Christmas Tree Decorating....stage 3.

December 11

On to the decoration of the Christmas Tree.

Yes, we had to decorate the Christmas tree in stages. That's what happens when one has to work almost every day of the week.

But why decorate a Christmas tree when you can decorate a little girl? The minute we took the garland out of the box....Lil' Miss proceeded to wrap herself up in it. Garland....such fun stuff!! Mr. Mister proceeded to also get himself into a little bit of trouble. I was content to leave him dig through the Christmas boxes...until I saw a Christmas ornament 'zing' past.

Hey, everyone knows that everything shaped like a ball was meant to be thrown.......

And then I had two helpers....count them....TWO helpers helping me put on the Christmas ornament balls. Mr.Mister got right in up to his elbows with this task.

And why limit yourself to levels within your reach? By all means....reach for the highest spot you most possibly can!

Helper #1 and Helper #2 needed to stretch their arms to the highest of heights.

I also quickly learned that we would only be putting shatterproof/ unbreakable ornaments on the tree. For every two ornament balls that made it to the tree, one got tossed like a golf ball through the air (wonder who was doing that??????).

But that's ok. A tree is no fun if it's the same every year. And sometimes less is more....

Lil' Miss: Mommy, the tree is  BEAUTIFUL!

Mommy: Yes, you are right!

Such a good job you did, little peoples!



Foot Art.

December 10

What does that 2 little feet, covered in green and red paint, and stamped on a little piece of wood become? A special present from Lil' Miss to Mommy and Daddy! Lil' Miss was so excited when she came home from school one day with a specially wrapped present for Mommy and Daddy. She gave it to us right away. And insisted that we open it. I explained to her that it looked to be a Christmas present and perhaps we should wait until Christmas to open it. No, that little explanation did not go over well. There may have been some foot stomping, and verbal protest with a LOT of insistance that it get opened right this instant! 

Little kids....they have no patience!!!

So we opened it.  And discovered Lil' Miss's feet stamped to look like a Christmas tree. How cute is that????

Almost as cute as the little girl holding the Christmas tree footie art.

And of course where there is one little cutie, another always follows.....

CHEESE!



December 9

December 9

The Christmas tree decorating saga continues!!!

As you can see, the tree has thawed and fluffed itself to a very nicely proprotioned evergreen. Lil' Miss...you did a good job with that pointy finger!!!! And it smells looooovely. Fresh evergreen assaults your nose as you enter our house right now. Much better than the stale dog and poopy diapers odoeur that normally tickles my olfactory senses.

Oh yeah...please ignore that decoration at the top of the tree.  We all know how THAT got up there....and it wasn`t me.

 I pulled out the lights and started sorting strands. Every year I`ve found I have to check the lights. What worked really well one year not always necessarily works so well the next year. This year though, I decided to go with last years tree plan.  Multicoloured lights with red and white decorations and white `snow` like tinsel garland.

 First thing is first. Help Mommy sort the lights. The excitement to decorate the tree was at an all time high!!

 And this is kind of a neat opportunity to try for some neat photograph. Mr.Mister was VERY enthusiastic about playing with lights. `Wooooo, whhhoaaaaaa` `No no no!`when I tried to take the lights away from him.

 Gratuitous kiddo shots with Christmas lights!!!

 Oh Mom, I`m ready to give up the christmas lights now. But only for a bit. I want them right bak!!

And at the end of the night, we had a beautiful tree, fluffed with lights hung. Tomorrow? Decorations!!!!!!!!

Elmer Fudd says......

December 8

Who's that cute lil' guy hanging out in my back seat??????

Big smile, puffy coat, funny looking hat...

Daddy calls him Elmer Fudd. But we all know who he is.

We're on our way to skating. Because Lil' Miss...well, she a bit of a superstar right now. But more on that later. This story is all about Elmer Fudd.

 It's a good thing Mr.Mister knows how to play with his cars. And it's a good thing he LIKES to play with his cars. Otherwise I'm not sure what we'd do on our Lil' Miss activity days. Before we head out to the skating arena, Mr.Mister likes to fill my tote bag with his favorite cars. His favorite cars number in about the 20's. So we do need to narrow it down to about 12 or so. But they are little, so they fit in the bag; albeit they make the bag a little heavy. When we get to the arena, he's all set for me to open the bag so he can get in there, get them out and start lining them up on the benches.

We take up a whole bench to ourselves with this process.

