Peace on Earth

Visit from Meme & Pepe... Part 2

I really miss my parents. Really, really, really - in case you didn't catch that from any of my previous posts. While downloading Christmas pictures this afternoon, I came across a few shots taken in November at the airport right before my parents caught their flight back to Arizona.

So cute, so sweet, so deceiving..

"Hey, Pepe - I know where to find you... Wrapped around my little pinky!!!
"But, Meme, who's going to read me stories for hours on end without complaining?"

The squeeze... Notice Pepe removed his glasses.... He remembers what she did to her cousin Tom.

And the takedown. Not so sweet now, is she?

Here is what she did to cousin Tom.

Merry Christmas!

Christmas Eve... Boo, Shy & Bitty Baby before church.

Christmas Morning - the calm before the storm.

LEGOS!!! (Mommy can't wait to play with them!)

Boo's new robe.

Pinky Dinky Doo is Boo's new hero!

One of several books from Meme & Pepe. THANK YOU!
Pre-K Workbooks!

Boo's new bean bag chair. Now all we need are some beans for the bag.

The aftermath.

Tender moment

I left the room for a few minutes and when I returned Hubby was wiping his eyes with a tissue & sniffling. Here's what I missed.

Hubby: You know Daddy loves you very much?

Boo: Your baby loves you very much, too.

And then a grown man cried. How sweet is that? So I just had to take a picture of a daddy and his "baby".

Christmas blues

I know it's not just me. Many of my friends and relatives have this sad, wistful tone to their voice as Christmas draws near. Cosigner said it's because no matter what people have in life, they naturally wish for more - especially our generation. Gen X - the first fully pampered, fully entitled generation.

I usually long for more family. A sister who lived in the United States, parents who could travel to be with us, and maybe a brother or sister or two for Hubby (who is an only child) to add to our holiday gatherings. I want noise, chaos, laughter... Instead, it is always the three of us with Hubby's parents who aren't particularly prone to laughter.

I wonder if Boo will feel the same way as she gets older... a little cheated that her life will never resemble the large happy yet disfunctional family gatherings in Christmas movies. I wonder if she'll resent us for not giving her a sibling. Although, I know - due to my own situation - that having a sibling doesn't guarantee you'll get to spend any time together as adults. Which, I might add, is a waste of a perfectly good sister.

Instead of focusing on what we lack in life - like a house with a basement (see how easy that is) - I need to focus on what we have. Boo is a wonderful, healthy little girl. Hubby loves me, and even though he's a bum when it comes to housework (see, I did it again), I can't think of anyone else I'd rather hang out with every day. And he is such a great father. Our animals, provide plenty of chaos and laughter. Even though we both lost our jobs this year, there are gifts under the tree, we were able to help other families this season, and the bills are paid.

And in my lap is the head of one very gorgeous Weimaraner who is just grateful to have a family - no matter how large or small.

Merry Christmas.

Am I the only one

Who notices that the floors are dirty and bothers to vacuum them?

Who picks up the toys scattered all over the house instead of stepping over them?

Who loads, empties, loads, empties, loads, empties (repeat a thousand times) the dishwasher?

Who wipes the crumbs from the table & counter tops?

Who cares that the toilets are clean?

Who sees the trash can is overflowing?

Who hangs up jackets & scarves and puts shoes in the basket in the entry way?

Who sorts the mail and throws out the junk?

Who pays the bills and manages the finances?

Who schedules doctor and vet appointments?

Who spends every weekend making sure we have clean clothes to wear come Monday?

I'm not the only one. Just the only one in my house. And today, I'm pretty darn bitter about that.

The Halls are decked

And a little something extra IN the tree! Fluffy, you naughty kitty!

We put up our Christmas tree on Sunday. This was the first year Boo "helped" us put the ornaments on the tree. It was nerve wracking. My 40-pound child resembled a bull in a china shop. DONTSTEPONTHAT! WATCHWHEREYOUAREGOING! PUTTHATDOWN! DONTTOUCHTHAT!

Anyway, this is a pretty cool event for us. Every year we take these tattered boxes down from the attic (and have the same conversation about enlarging the opening and installing fold-down stairs). Over the years our ornaments get put away in no particular order, so as we dig through the boxes and pull out our treasures we tell "I remember when" stories. Thank goodness for Boo - finally we have someone else to listen to us.

My parents bought my sister and me an ornament every Christmas. I have all of mine. They're marked by year starting in 1972. They stopped in 2004, and now carry on the tradition with Boo. It's really awesome to hang my entire Christmas history on my grown-up family tree. Thank you, Mom and Dad, for thinking ahead to how much this would mean to us when we grew up.

Damn. The hamster is dead.

I went to clean out her cage this morning and Tootie was curled up - deader than a doornail. We got her as a baby just a few months ago. I thought they had a three-year life span? Boo is going to be so sad...

More pics of Boo & Shy

Last night was accident-free and very quiet. I put her dog bed right next to my side of the bed, and she curled up all night long without a peep. That is, until Hubby startled her this morning. She's not quite used to living with a man in the house.

Looking for a pair of ears

Seeking pair of little ears in working condition. Must be able to hear the sound of my voice. Must come attached to an adorable little girl that actually does what I ask. If you can help me, please let me know.

There's a whole lot of hissing going on

Meet Cheyenne (or Shy as we've been calling her). She's our new dog, and came home this morning. We've been working through a regional Weimaraner rescue since September, and we finally found "the one". The cats beg to differ.

Shy is about 2 years old and has a very laid back personality. She's a good girl and hasn't ventured far from my side today. Probably because when she does, a little ticked off fur ball lunges at her. More to follow...

Boo 'isms

It's been a while since I've posted anything about Boo's antics of late. We've had some good ones in the past few weeks. For example, "Daddy, I don't need to go to school anymore. I've already learned everything I need to know." The kid can barely read the word cat. I think it's in her best interest to stay in school.

Or one morning earlier in the week we all climbed into the big bed to enjoy a morning a snuggle. Boo asked Hubby to rub her back. I'm like, "Hey, what about me???" To which Boo replied, "That's OK, Mommy. You can rub me when Daddy's done." That wasn't exactly my point, kid.

The night before last I allowed Boo time alone in her room to play with her make-up. The kid is obsessed with it. No, we don't let her wear it out of the house (with the exception of Halloween), but we do let her doll herself up and wear her crooked lipstick and overdone eyeshadow around the house. She came downstairs and told me that she put lipstick on her doll. I immediately freaked because she has some of my childhood dolls in her room that are made of cloth. When I went upstairs to investigate, she raced ahead of me and threw herself across the bottom step pleading, "I promise I'll clean it up. Just don't go up there!" Right. Upstairs I found one of her less expensive dolls painted in red nail polish. Boo proceeds to tell me that the almost perfectly painted on nail polish "lipstick" happened accidentally - which just ticked me off all the more. The room reeked and there was nail polish all over the floor, too. Gads. She knows better. So, she lost her nail polish privileges and will have to live with an ugly stain on her carpet. (Anyone know how to remove nail polish from carpet?)

We're doing our best to teach her that she can tell us anything - even if she did something awful. (We even have a few books on the subject.) And that it's far worse to hide it from us or lie about it - like saying that it's an accident when it was clearly a gross error in judgment.

We want her to experience consequences without instilling a fear of making mistakes.