First Thanksgiving and Other Rites of Passage

I must say that we had much to be thankful for this year. Well, I know I did, and I am sure Troy would say the same. The simple fact that we are finally parents is just one reason, but the boys themselves are three more. It has definitely been a huge test of faith, patience, love, our marriage and everything else imaginable, but just watching the changes that have taken place in the boys' personalities in the past (almost) five months is nothing short of humbling.

Being unemployed continues to challenge me (to say the least) everyday. I am enjoying the boys more, but feeling very idle, a bit depressed and quite bitter still. I hope this will soon pass. I know that this is obviously a part of God's much greater plan for our lives, but I still miss having that one thing that was just "mine all mine". To top it all off, we have ALL been sick - not one of us spared - over the past two weeks; beginning with Daniel and now I seem to be the one who has whatever this icky virus is. More on this in a moment.

Thanksgiving was good. It was wonderful to be home with my family for a few days. I can't get enough of all of the "primos" together. They have such a good time playing and getting loud. It is a lot of fun. The boys ate a lot too. On the way home, Samuel said (in English) "at Nana's house, we eat and eat and eat and eat." This statement got belly laughs from both Troy and I. He is not kidding either! There was food galore.

On Tuesday, I was initiated into the wonderful world of stay-at-home-mommydom when Luis pooped on me and puked on me within about a 30 minute time span. He was so miserable. I felt horrible for him. He threw up again (on Troy, the floor, the massage chairs, his coat, his pants, his shoes, etc...) Thursday night at Concord Mills Mall - this time not because of the virus but because he stuffed himself full of chips, a quesadilla and rice at a Mexican restaurant and then proceeded to run around like crazy. On our walk back to the car, he walked into a railing and hit his cheek. It was so not his night.

Troy taught the boys the true meaning of Hokie pride this weekend by taking them to his friend John's house to watch the Tech game. You have never heard anything sweeter than these little boys saying "Go Hokies!" We thought we would start them early!

Well enough jibber jabber! Onto the pictures!

My little men! They were just too cute to resist a photo op in their kahkis and sweaters. Muy guapo indeed!

Samuel and Ethan had a blast playing together. Ethan is a couple of weeks younger than the twins, but the same size as Samuel. We LOVE our primos (cousins).

I think Liana is the best cousin ever! She gave the boys presents and takes great care of them. Not to mention she is a bit of tomboy so she has no problem being all rough and tumble with them. And she confided in me that she likes being the only girl. I can't say I blame her - it has to have its perks.

The boys at the kids table. This is where I ended up eating because the boys wanted to play more than they wanted to eat and at the rate that Luis eats, he would have been there ALL night.

To pass the time, we made turkey headbands for the boys.

I underestimated the size of Ethan's head, so his accidentally ripped. He was a little bit upset.

On the ride home, Daniel did this really silly thing with his aika. We still aren't sure what it was all about. Check out Samuel in the background who apparently has attended the Rob Wootton seminar on how to pop up in other people's pictures.

Bundled up for the wintry weather...Well as wintry as Charlotte gets. Samuel started riding the bus this week which has been a huge blessing. Now I only have to get one child up before 8 AM and get him ready and out the door. A LOT less stress. It also alleviates a lot of afternoon stress since the twins can nap before 3 PM. And he loves it!

I call this one the attack of the Oreo cookie. Luis is not only a slow eater, but a very messy one too.

Watching the game in Papá's t-shirt. Yes, it came down to his calves when he stood up, but he was insistent on showing his Hokie pride. Again, we are trying to start them early! Go Hokies!

Two Surprise Visits!

So I am a little behind this week, but so much has happened! First off, our week started with a couple of surprise visits and has just been crazy ever since.

Surprise Visit #1: On Sunday we went to McDonald's to go to the Playplace. (Please do not take this as an indicator as to how Troy and I feed our children - we had drug them to a few different stores and wanted to give them a chance to play for being such good sports.) At the said Playplace, Luis got bumped into by an older, bigger kid who he then hit and the kid then hit him back. Troy saw the whole thing, grabbed Luis and then I proceeded to take him out to the van where I could talk to him about what happened when I noticed his mouth was gushing blood. Well...it turns out that at some point during the "scuffle" he finally lost his snaggle-tooth. Yay!!!! We looked all over and couldn't find it, so we assume he swallowed it. He was so sad the whole way home, he just kept sucking in his lips. Troy and I kept rejoicing that it finally fell out. So...the Toothfairy made her first appearance in La Casa de Eisenberger. The other boys were jealous, but we have assured them that their teeth will fall out one day too!

Since Luis is so young to lose his teeth, I am not sure how long he will have the gap, but boy is the gap better than his messed-up, half hanging out teeth! He doesn't seem to mind that they are gone now.

How much is a tooth worth? Only $1 per tooth in our house, BUT we made sure they were the cool, shiny, gold dollar coins. Our kids don't really "get" money yet, so coins are just like another toy any way.

Surprise Visit #2: This one was MUCH needed. Picture it: I am on the phone, Samuel is crying because Daniel has pegged him in the head with yet another toy (when is Sam going to learn to just throw it back at him?), Luis is in his bed crying because he is in time-out for tearing a book, the doorbell is ringing, the dogs are barking... I figured the person at the door was probably FedEx and would go away when all of the sudden, my sister pokes her head in the door and says, "Hey are you going to answer the door?" Yay! Yay! Yay! I have not seen my family since April...My niece (who I like to consider my mini-me, not because she looks like me, but because I adore her and we have been peas in a pod since she was born) has grown like a foot, and my nephew (who used to never talk to me) couldn't stop talking to me! And to see my sister and my brother-in-law (who I equally adore) was like a much needed breath of fresh air. It was just the pick-me-up I needed after a hard week/weekend. The boys seemed a little tentative at first, but before too long, Daniel only wanted Tia Amanda and they were wanting Tio Rico (who is very tall) to pick them up over his head. I cannot tell you how long I have waited to see my children cling to my sister the way that Liana has clung to me. When Daniel got hurt and wanted Tia Amanda to comfort him, I had to smile with pride and nostalgia at the number of times Liana wanted me. It was such a great visit. I could go on and on...

La Familia bonita!

Poor Liana! She is completely outnumbered! Do you see her little foot sticking out? She was totally able to keep up though! Afterall, at almost 9 years old (in two weeks) she is nearly twice as tall as everyone else! I think Ethan was in boy heaven! He loves having boys his age and size to play with!

So, we adults went out for drinks but didn't have a babysitter... That joke will never get old for me. How many kids can you fit in the dog crate? And, why is it fun to lock yourself in the crate? I just don't get it. The boys were so excited to meet their cousins. When our family left on Tuesday, the boys stood at the door with the saddest faces on - Mama too.

Samuel and Liana were inseparable. When we went to the mall, she kept asking him for hugs and they would walk with their arms around each other. It was so adorable. In the car, she said to me, "Auntie, they are even cuter in person."

The boys are very thankful for the two extra dumptrucks that their new family brought! Now each of them have their own. Yes, I wrote their names on them. I have to stay one step ahead and had to anticipate that Samuel would get it in his head to play with all three at one time. Now each of them know exactly which truck is theirs. No crying, no arguments!