Sunday Afternoon Fun

Many more days like this and we wouldn't even have to think twice about moving back to the country. Warm weather, great friends, loving family, and an activity that requires wide, open spaces make me a little homesick.

Enchanted

I wasn't expecting much when Laiken and I picked up Adrienne this morning and headed to the theater so that we could see Enchanted. We met Monica and Kaitlin there and, in my head, we were going because the girls wanted to go--I didn't anticipate being really entertained.

Go see this movie! All right, I am by no means a movie critic and I really don't see many movies, and a lot of the movies that I do see are intended for a much younger audience, but take my word for it--this is a funny, touching movie. Monica and I laughed through most of it and the parts that weren't funny were so emotionally touching that the scenes would bring a few tears to your eyes. I was really surprised at how much I enjoyed it. The movie has so much to say about choosing to feel potential pain and anger in order to have a real meaningful relationship with another person; but, that message is mixed with all of these funny and ironic moments about the disparity between the fairy tale world and the real world. It's really good--grab your kid or borrow a kid and go and see it.

After the movie and lunch, the girls spent the afternoon jumping on the trampoline, playing Kaitlin's Wii, and putting on a "fashion show." This is a great blackmail photo for when they are older....

Secret Ingredient: Play-Doh

I know it's probably a little weird, but my older 2 still love to play with Play-Doh. They can spend hours shaping the dough and showing everyone what they have made. I used to hate the mess, but over the years, I have come to appreciate the hours of quiet that it offers.

On Friday, the weather was cold, Nolan and Laiken were still recouping from their bouts of pneumonia, and we were all feeling a little lazy. Laiken and Carson decided to have an Iron Chef America competition where they created different entrees out of Play-Doh and then had me and Farrel judge the "foods" on appearance and variety. We are big fans of Iron Chef America and it was so funny to hear Carson doing the commentary like Alton Brown does. After they created for about an hour, they presented the foods to us. Even Nolan got into the competition. Of course, we couldn't pick a winner, so we called it a tie!

Merry Christmas!

I know everyone says it, but it really is hard to believe that Christmas has come and gone for another year. We had a great time doing all of our usuals: making reindeer food, baking cookies for Santa, reading Twas the Night Before Christmas, and waking up Christmas morning to a flurry of unwrapping followed by a big breakfast. I know there will come a year when the kids won't care so much about these traditions, when it won't matter if we leave cookies for Santa or if the reindeer have a snack on their stop at our house. Carson is already questioning and I have a feeling that Laiken might be playing along just for our sake. We are lucky, though, because we will get to extend all of the magic a little longer with Nolan. The best years are so short, with the letter writing, the anticipation, and the sheer joy as kids open up exactly what they had been wishing for. Santa brought Heelys this year--something we wouldn't buy--so Carson and Laiken were thrilled that he listened. We did buy a 4-wheeler and, yes, I am a little more than nervous about it. The kids have had a go-cart for several years, but they are out-growing it. So, we decided to replace it with a bigger kid option. My parents have all that land and Joe and I used to run our 3-wheeler all over the place. We would pull each other in a barrel tied from a rope and jump ditches and run through the mud. I think my parents must have been crazy to let us do half the things we did. I don't think that I'll be able to watch as my kids rig up different ways to potentially injure themselves, but I do imagine that they will have a lot of fun riding with a helmet, both hands firmly on the handlebars, on a smooth patch of ground, with the governor set to keep it at a safe speed.... (O.K., I think I'm close to taking all of the fun out of it...)

Merry Christmas, everybody!

The Boys!

I caught my boys on Sunday night getting into things that should have been left alone. First, Nolan got Laiken's DS while it was charging and played for quite a while before anyone realized that he had her game. Tragedy of all sorts!! Some of her Nintendog stuff was used up in the process--I'm not even sure what that means, but apparently she was not happy. I reminded her that if the DS was not left charging where Nolan could reach it, then she wouldn't have to worry about him playing it.




