Trash to Treasure Tuesday rises....

Now, now, now people don't get yourselves in a tizzy.  YES, I have returned with a lovely trash to treasure, but don't be expecting this to happen every week.  It only took me 9 months to get my  act together and do this one.

Seriously....I happened upon this little gem of a table in a thrift store an age ago.  I knew it had grand potential, and for SEVEN DOLLARS I could NOT pass it up, but didn't have the time or gumption to do it.  It sat in my garage for a rather long time, collecting more dust and taking up space.  Until one day we were having our neighbors over for dinner and I realized our little 4 seater table was just NOT gonna cut it.  So, I hauled the bigger table in and wiped it down and put a big ol' table cloth over it to cover the hideous mess that it really was.  Well, after I saw how delightful it was to have an actual table of size I couldn't go back to the mini table.  I spent several months just covering the table up with various cloths and loathing the mess that needed me to do something with it.

To be fair, I AM pregnant and have been RATHER miserable this time around.  But finally, FINALLY, the day came when i actually had enough energy, enough drive and enough desire to get this bad boy done.  PHEW!  It was about damn time.

Ready?......

BEFORE:

What is not to love about those legs?

Pretty rough shape, as you can see.

How cute is that?  The sides fold down too.

Did I mention.....SEVEN BONES for this table?

So, Jer helped me take it out to the garage and I went to town sanding that bad boy down.  There were some serious gouges and issues to deal with.  As we all know, I don't do sanding....it's annoying and realllllly messy.  However, as evidenced by my crappy photos...there was no way around sanding this bad boy.  I sanded for a good while, cleaned it, taped off the cute little claw feet and hinges, painted the bottom and then stained the top.  Yes, STAINED.  Have I mentioned that I also don't do staining.  ICK!  It's messy and annoying and really not my cup of tea.  However, this seemed like the way to go with this project.

Now, as we all know, I also have a patience problem.  So, goodness knows I was not about to wait around between coats, or take extra long time sanding, or not paint the bottom while the top was drying.  I have things to do people, things.to.do.  I mention this because, well....while I like the results, there are definitely some flaws in my finished product.  But, good news...I'm also NOT a perfectionest. hahahaaha

FINE, I'll show it to you:

AFTER:

Look closely, you'll see said flaws.....sanded too low in some places.  Stain doesn't cover that bidness.  Ah well.  I'm going with....it's rustic and old, so the bad spots look ok, right? hahahahahahahaha

Pretty, no?

Spray painted the base with rustoleum heirloom white.

Stained the top with minwax gel stain cherry.

Table runner is just 3 yards of muslin, and a work in progress.  Gonna shorten it a bit, add some ruffles on the side and we'll see.

And now...it makes me happy to walk into my kitchen and see this pretty, complete, non splintery, rough mess of a table.  It looks finished and lovely.

And though I may have been RATHER sore for several days afterward, it was worth the pain of squatting and moving around on my knees and doing all that work.

Now the question here is....how do we feel about the chairs?  Keep them, or do I have to paint them all cream now?  I won't lie, the thought of doing that is NOT exciting to me.

Stainfully and painfully yours,

Allyson

Girls at Play......

Maggie loves, I mean REALLY loves playdates.  It's highly important to her that someone come over and play here or that she go to someone elses house.  She asks daily where she can go, or who can come over.  This doesn't get to happen everyday mind you, I have things to do yo!  And when it doesn't happen, she is extremely annoyed and unhappy with me.  But, I do like her to have a social life, and I really don't mind having friends over.

Her particular favorite and most frequen playmates are Claire (they're in school together and she lives down the street, and her Mom is amazeballs and has Maggie over a lot) and Navi.  We don't get to see Navi that often because we're on opposite preschool schedules and our schedules in general just don't seem to match up well enough.

Of course, she'd prefer to go to Navis, and I don't blame her.  Navi has a super cool backyard and a ton of toys to play with.  PLUS....it's alwyas WAY better to play at someone elses house.  But, I digress.

The other day the planets alligned and miss Navi was available to come and play.  It was a joyous day for both Max and Maggie that Navi was here and oh the good times they had.

