Merry Christmas

Somehow with the hustle and bustle of the season, I've neglected to post on the kids' Christmas program, Sam's cute obsession over my grandmother's Christmas village, our adorable antique Santa we recently found and placed to greet guests at the front door, my "Recessionista Christmas" worthy Christmas tree (that one's for you, Kel!), Grace's fear of Santa, the school Santa visit, our Christmas Eve traditions and, today, our quiet Christmas day. And, well, now we are off to celebrate the joy of the season with some of our family, so I guess I'll have to do a recap when we get back. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! Check back for new posts in 2009!

Attention:

To anyone with both a two-year-old and a dry erase marker in your house, please note that dry erase marker does not come out of upholstery.

Luckily, the chair that received the redo from Grace was already planned to have a redo from an upholsterer. Not so lucky...we weren't going to do it for awhile...haven't found the fabric I want to use, yet, and really don't want to shell out the cash around Christmas.

Soooo, flip over cushion, strategically place throw pillow...that should do it for the time being. And Grace has received her first grounding...no markers or crayons for 3 days. It was a week, but I cut it down, because cutting that activity out of that many days is more of a punishment for me than her!

one year

Well, we did it. We survived our first year in Kentucky. We survived the move just before Christmas travel, the unpacking, the trip to the ER the first weekend here, the daycare drama that spanned the whole year, the best friend withdrawals, the old house withdrawals, the new boring drive to work, the new work setting (listening to fork lifts every day hasn't killed, but I'm pretty sure it hasn't made me stronger, either)...all of it. Okay, I guess that didn't sound all that great. Kentucky's not bad, I just think I need to get to know it a little better...I'm planning to do that in the next year...we are going to slow down, explore and get to know the place we live. And by the time we get to a point where we can really, truly say we are enjoying the southern lifestyle, we'll probably be preparing for the move back north.

The one year mark has made me a little nostalgic (can you call it nostalgic, if you're only referring to one year ago?) so I thought I'd post some pics of the old house...our five-year renovation that we lovingly took on, replacing baseboards and trim, laying floors, painting walls, replacing railings, re-doing stairs, replacing cabinets, ripping out bathrooms, etc....the place we brought our babies home to...where we felt like we were busting at the seams, but still miss from time to time. Bear with me (these aren't even the greatest photos)...let me get this out of the way, have my closure and sometime in the coming weeks, I'll post pics of the progress we've made in this house.

profile of an artist: the early years

So I already knew the kid could do amazing things with Play-Doh...

Frogs on Lillypads

But he is now developing his skills in other media, as well...

Portrait of Mom & Dad
Kris is the one with the big head...I'm the skinny one with hair :)

Portrait of Grace & Sam
Grace is on the left...she's always smaller than him

Portrait of a Family
Mommy helped with the words...he drew Gordon on his own, though!

Portrait of Mother
How did I know this was me? Because he told me he was going to draw me then proceeded to add a belly button and the two circles you see between my eyes and mouth. I asked him if that was my nose, since I hadn't seen that on any of his other drawings, and he told me no...those were my breasts! At least someone still thinks they're perky! :)

the man of my dreams...

A couple of weeks ago, Sam and I headed out to run some errands on a Saturday morning. We had to hit three stores while we were out. The third store was the shoe store so Mama could try and find some new boots. I made a deal with the kid on the way in that if he held out and was patient and listened while I tried on shoes, I would take him to PetSmart before we went home to visit the doggies and kitties. (Many of the local animal shelters bring animals there on the weekends to try and get them adopted.)

This is one of Sam's favorite things to do, so he was extra good and actually pretty helpful while I perused through what must feel like endless rows of shoes to a 3-year-old. I was successful at finding boots and Sam was successful at earning his reward (although, slightly disappointed that we left the red, patten leather, open-toed stilettos he had picked out for me on the shelf at the store).

