Dear Peep,
After two beautiful days over Thanksgiving weekend full of lots of outdoor play and food we've had three days of constant hard rainfall! We enjoyed two days of good eating...a turkey and ham with all the excitement that too many side dishes bring seasoned eaters. First at Grandma P's and Bahboo's with Uncle Gary and Cousin Tony, and Mommy's cousin Rick with his three kids on Thursday. You enjoyed the woods and filling your shirt pockets with acorns. Friday was a repeat at Grandma LaJean's where we ate and played. GG was celebrating her 94th birthday so of course we
added some pieces of cake into the mix. Daddy's sister, Aunt Krispie and her partner Aunt Currie, his aunt and uncle and cousin David, Angie and their five kids were all visiting. You sat at the "boys' table," and played outside jumping and endangering your little body trying to keep up with the big dudes.Normally we don't get our Christmas tree until a week or so into
December but you've been SO exuberant about seeing Christmas everywhere we bought it Sunday at a local tree farm, Twin H.
We finally found a tall tree that reaches high to the ceiling! Decorating it sent you into a tizzy, along with listening to carols and Daddy singing along you were flapping around the room with such enthusiasm that I do believe your arms nearly flipped off of your body and knocked that gorgeous tree right over. You rolled, jumped, squealed and hung as many plastic ornaments on the lower three feet that your little arms could get up before Daddy and I were just over it and decided it was time to tame the Christmas beast. As the old adage of "just one more" was completed we whisked you quickly off to bed and by the time I counted to one hundred twenty you were sleeping. It is so much fun to feel the new breath that you bring to the holidays. I am beginning to see them as I did as a kid again, inflated and filled with electricity.
Dear Peep,
Since the summer you have been anxiously awaiting the time when Bahboo's popcorn could be picked and shucked. Last week he gave us a call asking if we could come help him collect it all. You were excited and decided you needed to bring your special blue bucket to carry it. You shucked and picked, picked and shucked and then were over it. Two buckets full. Your enthusiasm diminished once you discovered it had to be taken off the cops and dried for a period of time before you'd be able to eat it.
It was still fun and a great way to spend a beautiful November afternoon.
Love, Mama
Dear Peep,
Grandpa Tim was on his fall visit and to your delight he bought a new giant John Deere tractor.
Loaded with attachments like a scoop and a bush hog. You were a little intimidated at first but cozied into the seat on Grandpa's lap just fine. As the light fell we had a little fire and roasted hot dogs and marshmallows.
On another night, with a full moon shining Grandpa Tim brought out his telescope and you took a glimpse.
You exclaimed, "It is bigger! The moon is big." Yes! The moon is bigger in a telescope Hen, that's the idea. So glad that you get so many new experiences so young.
Love, Mama
Dear Peep,
We have news we've been easing you into for the last few months. With the arrival of Ariya Rose and Abraham you've talked often about a "little boy sitting here and a little girl sitting there." Daddy and I have been talking about it too. Thus we are starting the adoption process for a second time! It is a little daunting and tedious getting the paperwork done, working on a dear birth mother letter that goes out to prospective woman/families looking to place but it will be worth it! We know it will from experience. Never did we think we would open up to so much love and a broader view of family and then we met feisty, funny and sweet Jo Jo and she introduced us to you! When asking you on an afternoon drive what you would name a little brother you said, "Hmmm Johnson Potato Orange Juice."
It was so certain and definite so I was surprised this week when you changed it to Johnson Potato Apple Cider Juice Thompson. For the record we will not be naming a child either variation of Johnson Potato (insert juice of the day) Thompson. Last week you helped me send off our recommendation requests.
You decorated the backs with fall stickers and pictures, put the stamps on and helped me send them at the post office. You said maybe our baby will come over now. Not quite yet. But we hope to be on the books by January 2012. You will make a sensational big brother! but for now never forget that there will never be another Peep in our lives.
Love, Mama
PS If you know of a woman looking to make a plan for their baby and are researching their options don't hesitate to give them our information, even if we aren't the family for them. More info and updates to come.
Thanks!
Lisa T.
Dear Peep,
Before you, before John John there was Cousin Toehee. He was a little buddy that we did all kinds of fun things with...he was great practice for when you came into our lives. Now he is 15, soon to be 16 and learning to drive. Now that they have moved to Fishers we are able to see him and Uncle Gary much more frequently and it has been great. Toehee is so good with you! A few weekends ago he kept you buys by flying you around Grandma P and Baboo's yard, letting you ride him like a horse,
reading books, bowling and stomping around a pumpkin patch. We love having him around. We hope to have him come to visit again in a weekend or two. You've been asking about him.
I am glad you have a special big buddy and our Toehee is close by!
Love, Mama
Dear Peep,
You are a trick or treat champion. You had the opportunity to wear your costume and ask for candy four times this year. First you dressed for the IU Frat/Sorority trick or treat, then school, then the mall and finally Doug and Peter's neighborhood. Continuing our Star Wars theme of last year's Chewbacca this year you were a very convincing Yoda! We gathered the parts of your costume from garage sales, thrift stores, Walmart sweat pants and turtle neck, hardware stores and the fabric store. I made the robes myself. The hat came from a garage sale 2 years ago. The feet came from a thrift store. The belt I made and daddy made the custom to spec prop light saber to hang off of it. The light saber was quite impressive.
Complete with its own illuminated red button it looked pretty tuff hanging from your belt. Of course, we also purchased a light saber that telescopes out and glows green! You were great! At the mall you and Devo really wanted to eat the candy more than collect it, and let me just publicly point out the worse mall candy came from the actually candy store.
They handed out generic flavored tootsie rolls, the type you can't get the wrapper off of because it is hard, old and gooey. On the street you followed with us great! People loved your costume, exclaiming, "YODA!"
You were gracious, minus one incident where a lady gave you a green piece of candy and you told her you wanted blue and threw yourself on her front steps screaming. To be fair that was at the end of the evening and you were getting tired. You came back around when it was time to hang out with the kids at Doug and Peter's house.
While I was admiring their top notch, beautiful remodel you played with the other 4 toddlers. Banging out on the piano (poor piano), feeding Etienne chex mix or stuffing your mouth with a brownie when it came time to go you didn't really want to.
You hid in their coat closet. It is wonderful experiencing Halloween all over again. On the way home we stopped by Krispie and Curries and got some play doh and hugs.
We love getting you together a costume, seeing you be a kid and watching all of our babies from the adoption group grow up together. Perfect!
Dear Peep, 