First they jumped on the trampoline, then they played aliens and bad guys and shot them in the backyard.  They dragged kitchen chairs out to the playhouse and climbed all over the roof and did who knows what else.  Then they came inside and played "Mom and Dad" (a particular favorite of my chillins) until apparently Navi was bored of that.  Next thing I know Maggie and Navi are wandering through the family room "gathering" things.  I asked what they were doing and Maggie informed me they were looking for items for beauty salon. 

Beauty Salon?  Now THIS was something new.  And especially interesting, as Maggie doesn't allow me to ever comb her hair or you know, touch it. 

Awhile later, it was very quiet, so I decided to go back and check.  Imagine my surprise to find Navi combing through Maggies hair.  I went back to get my camera and by the time I returned, I found this.

Please look closely and note that Maggie is apparently "brushing" Navis hair with her play kitchen knife.  Hahahahaha

This went on for QUITE some time, until finally they emerged from their

"sal-ON" and Maggie proudly introduced Navi and her amazing handiwork.

Pretty spectacular, no?  I particularly love the comb stuck in the back of her hair. hahahahahaha

Not gonna lie, it was the BEST afternoon of playing EVER!  Those girls had the best time for almost 4 hours.  I had quiet, undisturbed lessons because Maggie and Max were so happily occupado with their BFF.  Pretty sure Navi only went home because her Dad finally texted and was like, "Uhhhhh, should we come get Navi?"  hahaha  Ummm NO, she's too great for my kids.

Anyway....love some good playtime with friends.

Playdates and updos,

Allyson

Panic Room

Whatever investor bought and flipped this house before we bought it from them did a swell job in some areas and a craptastic, cheapy job in others.  Case in point.....all the door knobs throughout the house.  They are literally the $8.00 cheapest you can buy at Home Depot.  I HATE them.  I have always hated them.  They're silver and cheap looking and cheap working.  The "lock" is stupid and my children can unlock them, what good is THAT?  But, like many other things, and I do mean MANY, they were just on the list of "to dos" for someday.

Someday came today.  I was at the Home Depot picking up some paint for my project tomorrow and I passed the doorknobs.  "You know what....I'm just gonna DO IT."  I said to myself.  So, I picked up knobs for the kids room and for ours.  I mean, it's not like I could re "knob" every door in the house in one fell swoop, so I started with the two most important. 

It's a teeny bit like this....except not a push lock and in black.
We got home and I headed straight for the kids door.  I needed to turn their lock around anyway, so, you know, I could lock it from the outside, in case of need of banishment, or punishment, or whatever!  I got right to work.  It's not like changing a door knob is rocket science.

Maggie and Max dragged kitchen chairs into the hallway so they could watch and cheer me on in my efforts.  It was a smidge crowded in that there hallway, but somehow we made do.

I got the old knob off in a jiffy and then set to work on the new knob.  After a couple of oopsies with putting the innerd in correctly, I got it right.  Then I worked to figure out getting the knob on correctly.  It may or may not have taken a few more efforts than I'd like to admit.  But FINALLY I got it all in and done and screwed in.  It look swell, but then I gave the door a try.  And....well....bleepity, bleepity bleep bleep the door didn't latch.  For whatever reason the stinkin door would not latch shut.  What good is that to me?  UGH!  So, I messed with the little plate on the door jam first, that didn't help.  So then I had to take the whole freaking thing apart AGAIN!  I kept trying to figure out if the inside piece needed to be elongated, or whatever.  I was getting nowhere. 

That pushy inny thing is the DEVIL.

At this point I stick the inner part back in, line it up and shut the door.  I SHUT THE DOOR and it LATCHED!!  Suddenly, the door is stuck shut and there is NO knob on it and I'm LOCKED in my kids room with no phone and no way out.  I tried using the screwdriver to jimmy it over, shake it, wiggle it, anything.

