Oh...Vegas Tree?

To say that Jason was a little surprised to find this in Cindy and Kerry's house would be an understatement.

He told everyone who would listen how, when he first saw this, he went from room to room looking for the "real" Christmas tree. This is what he wanted to do to the impostor:

(That's supposed to be an ax...I have limited skills when it comes to drawing pretend axes with photo software.) Instead, he simply referred to the tree as the "Vegas tree" every chance he got, and shook his head in disgust every time he looked at it.

[Not everyone shared his disdain for the tree. Josiah even mentioned it today, while we were taking down our tree, how EASY he thought it would be if we had the "Vegas tree." "We could be done in, like, FIVE MINUTES!" Because he's such a practical child...when he wants to be.]

And look! Cindy had plates and napkins that matched the tree! Alas, it only gave Jason something else to poke fun at. Can you tell he's her little brother? ;)

Speaking of plates...Here is Cindy's lovely table:

And, personally, even I wanted to sit at the children's table this year. See the peppermint lollipops across the swirly peppermint plates? And the centerpiece? And the snow globes for each child to take home? CUTE!

With all of the excitement, presents under the tree, cookies and candy waiting to be eaten, and simply being in another house (with a dog! who comes inside!), it was hard for Grace to settle down. But eventually, she went to sleep.

Let me tell ya...it was not a restful night. The right side of the picture is the head of the bed--she was upside down much of the night, which works fine if you're sleeping by yourself in a crib...otherwise, not so much. It even looks like her baby Emily had a rough night.

Although we did not awake fully rested, we woke later than we were expecting since the boys were busy playing Super Mario (again) after eating a nutritious breakfast of the candy that Santa left in their stockings. That's why they were so quiet.

Santa brought Grace a sweet little doll. Grace named her Miss Muffy, although no one knows why she picked that name. She is in love with this new pink baby, but Emily is still #1 in her heart.

Santa brought some water gel guns for the boys. We're gonna have to talk to Santa about that brilliant idea. Fortunately, the gel has already run out, and they never actually shot each other...that I know of.

Cindy handed out the presents in order by age--youngest to oldest. Jason repeatedly noted that, after Cara, he was the next oldest (with a difference of HOW MANY years??). He was also the one who fussed when Cindy went out of order.

Josiah opened layer after layer after layer (10 in all) of wrapping paper...

Don't worry, I'm not showing them all...but look! He's smiling through all of the unwrapping!

Ahhh! Worth the effort. An MP3 player! Whoo hoo!

I was on the ball and already had the battery fully charged (Whoo hoo! Rechargeable battery!) and loaded with music for him. This MP3 player has a built-in speaker and belt clip, so it became a tracking device for Josiah. We knew exactly where he was at all times...playing Super Mario Go-karts when he wasn't sneaking into the kitchen to get "supplies" (cookies) for him and Robert.

Is it just me, or does Robert seem more excited about a Webkinz otter

than he does about a digital camera?

Grace opened a box full of dress-up clothes, complete with "shoes wid pink ribbon on dem"--heels!! She wobbled and fell only once or twice the first day; now she can run with them on. It is entirely possible that she has already logged more time in heels than her mother has.

What do you think...future Red Hat lady? She wanted to wear her new red dress, plus some dress-up clothes, over the outfit she already had on.

Cara looks more and more like her mother Cindy every time we see her. She is growing up...beautifully.

Charlie and his girlfriend Jessica came for dinner. It was good to see them again, and Charlie was a good sport suffering through the teasing about his parachute (you know, the one I wasn't going to mention). You can see Bambi escaping from the children by perching behind Charlie's shoulder.

Christmas was full of time with family, laughter, good food, more laughter,

and the annual foosball tournament. Apparently it's a rule that the winner must strike the "Super Star" pose (think: Molly Shannon on SNL). Or maybe Cindy just gets a kick out of that...

Happy New Year!

Overheard: Christmas Edition

Grace [bubbling over with excitement...until after 1:00 a.m.]: Dis is my furst Kissmas!

I didn't bother correcting her. :)

~~~~~

Grace [after finding out we would spend the night at her Aunt Cindy and Uncle Kerry's house]: Ya mean we gonna spend da night? Dat's a gate idea!!

Here she is pretending to sleep, in a bed that wouldn't even be hers:

~~~~~

Grace [trying to get Jessica to put her small Yorkie, Bambi, down so she could play with her]: Just put 'im down and let's see what happens!

Look at the puppy's eyes...I think that means "Leave me alone, scary children!"

~~~~~

Jessica: Cindy has the best laugh.

~~~~~

Cindy [opening the gift of a King of Queens DVD set]: I love me some Kevin James!

