Christmas Tree!!!

Christmas is perfect. I cannot think of any part of Christmas that is not perfect.

I am so excited about decorating for Christmas this year!! There have been tiny babies putting a cramp in my Christmas style for the past two years, but this year I have two little "helpers" to assist with the decorating.

We put up our tree a few days ago. Flora was introduced to the magic of the Christmas tree the previous weekend at "PoppyGigiShane house" (her words, not mine), so she knew the drill. We put on festive clothes and said "pleeeeeeeeease" to convince Chris to bring up all the Christmas boxes. It worked!! Once we got started with the Christmas tree, Flora worked tirelessly, intent on putting HER Christmas tree branch in exactly the right spot.

Scout was more interested in eating the Christmas lights than being helpful, but he was easily distracted (like most men) by a project that tested his brute strength and wits.......I jammed a Christmas stocking onto his head. It was stuck on there pretty good, so trying to get it off occupied him for quite a while. He looked so cute in it though! I didn't feel bad about it.

We ended up with a simple, but perfect Christmas tree with only soft ornaments that cannot be destroyed by little hands. Well, actually I'm sure that those little hands COULD destroy any or all of the ornaments if they so chose, but at least the ornaments can't destroy the little hands. Of course, my little Christmas angels politely posed next to the tree.......HA! After many failed attempts at a cute picture, we finally got this one.
Yes, that's right.....Scout's still got the stocking stuck on his head.

So, we're done, right? No, apparently not. The very next day, Flora and Scout decided that our Christmas tree was missing something......something.......hmmm.......WHAT could it be missing??? Never fear! My little Christmas elves are on the case!! Working, working, working.
And the finished product.........
Ah, yes. Perfection.

Badge of Honor

Flu shots today!!! After weighing the pros and cons, I decided to get my kids vaccinated against the H1N1 virus. Clay county was holding a clinic today at a huge local church from 10am to 7pm, so I packed some snacks, books, and diapers and headed into the unknown. I had no idea how long the wait would be or how many shots they had available, but off we went.

As I rolled our monster double stroller into the church foyer at about 10:15am, I was handed two little tags with the numbers 653 and 654 written on them. Hmm.....well, that's not encouraging. I looked up to see a river of chairs that flowed as far as I could see down the foyer and around the corner. This is NOT a small church, so we're not talking about a small foyer here. I pushed the stroller down the aisle, looking for a seat.......still pushing.......still pushing......around the corner.....still pushing.......THERE! A seat with enough room for the stroller!! Hooray!! At this point, I am thankful for small victories!! I later found out that people had begun lining up outside the church at 4:30am!!!! Crazy......if I'm going to wait for several hours I'm going to do it indoors.

Alright, now we are going to fast-forward THREE HOURS to the moment right before the shots. I will say that the three hours really did fly by and my kids were SO GOOD. No fussing, no whining. If I must wait in line for three hours with two kids, I'm glad I got stuck with these two!!! Also, the church provided cookies and Veggie Tales movies!! Woohoo!!

So, back to the shot.....Flora was a little bit nervous, but the nurse was really nice and comforting. However, nice and comforting flew out the window once she poked Flora with the needle.....

Flora cried!!
Flora coughed!!
Flora gagged!!
Flora vomited her chocolate chip cookie all over Mommy's shirt!!
Ugh!!

The nurse was quick to hand me a wad of Kleenex, but this job was too big for Kleenex alone. Luckily, we had planned it so Chris arrived just before our number was called so that I wouldn't have to comfort two kids at the same time and good thing!! Flora and I sped to the bathroom to wipe ourselves clean while Scout got his shot. We returned just as the nurse was finishing up with Scout. She looked at my shirt, laughed, and said, "Looks like you got the badge of honor!"

My kids are not vomiters, so this was my first time wearing this particular "badge of honor." I tried to enjoy it, but, well, it was gross. Next time we go for shots, I think we'll pass on the cookies.

Fashionista

Ok, giving into peer pressure...... :)

Flora has a pair of boots that are still a bit too big for her, but she LOVES to put them on. Almost every day, she wakes up from her nap and puts on her boots......sometimes she even puts the boots on before she falls asleep.