I moved into a full blown panic attack.  Like for reals....I was hyperventilating, the walls felt like they were closing in on me, I was seriously fuh-reaking out?  "this is not good, this is not good, this is NOT good, we're stuck, WE'RE STUCK!"  I wish I could explain how terrifying that moment felt.  HOW was I gonna get out?

So, I look to the window and say  "Maggie, I'm putting you out the window, I need you to get out the back gate and go over and get B (our neighbor).  She scoffed, said she couldn't do that, she was scared, etc.  "NO MAGGIE, you HAVE to do this!"  So, I opened their window, dropped her down, followed closely by Max, who simply HAD to go along too.  Then she said she couldn't undo the gate.  I assured her she could, just drage a chair over, unlatch it and go.  Off they run.  And I'm practically in the fetal position for fear I'm never gonna leave this room again. (only a slight exageration).

In that moment I decided to try and stick the knob in as best i could and see if I could get the handle to turn.  THANKFULLY, it worked.

I got out, ran to the backyard, called for the kids, who were already at the nieghbors.  They came running back and told me B wasn't home.  So thank HEAVENS I got out on my own, 'cause THAT woulda sucked.

It's silly really.  The whole thing took about 10 minutes, but it was seriously one of the most scarey moments of my life.

Needless to say, I grabbed my phone, in case any foolishness were to happen again.  Maggie spent the next 20 minutes saying..."Phew, that really gave me a heart attack.  I was having a pretty big heart attack about that." etc.  it was cute.

In the end....good news....I got the knob put back on and it works perfectly.  Latches, locks, all is well.  And....it's pretty, and it works well and isn't loud and squeaky.  BEST of all....no more chance for me to get myself locked into the

Panic room!


Terror and Toddler heros,

Allyson

PTSD (post traumatic shopping disorder)....it's fo real YO!

Ok......enough time has past, I have taken enough deep cleansing breaths and have had enough therapy that I believe my post traumatic stress from an ill fated shopping trip has FINALLY subsided.

I mean, here's the deal....we are all perfectly clear that Maggie is, well.....um...spirited, strong willed, or just downright crazy, right?  I mean, i think I've made this clear on a number of occasions.  Girl does NOT back down for nothin, and she regularly fights me on, well, EVERYTHING!  However, this shopping experience took things to a whole new level.  One in which I'm afeared I need to get her checked out, or at least me checked in somewhere.

Here goes:

A couple weeks before Christmas the chilrens and I got in the car and headed out for an afternoon excursion.  We were going to Kohls to procure my sisters Christmas present and perhaps look around, see if there were any other great finds to be had.  All was going well, we found her gifts, looked for some kind of cute dress for Maggie, but no luck.  So, I get this bright idea that we should head to Ross, see what they had to offer.  Frankly, besides her need for a cute Christmas dress, homegirl was SADLY lacking in any kind of pant to wear.  We were literally down to 2 pair of jeggings (shut it all of you.  Jeggings are still evil, but worn by 4 year olds with huge ghetto booties, they are cute.  I still completely ban them from all adult wearage!) and some scraggly skirts.  She REFUSES to wear jeans of any kind, and most any other pant I try to buy she finds something wrong with.  Shoot, most shirts are non-acceptable to her as well.  One day they're in, the next day......they're OUT!

Imagine my happy dance when upon entering the store I right away found a super cute Christmas dress for only 10 bucks.  Maggie nodded her approval, so it went in the pile.  I found a couple other dresses to at least try and then set my sights upon pants of any kind that would fit her criteria of soft, stretchy and COMFORTABLE.  I found the cutest pair of pink sweat pants that were blingy and said diva.  Hello, how PERFECT could they be?  I also found a super fun pair of stretchy, jegging like jordache jeans.  I felt them....soft.  Stretchy.  Comfortable, PLUS totally blingy and fun.  How could she resist?  So, I threw them in the pile, along with some other pair of something.  Off we went to the dressing room.

