We've been trying for nine years to have a good experience with Santa Claus.  Year after year, each time we've seen him, there's been at least one child crying, staring off into space, or just totally freaking out.   

    Nothing was able to prepare us for the reaction of our baby girl though.  When she came along, we had visions of her three big brothers sitting proudly with Santa, as she sweetly whispered in his ear... Ummmm, yeah.

    The trouble was, she didn't reserve her "love and affection" for the big man himself...she showed an equal amount of adoration for the Easter Bunny each year too.

    We had all but given up.  Adam and I went round and round on whether we should even try it again this Christmas.
    While we were at a store, there he was, so we decided to give it one last go.

    We stood in line and waited...and waited.  When the time finally came, all four kids ran through the barrier line to see Santa.  I grabbed Adam's arm and whispered, "Do you think she's going to do it?"  We watched as the two younger boys hopped up in his lap while our nine year old sat down beside him.  Lauren froze when she felt that she was too close - and went to her big brother Christian instead.

    Within the first few seconds, Christian leaned down and whispered something to Lauren.

    We don't know what he said, but out of nowhere, Lauren walked right up to Santa and got in his lap while her brothers grouped around her.

    We stood frozen and watched as she sat there for the first time with no fear.   

      We tried to keep as quiet as we could while they spent their few minutes with him.  Just before it was time to go, as her brothers gathered around, so help me she actually whispered something in his ear.

    As we walked away, we asked her what she said.  She stopped and looked up at us with wide eyes, "I told him I'm not scared of him anymore."  She reached up to take Adam's hand and began to walk again.  This time though, she had the biggest smile.

    

    Have you ever been to a preschool Christmas play?  Some people love them...others (like brothers and sisters) dread them.  No matter what, you can't escape the cute factor.  All of those little boys and girls singing and dancing their way through the recital.  
    Back in November, Preston's class was given speaking parts to learn for the play.  Preston was so excited and he practiced until he had his line down forwards and backwards.  He practiced during breakfast, while brushing his teeth, before bedtime, in the car...he could hardly wait for the big day.  He was going to be fantastic. 
    When the time came, we took our seats and waited.  Cameras began clicking away as the children took the stage.  Preston didn't look excited or happy...he didn't look scared though either.  He really didn't look much like - anything.  He just kind of stood there.  
      When the time came for his line we held our breath.  He had the microphone in front of him but didn't say a word...

    The little girl beside him took the mic and said the line..."Glory to God in the highest Heaven, and on Earth, Peace to those on whom His favor rests." 

    That was it.  Our mouths fell open as the microphone was passed to the next child.  She said the line perfectly and beautifully but I wanted to go hug him and tell him that everything was okay.  The rest of the songs were sung and the play went on...but then...something happened.  Out of nowhere, it began to snow.

    I don't know HOW they did it, but they had snow machines above the kids that turned on to create an enchanted world.  The kids didn't know about it...the teachers didn't even know about it.  Everyone cheered in awe - and then we saw Preston's face. 

        Full of wonder, he tried to catch the falling magic.  Suddenly, nothing else mattered...and it became the best Christmas pageant ever....even for brothers and sisters. 

    "I don't like him."  
    "Who?"
    "That little elf.  He keeps staring at us and it's creepy."
    This is the conversation our five year old son  - Preston, began around the first day we got a visit from an"Elf on the Shelf".  Our other three kids were ecstatic to read the book and wait to see where the elf would appear each morning...but not Preston.  For some reason, it really bothered him that this little guy hung around in new places each day just watching...always watching. 
    The older boys were reading the "Elf" book again in the living room.  When it came to the part that read how you can't "touch the elf" or he would lose his magic, Preston's wheels began to turn.  He got right up, walked across the room and reached his finger towards the elf.  Christian and Ethan began to scream..."NOOOOO!  You CAN'T TOUCH HIM PRESTON!!!"  - but it was too late.  -bink!-  One little finger pushed against one little elf leg right in the thigh as we waited for the earth to stop spinning.
    Preston's reaction grew into a huge smile as he felt like the problem was finally solved.  The older boys and our little girl climbed over each other to get to Preston first.  "WHY did you DO THAT PRESTON?!  Now he can't come back!"  
    Little Pret just shrugged his shoulders and walked away.  
    We'll have to see what becomes of the elf and figure out what he's going to do.  There will be three little ones who will be pretty upset if he never returns, but one five year old boy who couldn't be more relieved.