Sometimes she even puts on panties.......but the point is that she loves her boots. Now you are ready to hear the funny story. :)

We were at Walmart and Flora was perched in the cart observing our fellow shoppers. A dad with two young girls was walking towards us and one of the girls caught Flora's attention. She was probably 6- or 7-years-old and wearing bright pink boots. As they passed us, Flora leaned over the cart, pointing and nodding enthusiastically, and told the girl, "Cute boots!"

The little girl just gave Flora a dirty look and kept walking. I guess she wasn't happy about her cool, big-girl boots being complimented by a 2-year-old.

Husband of the Year

This post will be about the kids eventually, but I'm going to start by describing the wonderful day that my wonderful husband planned for me. Today I got to sleep in as late as I wanted, take a leisurely shower, and get dressed without the running commentary of a 2-year-old ("Mommy's legs! Mommy's tummy! Mommy's socks!" etc...).

When I finally graced the family with my presence, Flora and Scout were already fed and dressed for the day. My hot breakfast was served as soon as I sat down at the table. Ahhhh, this is already the best day I've had in a LONG time!

After breakfast, my wonderful husband gifted me with a day off and three gift cards to go spend! Woohoo! I am being run out of the house without the kids and FORCED to shop! Pinch me! I think I'm dreaming . . . . . So, I shopped and shopped and shopped. I left the house before 11am and didn't get home until after 5pm. It was wonderful. OH! And I came home to my favorite dinner! Yep, I've got a pretty wonderful husband!! I think I'll keep him.


So, anyway, back to the kids . . . . Chris stayed home with Flora and Scout all day and played Mr. Mom while I was gone. He had a bit of a scare when he decided to peek in to check on Flora during her naptime. He opened her door and couldn't find her anywhere.

This is what Chris saw:

Can YOU find Flora in this picture? She's in there . . . . Look very closely . . . . . I'll give you a hint . . . .She's wearing brown pajamas . . . . . and all you can see are her legs. Good luck!!

horror. disgust. amusement.

This is story of the first and only time Flora and Scout will ever share a pack 'n' play.

On Sunday morning, I was getting ready for church with both kids (Chris goes early to Sunday School......we don't) and I was running a bit late. I decided I could pick out their clothes and get breakfast ready much faster without their help, so I put them both in the pack 'n' play for a few minutes.

I was in the kitchen putting waffles in the toaster when I heard Scout start to whine like he was unhappy about something. I assumed he just wanted out of the pack 'n' play, so I decided to get Flora's sippy cup ready before I went to get them. Scout's tone was becoming more and more irritated. . . .

To my horror, disgust, and amusement, I returned to the pack 'n' play to find Scout flat on his back, stripped of his pajamas, and in the process of having his poopy diaper changed by his 2-year-old sister. Oh my.

This is not a picture of the actual event, but I imagine it looked something like this before Flora finally managed to get Scout's pajamas off . . . . poor kid. :)

Teaser

I have a funny story to tell, but no time to tell it because the computer is in the bedroom and there is much to do in the living room with the husband and kiddos. However, tonight after the kids are in bed we will be moving my computer into the newly rearranged living room! I think my blogs will become MUCH more frequent. Stay tuned for the funny story......

Free Time

I know when naptime is over because I start hearing bumps and thuds and cute little jabbering out of both Flora's and Scout's room. They don't cry for me right away, but spend some time in quiet, imaginative play. I think this is SO cute.

Sometimes I will peek in at Scout to see him sitting in his crib with a little picture book in his lap, just babbling away like he is really reading. Or I will catch Flora rocking all of her dolls to sleep before tucking them into her bed.

Of course, sometimes they are less docile in their post-naptime play. Scout will sometimes rock his crib so hard that it bangs against the wall and Flora can very often be found perched on top of her dresser with several pairs of underwear layered over her pajamas. She can also be quite destructive......see the picture below for a sample of Flora's work.