Once in  awhile he'll stop and watch for Lil' Miss out on the ice. At least I think that is what he's doing. Or he'll take a time out for a brief snack. But then it's right back to playing with the cars. Keeps him busy the whole time. Skating ranges from 30 minutes to 45 minutes per session and Lil' Miss currently skates on Sunday afternoons and Monday evenings.

 Then when it's time to go get Lil' Miss from the dressing room, I simply say...Let's go find Lil' Miss! Put your cars away! And Elmer Fudd puts his cars away, two by two, into the tote bag. Then makes a beeline for the door to the stairs. Stopping only to push the handicap button on some random doorway, and then push open the garbage can to see if there is anything interesting inside. We also stop at this Snuggle advertisement on the wall....because it has the Snuggle fabric softner bear on it and the whole thing is printed on soft flannel. So we have to say hi to the bear and pet him because he's soft. Then we rush to the stars where he slowly and particularly makes his way down, one stair at a time. By this time the Big Guy has retrieved Lil' Miss from the dressing room and it's time to go home. Let's not forget the lollipop for the ride home (thanks Gramma for starting THIS tradition.....). We return the following night only to repeat the whole process over again. Oh the excitement in little kids' lives. Simple, yet satisfying.

He does look satisfied....doesn't he??????

Ahoy! Yon Christmas Tree!

December 7

Today was the day to fetch our Christmas Tree. We had to squeeze this excursion inbetween skating lessons and a birthday party. Such a busy type of folk we are!!

First we had to escape into the wild blue....I'm mean 'orange' yonder. After a few failed stops (let's just call them drive-bys. If you're selling Christmas trees, you should NOT be closed on Sunday. Retailers...TAKE NOTE!!!!!); the Big Guy wanted to get a tree that was already 'fluffed'. That way he knows he's getting a gooder. Or at least he hopes.... But that failed us as there were none of those to be found within our tight time schedule. So we stopped and took our chances in the wilds of 'Home Depot'

We made our way through the maze of washer and dryers and Christmas lights/decorations to the real tree location. Upon entry to such location we noted that....we were probably the only people who hadn't put their tree up yet. Yes, the pickin's were that slim. But our schedule was tight...do we or do we wait for another day. We do not wait. Lil' Miss was instructed to pick out the tree, and she happily stuck her pointy finger in the air and said .....

"That one!!!!" Mommy thought....'Really?????' But who is to question the Lil' Miss. The Big Guy just picked it up and hiked it over his shoulder. Then headed for the checkout.

Along the way we picked up a tree hauler....manned by two munchkins....

 Well, I guess someone has to make sure our tree doesn't fall off. And someone has to navigate the front end. Those tree haulers can be a bit troublesome!!!! And heaven forbid we destroy a washer and/or dryer on our way out!!!

 Yep, that tree is going no where but to our house!!!! Look out peeps! We're coming through!!!!!

 Big Guy....get out your wallet. These trees don't come for free. The help does though.....

 Take note that the munchkin in green is doing the manly thing by going bare-handed. It's -15 degrees celsius out today. The manly thing to do isn't always the smart thing to do. But him and mittens...well they have a hit and miss relationship. Today it was a miss....

Ok Dad....get 'er on the truck! Our job here is done. We're headed for warmer territory. Or at least Mommy is......I also think Mommy is still wondering just what in tarnation this tree is going to look like once it's unthawed..

Hmmmm......It's not looking good.......I think we'd better just hope for the best. If not...we'll just say it's the first tree Lil' Miss ever picked out all by herself!!!!

Stay tuned......

A small pictoral interlude....

December 6

Just a few random pictures....



As soon as Miss Polly came in from outside and saw the fireplace on, she walked up to it, doggie spun about 2-3 times, licked her lips and promptly settled herself for the rest of the night. She is a doggie who loves her fireplace.

Two little stinkers enjoying a cookie.

And two little stinkers enjoying yogurt before bed. Take note of Mr.Mister's appearance. Daddy gave them their baths this night.

Ho Ho Hoooo to the Post Office

December 5



There was  a special corner at the Festival of Trees. A place all set up and waiting for little kids to come in and write a letter to santa!!!!! Lil' Miss had kind of been asking to write a letter to santa for a while now, so what better chance than to do it NOW! 