Later, I found Carson snooping around in the presents. I have had several wrapped under the tree for 2 or 3 weeks and the suspense is killing him. Luckily, I walked in before his curiosity caused him to lift some paper and peek. Not that he would ever do that!!....

All Day Crafting

Most of you know that I am not big on crafts. I like to see what other people create, but I am just not one to spend my free time working on little projects. Give me a good book and I can easily pass a few hours of free time. Given my lack of crafting interest or ability, I'm not sure how I ended up with a daughter who loves crafts as much as she does. It is a love affair that was evident by the time she was 2. So, she was ecstatic Saturday when she got to spend the whole day doing exactly what she loves.

The day started with a sewing class. Susie drove Laiken, Samantha, and Rebekah to Frisco and the girls worked for 3 hours learning how to use a sewing machine. Each girl took home a full-size pillowcase that she had sewn herself. To say I was impressed is an understatement! I can put a button back on a shirt and do simple mending by hand and even though I grew up watching my mom sew, I never took much interest in learning the skill myself. So, when Laiken left with some material and came back with a completed project, I couldn't believe it!

Later that day, Laiken got to go to the Graves' home for a Gingerbread House party. Alicia had quite an assortment of materials for the houses and she even had the supplies for each girl to make 2 different ornaments. The girls had a great time and the end results were amazing. Huge thanks to my dear friend, Alicia, for all the hard work that went into the night!

Last Day Before Break!!

I think that I was just as happy on Friday as the kids were! I was ready for a break. We have been so busy the last few months that we all just need some time to regroup and be a little lazy.

We started the morning off at the school's awards assembly. A group of the teachers sang a few holiday songs (beautiful voices!) and then Laiken was named one of the Principal's Awards winners. This is the 4th time that Laiken has been chosen for that award and we are so proud of her!

After the awards, we all went back to the classrooms for the Christmas parties. Both Carson's and Laiken's classes had breakfast foods and did crafts. Carson's class made snowflake ornaments and Laiken's class made gingerbread houses. It's always fun to be at school on the day before the Christmas holidays. Everyone is in a great mood, the kids are laughing and having fun, and all of the parents are in the school to help, so there is great company and conversation. We had a fun day and now we are looking forward to our much anticipated break.

Christmas with the Ritchies

We went to Van Alstyne on Thursday night for Christmas with the Ritchies. All of Laiken and Carson's cousins were there and it was a good time. There are 7 grandkids on the Ritchie side of the family and Laiken is the only girl. So, at all the get-togethers, she finds herself in the minority and spends much of her time getting in touch with her inner tomboy. The kids came home with way too many gifts, as usual, and I contemplated taking some things back since Granny and Papaw did so much shopping!

If Only It Was Just a Drink of Water!

When Laiken was little, she would get out of bed numerous times wanting a drink or saying she needed to go to the bathroom. Carson would find more unique reasons that usually involved a little emotional plea asking for me to lay down with him for "just a few more minutes." Nolan can't get out of bed because we still have him in a crib, but he constantly calls us back to bring him one more thing to put in there with him. By the time he fell asleep the other night, this is what his crib looked like....

I'm not sure what this is all about or how long it will last. I never would have let Laiken or Carson take this many things into their beds, but I have to admit, cramped bed space is just not a fight I choose to have any more. I'm thinking this will run its course and, eventually, he'll get back to the usual pillow, blanket, and stuffed animal like a normal kid.

Best Friends, Hot Chocolate, and Jewelry...

It doesn't get much better than that. Laura treated the girls to an after-school hot chocolate party at Starbucks this week. While they were there, Alli gave Laiken and Alessia the necklaces that she had hand-made for them. Alli had specially chosen the perfect color for each girl and had bought the focal stones in Montana this summer. Her grandmother had helped her make these special gifts for her friends and Alli had kept the gifts a secret for months--no small feat considering how much time they all spend together! I was struck by how thoughtful the gifts were--the care that Alli took in choosing just the right color for each girl and the time that went into making the necklaces--I was moved by the wonderful reminder about gift-giving that I got this week.