On to PetSmart we went. Walking into the store, we knew right where to go to see the dogs available for adoption. We never go in seriously looking. Everyone who knows me knows that I LOVE animals and have been pleading my case with my husband for a dog for years. We do have a cat, but I always had dogs growing up and would love for my kids to experience having a dog (especially since the cat won't let them near him!).

As we approached the maze of pens, the very first dog on the right caught my eye. He was a little, 1-1/2 year-old beagle mix named Hogan. He was very friendly as we walked up to him and maybe a little over-excited. The volunteer from his shelter saw us talking to him and offered to get him out. I declined...I try not to visit with any of the dogs too long because, well, I'd probably have about 60 dogs living at my house, if I did.

The volunteer insisted, though, since she said she was getting ready to take him out for a potty break anyway. I didn't hold Sam back as she opened the door because, even though Hogan was pretty excited and I predicted him jumping, I wasn't all that concerned since he really was only about the size of our cat. The door opened and the excited, friendly little guy bounded out and immediately dropped to the floor in front of Sam and rolled on his back to have his belly pet. I was floored!

Sam and Hogan interacted for a few minutes, and Hogan's tail never stopped wagging. I could tell he was just eating up the attention, yet he kept himself under control the entire time and didn't jump on Sam once. I then crouched down to pet him and tell him what a good dog he was and he slowly worked his way into my lap as I scratched behind his ears. And it happened...I did exactly what I had been avoiding for years...I fell in love with a shelter dog. The volunteer could see it. I told her I had to go talk to my husband...that we had a Christmas party that night so I couldn't possibly take him home that day...that I might touch base with her before the end of the day and see if we could drive out to the shelter to get him the next day. All the while, of course, not letting Sam hear any of it. I didn't want to get his hopes up (or mine) since there's a daddy at home who is not all that fond of dogs.

We left the store and, the whole way home, Sam was telling me that he loved that dog, that he wanted Hogan to come and live with us, that Hogan needed a family so he didn't have to live at PetSmart anymore. And while he went on and on out loud, I was going on and on in my head...it was a stupid idea...we wouldn't be able to bring him home until Sunday, then would have to leave him for work on Monday...we had family coming into town for Thanksgiving that week and how would he deal with all the commotion...would he feel abandoned again when we would have to board him for the week between Christmas and New Year's...

We got home and I immediately went to find Kris. I quietly told him that if he had ever even considered agreeing to a dog in the house, the one we needed to get was at PetSmart at that very moment. Since he was heading out to run errands of his own while the kids were napping, he actually agreed to go check him out! There was glimmer of hope!

And here is where you are all expecting a happy ending and an adorable picture of the new family dog, right? Well, sorry to let you all down, but...

Kris arrived at PetSmart too late to see Hogan since his shelter had already taken their animals back to their facility. The next day, I logged onto their website and learned he had been adopted. I was a little sad for a few days...I'd never been that drawn to a dog before...I almost had myself believing that Kris would arrive home with our new furry friend that afternoon. But, it apparently wasn't meant to be.

A few days later, Sam asked about Hogan and whether he was going to come live with us. I gently told him that Hogan went to live with another family and that he was happy to not have to be in the little cage at PetSmart anymore. Sam was a little upset, but after a couple minutes, accepted the answer and went on with his day.

A few days after that, the whole family plus my parents were all walking into Michael's together which happens to be next door to PetSmart. Sam again asked about Hogan and I reminded him that he went to live with another family. It was then that he said, very loudly and disappointedly, "Ohhhh, I don't want a crazy dog running around my house and breaking everything...I want Hogan!" And, I swear, he came up with that completely on his own. It seems I have an ally in my quest...we're working on getting Grace on board, too. Our goal is in sight and the search is on for another "Hogan". Once we find him/her, I think our tactic to win the battle with Daddy will be...tears...from all three of us. Wish us luck!