But being the shy girl that she is (and she truly is! At the weirdest of times) when she got to the table to write her letter, she got all shy and didn't know what to do. I know she really really wants a barbie house (because all her friends have barbie houses!!!) but we've had a little talk and a barbie house is just too big to be in our house. So I convinced her to ask for a My Little Pony house instead. I don't think she even noticed. She was too busy trying to hide behind me from the nice ladies manning the letter writing table. Anyhow, we did get our letters written and sent off. Can anyone guess what Mr.Mister asked for from Santa?????

TRUCK!



I'm kind of hoping maybe Santa will write them back.

Perhaps I should check our mailbox to see if he's had the time to do so.



If you take a close look at their smiling faces, you will notice a blue ring around their mouths. Yes, Daddy was feeding them ice cream. Because that is what Daddy does!

Cheese!!!!!!!!!

Note: They each got a candy cane for their troubles. Lil' Miss ate hers....Mr.Mister took one lick and promptly gave it back.

Festival of Trees

December 4



We finally made it back to the Festival of Trees. For those not in the know, the Festival of Trees usually happens at the beginning of December, and showcases christmas trees decorated by different groups and companys. The trees are put on display with a price tag and are for sale as a fundraiser for the U of A hospital. Each year a different hospital program/ service is chosen to receive the donations. They also have a gingerbread house competition and decorated christmas cake competition. There are activities for kids, you just have to purchase tickets to participate in the different activities. It's not super expensive and it really is a neat place to go for an evening/afternoon out. Through out the whole weekend different clubs and organizations put on entertainment to keep the christmas spirit in the air.....and to provide a place to sit down and relax after attempting to chase children through the venue.

The decorated Christmas trees really do provide an awsome atmosphere. They're so shiny and bright. I just wanted to take them all home! And the 'ooh-ing' and 'awww-ing' from the little people was pretty funny. Mr.Mister is very appreciative of decorations and bright lights.....



They both tried out a little piano playing with their feet. Lil' Miss legitimately tried to play a song. Mr. Mister, well running in circles and occasionally landing on a noise-making device was a little more his speed.

Mr.Mister and I moved on to dancing amoungst the festive trees, and let Lil' Miss and the Big Guy get on with important, structured, kiddo activities. They might be decorating a Festival of Trees sack in this picture. A little kid needs a special sack within which to put her festival swag and prizes.

And here is Mommy's one in a few chances to be in the picture, and not behind the camera!!! And I get to have 2 cutes little peoples pose with me!!!



Lil' Miss posing amoungst the Christmas decorations.



The night turned out to be quite enjoyable. Only one minor melt down and everyone got to stay up well past their bedtimes. Not only did we see fantastic Christmas decorations, Lil' Miss got to watch Christmas dancers on stage...and I'm sure she was wishing she was one of them. Mr.Mister got to spend most of his time running free, just the way he likes...and only got strapped in the stroller with his special fishy cracker snack towards the end. You might think that because we stayed right to the end, way past the little one's bedtimes, that there were some sleepy eyes on the way home. It took all of 2 minutes for Lil' Miss to fall over....but Mr.Mister, yes our diehard, did not fall alseep until we were 2 minutes from home.

 



Mmmmmm.....Bread.....

December 3, 2012

 

Lil' Miss had bread day at school. The bread lady came and taught them how wheat turned itself into bread. How exciting is that???? I'm not exactly sure what they did, and to get the story from Lil' Miss herself is a bit difficult.

Mom: How did you make the bread?

Lil' Miss: We used soil.

Mom: Soil? That's dirt.

Lil' Miss: No, it's what you put in your cakes.

???????

It's what you pour into the bowl.

Mom: Flour

Lil' Miss: Oh, flour. Then I put it in the oven.

Mom: Oh.

Lil' Miss: Then I made a worm (insert a lot of thoughts here...) and tied it in a knot.

Mom: Why?

Lil' Miss: So I could eat it! I put it in the oven so I could eat it!

Mom: What did it taste like?

Lil' Miss: Like a sugar bug! And then we put soil on it. What's that brown stuff?

Mom: Cinnamon?

Lil' Miss: YES!

Can you guess what they made????

They made bread and cinnamon buns. Or sugar bugs...whatever you want to call them.

She brought home a nice warm loaf of fresh bread. It smelled sooooo good. We dove into it right away.

 I couldn't wait to taste warm fresh bread with butter on top.....yummmmy.

 Lil'Miss was excited. Mr.Mister didn't care. But in the end, Lil' Miss's tummy was so full of sugar bugs she only ate half her piece of warm toasty bread. Mommy ate the rest.



December 2

It's winter. It is freezing outside. Mommy is lazy. Daddy wants to go shopping. What is a family to do???????