Here is where things went completely otherworldly on me.  Keep in mind I have never taken Maggie actual clothes shopping.  I mean, you can't count walking through Wal-Mart, throwing 3 dollar shirts into the cart and going home as shopping.  She has never attempted to "try on" clothes in the store.  At home, no matter what I buy, she immediately rips the tag off and THEN tries it on.  I s'pose I had completely repressed all memory of her wierd aversion to tags. Because you can just imagine my shock and surprise to her complete and utter BREAK DOWN over the tags being attached to the clothes while she tried them on.

I held up a dress and attempted to put it on her.  She screamed, she cried, she DEMANDED that I remove all tags.  I informed her that since we did not yet OWN these clothes I could NOT do that.  I assured her that she would be ok.  I'd hold the tags away from her, she could DO this.  She is practically hyper ventilating at this point.  And you may think I'm exagerting, but I am NOT!  She would start to put it on, then back out screaming she couldn't do it.  I finally got the dress on and thankfully, it was comfortable enough that she calmed down and gave me a nod of approval.  The other two dresses did not fair as well.  Oh good heavens....then we come to the pants.  THE PANTS!  I wish, for the love of all I WISH that anyone could have witnessed this besides me.  It's so UN-believable how she acted that you'll think I'm lying.  But, I'm not.  I swear to buddah, I am NOT. 

I picked the pants up, I moved them towards her, she screamed about the tags.  I tried to calm her down, talk her out of her tree, assure her it would be fine.  She'd make a small move toward the pants, step one foot in, then yank it out like she'd just been bitten by a thousand poisonous snakes and scream again she couldn't do it/didn't want to do it, HATED the pants, etc.  She nearly went into seizures her fear and disdain was so palpable.  It was the most bizarre and ludicrous thing I've ever seen.  I finally got the damn pants on her, but she was not to be calmed.  Nothing was gonna be ok at this point.  I was on the verge of my own breakdown and Max was just trying to get out of the dressing room and all the crazy being thrown around.

Finally I got her redressed in her own clothes and calmed down, gathered my meager findings and we headed for the register.  I was buying the pants dammit, and she was gonna like 'em once the tags were off.

The offending pants.  Cute right?

We get home, show her Dad her new wares and then decide to change her clothes because we were going somewhere that night.

You may think I kid, but for FORTY FIVE MINUTES she screamed, she cried, she wailed she raged and REFUSED to wear those pants.  Nothing I did or said could change that.  Wanna know why she hated them so?  Because they touched her skin.  They "bothhered" her skin.  I was not getting it, until Jere finally told me, the stitching on the pocket was touching her skin and bothering her.  So, the comprimise was, she could wear leggins under the pants so the pants wouldn't touch her.  That was how she was appeased, and it is still the only way she will wear the pants.

This stitching is what proved to be her undoing.

You guys!  I mean, I've KNOWN she had some issues.  She WON'T wear socks or tights because the seam in them bother her so much.  If anything is remotely "scratchy" she refuses to put it on.  She won't deal with tags, I knew this.  She won't wear MOST shoes, especially if they are closed toe because they bother her.  But, I guess I just did NOT realize the level, the depth of her "disorder" if you will.  Clearly homegirl has some sort of sensory issue that may need a deeper look.

All I know is....I will NEVER, EVER attempt to take her shopping for clothes in any fashion, ever again.  I will meekly lay at her feet nothing but tagless sweats forevermore.  Actually, truth be told, she is now the owner of a shiny new wardrobe of nothing but leggings.  So far, so good.  And frankly....with a ghetto booty like hers, it's pretty dang cute.

Needless to say, it's taken a good month, a lot of "happy thoughts" and maybe a pallet of cookies or two, but I am at long last moving past this ordeal.  I just sincerely hope that she will grow out of this hideousness AND that this new baby will not share in the issue.  'Cause dang it, I need a dolly to dress that doesn't fight me at every turn.  I deserve that right?  RIGHT!

Clotheless and cray cray,

Allyson

Biking is the BEST!

I'm telling you.....these bikes my kids got for Christmas have been the BEST!!  They love them so much, and are so darn adorable on them that I couldn't be happier with the purchase, or "near death" experience at Wal-Mart on Black friday to get them.