meet Lester

Tonight, our children discovered that Santa sent an elf to our house to keep an eye on them. They named him Lester and were intrigued to learn that he flies away to report back to Santa every night while they are sleeping. He was introduced just before bed time tonight. I've decided he's my new best friend. You see, my sneaky, little, blonde two-year-old who, for the past several months has refused to stay in her bed, or even in her room, at bedtime, went right to bed tonight with no incidents. With all the free time I've had this evening since I haven't been constantly putting a kid back in bed or cleaning up her little trails, I figured I better take a moment to give credit where credit is due. To get your own little Godsend, click here.

a few days late...but full of thanks

Both Christmas trees have been put up. The rest of the Christmas decorations that live in the trunk with the ornaments all year have been placed around the house. This weekend, we'll put up my grandmother's Christmas village that she passed down to me and the Nativity scene that she hand painted. And I'm feeling a little ashamed that, after my rant last week, I still haven't posted a recap of our lovely Thanksgiving weekend.

Sooooooo.....

This year, we are thankful not that our guest list was cut by over 50%, but that my little niece or nephew who was threatening to arrive eight weeks early decided to stay put for the time being.

We are thankful for the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, even if Grandma and Papa were not the grand finale of the parade, as Grace had predicted.

This year, we are thankful that my parents were still able to make the trip and eat at our table.

Sam is thankful for the quality time spent with both Grandma and Papa and is especially thankful that they hauled his "new" desk down from Michigan.


Both kids are thankful for being able to play pirates with Grandma and for housing a resident narrator for a few days.


Grace is thankful for the chance to hone her skills in the cosmetology field (notice the lovely use of barrettes on both Grandma and Papa) and for the opportunity to enjoy a little pampering of her own.


We are thankful for the Lexington Christmas parade...even if we did see the big, mean, scary Grinch (scared little Sam always makes us turn it off and still hasn't made it to the end of the movie to find out that the Grinch becomes nice).


Grandma and Papa are thankful that the kids went down for a nap each day.

And we are all thankful to feel so truly blessed each day.

AND...I'm also thankful for my friend, Jeanine, who celebrated her birthday on Thanksgiving...girl, you know I always remember, but still never seem to make it to a mailbox with your card.

AND...I'm thankful that the cheesecake I was tooting my own horn about last week actually tasted as good as it looked. :)

Now...on to the Christmas season...

a Thanksgiving first

I just made my very first cheesecake! I said Thanksgiving first above but really, it is an overall first. It took me awhile to work up the nerve to add this pumpkin cheesecake to the menu for tomorrow, but after a close friend gave a most compelling pep talk (surprisingly, pretty close to the pep talk I gave her about having a third child...you can do this), I took the plunge. I have to say that even though I found out that the spring loaded pan and I are, as Sam would say, not best friends anymore (is it supposed to leak melted butter all over the inside of the oven the night before I have to cook a holiday feast?) and even though I ended up with a pretty sizable crack on the top when I removed it from the pan, I'm still pretty proud of myself. Although, no one has tasted it yet...I'll post with comments from the crowd after the big meal tomorrow! Happy Thanksgiving!

sorry, Squanto...it's all over

In case you haven’t heard, we’re apparently skipping Thanksgiving this year.

I had a feeling this was coming. I felt the beginnings of it several years ago when I worked retail and was forced to start displaying the Christmas ornaments in late August. For me, it became most evident this past Friday evening, though.

Since we had a Christmas party to attend on Saturday (I know, don’t get me started), I decided to run out and purchase Christmas-y outfits for the kids on Friday night. Much to my dismay, the store I frequent most often for children’s clothing had nothing even remotely Christmas season stocked. When I inquired as to when they would be putting those items out, I was told by the clerk that I had missed them. It seems they had them out sometime in October and that past week had packed everything up to be shipped to their outlet store. That made a little more sense to me, since I used to live near one of the outlets, so I was always able to purchase the Christmas outfits there after Thanksgiving.