It's still cute. And it's nice to get that extra time to myself for picking up toys, washing dishes, or playing solitaire on my phone. Or Facebook. Or blogging. Or researching players for my fantasy football team. Or reading a book. Or taking a nap. Or clipping coupons. But probably never for exercising.

a-walkin' we will go

The two hours between dinner and bedtime can sometimes seem like four or five hours if the kids are not in good moods. Tonight was one of those nights, so I suggested a walk. It's always good to get them out of the house when they're cranky. And, let's be honest, FLORA was cranky; she is almost a 2-yr-old. Scout is still blissfully happy just being in the same room as Mommy and rarely needs diversions. These days, he's too busy perfecting his mad walking skillz to care much about being entertained (I just watched him walk all the way across the living room! He's getting good!).

Unfortunately, I realized AFTER I had already said the "w" word that both of the strollers were in the car with Chris. Since it's impossible to derail a 2-yr-old brain once it is set on a particular activity, we walked the "old-fashioned" way......meaning I put Scout on my hip in the sling and Flora on the leash and out we went a-walkin'.

It took us 25 minutes to walk around the block two times, but I think they both really enjoyed it. Flora stopped to pick flowers, point at rocks, and rescue fallen leaves. She even got to see a couple of rabbits hop across the sidewalk in front of her. Scout chewed on the sling (he has four teeth popping through right now), looked at me adoringly, and laughed at Flora.

It was fun. I think we'll do it again sometime. I guess I'll have to get another leash soon so Scout can walk too!

We've Got Worms

Today, Flora fell down and noticed the carpet for the first time. She spent a minute examining our shag carpet very carefully before concluding, "Worms." Yes, apparently we have a blanket of worms covering our floor. From an almost-2-yr-old's perspective, it's really the only reasonable explanation for shag carpet.

After making her gruesome discovery, Flora ran to the kitchen and "psh-psh" (pretended to put soap on her hands), then she ran to the refrigerator and "ch-ch-ch-ch" (pretended to put water in her hands), and then ran back to the carpet and "sh-sh-sh" (cleaned the carpet).

Thanks, Flora! That was so much cheaper than the carpet cleaner we rented last week.....and apparently the carpet cleaner was defective since it left worms all over our floor.

The Bad Idea

It all started with a runny nose. This particular runny nose did not appear to be a cause for alarm, but certainly cause for extra attention. A lot of terrible things start with runny noses, after all. Despite the occasional eruption of snot following a sneeze or the constant trickle of snot needing to be wiped up, it was a fairly normal day. There was no warning that one of the worst nights ever was just a sunset away.

The kids went to bed at normal times and the parents settled in for some TV and popcorn. After an hour of happy relaxation, the chaos commenced. It started with a pitiful wail and a cry for "MOMMY!" Mommy wipes a nose, provides a drink of water, and tucks back into bed. Thirty minutes later, Mommy is again hailed to comfort a runny nose back to sleep. Thirty minutes later.......and thirty minutes after that, and........uh-oh, this is going to be an all-night occurrence.

"It would be much simpler if we just brought the little runny nose girl into our bed!" said a parent (there is a debate raging over exactly which parent had this brilliant idea).

Brush teeth, put on pajamas, and settle into bed with three pillows, two sleepy parents, and one runny nose. What fun! Silly songs and cuddles seemed a great way to start the night, but soon it was time for sleep. Unfortunately, once you get a little girl excited about sleeping with her parents, very little sleeping actually happens.

Tossing, poking, kicking, wiggling, tickling, and honking noses were bestowed on tired, unhappy parents. Sleep would seem just within reach and then get chased away by the sound of someone's sudden urge to count the ceiling fan blades out loud.

At nearly 1am, the sleepy little girl finally ended the nighttime fiasco by asking, "All done, Mommy?" in a pleading voice. "Yes, your parents are done torturing you, Little Girl. You can go to sleep now." *sigh* Who's idea was this, anyway?

Back to the little girl's room, rocking, singing, and, finally, sleeping.

And then runny nose #2 woke up........and seemed to stay up for the rest of the night.

Is it naptime yet???