They spend a good amount of time out front riding the "track" or the "loop" around our house.  Which is down the front walk, across the sidewalk, around the corner, up our driveway and back on the walk.  PERFECT!  It's nice because I can have the front door open and the garage open and feel like I have a view of them while they feel like they're getting their ride on and they're out in the fresh air.

Here is my view:

Maggie, who is usually singing, and insists on stopping at the door EVERY time to say something to me.

Max, who bless his heart is ONLY happy if Maggie is out there playing with him.

Totally great bike riding.

However, last Saturday our fabulous neighbor helped Jere fix our bikes so that Jere could go on bikerides with the kids (I will not be riding any mountain bikes or road bikes in my current state).  And a whole new level of happy has been born.  Actually, the new level of happy comes from, our adorable neighbor has the cutest beach cruiser bike EVER and she has let me borrow it.  THAT I can get on and ride, and I LOVE it.  The kids and I have been on rides almost every day and it's awesome.  We "work" the neighborhood, visit Gramma Dar, visit friends, go to the park and just generally enjoy the gorgeousness that is AZ in the winter.  And frankly, there might be nothing cuter than my kids in their helmets.  Said neighbor is a cop, and when he and Jer were at the store to get bike stuff, he said "I don't wanna be THAT guy, BUT, your kids must have helmets, it's the law."  Thanks a lot officer.  hehehehe

Set for one of our daily adventures.

Stopping by Gramma Dars for a drink and some play time.

Climbing at the neighborhood park

Apparently the grass was just too inviting, after a "rousing" round of hide and go seek, which frankly was hysterical with these 3 kids.

We like to pick our friend Paisley up for rides and then playtime at the park.

The best part of this riding and playing is....the kids sleep like LOGS which always makes Mama happy.  Now, if only I could sleep like a log. 

Yep, this bike riding around the neighborhood is totally the BEST!!

Helmets and hairdos,

Allyson

Travelin WAYYYYY back in time....

Once upon a time in a land far, far, well ok fine, not so distant land, there was a neighborhood FULL of children who would wander and roam and play freely amongst eachothers houses.  The parents were all friends, the neighborhood safe and happy, and apparently, the friendships born......lifelong.

You see, back when I lived on Dragoon, right in the bend of the street, my two neighbors to the left were the Bradshaws and the Rohns.  I was WEE, I mean, VERY young when we lived there.  In fact, we moved away from there (all the way across the park) when I was 4.  BUT, that doesn't matter, because our bonds were cemented in, well, cement.

In the 35 years since I moved away, somehow we have managed to keep abreast of eachother and remain friends.

Sheridyn moved off the street when she was 10, but only 2 miles down the road, and we were always in teh same stake and our parents are besties, so that was easy.  Kimmies parents divorced when she was 8 and at 10 her Mom remarried and took her and her sister off to Florida.  I have literally probably only SEEN Kimmie about 5 times in those intervening years.  BUT, enter facebook, and all is solved.

Here is what i can tell you...
Sheridyn is the oldest of a lot of kids.  And the Bradshaws are synonymous with PEPSI!  That was a fascinating thing as a kid, cause trust you me, we didn't have no cola at our house.  I regularly scaled our backyard fence and made my way into their house like I owned the place, cause apparently I was a crazy tomboy at 18 months old. 

Kimmie had a HUGE canopy bed in her room, which was awe inspiring and MIND.BLOWING to us simpletons.  Noone, and I mean NOONE had a bed like that.  Shoot, I had an ugly old bunkbed that I occupied the top of.  Which was NOT a good thing, as I was wont to fall off of it and hurt myself.  Anyway, also at Kimmies house, in the hallway there was a picture, like real art.  It had some form of nudity, but you know, tasteful, like botticelli-ish or something.  BUT, I could barely take the fact that there was nakey going on.  One time I asked Kimmie about it, and then her sassy, snotty little self informed me that her parents slept like that every night.  Again....MIND.BLOWN!  Naked parents? NEVER!  If you'll all recall....I thought people got pregnant by hugging, clothed until I was well into 6th grade.  I certainly couldn't believe anyone ever got naked. HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!  Oh the innocence of youth!  Also, when I was 3, I was playing on Kimmies swing set and somehow fell and cut my eye open just below the eyebrow.  I marched myself home leaving a trail of blood behind to prove my toughness, and then was taken in or several stitches, and ahve the scar to show it.  Finally, Kimmies Mom (Margaret) would always tell me that I could be a Vogue model someday.  This was so confusing and really meant nothing to me in the sense that i didn't even know what a Model was, much less a VOGUE model.  But, it had something to do with the fact that I had high cheek bones and was tall.  Whilst those assessments may have been true, I also had a strong proclivity for the fat and that won out, therefore putting the ki-bosh on my modeling career.  Anywho.....I digress.