Go to Golftown.

Yes, Golftown. To dream of warmer days. To dream of fancy golf equipment. To pretend you're good at golf and think that all that equipment for sale in there is yours for the picking and perhaps you should try it all out and find something that will make you even more phenomenal than you already are. (Ok, that applies to Dad, not Mom)

Or maybe you just go because they have a fake putting green and you dream that somehow you could put one of those in your backyard......but your wife keeps telling you NO!.

Well if none of the above applies...then why else do you take a leisurely trip to Golftown?????

So your kids can play with the golf equipment.

That putting green isn't just a draw for dads. Little people think it's pretty neat too. Especially when you can find a putter that looks like a hockey stick.

Look at the concentration on that face!!!!! Just for the record. She sinks about half her putts. Not sure if that is luck or skill.....

Yes, Mr.Mister wanted in on some action as well. He went straight for the putter and started wielding it like a hockey stick. So I went and found him the one that looked like the hockey stick. Much better. He's swing....then swing again.....then again.....and again....then finally.....oooooo, nice putt!!!!! Connection made! Then he'd pick up a ball and throw it (yeah, that didn't go over so well....but we're allowed to do it at home so why not try it at the store?????) And he also knows that if you manage to putt a ball into the hole, you have to take it out again...

And sometimes it's more fun to wield the pin than it is the golf putter. Yes, that was a good 30 minutes of distraction.

Golftown. It's where it's at for -20 degree 'I must get out of the house before I lose it' winter weather.



December 1

Yes, I'm already behind. Very aware of that, but lets just carry on....shall we?

Last weekend the local church once again held sleigh rides in the park. And who doesn't love sleigh rides???? 

They take me back to my kid days, when the opportunity to actually go on an honest to goodness sleigh ride through the fields and around the farm was just that much more available than it is to my cityslicker kids. I'll be honest. I expected Mr.Mister to freak out. He seems to freak out at the weirdest things these days. He's a particular child and definately has his likes and dislikes. But I digress. My plan of attack on this particular outing was to get to the park as soon as the event started...if not earlier. Our community really does put on some cool outdoor events, and if the weather is nice, the community turnout can be phenominal (even when the weather isn't so nice, people still try to get out and participate) So the quicker one gets oneself to an event, the better chance you have of NOT having to stand in the never ending line-up. I had peeked out the window at about 1530 and noticed the vehicles that were beginning to line the street and figured it was time to get the kiddos into their winter gear and get them IN gear. Done and done. Even though she had been down with the stomach flu all day, Lil' Miss was raring to go...she knew what sleigh rides were all about (and it takes alot to discourage her from an outing to the park...). Mr.Mister left, fresh from a nap, and crying from being jammed into marshmellow outdoor gear and told to get moving or he'd get left behind. By the time we got to the end of the sidewalk he was alright.
"Oooo, whasts daaaaaat...." Mr.Mister's signature phrase at the moment.
So that was a good sign. No freak out yet.
And no line up. We basically walked ourselves right on to the sleigh ride. No waiting at all.

One sleigh ride down....and because there was still no line up....we went again!!!! And then we tried to sit on Santa's knee....I told Lil' Miss that Santa would be at the park and that she should think of one toy that she would like him to bring her for Christmas. I gave her lots of heads up that she needed to sit on his knee and tell him, in person, her Christmas request, then if she was a good girl it might be waiting under the Christmas tree for her on Christmas morning (my attempt to encourage her to be a good and obedient child). She was very receptive and very encouraged to go visit Santa (I think everyone knows Lil' Miss and her hesitancy about Santa). So we promptly got in the line-up (it was still small at this point).

And as we got closer and closer, she got quieter and quieter. Mr.Mister didn't know what hit him. It became our turn and I plopped him on Santa's knee. He was quiet for about 2 seconds.....then the crying began. Freak-out. I knew it would happen. So I took him and looked around for Lil' Miss. It was her turn....and she was absolutely no where to be found. She had been standing beside me at one instant, and the next she had purposely run away because deep down inside....she had absolutely NO INTENTION of sitting on Santa's knee! So I went and hunted her down and found her with tears on her face.  Yes, she was afraid and she just wasn't ready to sit on Santa's knee that day. But if I wanted to, I could take her to the mall and she would see Santa there.

This was the closest we could get to pictures with Santa (he is nowhere close!).

Enough of that now. We're off to get cookies and hot chocolate.