Dreaming of a White Christmas

It's been tough talking to family lately. EVERY single one has snow stories to share... schools closing, white-outs, etc. How very sad to live in Alaska and be without snow while the rest of the United States is wallowing in it unhappily (for the most part- I'm sure the kids don't mind so much)

Well, the big day was quickly approaching and all we had to show was a damp sidewalk. FINALLY, two days before Christmas, we got SNOW!

Not much, but enough to qualify a white Christmas.

Shane remembering what snow boots are for- and mittens- cold feet and hands!

The first snow Austin remembers seeing. He discovered his footprints and loves to follow himself around and around.

Since then, the weather has been good to us (meaning our little band of lunatics- everyone else isn't as happy with it). The snow has been off and on, but we've accumulated over a foot. Dad is having lots of fun with his shovel therapy (he's positively OCD!) Mom loves watching the snow fall. Austin loves walking in his snow boots- inside and out. Shane has fallen in love with snowballs and sledding- the little hills aren't wild enough and the bigger hills are wonderfully fun, with Mommy in tow. Sorry about the lack of pictures... Daddy's had me shovelling as well.

Manly Pursuits

When Brett started holiday routine, we were all very excited. Somehow, I'd gotten it into my head that he'd be helping out more and giving me time to get a few more things done around the house. Maybe the boys would be dressed when I came home from work- and; dare to dream, a chore or two done around the house.
You've probably figured out that I have a very active and optimistic imagination. I came home to find my boys in the midst of quality, manly, "guy stuff"...
Austin gets the extra paddle to chew on and push buttons. Every once in a while he'll flop down on his chubby bum, next to where the bigger boys are playing and get into the game... bouncing and 'oh'ing like the others.

Shane has it down, no guy could ask for more. A comfy seat, instant help on the hard parts, blinking lights, buttons to push, and no pants. That IS the life.

My Apologies

So sorry everyone out there in bloggger land! My mother-in-law reminded me today that there are actually people out there who want to know what my little monsters are up to. I've been dreadfully lax in the blog department lately. With Brett's Holiday routine the last few weeks, the boys got it into thier heads that they didn't need to sleep because Daddy was home and up. Mom had more than enough to get done every day- I'm sure you understand! So now we're back trying to get the boys to sleep before midnight. So far we've barely been succeeding... Why oh why did they have to inherit the night-owl gene from thier father?!

Captain Underpants Mini-Me

Kids truly make life bearable.  And unbearable at times, but that's a different blog.  I've come to realize how quickly they want to grow up.  Austin ADORES his big brother to no end, and even at almost 15 months, he tries to do the things Shane does- walk up the stairs, cuddle the cat, play cars.  I've also realized how early in life the brotherly bond is apparent- you know the one, I love you that's why I'm going to do everything in my power to drive you crazy.  Yeah.  Austin loves to sit on Shane- and bounce up and down on him- whenever the big guy sits or lays on the floor.  He also loves to steal Shane's special toys, his train or tow truck; just to get Shane's attention and get him to cry and scream.  Mommy doesn't appreciate that one so much. But there is one thing that I think is wonderful.  

Whenever Austin sees Shane getting ready for school- he wants to do it too.  He brings clothes and fusses and pushes until you put them on him.  But the one thing that will make his day, put him in the clouds, and bring peace to the world- is underwear.

Yes, I said underwear.  Austin loves to find an abandoned pair of underwear, and wear them.

Regardless of what else he's wearing.

He's so proud of himself, it's funny.

He loves to get his picture taken in them, which is a habit that will be curtailed as he gets older.

Luigi was the Unders-du-jour this evening.

I even have a hilarious picture of him in full footy sleeper jammies, with unders on over them.  It's still on the camera, but I'm sure you can imagine it.

Our children are nuts, but they sure bring a bit of enjoyment to life!

Late Last Night

It was late last night.  Shane was watching his movies in bed, on the verge of sleep.  Austin had had taken alate nap, so I was letting him play around the bedroom for a bit.  Suddenly I noticed he was gone!  Trying to call softly so as to not rouse Shane, I heard an answering grunt from downstairs.  I tip-toe/dash down the stairs just in time to see...