Just for good measure.....Vintage shot of Sheridyn and Kimmie at my 5th birthday party.

There they are again, at the front of the raft.  Playing at my "NEW" house with the pool.  I do have to laugh that they are the only ones wearing FLOATIES! Amatures!

Just after Christmas the three of us, along with their two Moms (mine was out of town) got together for lunch, and I can't tell you how fun, and easy it was to just get together and visit.  We laughed about old memories, discussed the old neighborhood, filled eachother in on old neighbors and friends and talked about where our lives are now and just enjoyed a wonderful afternoon.

Kimmy, Sheridyn and the jolly blue giant, um, I mean ME

Don't ya hate when two cameras are going off at once.

Funny how they both look JUST the same no?  Kimmie has so much beautiful hair, it's not fair! (total poet there)

Seriously.  I truly do NOT realize or remember just how tall and or big I am until I see pictures next to a bunch of normal to short sized people.  What is UP with that?  UGH!  And, do I look pregnant, or just fat? 'Cause mostly, I'm pretty sure it's the fat, not pregnant thing.

Kimmie just had a baby in October, so she feels my "old lady" having a baby pain.  AND as a side note, just found out another of my friends from the neighborhood is pregnant and she'll be 40 when it's born.  HA!  At least I'm not alone.

Anyway, it was a lovely afternoon, a lovely lunch and such a fun time to reunite and reminisce with these wonderful women in my life. 

Here's hoping that we can do it again before 35 years pass by.

Memories and munching,

Allyson

The Greatest Gift

One evening, early in December we came home to discover two huge and gorgeous pots full of geraniums sitting on our planter boxes, flanking our front door.  There was a card attached that said they were from our Christmas Elf.

That silly elf forgot that her handwriting is completely recognizable, therefore, the gig was up.

Our dear, sweet, amazing and wonderful friend M had spent 3 months growing those beautiful flowers and then repotted them and placed them there as a gift for us.  She has the greenest of thumbs and her front walkway is a veritable smorgasbord of flowers and plantlife in all its glory.

Oh, you wanna see?  Of course you do....

Adorable, no?

And yes, yes I did paint my front door yellow (with spray paint) before we even moved in.  Jere hates it.  I LURVE it!

Anyway....I can not even BEGIN to tell you how much this gift means to me.  Not only because red geraniums are my FAVORITE (right next to gerbera daisies), but because she is THAT thoughtful.

You see, my beloved M is in the midst of a very, VERY difficult health battle.  She is fighting cancer with all she has, and has been for a long time.  I truly don't think I've met anyone with a more positive or beautiful outlook on life.  In spite of her constant pain, her constant discomfort, she is ALWAYS 100% put together.  A day doesn't go by that she doesn't have her hair and makeup done.  There is always a smile on her face and a positive word to share.  She truly believes in the mantra that when life gives you lemons, make lemonade.  Needless to say, she's pretty beloved by all her doctors, nurses, lab techs, and the rest of us friends.

So, to think that WE somehow merited this beautiful gift from her heart, well, it's just makes me all the more grateful and maybe a little teary.  Well, the tears might also be from my utter fear that I might kill these precious flowers.  Because seriously.....I have a black thumb of death.  Plants and I are not generally on good terms.  However, I am bound and determined to keep these beautiful flowers blooming and happy for as long as M says they shall.  She has given me tips and pointers on what to do, and informed me that they should be good to go until May.  I'm proud to say....so far....so good.