But, really? What happened to the harvest season? What happened to the holiday between Halloween and Christmas? Little twinkling lights are going up all over my neighborhood, but I am holding out. I am determined to keep my pumpkins, scarecrow and turkey out until this coming weekend. And I will continue to fight the urge to set up the artificial cashmere pine tree I bought the other day...oh, don’t ridicule me...the sale was crying out to me louder than crushed spirit of Squanto.

a cold day in...Cincinnati

A couple of weekends ago, we decided that the best thing to do coming off of a mid-70° week was head to the Cincinnati Zoo on a 41° day. We had plans to meet friends from college, the Skinners, who now reside in central Ohio. Sam and Grace were pumped to see their little pals, Wes and Riley, again, and the kids all seemed to pick up right where they left off the last time we met up in July. And their parents couldn't be more thrilled that they all get along so well :) Here is our day at the zoo in pictures...

All four kids were excited to happen upon the most sought-out animal at the zoo...the pig!

It was this moment that Grace fell in love. A few moments later, she was let down gently when Wes politely explained to her that he couldn't ride in the wagon with her because "I'm just not used to being around girls."


Sam and Wes...new best buds.
The fact that the day was chilly was actually pretty nice...it made for a relatively empty zoo which meant we were able to let these two run all around without worrying about them getting lost in a crowd.


Posing for fall pics...one of the few photos I have with Riley in it. He was the sensible one who actually kept his hat on and spent the better part of his day at the zoo in the stroller under a blanket.

Apparently at this zoo, the peacocks don't have their own exhibit. Instead, they just roam freely all over the zoo. I was lucky enough to catch one who had a touch of anxiety and refused to let his guard down (okay, he was actually completely freaking out and probably could have used a little something to calm him down)...made for a nice pic, though...

And then there was this guy who couldn't decide whether he wanted a hot apple cider or a hot chocolate to warm him up.

Grace can be seen here posing where the boys had wanted to get their picture taken but just couldn't seem to stay still long enough for me to get it...

Kris checking his wingspan...too bad none of us thought to make a note of whose wingspan measured up with his! This was inside the eagle exhibit which was a little frightening with small children as you are standing right inside the pen with the eagles. Of course, they have branches strategically positioned between the observation area and the habitat, but it all felt just a bit too open for this mama.

Playing with Mark...burning off a little energy before we get back in the car...
And the ride home...nice and peaceful :)

Sam and Wes hit it off so well, that we decided to get them together again this past weekend, since I was heading to Columbus to meet up with some Cleveland friends for a shopping day. I woke Sam up bright and early on Saturday. We packed breakfast and three toy garbage trucks and snuck out of the house before Kris and Grace woke up.

Mark and Brook were kind enough to come get him from the mall and take him to a movie (have I ever mentioned that Sam freaks out at any remotely scary character in any movie...no?...I forgot to mention that to Brook, too...) then back to their house while I got some quality time walking around in the rainy, cold outdoor mall with Holly and Sheila. We didn't get much shopping done, but, to be honest, I was just using shopping as an excuse...I really needed Cleveland friend time...feeling a little "home"sick lately.

It was an enjoyable two weekends and actually really impressive that we got Skinner time in two weekends in a row (and just 4 months after our last rendezvous) considering we have been pretty lax at coordinating our schedules for a visit the last few years. Now that we have these visits behind us, I am really feeling the crunch of the fast-approaching holiday season...we're all getting excited to have family down for Thanksgiving in just a week and a half!

recent work

I've been in a painting mood, lately, so any child's gift we've needed as of late, has been painted. Below are three recent pieces. I have a couple more to post sometime in the next week after I know they have been received.

the shiner...

Last week, Sam had a run in with a big, mean, nasty...slide.
Kids get black eyes all the time from their fearless shinanigans,
right? Could someone please explain that to the countless
people I caught staring at me all week with that I-know-you-beat-your-kid-and-I've-just-called-social-services look on their face. This shot really doesn't do the injury justice. I wish I would've taken a picture each day of this...it got way more impressive and colorful as the week rolled on. Thankfully, there was no damage beyond the surface and he was back to his usual playground-equipment-climbing self the next day.