :)  She's talking quite a bit and can form sentences.  Last week, for example, she very clearly told Riley, "No!  That's MY Lego!"  Kudos for the sentence, though maybe not the sentiment...  She also graduated from physical and occupational therapy and walks/runs/struts like a champ.  Noelle is a little ham and is constantly cracking us up.

Brooks-- Brooks joined us on October 27th, and we love him to death.  He's a great baby-- pretty happy and low-maintenance (though at the time I'm writing this, he's going through a growth spurt that's requiring feedings every two hours... yikes).  He's super sweet and has just started smiling!  Those big gummy grins make my heart soar.  And he's a roller extraordinaire.  He rolls at almost every tummy time, and he's been doing that since about 3-weeks-old or so.  Not bad.  He also is able to produce a significant volume of pee, so much so that he literally exploded 8 diapers or so--  the little absorbent "beads" became so saturated, they exploded out.  We had to move him to size one diapers at about 3 weeks.  We're so proud.

All in all, a good year for the Green family.  We thank God for so many blessings  this past year and pray for his continued provision.  We hope you and yours were as blessed by his love and grace!