Everytime I drive by, or walk up to my front door I literally just smile.  Smile at the thought of M, smile at the flowers beauty, smile at how much they add to my front walk, and just SMILE at the knowledge that no matter what crap we face in life, there is always something beautiful, and attitude truly is EVERYTHING!

So thank you M, THANK YOU for the GREATEST GIFT!!!

Flower pots and hopeful hearts,

Allyson

Max is "nummy" (binky) FREE!!!

Please note this is one of 4 NEW entries tonight.  All are short, so just give 'em a looksy.  These days it takes an act of congress to get me to actually post.

After several false starts, of which I won't bore you with the details.....Christmas finally came and Max gave up the binky.

If you recall, 2 years ago, Maggie left her binky for Santa, so he could give it to new babies.  She was a champ about it and only cried a couple of nights after giving it up.  Gramma Dar has still never forgiven us for making Santa the "bad guy", but hey, it worked, and Maggie still loves Santa, so no harm, no foul.

Along comes Max, and frankly, who knew it'd be so hard to get him off the binky.  I mean seriously, from birth to 1 years old he was pretty much a binky "retard".  He could NOT keep the thing in his mouth to save his life.  But then suddenly, one day he woke up and figured it out.  From about 1 on he became real attached.  Now, not as attached as maggie who NEVER had it out of her mouth.  But attached in the sense that there was no sleep unless nummy was involved.  And, that attachment grew stronger with his age.  So, while we were yanking it from Maggie at 2, Max was MORE attached at 2 than ever.  He got to hold on to the nummy habit for a year longer than Maggie.

Now, we've been prepping him for QUITE SOME TIME that Christmas was a comin, and Santa was in need of binkies.  He said he understood, he said he was down with it.  But, when it came right down to it.....not so much.  Mind you, we were down to ONE binky in the whole house.  It was a total panic if it ever went missing, which it did, hence the false starts. 

Anywhozle....Christmas Eve came, and he was NOT gonna let it go without a fight.  So, I stole it, and maybe we told him Clarence the elf came and took it early, because Santa REALLLLLLLY needed it.  It was magical.  He whimpered a little, then accepted his new reality, and has not cried for it even one time.  It was a Christmas miracle.

But, just for good measure, Santa left Max a note on Christmas morning....

He's pretty pleased with himself and what a big boy he is now.  He practically scratched his crotch and hawked a loogy as he stated...."I don't need a nummy, I'm a big boy, and Santa needed it for the new baby."  and....spit! 

YAY for the end of the nummies.  Just in time to get new ones for a new baby.  Hopefully enough time will have passed that he won't want to regress back to that when the baby comes.

Stink breath and buck teeth,

Allyson

Our Elf Army

Some people, well ok, MOST people have elf on a shelf.  Pshhhht!  Amature i tell you.  One measley elf to do all the work, puhlease!  We here at Casa de MVP have an entire elf army.  No really, 'tis true.  Auntie Julie is what we like to call a freakshow, and she introduced a slew of elves this year.  Not gonna lie, they were awesome, and really, for the most part worked wonders.  All we'd have to do is say...."they're watching" and the kids would straighten up.  Well, that, or we'd threaten to call Santa.  It got to the point that every time I picked my phone up for ANY reason at all, the kids would go into hysterical crying fits, begging me NOT to call Santa.  Relax kid, I was just gonna check my messages, SHEESH!  Truth is, this year was absolutely the most darling and fun age with my kids for Christmas.  They BELIEVED wholly and completely.  They were so excited and so full of happiness and joy.  It made the holiday so much more fun and enjoyable for me.  They were hysterical with their elves.  In awe when they'd move, heartbroken if they accidently touched one or knocked one over, because they feared they'd taken the elves magic away.  It was all just so great!

One night/morning at about 3 a.m. Maggie woke up for some reason, and when she noticed that an elf was in a new spot, her eyes got wide and she said "look Mommy, the elf moved, they really ARE watching us."