I wait a minute... sure enough the knob jiggles a bit.  There's a scratching sound at the edge of the door.  Then he yells "Maaaa".  I kept quiet to see what he would do.  He yelled for a few more times and when the worried tone starts to creep into his voice, I reach for the doorknob to let the little guy out.  LOCKED!  Austin's cries are panicked and pitiful, but the boys had been playing with our "keys" (a big ol' nail), so it's not on the radiator right there by the door where it usually is.  As I turn to run upstairs, hoping they'd left that "key" alone, my foot kicks a shoe into the closet and I hear a muffled ping of the nail.  By the time I scrambled through the pile of shoes to find the wayward "key", Austin is at wake-the-neighborhood volume.

It was terribly cuddly pitiful-sad when he came out.

Poor guy.

Will he learn to stay near me and not to close doors behind him?- no.

Stealin' A Snack

Here's Austin snitching a snack- mmmm- bread.

Church Christmas Party

Ours is a quirky little congregation, especially when it comes to Christmas time. For the last 8 years (I'm told that's a conservative guess) they've been holding a white elephant gift exchange for the entire ward (that should tell you how small we are!). It takes up the whole of the activity but it's lots of fun, with a few gifts making reappearances every year... for all 8 years (like the stuffed, talking Piccachu).

Anyhoo, to shake things up a bit, the primary put on the Nativity story this year. It was very cute, with the hap-hazard, half-there costumes and reluctant boys. The nursery kids played the very important part- of sheep. Shane had the clever idea of hiding under the table, thinking that no one would find him. But the girls saw the great idea and blew his cover. During the practices, the 2 little girls were very proper and obedient in going where they were told and sitting to watch the spectacle unfold. But, when the time came, and the narrator said "..sheep..." and their teacher started to nudge, Shane was the only one to follow through!

For the first little bit at least. When he realized he was alone out there, and had overshot his mark, he gave up and came back to the audience.Austin really wanted to join in the fun... but he was too old to play Jesus, and too wiggly to handle any other parts. Next year for sure!
The kids did a pretty good job- especially keeping Baby Jesus (aka Woods- one of Austin's buddies) quiet and content as they all gathered around him. He loved it!
The Gift Exchange was Lots of Fun, but took FOREVER! At least it seemed that way to the kids. I couldn't reach the camera, and often had my hands full with the boys anyway. And Brett was too focused on making sure he knew what everyone was getting (in case it was something he wanted to "steal") that he was totally useless on taking pictures (one of those "...duh.." times). By the time I finally got the camera, the pile of presents was gone except for a couple, and Austin was looking around for more paper to rip, or eat, whatever. All the little, little kids at least once tried to take extra turns opening. And there was quite a bit of "stealing" gifts back and forth. All in good fun. I stole a couple of Pez stocking stuffers (for the boys). Although all the food items were pretty hot commodities, they never got stolen away from me. I was told later that it was because I was letting the boys hold them and play with them while we waited... can't take candy from a baby. Unwitting genius on my part!

Kat in the Tree

I am just waiting for the little bugger to get stuck- or to fall from higher up. He's been climbing and chewing on the tree all week!

Ho Ho Ho

Shane found our Santa hat... and the family stockings.

I'm sure all the moms out there are imagining the many things an active little boy can do with such things in his posession. As creativity goes, what he did was pretty tame.

He insisted that the socks went on his feet- duh mom. And the hat on the other end.
He wore them that way all morning...I persuaded him to remove the stockings when it was time to go to school- but the hat was a different thing entirely... the teacher talked him out of that one when it was playground time. He's still awfully excited about Santa and presents. So, we've been reading the Nativity story every night (a kids version) and looking for presents to put in the Toys for Tots boxes around town.

Black Friday

"Black Friday", at least in Sitka, lasts a full 2 days. This year, The City declared both Friday and Saturday tax free. Since Brett was working Friday, and taking the boys shopping in the crowded stores is a chore any day, we opted to stay home and save our shopping for Saturday.


So I got the chance to begin Christmas decorating.


Putting together our new tree. It's a good 7' one. Someday we'll get to do live trees, but for now... it's like Trace and needles- not a good combination.

The actuall decorating of the tree didn't get completeded until Sunday. We invited some friends over that will be travelling for the holidays, so they won't be doing thier own trees. We shared our Christmas tree fun with them. You may have noticed that Angel Moroni is not gracing the top, his trumpet was broken last year as I was packing things up (little Shane bums are enough to snap off the golden horn). So although he's not on the tree, we aren't letting him go just yet. It's sparked alot of discussions as he floats about the house- and Austin enjoys chewing on him now and again.

