Savvy Toddler Mom

What a week!  A busy, fun, snow-filled week!

First of all, thank you for all the birthday wishes!  I am overwhelmed.  I have to share a couple of my favorite gifts:

• SavvyDad framed the James C. Christensen Shakespeare print we bought a couple of years ago at the Shakespeare Festival in Cedar City, UT.  The frame is beautiful and he immediately hung it in our room on my side of the bed!  Thanks again, hon!
• Thank you, Tiffany & Phil, for the AWESOME sweatshirt.  It reads, “I [heart] Mr. Darcy.”  I laughed and laughed.  Thank you!!!!  After opening, I said, “Oh, I can’t WAIT to blog about that!”  Then I opened my next gift…
• Thanks again, Anne & Matt, for the fabulous t-shirt!  It reads, “i am so blogging this.”  I love it!  And very true-to-life. LOL
• And last, but not least, thanks, Heather, for the Fairytale Brownies.  I am sad to say they didn’t last long.  The toot especially loved them and helped himself (toddler scissors in hand) at every opportunity.  Thank you again!!

Breakfast with Santa was a huge success.  Man, my MIL is amazing.  Really.  And her three daughters are following in her footsteps.  My SIL made this amazing cinnamon pull-apart tree.  She made it up completely on her own.  (Photo by SavvyDad.)

Santa was absolutely perfect.  I wish I could post some pics of the kids, but my internet paranoia is too strong.  But here is a shot of Santa himself (photo by SavvyDad):

We also had a really fun extended-family Christmas get-together for my side of the family last night.  It was so great to see my cousins and have our children play together.  We don’t do it often enough!  On that side of the family, there are 10 great-grandchildren and the toot is one of the two boys!  My nephew wasn’t there, so he and the five girls that were there played and played.  Matt & Anne, we really missed Liesel & Sage!  They would have had a great time in all the chaos.

My wonderful cousin Amber just announced that she is expecting her fourth girl.  She and her husband do daughters so well!  I am so excited for you.

My “little” brother and his wife are days away from having a little boy!  I can’t wait for little Coleby to get here.  I am so excited for them to have the newborn baby experience… the overwhelming love, the complete lack of sleep, the overwhelming love that keeps you from strangling this little person that has turned your life upsidedown.  It’s going to be awesome.  They totally deserve to have just the happiest New Year with a sweet little guy to make the rest of their lives that much sweeter.

Today is the second anniversary of the day we lost our little Elizabeth.  It seems a lot longer and a lot shorter at the same time.  A year ago last Thursday we lost our little James.  Needless to say, Christmastime is a little bit melancholy for us now.  I am trying hard to enjoy the season… enjoy not being pregnant trying to shop and cook and run around, enjoy not being in the hospital and getting sympathy cards and flowers instead of Christmas cards and goodies.  But it’s still hard when I think about the little people that should be here enjoying it with us.  The little people that shouldn’t allow us to have ornaments on the lower half of the tree… the little people that should be having their first or second Christmas and… the little people that their big brother should be playing with.  It just breaks my heart.  It seems like the sweetest things hurt the most, too… a double-edged sword.  The toot can be SO funny and darling… and it should be twice as much (at least).

I got some snowflake ornaments this year with all of our little babies’ names and dates on them.  They are beautiful.  If you are looking for something like that to remember loved ones you’ve lost, look at Things Remembered.  That’s where I got mine.

Okay, enough crying.  Gah.

Can I just tell you that I am SO stinkin’ excited for Christmas?!?!?!  I don’t remember being this excited in… probably 15 years.  I can’t WAIT to see the toot’s face when he walks into the living room on Christmas morning.  I can’t WAIT to see the magic happen as Santa brings him what he asked for.  I can’t WAIT to see SavvyDad’s surprise and delight at two things in particular!  I can’t WAIT to see my nephews and nieces enjoy the gifts I got them.  It really is better to give than to receive.

The weather was so frightful this morning, that I sluffed church (shhhh…) and made these ornaments/embellishments instead.  If you are wondering, they are by Cosmo Cricket.  Nothing like cutting and pasting to the sounds of Handel’s “Messiah.”  I was in heaven.

Also wanted to share a pic of our Christmas tree:

I got the polka dot and striped ornaments new this year (at Costco, of course) and just LOVE them.

Also on the holiday fun parade, we have the toot’s gingerbread contribution (thanks to Grandma Pam):

I helped him decorate and apparently I am terrible with frosting.  Oh, well…

Another very festive thing from last week was when SavvyDad was on breakfast duty.  He made the toot a snowman pancake!  How cute is he?

I am really looking forward to a fun Christmasy week… the toot has his preschool program and I am just a giddy parent thinking about seeing his first school program!  He also has his tumbling “program” so he can show off his wicked skills.

On Saturday, my hostess-with-the-mostest MIL is having a “Breakfast with Santa” for all the grandkids and great-nieces and nephews.  I think this will be the third year she has done it and it is just adorable!  My SIL’s neighbor’s dad (or something like that…) is a professional Santa, so they have him come with a bag of treats for each of the kids.  They get to sit on his lap and tell him what they want for Christmas in a safe, familiar setting.  The toot has yet to go up by himself or sit on his lap… but maybe this year!!! LOL

My birthday is also this week, so that will be… interesting.  For some reason, this birthday is kind of a hard one.  I keep thinking I should be excited to start a new year – clean slate, fresh start, since 32 hasn’t been the greatest – but I can’t help but feel a little melancholy about leaving this year behind.  Almost like I’m hoping for a do-over or something.  I don’t know.  I’m going to have to give that some thought.

Well, that’s a note to end on.  (Sorry!)  I hope you are enjoying this Christmas season as much as I am.  I’ve decided that 4-year-old Christmas is WAY more fun than 3.  So much more excitement and magic.  So much more to enjoy.  So much more to love.

I am loving my sweet new job, but my commitments there – combined with the holiday season and a million other things — allow me little time for blogging!  Every time I think I’m getting in a groove, I find myself at my desk until midnight every night (like this week) and exhausted beyond belief (like today).  So, I am taking a moment for myself (and for you guys) to let you know I’m still here.  I think.

To get you caught up, since my last post:

• the toot turned 4 - ack!
• we survived a 38-invitee Star Wars birthday party (ack again…)
• SavvyDad’s grandma hosted the entire family (42!) on a cruise to the Western Caribbean (ah…)
• I went on a 5-day business trip to NY (fun, but very tiring)
• the toot was Darth Vader for Halloween and was HILARIOUS
• the Christmas season hit and 4-year-old Christmas is SO incredibly fun!

Those are the highlights.  Well, back to the grindstone.  I think I’m about finished with my Christmas shopping, but there are still Christmas cards to stuff, labels to make, neighbor gifts to cook and package… and don’t forget the bi-weekly trip to Costco!