Happy (almost) New Year, girlses!

Dear Lily and Sam,
I was so excited to get the phone call from your mommy this morning telling me that Lily had chosen my gramma-name!!!  I love being Gigi!  Uncle Brother and Aunt Bethany and Aunt Steph all said that's really close to G-ma which is what they wanted you to call me, so they think I should end up being G-ma, but I like Gigi better!  Maybe you will call Grampa R. G-pa . . .Gigi goes well with G-pa, don't you think?

Today I was sick like you guys have been sick lately.  I don't think I got it from you, but I have a stuffy-runny nose and scratchy throat and a cough.  I don't like being sick!  It makes me very whiney!!  But we went to a wedding today for some friends from church.  It was a very pretty wedding their colors were red and black, very Christmas-y.  But they took too much time taking pictures so the beginning of the reception was boring!  I wished I could be home taking a nap.  Instead I'm just going to go to bed early and sleep in tomorrow morning!  I hope you are feeling better by now, and that I don't stay sick very long.

Will Daddy be working for New Year's Eve this year?  I think I remember mom telling me that he would have Christmas off but not New Year's.  We don't have any plans for New Year's Eve yet - - and the way I feel, I doubt I will stay up until midnight to welcome in 2012!  Usually we have or go to a party for New Year's Eve, but this year Uncle Brother and Aunt Bethany will be in the Adirondacks (they are crazy about hiking right now) and we just haven't made any plans for partying!  Maybe we will start our next jigsaw puzzle - or maybe I will sew or cross-stitch into the New Year.

In 2012, we will be visiting you in Germany.  Not right away, more like in summer time.  I am very excited to get everyone a passport and come to see your house and the town you are living in!  It seems very pretty in your mom & dad's pictures - but I just can't wait to come and see it all for myself!

Also in 2012, G-pa and I will be remodeling our kitchen!  This is very exciting for us because our kitchen is too small and most of the cupboards don't even stay closed any more.  I don't know what we will do first, but I will take pictures of it all so you can see the difference.  I'm looking forward to using a big hammer and taking down the wall between the kitchen and the dining room . . . that will be really fun and it's something I wanted to do ever since we moved to this house.

Well, I said that I was going to be early, so I'm going to get my teeth brushed and hop in my bed (I'm already in my jammies).  I love you very very much!  Happy New Year!

love,
Gigi

Christmas 2011

Dear Lily and Sam,

So, I had this idea today and decided that I would try this and see how it works . . . your mommy keeps me up-to-date on how you are doing and what you are doing even though you live far far away from me. I decided that I would try blogging to let you know what I do and how I'm doing.

We just had Christmas - - Uncle Brother and Aunt Bethany and Aunt Stephanie and Grampa and I were all together in Corning and it was fun - - but it would have been even better if you guys had been here! We got to see you for a little while on the computer when we skyped, but that wasn't as much fun as getting to hug you and watch you open your Christmas presents when you are in the same house as us!

Did you know that last year, we were all in Mississippi when your Daddy was in tech school and we went to the beach on Christmas? That was pretty weird for us because we have always lived in New York and we usually have cold and snow for Christmas - - I guess it wasn't Christmas day that we went to the beach, but on the day we took pictures on the beach, most of us were wearing shorts! Also . . . Lillian Jayce, you need to do better next year about not getting sick for Christmas! You were sick last year (that diarrhea was nasty stuff) for Christmas and you were sick again this year for Christmas (both with a cold and with diarrhea!) BOO! bad idea! Next year, your goal is to NOT be sick for Christmas . . . AND to see your Gramma Rawleigh at Christmas time - - I love you guys so much, it's hard to have you gone for the holidays!

Today, I started cleaning up after Christmas. This always takes a couple of days for me! I took down the tree and cleaned the living room . . . and this year I decided to put away my snowmen from the dining room, too. Usually I leave the snowmen up because they're good decorations for winter, but I wasn't feeling it this year, so they got put away. We are trying out a different furniture arrangement in the living room - when I learn how to do it, I might post a picture of it. Grampa and I are thinking about putting the Christmas money your mom & dad gave us into buying new recliners for the living room, so I'll try to learn about putting pictures on my blog when we get them! Tomorrow I will probably work on the kitchen and the rest of the dining room. I didn't take the Christmas stuff out of the china cabinet yet, because I don't really know what I want to put back in there. We are thinking about getting rid of the china that usually goes in there because we never use it and it just collects dust. It's funny, that's the same reason that Grampa's last job ended . . . people weren't buying expensive pieces of glass any more because we have become a much more practical society . . . we don't like to display beautiful things and dust around them every week!

So, I don't know how often I will update this here blog - but when I do, I will let your momma know and hopefully she will read my notes to you! They probably won't always be this long and boring, but I'll try to write to you at least once a week so I can tell you what's happening in my life. I want you to know that I love you forever! See you soon!

love, Gramma Rawleigh

ps- Lily, you need to figure out what you're gonna call me and Grampa Rawleigh - - now that you are learning to talk, it's time to make that decision!