"And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men."
Merry Christmas to You from the Eicholtz Family
It's finally happened. We've found someone who gets even more of a kick out of Christmas (and herself) than I do. Allison Kathleen Eicholtz joined us on February 12th, 2011 weighing in at 8 lbs, 6 oz, and 19.5 inches long. The past 10 months have flown by, and now she’s a walking (we have officially 5 steps as of this letter…she’ll be driving by Christmas), babbling, clapping, kiss-blowing, 22 solid pounds of joy incarnate. Of course every now and then (like when she has to ride in her carseat or take a nap when clearly there is fun to be had with her eyes open) her joy gives way to, we’ll call it ‘spunk.’ But overall Allie loves…well…just about everything. To our delight, Christmas happens to be top on her list of favorites. Each morning, after we've waved at all of the animals on her nursery wall, we do what we've come to call our 'Christmas Tour.' We go downstairs, she sees the Christmas tree and she smiles, babbles, waves and claps. Next, we visit the nativity set where she smiles, babbles, waves and claps at Baby Jesus. Then, the nutcrackers...more smiles, babbles, waves and claps. Then onto Santa Claus and the Advent Calendar where, you guessed it, she smiles, waves and claps.
Needless to say, life is a bit different at the Eicholtz house these days, and I'm not talking about the fact that Chris finally gave in to peer pressure and joined Facebook. Some things have, however, remained the same. Chris is still working from home for Ernst & Young in IT. His office attire remains…‘casual,’ but his wake-up time is definitely earlier than the one he enjoyed in 2010 since he’s now Allie’s ride to ‘school.’ Having him at home and only 15 minutes away from daycare has been a huge convenience for times when, oh, I don’t know, a pair of parents who will remain nameless send their daughter in to daycare with 3 nipple-less bottles for the day. He’s made more than one ‘oops’ return-trip. When he's not playing taxi to daycare, Chris remains dedicated to his CrossFit training and can be found at the gym or in competitions most days flipping tires, running through fire, flinging weights above his head, and completing ridiculous amounts of pull-ups in one setting. He loves it...more power to him.
We are very happy with Allie’s daycare setting. She loves going there and has a friend with whom she terrorizes the ‘infant 1’ room (they’re busting the pair of them out to room 2 at the beginning of next year). She loves her teachers and gets a kiss and an ‘I love you’ when she leaves each day. We have peace of mind that she is in good hands which is a huge blessing.
I am in my 6th year at Heritage High School as a school counselor. This year has definitely been an adjustment without having the cushion of coming in early and staying late to get caught up with everything else when during-the-day-craziness overtakes my caseload (and it has definitely already been an ‘eventful’ fall and winter with my kids at school). But, I still like my job and gain strength from the interaction with the students, and I am reaching a better balance, knowing that things just won’t be wrapped up as nicely at the end of each day as I would like. The trade-off for that, of course, is that waiting for me ready to be picked up is our not-so-little bundle of sunshine and somehow I don’t worry about what’s on my work-plate until the next day begins. I'm back to running, and enjoy my trips both with and without my running partner in her stroller. Double-digit mile runs seem like a lifetime away at this point, but Allie's not the only one taking baby steps, and that's OK.
And of course, there’s the other member of the A-Team, our boxer Abby, who turned 5 this year. We are very proud parents of our four-legged girl. She has been a trooper with Allie. She is patient when we can’t get our act together as quickly in the mornings to let her out and she is gentle with her sister, carefully avoiding any 70 lb missteps even in her most excitable state. Though, we are pretty sure we hear her sigh from relief these days when our active Allie is quietly tucked in her crib and she can enjoy some couch time with the two of us.
We have been blessed beyond all deserving this year, and as always, Chris and I count you, our family and friends, as great among these blessings. May the peace of Jesus Christ be with you in this Christmas season and always.
With our love,
Chris, Suz, Allie & Abs
