Just a few things.

As I sit here quietly in my home, I may as well document a few things. My little Z is sleeping peacefully and Papa J is in "FINALS MODE." You know the mode where he leaves the house by 7am and doesn't return until 9:30pm. At least he's not commuting anymore. Thank goodness.

My camera is dead. And not only is it dead, but we are missing her battery charger. I could have sworn I had it in the house, but after searching high and low before leaving on Thanksgiving vacation, I gave up, hopeless. Until I realized that it what probably at my in-laws. A quick phone call and relief. Few. Luckily I'll be there this weekend.

Our Thanksgiving was great! Papa J surfed with my brother, we ate tons of good food, went and saw Twilight, rode the Christmas train, golfed, snuggled with Champion (my brother's blood hound) and took care of a sick, sick child. The day we left, little Z woke up congested. A good start for a 6 hour car ride, although she did fabulous. We had a few rough nights, but by the end of the trip she was feeling better. She knew she had to catch up on some sleep so she woke up at 10am and then hit the sack at 4pm and didn't wake up until 7am. Six hours of daytime and a whopping 15 hours of sleep! And she still woke up cranky. She quickly recovered and had a couple more naps on the way home. I finally have her on her normal schedule, though I'm not sure she's completely normal. Do your kids take 3-4 hr naps? I'm not complaining because the break is needed, but since daylight savings, she wakes up and our sun has set and our day is gone. I guess I'm feeling a little crammed is all. I never have enjoyed winter as I do summer.

On the other hand, little Z did something amazing before we left town. She tinkled in the toilet! Whenever I change her diaper and she refuses to put another one on, I ask her if she needs to go potty. Sometimes I think she uses it as an excuse, but I go with it nonetheless. So I put her on the toilet as usual, but this time I grabbed a book. I wanted her to feel comfortable. It worked! Papa J was home and witnessed the entire thing. We jumped up and down and she clapped her hands, though I still don't think she gets the whole thing. But it's a step in the right direction and now I know she's not afraid. I haven't put her on again, since she's been ill, but I might try putting her on more often.

So Christmas is approaching. And fast. On Monday we went out in search of our perfect tree. The lot around the corner charged $10/ft. A little expensive. So we headed to Home Depot to grab our 3-5ft (more like 3 ft.) Noble Fir for $20. It's our perfect little tree. A little on the Charlie Brown side, but we all love it. We put in on top of our end table so it sits higher and most decorations are out of little Z's reach. Each morning she wakes up and says, "Wow!" We also listen to Christmas music 24/7 and I can't stop singing while I'm cleaning the apartment building. I love this time of year.