Day..too many: Ugh '~'

So it's been forever and ever since I blogged. I keep meaning too but I usually do it around bedtime and lately, been trying to get as much rest as I can. The girls have been sick off and on for the past two weeks and I feel like I'm coming down with something now. Aurora didn't get too bad, but poor Annabelle got a really bad fever along with the cold. Lots of stuff has been happening, Aurora is saying lots of words now and when she doesn't say real words, she is babbling like crazy. Both she and Annabelle want to be big kids so bad. Most of the kids in the neighborhood are a little older and the girls follow them around like puppy dogs. Annabelle is coming into her own as a big sister and she's really good at it. Let me back up and give you a tiny bit of Annabelle history. She has been scared of the vacuum cleaner for a long time. When she was tiny, she would need to be picked up, now, she just jumps up on the furniture. She is so scared of it that if I have it out, she will give it a wide berth to avoid getting anywhere near it. Now, with that in mind, Aurora is blissfully ignorant to the terrors of the vacuum, she giggles and crawls or walks around it while I'm vacuuming. So the other day, I was vacuuming the floor and Annabelle jumps up in a chair in her usual style and Aurora just stays on the floor, laughing her butt off. Annabelle, seeing her sister in imminent peril, immediately starts shouting warnings to her baby sister, telling her to "watch out!" and "run/get away!" and "oh no sissy!" Her sister, being oblivious to the apparent danger, continues to toddle about, happy as can be. Realizing the little one would not heed her, Annabelle then makes the split-second decision to protect her sissy from the monster that is the vacuum. So, she leaps heroically from her chair and puts herself between the hideous creature and her baby sister, putting her arms up to corral her and make sure she doesn't come to any harm. And, to Annabelle, that is the equivalent of an adult standing in between a snarling grizzly bear and another person. She didn't overcome her fear as she still jumps up on the furniture when I vacuum, but she still makes sure that Aurora is thoroughly safe anytime I do. Just one of several adorable acts of big sisterhood she has undertaken. She is constantly bringing her sister along with her to include her in her activities. We decorated the Christmas tree a few weeks back and Annabelle was helping Aurora pick out ornaments and finding the perfect spot to hang them (and subsequently, every day since, they "un-decorate" and "re-decorate" the tree as they see fit). When we have our meals all together, Annabelle is always trying to share her food and feed her sister. I really pray that this close comraderie continues to stay and grow stronger as they get older. It is quite endearing and heartwarming to witness the sweetness between the two. Annabelle has also been a lot more vocal lately and her favorite phrases are "leave me alone", any sequence of counting, "I want to hug you", "I want to go outside", and "I love-a you." The last one is understandably my favorite. She is so sweet (the majority of the time) and is constantly giving hugs and kisses to her sister and I. I don't like seeing them sick, but it definitely brings out their sweeter sides. On another note, we have been readying ourselves for Christmas by decorating and wrapping presents. The stockings are filled and hung. The tree is trimmed and already has a few gifts under it. All of the presents in the house are wrapped and we only have a small few left to shop for. I've been trying to get Jayson's packages sent off but with the way I've been feeling lately, it hasn't happened yet. I'm feeling pretty stressed about it and getting everything he needs sent to him. I keep thinking I'm going to forget something or that what I'm sending isn't enough. My thoughts have been so scattered lately with getting all the bills taken care of, the girls being sick, me being sick, the daily household requirements, the dogs' needs, my computer issues, and any and everything else, I can't keep my head straight. I just need lots of prayer for peace of mind and focus because it's been very difficult to organize my thoughts and keep them where they need to be. Anyway, I'm going to try to get back into blogging more often because it is one of the things that helps me organize the thoughts I need to keep and discard the ones I don't. Thanks for listening, those of you that do, I really appreciate all your support. Hope all your holiday preparations are going well. :)