Shane, Austin and the other kids did a VERY good job putting on the unbreakable ornaments- I did not move them once they were placed, unless there was more than 2 on a branch. Thank you for your help Seth and Ryan, Nancy and KC!

Daddy was more interested in making sure our other decorations made it up. Like the stocking holders... what a nut!

I love the holidays and the chance to have so many reminders of our Saviour around.

Then Daddy decided to get all the gifts wrapped up- "the kids won't remember". I did my best to be sneaky when Shane was around, but he absolutely loved helping. He'd pick out a name tag sticker for each present and then carefully take the finished package and line it up across the house (starting under the tree.) When I finally shut down the processing, he started stacking them up... and asking to open them. So Daddy helped Shane stack them and take them upstairs. I don't know where they hid them, but Shane doesn't seem to remember either, so it's ok for now.

Merry Christmas everyone!

Falling Down the Stairs

It's been a rowdy sort of evening. Our friend Tristan and his mom Christiana came over to do crafts with us (that blog will come a bit later). The kids were bouncing off the walls, as boys do and there's still a bit of energy left over since Tristan has left. Shane and Austin have found thier boogie/kick board (the one that's never been used). Normally, it's just stood on, pretending thier surfing and stuff. But today, today they have discovered the combination of boogie board and staircase. As yet no living creatures have made the thrilling ride down , but that could change any minute, so I'd best be getting these monkeys off to bed!

Occupational Therapy

An Occupational Therapist (OT) "incorporates meaningful and purposeful occupation to enable people with limitations or impairments to participate in everyday life." Translated, they help learn, or re-learn your job when there's been an injury or something. For kids, thier job is to play. When the sensory feedback interferes, be it too much, not enough, or of the wrong sort, then they need help overcoming that so they can do thier job-PLAY!
Our first visit with Ms. Celeste was technically an "evaluation" but they spent the entire time playing! She started with the most dificult area- Shane's mouth- by blowing bubbles. Starting with a wand and advancing from there. Shane and I both learned that to override unpleasant experiences in or round his mouth, he needs an immediate stronger sensation that he associates positively- like a raspberry! Shane loves the idea!
Next was the rice bin. At first, Shane wouldn't even touch it. Butwith lots of encouragement, he got to gingerly playing in the rice with his hands. Ms. Celeste would actually press his handful into his palm to give him the strong sensation he could understand. It didn't take long for him to be okay with the softer sensations the rice had to offer too.
But the big fun started when they got to the tunnel. There was noone to get in his personal space, so Shane was VERY excited to explore. That was matched with the excersize ball (Shane's core balance was excellent!) Shane got to be Superman! And finally, the scooterboard!
After all that, Shane was tuckered out (he'd already done a full "day" at school) but he was able and willing to put his own shoes on for once. It's a step in the right direction.
Ms. Celeste was very enthusiastic and optimistic that with a little fun/work, Shane will be able to become far more comfortable in the world around him, and a bit more self-sufficient.
We are very excited to see what comes next. It will take a bit of juggling to keep from tireing Shane out what with school 4 days a week, speech classes 2 days a week (when the education plan goes through the insurance company), and then OT however often that is needed.

Night Out

Tuesday, I finally did it. I dropped the kids at a friends' house, kidnapped his wife, and ran away! No, a bunch of friends all met for dinner and a movie. It was thoroughly needed- I was on the verge of insanity and I'm not joking around.
We saw, you guessed it, Twilight. After reading mny reviews, and being a bit let down by the Harry Potter movies, we didn't want to keep our hopes to high for this one. But I thought it was pretty good.
You could tell they stuck to thier budget. And adjusted a few things from the book to fit a movie. The actors were a bit furry for marble, but I can imagine the reaction that would have come from asking someone to shave his chest and arms in addition to his face-repeatedly, every day... fight that 5'o'clock shadow! I hadn't pictured the character of Jacob to be quite the pretty boy they had in the film, but the actor was alright. The Dad and Billy were utterly perfect and were at times the best part. I'm still wondering about the Bella character, I don't know exactly what it is, but something is off about her in my opinion. All said and done, it was very fun. Definately one I'd see again. One or two of the ladies there hadn't read the books and they were getting into the story as much as the rest of us dorks. We were told that we were acting like a bunch of teenage girls, which was the whole point and idea of the night- to escape reality for a split second. I guess we succeeded.