bat!

Tonight, Jordan and I were invited to go shopping with friends. I decided to stay home because I knew we wouldn't be able to find a babysitter. Jordan couldn't make up his mind: he felt bad leaving us but really wanted to go.... he flipped a coin and the coin said to stay home. And now we know why: a BAT flew into our basement!! Gary chased it back and forth, I put my hood on, Jordan hid under a blanket and we both screamed like little girls. After I whipped the blanket off Jordan and demanded that he 'be a man' he caught the bat under the blanket which was on top of me!!! (Which reminded me of that Office episode when Dwight catches a bat with a paper bag on top of Meredith's head! Ever see that one... you've gotta!) So, if Jordan would have gone out tonight, it would have just been me and the bat! Seriously, I don't know what I would have done!

{shudder}

....{another shudder!}

our november

Where did November go?!?! I cannot believe how fast the days and weeks go especially during the holidays. A couple of weeks ago, Jordan got the h1n1 virus along with a small case of pnemonia. He was down for a week and I was so certain the rest of us would get it so I sanitized repeatedly and thankfully, we didn't get it. Us girls have gotten vaccinated since.

Last week Monday, Natalie decided to go potty all on her own and has only had accidents during naps and at night. Before that, she had only gone pee on the toilet a couple of times but she basically quit diapers cold turkey. She's such an entertainer. She's always got to make us laugh. But she's still in the 'terrible twos' stage. She can change her mood instantly which is not fun.

Ruby is walking really well and talking a little more. She's always been so much quieter than Natalie ever was. This morning, I was changing her diaper and saying 'you stink' over and over and she spit out her pacifier and tried to say 'stink'. She had her 1 year appointment and is 22 lbs + 11 oz and 30 inches long. Ruby is just so much fun. She loves to get chased and loves to mock us when we tell her 'no' by shaking her head at us while laughing and smiling at us. She loves to sing and dance, it's so cute!

We had a good Thanksgiving weekend. We have soooo much to be thankful for: our health, our girls, each other, our families, that Jordan is keeping busy at work, and so much more. We had fun shopping on black Friday, Jordan with Luke and Brad and me with Sara- we've gone for 11 years now.

So now we welcome December, my favorite month: we usually have a ton of parties to attend throughout the entire month and I love the first snow and all things Christmas. My goal for this month is to really embrace what the Christmas season is all about. I have been struggling with my devotions lately, as in I haven't been making God my #1 priority. So this month, in celebration of Christ's birth, I am hoping to give more devotion to the reason that I have so much to be thankful for and the reason that there is any joy in my heart at all.

Wow, what a long post! If you made it through this entire reading, I am honored :) Have a good week :)

sir gary barkel

I love my dog but I don't usually like him. And my dog, Gary, is unlike other dogs... he's more human-like. He can ring the doorbell and open the front door (which some of my friends can't even open!) and all day long, I'm letting him outside, then inside, then outside (who knew this about dogs?!) because he has to be social. He's so high-maintainence! Maybe it's why I get annoyed of him.... he's such a baby and I don't have the patience for him. But Thursday, I discovered that I really do love the dumb dog.

Gary ate almost an entire bag of chocolate chips on Friday. And though I've always known that chocolate is bad for dogs, I didn't really think much of it. I just spanked him, threw him outside and went on my merry way. About 4 hours later, Jordan called and I mentioned it to him and he freaked and told me to call a vet. So I called one and she freaked out when I told him how much he ate and told me that 'this is a medical emergency and it's gonna cost you a few hundred dollars' because they probably would have hospitalized him. I told her I was going to discuss it with my husband before bringing him in. But before calling my husband, she wanted me to pour as much hydrogen peroxide down his throat as I could get so that he would throw up. So I did that and it worked! At this point, we decided that we didn't want to bring Gary in if it was going to cost us an arm and a leg and if he was going to be throwing up in our car. I looked all over the internet about dogs eating chocolate and everywhere I looked, it seemed like he could have ate twice as much chocolate as what he did before he entered the 'toxic' level. He is fine and I'm soo happy we didn't bring him in but I had no idea how toxic chocolate is for dogs. And did you know, there are agents in grapes, raisens, onions, and garlic that can also be toxic for dogs?!

Moral of the story: no matter how much you think you don't like your dog, you realize how much you really do love him when you think he could go into a coma and die. So take care of your pets :)

halloween

We went to the grandparents' houses with the girls on Saturday and I think they got much better pictures of them. These are the ones I was able to get of Natalie and Ruby - they were both crabby and ready to go to bed so I didn't even try to get better ones!

We had a costume party later that night with our closest friends. The vote for best costumes went to Jeremy and Crystal, a.k.a. Fred and Wilma Flintstone!

Jordan's costume started out as my 1970's prom date but it transformed into a woman's costume by the end of the night. He's got lipstick on in this picture (and a woman's blouse from Salvation Army to match!)

And, of course, we had lots of goodies to munch on!

Next party theme.... the Tacky Christmas Sweater Party!

Why won't this picture rotate?!?! Oh well, here's my lil one year old:

ruby turns one

My baby is one today! I have such mixed emotions! Time goes way too fast. I wish she were a newborn all over again and yet I love seeing her grow up and mature!

A week ago she took a few steps and now she is taking 5-10 at a time. She is still the happiest baby I've ever known. Even when she's upset, you can still get her to smile. And when she does smile, her little eyes squint just about shut and her little nose crunches up... it's cute! And when we feed her with a spoon (she hasn't learned how to herself yet!) she opens her mouth as wide as she can while smiling and showing all her 10 teeth, she tilts her head back and resembles a little birdie waiting for her momma to reguritate some food for her! Ruby absolutely loves to dance and sing! It doesn't matter what kind of mood she's in, if I'm holding her and I ask her to dance, she's about jumping out of my arms! And of course, she is into everything! Everyday, I have to restock our bookcases with our books and movies. And just this morning, Ruby took the cap off of the baby shampoo and was emptying it onto the bathroom floor! Ruby can also be a cuddler if she has her favorite blanket. And if you're lucky, she'll give you an occasional kiss (that is, if you don't have facial hair!)

Ruby is such a blessing to this family. If I'm feeling impatient or preoccupied, all I need is a smile from Ruby to reel me in! We love you, Ruby, and we thank God that he chose us to be your parents!

Happy First Birthday, Rue Lou!

our fall in pictures....

Not much is new around the Barkel household.... I thought I'd post some new pictures from the last time I posted some:

All summer Natalie would help herself to cherry tomatoes from our garden.

Ruby enjoying a chocolate muffin from the last flea market.

Zeeland Pumpkin Fest: