She’s back!!!
Somehow, I’d hoped that with our change of house and city, our naughty little elf on the shelf wouldn’t find us. But, she did and descended upon our house to wreak havoc and create mischief. I’m going to have to have a talk with Santa about giving her our new address….
This was the first time Crystal had met Cooper and he went right to work showing her who’s boss.
Which caused her to drink heavily….and up her game in the merriment making.
Something about Christmas made me feel crafty, and I decided this year to make my own Advent calendar for the kids. So, I brainstormed the best way to make one, purchased like $50 worth of craft supplies and chocolate, and fired up the hot glue gun. In the end, my tree that was stuffed with chocolate looked pretty cute. However, I did not think it through properly and discovered how heavy 2 pounds of chocolate is when you try to hang it on the wall….it fell within 30 seconds of hanging and Santa did not appreciate the swear words that came from my mouth. Also, I have one small child who is pretty particular about her chocolate and ended up not liking most of the treats. In hindsight, I probably should just stick to the $1 calendars in the grocery check-out line.
Real quick, in a non-holiday related happening, my young smart kid qualified for the district Math Team competition. He was a “Mathlete,” if you will:-) His math brain is impressive to both his father and I, and we know that very, very soon he will surpass the need for us to help with homework. We’re super proud of him.
You know who we’re not super proud of? Cooper. He’s going to outgrow this puppy stage soon, right? RIGHT? In this first picture, he looks super cute underneath the Christmas tree, like a Hallmark card. Then, look at what was once a box full of ornaments, chewed to shreds. Lastly, after he chewed up every single present I wrapped, I decided to fix it once and for all. Isn’t it lovely? It’s the kind of tree that even Martha herself would be proud of. And, an endorsement for Paradigm Fresh to boot!
When we moved from Fort Collins, we left our awesome trampoline behind. Our neighbors took it off our hands, which we were thankful for, because disassembling and moving that would have been awful. But, we found that the kids really missed it….so we decided that’s what we’d get them for Christmas this year. And what better time to go outside and jump around than when it’s 10 degrees and snowing. Doesn’t it look inviting? No matter to them, they were thrilled.
One of the many, many benefits of sending Malory to a church-based preschool this year is the amount of information she’s received about the Christmas story. That, and the movie “The Star” have her talking about the baby Jesus and Mary and Joseph non-stop. It’s also opened up a whole new world of drawing for her. For instance, this picture is of baby Jesus in the manger, with Mary looking over him. When I asked her where Joseph is, she said that he was inside with his friends watching football. I am not kidding, this is an actual conversation we had. #truth
Christmas is hard. After weeks of shopping, wrapping, decorating, class parties, company dinners, cooking, more shopping, watching Frosty for the 700th time, I am wiped. And in need of several glasses of wine. Who am I kidding? I need several glasses of wine DURING those things. This picture though is from Christmas Eve, the calm before the storm if you will. I’m pretty sure I sent it to Santa, letting him know that my part was finished and he would have to take it from here.
And deliver he did. Malory’s eyes lit up like the headlights on her new Mercedes convertible. Reese was thrilled to received her own iPod Touch and promptly sent Santa a thank-you SnapChat. And, Jackson was wide-eyed at the prospect of his largest Lego set yet. 5,923 pieces….should take him about 4 hours.
As for gifts from John and I, this year I tried to do something I’d seen on Pinterest in an attempt to not overbuy. I tried to buy gifts following the theme of “something you want, something you need, something to wear, and something to read.” It worked pretty well and is something I’ll try again next year with a few modifications. As the big kids get older, I’d like to incorporate more activities or experiences and fewer “filler” gifts. I’d still like to get them one big item from their wish list, but also think of things to do together instead….theater tickets, concert tickets, a trip somewhere, etc.
Oh, and fake nails.
Charlie Brown was pleased as could be after receiving a gigantic bag of smoked pig ears. He got right to work stealing them from the other dogs and hoarding them in the corner. Meanwhile, Walter sulked in the hallway because he eats his so fast he doesn’t even taste it.
And, since we’re talking about Walter’s eating habits, let’s discuss his hatred for vegetables. I had taken him to the vet early in the month for routine vaccinations and confirmed what I already knew. Wally is a little fat. He is food obsessed and counts the hours between breakfast and dinner. If you say the word “treat” or anything that rhymes with it, he perks up and runs from wherever he is, at breakneck speed. So, like everyone else, the holidays are brutal for Walter Woo. The desserts alone will add inches to his waistline. I decided to help him by adding bulk to his normal meals in the form of green beans, hoping to fill him up with less.
Well, you can see how that worked out. He ate every morsel of food around the beans and left them as a way of flipping me off.
But, can you blame him? Uncle Lee is one strong Ironman to lift that hunk of love….