It's Been a Long Time

It has been a long time since I was young enough to have a real slumber party. But, I remember how my friends and I could hardly make it through the week, waiting for Friday night, so the fun could begin. Laiken and her friends have been planning this night for weeks now, sitting at lunch, discussing details of games, activities, even the kind of pj's they wanted to wear (pajamas with animal prints were the preferred attire). So, Friday after school, I picked up 6 giggling girls who piled into my car ready for the fun to begin. I was thinking, "I hope this night lives up to their expectations..." We had crafts, made cookies, played games, watched a movie, drank hot chocolate and, of course, ate way too many snacks, sweets, and pizza. The other moms kept asking me, "Are you sure you are up for this?" I laughed, not really knowing if I was, but looking forward to it just the same. I thought about all the nights of sleep my parents lost as they hosted mine and my brother's friends as we were growing up. My friends and Joe's friends always knew they were welcome and loved in our home and I have always been grateful to my parents for creating that kind of environment. After hosting Laiken's first slumber party, I can say that I could not have asked for the night to have gone any better! Her friends are such good, sweet girls and they all played, laughed, and talked long into the night.

A few surprises from the evening:

• We didn't get to all the activities that we had planned. The time went faster than I could have imagined it would.
• The girls were all about Nolan's toys. (Who could have guessed that toddler toys would be so interesting to 4th grade girls?)
• Girls will dig their hands into a container of flour just because it's there. I've never seen so much flour on a table. Needless to say, I threw away the flour left in my container and will be buying a new bag this week!
• Apparently, Joe Jonas is the most popular Jonas brother...

Thanks to all my mom friends who stopped by and called during the party and thanks for sharing your girls with us for the evening. We are looking forward to doing it again--as soon as I get a full night's sleep! :-)

Holiday Musical

This week, Laiken's school hosted their first ever full-length musical production. It featured over 100 students and was really quite an undertaking. Students practiced for weeks prior, getting to school early and staying late to learn lines and choreography. Laiken and most of her friends had parts speaking, singing, or dancing. Laiken was Mrs. Claus and, thanks to Aunt Carolyn, had a beautiful, authentic costume. She danced her way through "Jolly Old St. Nicholas" surrounded by some of the younger children dressed as reindeer. Too cute! All the kids did such a great job and all the hard work and practice were worth it.

Girls' NIght

Big thanks to Dana for hosting a very elegant and fun evening for the moms and daughters this past weekend. The food and activities were great and sharing it all with friends made it even more special. The girls all looked so pretty, but their social graces left them during the "pass the gift" competition. Luckily, their manners returned just in time for the special dessert course of Ben and Jerry's ice cream cake.

Cheap Fun

We have a basketball goal, a trampoline, a set of soccer goals, balls, bats, bikes, scooters, tons of board games, and just about every piece of technology that a kid could want. So, I had to laugh when Laiken and Megan got so excited about discovering a big sheet of bubble wrap in the garage. Soon, the boys joined in and the contest began to see who could pop the most bubbles. If only I could have come up with a big cardboard box to complete the fun...

There's Never Been a Cuter Snowflake!

I had totally forgotten what it was like to watch your 2 year old in his/her first Christmas program. Nolan's program was Thursday night and he was not doing well when I took him to his classroom. He started crying and tried to come out after me, yelling, " I go back and sit with my Waiken!" I went back to the church auditorium and reported to all of our family that they probably shouldn't expect much because Nolan didn't appear to be in a mood to perform. Twenty minutes later, we watched in amazement as he calmly walked out with his class, stood on the stage, and performed the motions and sang the words to some version of a holiday song that I had never before heard. The song was something about a snowflake and Nolan was so unbelievably cute that it didn't really matter what he was singing or doing. I just sat thinking about how back in June, he could only say about 5 words. I can hardly remember how hard that was or what it was like. He has come so far!

It's Christmas, already?