Jason: I don't think that sentence has ever been uttered before by anyone.

~~~~~

Robert and Josiah didn't say much...They were playing Super Mario for countless hours:

I won't mention anything (specific) about Charlie's parachute. But I really wanted to include something about Jason collapsing on the floor behind the sofa when he was overcome with laughter. Oh, well.

The drive back home...

Josiah [thirsty and offended after being offered some of my sweet tea]: Sweet tea?! I'm not a girl! I don't drink sweet tea!

A treat

I have been meaning to pass along this link to a few of you, so thought I would post it on the blog since I also meant to mention it to more of you. :)

I have not tried this recipe, but how can you go wrong with it? Let me know if you make them.

The woman who posted the recipe didn't give it a name...I'm not trying to be vague here. :)

Just a quick "Hello"

I am still knee-deep in laundry, unpacking, eating my sister-in-law's cake, and trying my best to get to bed before 1:00 a.m., but I wanted to share a couple of links with you.

My imaginary friend Shannon at Rocks in My Dryer wrote this.

My imaginary friend Melanie, a.k.a. Big Mama, wrote this.

Please read them! I hope you had a merry Christmas! And you can ask little Grace about those 1:00 a.m. nights I've had...

Joy to the World!

Joy to the world is not produced by consuming or purchasing or the things that we possess, nor is it found in their absence, or lack. Joy is a person, and that person is Jesus. He sowed tears of joy and sadness. He brings joy from our tears and fills our hearts with gladness at his coming. Weeping may last through the night, but joy comes in the morning. Joy to the world!

By Margaret Manning

Please follow the link to read the article this quote is an excerpt from. Pastor John included portions as part of his sermon on Sunday.

Merry Christmas!

Twirly skirts!

Over the last couple of days, I took time to sew some little dress-up skirts for Grace as one of her Christmas presents. She already has one I made her, which she modeled on the blog--and in Wal-mart--when she looked like a strange little fairy (skirt over sweatpants, mittens hanging from her coat sleeves, lots of flitting around).




The first one I made this week was nearly as sheer as the one she already has, so I made another one that she will be encouraged to wear underneath. This was what I finished yesterday:





I used two too-large shirts that I had received through Freecycle, cut them to the size I needed, and used the bottom of the shirts as the bottom of the skirt so part of the job was already done. I cut the skirts as long as would fit Grace now as a long skirt, and used enough elastic to simultaneously fit her well now and fit her well when she's Josiah's size. They will fit her for a few years, if the skirts last that long.



I am still working on sewing some bean bags for Josiah and Grace--a set for each of them. Nothing like working on Christmas gifts up until the last minute...

Want to see what I made last year? A cute dog bed for Josiah's toys. Pure madness on my part.

I used some flag-patterned fabric I've had for a while, very worn (and very thin, easy to sew) maternity jeans, portions of Jason's khaki's that were unrepairable (for the back of the bottom portion, since the flag-patterned fabric is very thin). The denim portion is stuffed with the filling from an old, clean pillow that had been washed way too many times.

Once I got started, I wished that my sewing skills kept pace with my imagination a little better. And I wished that I could sew it on a machine instead of entirely by hand. And I wished that the pattern I had in my head was smaller. But it turned out beautifully.

Bet you've never seen a manatee or a walrus in a pet bed before. :)

On a more serious note, please head over here to read ideas about thoughtful gifts from Shannon's readers at Rocks in My Dryer. And bring a tissue. You will need it.

To sleep, perchance to dream *

Each of my children have had trouble stay in his or her own bed and sleeping through the night. After dealing with this to various degrees for over 11 years, I am desparate to have my youngest sleep all night. Grace starts off in her own bed (still the crib), but ends up in ours sometime during the early morning hours, right when I'm a zombie and can't say anything but a sleepy "OK," because I'm delusional and believe at the moment that if only I let her get in bed with us, we would all sleep.

I figure we're making progress, though...Robert would have slept in our bed until he was at least 6 if we'd let him--maybe longer. (Don't tell him that I told you this!) And Josiah slept in our bed (or on a pallet on our floor) until he was 3. So it's gradually getting better, right?

Right?!

Grace recently said (repeatedly), "I don['t] like my kib" (translation: "I want to sleep with you") so I thought of making her something she could sleep with that she loves. She has a rainbow colored sundress that she loved in the summer and it's too small to fit her when it warms up again, so that became my project: I made the rainbow sundress into a rainbow pillow for her to sleep with.

I sewed along the arm holes and across the neckline, leaving the straps hanging out like loops. I took an old, clean pillow that I had previously taken out a good bit of the stuffin' to use in some other project, put the dress over it like a pillowcase, and sewed it closed with several darts at the hemline. I plan to go back and put some snaps or other closure to replace the darts, when I can find that sewing bag. Or, more likely, I'll cross that bridge when I am ready to wash the "pillowcase."

It is cute; it was quick and easy, even by hand; it doesn't ruin the dress in any way (rip out my stitches and it's ready to wear again); it has cute loops to hold onto while dragging it everywhere...and Grace could not care less about it.

But she is sleeping through the night in her "kib" most nights now! I promised her that she could have a bath every day if she slept in her crib "until it's light outside." She loves baths, and doesn't normally get one every day. Hey...whatever works.

The first morning after this promise, I happily reminded Grace, "You slept all night in your crib!" She looked up at me with big eyes and asked, "Do I get a baff?!" Then the second morning, she said, "Momma, I seep all night in my kib...Do I get anudder baff?"

And she will sleep with the rainbow pillow now. She doesn't completely ignore it like before. She even knows how to use it as a stalling tactic..."But, Momma, I need you ta get my rainbow pih-woh."

"And then get me da medicine to make my feet feel all better."


Um....yeah.

~~~~~

* Ever wonder how many phrases we commonly use came from Shakespeare? Well, OK, maybe not...but if you're curious, you can go here and check it out at The Phrase Finder.