Another time, I was yelling at her from another room to go wash her hands after going to the bathroom.  She said she did.  I said, 'No you didn't Maggie, I KNOW you didn't wash them."  To which she replied...."how do you know, are you part elf too?"  HA!   It was awesome.



Anywho, let me introduce you to 4 of our elf army.....

In the back is Mr. Peepers, he bothers Maggie because he's "green".

From L to R in front is Sport, Clarence and Happy.  Maggie named them all, and who are we to argue with that.  Sport and Happy were quite clever elves and could often be found hanging from cieling fans, snowflakes in the cieling, curtains or elsewhere.  Definitely more lithe and nimble than Clarence, who was a big clunky, and Mr. Peepers who has a balance problem.

All in all, I'm a big fan of this whole Elf army and look forward to using their services again next year.  Actually, we've decided that maybe once a month or so one will just appear in the house, to let the kids know that Santa is ALWAYS watching.  hehehehehe

Elves unite,

Allyson

Santa Clause Came to Town

We "watched out", we didn't cry and we didn't pout (all lies, there was A LOT of crying and pouting, and fighting, intespersed with good behaviour too) so Santa Clause came to town.

No complaints here, Santa and Gramma Peg, and Gramma and Grandpa were good to us, and the kids couldn't be happier with their Christmas haul.

We begin with Christmas Eve at Gramma Pegs house.

Christmas PJ shot

There is a smorgasboard of food.  Seriously, Gramma thinks there is 100 people, instead of just 4 of us there to eat.  But, eat we do and then the present opening begins.

I didn't take very many pictures, but suffice it to say,  Gramma goes a TOUCH overboard on spoiling her grandkids.  Max was super excited about this present.  A little twisty/turny racetrack with cars.

Daddy attempting to put it together so they could play with it.

After the avalanche of presents were opened and hanging out was done, we loaded the kids and goods up and headed for home, so Santa could come to our house.

The kids were snuggled up in their beds.......

'Twas the year of the big kid bike around these parts.  If you asked Max what he wanted, he would always tell you...."a guyscraper bike and a guyscraper helmet."  I don't know where that came from, he's Max, what can I say.  I need to scan maggies letter to Santa.  it's the cutest thing ever, and she wrote it all herself.  She asked Santa to bring her a big girl bike, a puzzle and a nailset.  We were happy to oblige such simple wishes.  There was a Rapunzel doll thrown in for good measure, and maybe some blingy sweats, just sayin.

Let the games begin.....

I promise she LIKED the doll...

Thanks to my Mumsy and a Relief Society project....Max has this super faublous, reversable Super hero cape.

The Loot for her

The loot for him...

Really, it was a great Christmas.  I am a firm believer in less is more.  My children will never get more than three presents from Santa, and then one from Gramma and Grandpa and maybe a couple little things from Mom and Dad.  There is just no need to go so crazy and so overboard on gifts.  It becomes overwhelming to their senses, and it's a huge waste of money.  So, there you have it, my personal philosophy.  And, the thing is....they're happy.

The bikes have been a huge success, and it makes my heart pitter pat to see them out riding them.

Lastly, a funny story regarding Max and the cape. 

One night, LONG after we'd put them to bed, out comes Maggie, tatteling that Max had gotte my goggles out of my bag in my room.  And just as I'm about to yell at Max, here he comes into the room, full of consternation and defending himself to the fullest, wearing his super cape and goggles.  If only I could have taken a picture at that moment, because honestly, there are no words for how ridiculous, and adorable and hysterical it was.  HOW could I possibly be mad at him, or yell at him for being up an HOUR past their bedtime, when he NEEEEEEEDED the goggles to complete his Super guy getup.  Oh, I'm telling you, it was too much.  Jere and I could NOT stop giggling.  I just buried my head in my shirt until I could compose myself to calmly tell him super guy needed to be put to bed until further notice.  He kindly removed the goggles, handed them to me and sadly made his way back to bed.  Man that kid, he's a hoot!  Fairly sure it is an image that will live in my brain until I die.  At least I hope it does, 'cause it was dang funny.

Christmas overload,

Allyson