And with nothing more than the turning of a page in the calendar, the Christmas season is in full swing. With the parade on December 1 and the first of our family celebrations on December 2, I am anticipating a full month of holiday cheer. Saturday, Richard and Angie hosted all of my mom's family for an early Christmas get-together. 36 members of the extended Clawson family were able to make it to Georgetown for the event--13 of those were kids under the age of 10. There was plenty of delicious food, lots of story sharing, and a cut-throat game of gift exchanging like only the Clawsons can do. Laiken and I came out pretty good this year! I miss you guys already and can't wait until we can do it again.

Here's Laiken holding the newest addition to the group...Baby Brady.

Nolan and Ashlynn really enjoyed playing this duck game about a thousand times.

Carson and Kelsey both lost teeth while we were there. Kelsey's came out while eating one of the cookies I made!!! Stephanie, I promise they really were soft. :-). Carson lost his other top front tooth when Colby accidentally kicked him in the mouth. It was already loose and Carson was really wanting it out anyway, so Colby just gave it a little help.

We have a winner!

Christmas came early for the students and parents at Laiken and Carson's school. For the fourth year in a row, the school's float won 1st place in our town's Christmas parade. It was an absolutely AMAZING replica of the Polar Express train (my pictures don't do it justice!). Originally, we were going to be out of town Friday night but plans changed and I'm so glad we didn't miss the big event!


Some of our wonderful friends from the youth cheer association also posted great results with their float entry. Monica and Frank headed up the production of a float depicting the night before Christmas. It was beautiful and they took 3rd place!

The night was perfect for a lighted parade. The weather was in the 60's and it was hard to believe that we were out there to celebrate the beginning of the Christmas season!

All I Want for Christmas...

...is another vacation in the Caribbean. Last year during this week, we were on a cruise with the Wrights, Parsons, Beatons, Woodalls, and Armstrongs--a total of 11 kids. We had a fabulous week and found plenty of time for fun, relaxation, and lots of sun! Wish we were there again this year!!

It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year???

You'll notice that my daughter and her friend are standing in front of a really pretty Christmas tree. The problem is that it is not our Christmas tree. Yesterday, after spending the morning convincing my 3 kids to smile for Christmas pictures, Laiken went to Kaitlin's for the afternoon. Our dear friends, Frank and Monica, Kaitlin's parents, began decorating a week ago. No, I'm not kidding. If there were a 12-step program for Christmas decorating addicts, Frank and Monica would need to be the first ones at the meetings. We lovingly call them the Griswolds and my daughter fully believes that she has somehow been robbed of her birthright because her parents won't buy out Garden Ridge so that our home can look like the Wrights'. So, Laiken came home yesterday from her playdate expecting that we would be putting up our tree (since, after all, the Wrights' home already had multiple trees up, inflatables in the yard, wood cut-outs, music playing, and lights all over the place.) She was bordering on furious when she went to bed last night and our home still showed no signs of the approaching holiday.

I got up this morning thinking, "O.K., we will decorate." It was raining outside, Farrel had to work a playoff game in Tyler, and the tree needed to be put up before school started up again. Farrel was already dressed for work when I asked him to help me move all the boxes of decorations from the garage into the living room. He just looked at me at first--until I said, "When you get home, it will all be done..." A smile spread across his face and we quickly moved the boxes so I could get started. Mayhem ensued as soon as the boxes made their appearance. "THE TREE!!! WE ARE GOING TO PUT THE TREE UP!!!" Due to all the allergies shared by Farrel and the kids, we have never braved having a real tree, so ours is nicely stored in about 10 zillion pieces in a huge container. Each branch fits into a color coded hole and has to be manually "fluffed" before it is placed. The result is a beautiful sight, but, oh, so much work!

I'll admit...I've never been much of a decorator. The walls and windows in my house are pretty sparse. It's just never been one of my talents. But, I can do a pretty tree. Years ago, I started paying attention to trees in stores and I made mental notes on how to recreate them. I am a little crazy about how everything is placed and for weeks after the tree goes up, I will walk by and rearrange ornaments, lights, and ribbon to make the tree more balanced and aesthetically pleasing. Farrel jokes that the tree finally looks perfect to me about the time we have to take it down. It's true... I have a problem. (That's why I can't decorate much...I drive myself crazy worrying about the end result.)

So, it seemed like a good idea to decorate the tree today while Farrel was working and it was raining. The kids were excited and ready to help(!) so we began to put the tree together limb by limb, fluffing and placing until it began to take shape. About 1/3 of the way through, Nolan got bored and started throwing all of the limbs out of the container onto the living room floor. I stayed calm and told him that I needed him to stop. Then, he decided he needed to play with the grocery cart full of pretend groceries, a ball, the Bullseye Ball game, his Hot Wheels, a piggy bank, and his ride-on motorcycle--right in the middle of where we were trying to put up the tree. Macey, who was thoroughly worked up because there was an array of items that SHOULD NOT have been in our living room, was barking and stealing toys and chewing on anything that she could find in an attempt to calm herself down. I stopped putting the tree together to take the items away from Macey. Then, Laiken and I continued to put on branches as Carson and Nolan began to play ball around the decorations and then Nolan decided it would be really funny if he laid down on top of the box of decorations. My heart stopped and that is the point I began to rethink putting up the tree. "NOLAN--get OFF of the decorations!!" He, of course, smiled and stayed put. I got off of the chair I was standing on to physically remove him from the decorations. He started crying and said, "I DO get on that box." "NO, you do NOT!" "I DO!" That went on until he realized that I would win. O.K., crisis averted, the tree was completely standing, ready to decorate. I sent Laiken and Carson over with 15 strands of lights to make sure that they all still worked. I finally crated Macey who was diligently chewing up every piece of toy food that she could find in the pretend kitchen. She proceeded to bark at us because we continued on with our activities instead of paying attention to her. I asked Laiken to put on some music. I was thinking holiday favorites; she was thinking Radio Disney. So, when I ended up having to listen to that annoying Umbrella song followed by the even more irritating Beautiful Girls song, I began thinking "I wonder if anyone in my neighborhood has any Paxil that they will share?" The kids started bringing me rolls of Christmas lights that they had checked and it was only then that I remembered something about lead and holiday lights and that the kids shouldn't have touched them. I freaked a little and sent them to wash their hands (with soap and warm water!) and they looked at me like I'd lost my mind. They were right.

They could tell that Mom had had it and decided to organize a game with Nolan that kept them all out from under my feet until I could get lights, beads, and ribbon in place. Ironically, after 2 1/2 hours of work, we were finally ready for ornaments, but by then, it was time for lunch and Nolan's nap. So, the kids had to wait until late afternoon to get to the "good part." I flinched as the kids haphazardly placed the ornaments, putting all of the homemade ones right in the front. When the job was finished, we took care of baths and dinner, started a fire and waited for Farrel to get home. We sat for some time in the glow of the lights and the flickering of the fire admiring our work until Nolan sat down on the edge of the couch, rolled off into the tree, knocked half a dozen ornaments off, pulled off three feet of ribbon, and twisted two strands of beads and a strand of lights into a knot as he fell through the bottom three limbs. Good times.

Gobble, Gobble, Gobble...

...is pretty much what we did today. My mom fixes THE BEST Thanksgiving dinner ever and we were so lucky to be able to spend the day with her and my dad and Joe.

The cold weather precluded any great outdoor fun, but lots went on indoors, including:

• games of Battleship, Who Knew, Chinese Checkers, and Trouble


• lots of information and stories shared by Laiken and Carson regarding group dynamics at their school (funny and very insightful!)


• a quick lesson from Papaw on the correct way to play marbles


• Nolan kicking a football with such unbelievable skill for his age that I had to spend quite some time rethinking my staunch stance that "no son of mine will ever play a game as dangerous as football!"


• plenty of laughing and sharing with the people I love most in this world

We couldn't have asked for a better day.

After we got home and the kids were cleaned up, I had Nolan getting him dressed in front of the fire that Farrel had started. It was the first fire of the season and Nolan, not remembering all the fires in the fireplace last winter, stared at it and began to sing, "Happy birfday to Nowan..." It took me a minute to realize that he only associated fire with birthday candles. What a happy little unexpected connection. I hope all of his little moments are always that joyful.