     Yesterday I wrote about loading the kids in the car to look for a Christmas tree "surprise" for Adam.  My plan was to get a tree and decorate it before he got home from work.  How was I going to get the tree on the car, bring it home, put it up and decorate it (with four kids) all by myself?  I hadn't really thought that far to be honest...but I knew I had to at least find the tree first.
     I went to one lot but they were sold out.  I drove to another and it looked to be empty too.  As I was about to drive off though, I happened to see a tree lying on the ground that was all wrapped up.  The lot was behind a little store so I pulled around to the front and asked a man if the tree was for sale. 
    "We don't have any trees left...sorry, they're all gone for the year."  I was confused and wondered what I had seen.  Maybe it was a bunch of branches all tied up?  It looked pretty big though.  I asked if maybe it was a tree that was being held for someone to pick up later.  The man was really nice and said, "Hon, I don't think there's ANYTHING back there but I'll go check."  
    A minute or two later he walked back around and shook his head.  "Well, you're right!  There's one more back there but it's a big one.  Do you know how you would carry it out of here?  I'll let you have it for 25 bucks if you want it."  (TWENTY FIVE BUCKS?!)  If I have to drag the thing on my back it would be worth it.  I promised that I would be back, then I waited for Adam to get home. 
    By now, Adam knows when I'm up to something because he says that I have some look in my eye - when he walked through the door that night, he just shook his head and said, "What is it?"  I told him to get in the car as the kids ran past him.  "Wait until you SEE IT Daddy!  It's HUGE!"  Adam shot a nervous look at me.  I explained what happened on our way to the tree lot but he kept saying, "For 25 dollars, it can't be that big of a tree." 
     As we pulled into the empty lot...there it was.  Adam slowly turned to look at me and muttered, "You have GOT to be kidding."  With the headlights shining on it, it looked even bigger.  The kids began to scream and I kept smiling saying, "Isn't it amazing?"  "Amazing?  Beatty, this thing won't even fit in our HOUSE!  I seriously don't even know how we're going to get it on top of the car!"  
    I asked if he wanted to call our neighbor Matt for help, but for some reason, Adam hates to ask people for help.  Taking his work shirt off and sizing the tree up he whispered, "I'll do it.  It will be fine." 
     He bent down in his t-shirt and khaki pants to lift it off the ground.  Getting it all the way up to his left shoulder, he gasped out, "Call Matt".
    Matt arrived in a little while and the two guys gave it a try.  The tree still wouldn't budge.  I ran into the little store where I found two other men who happened to be there and they were willing to help.  Between the four of them, the crazy huge Griswold tree was loaded on the top of our car and tightened down.  We got it home and measured it at 14 feet.  The branches at the base stretched out to be over eight feet across. 
    Adam tried to hand saw through the tree from about five feet up so he could carry the top half in the house.  Another neighbor ended up coming outside with a chainsaw to help with the rest.  
    Our 25 dollar humungo tree turned out to be fun for the family and neighborhood - with plenty of branches for decorations and wreaths to go around. 
    After everything was said and done, it taught me a good lesson in life...if you look for something with true intentions, you just never know what adventures you might find...even if that adventure only ends up being 25 dollars...well, 25 dollars and a whole lot of tree sap.

    There are two different types of people...those who like 'em real...and those that like them fake.  I go back and forth.  Adam swears that he doesn't care either way.  Trees...I'm talking about trees.
    We have gone round and round this year on whether to get a real Christmas tree.  We've had an artificial tree for years in the front window of our house.  Over the past few years though, we've gotten a real tree for our living room.  
    Adam and I both grew up with having an artificial tree so I guess we never thought much about it.  The first year that we actually got a real one though...we were hooked.  There was something about the feel of it...the smell.  When we walked into our home, that amazing scent would hit us, and the stress of the day would disappear. 
     Knowing that Christmas is only a week away, I knew it was time to make a decision.  I loaded the kids in the car to see what we could find to surprise Adam.  Ohhhhh, I don't know if "surprise" is the right word after what we found.  
    Come back tomorrow and I'll post pictures of what happened. 

     Much like almost everyone else, constant thoughts and emotions return to the shootings in Connecticut.  It's hard to turn on the TV, radio or the internet as the haunting images appear.  A sick and numbing feeling comes over me when it's time to send the kids to school.  
    I walked my son to his preschool class and had to fight the tears as I passed by room after room of beautiful children playing.  I wanted to take his hand and turn around to go home.  
      It's not possible to begin to comprehend what happened in that school.
      We have hugged and kissed the kids in ridiculous amounts since Friday.  We're trying to have fun with them but all the while feel a sadness as so many are suffering with an unconceivable loss.   
      Our hearts and prayers go out to the families and community of Newtown.  Psalm 61: 1 - 4
     
    


        

There are no words.

    Have you ever heard the joke about the woman who was in the kitchen - cooking for a dinner party?  Realizing that she needed to get a few more ingredients for her menu - she knew that she wouldn't have enough time to go the store.  Instead, she asked her husband to go while she continued to work.  She made a list for him...here's how it read:
1. Bag of carrots
2. Onions
3. Apples
4. Oranges
5. Mushrooms
6. Bananas
7. Bag of sugar
8. Bag of potatoes
    The woman became worried as her husband was taking much too long to return from the store.  When she finally heard his car outside, she went to help with the groceries.  Complete shock took over as she looked inside of the car.  It was FULL of bags.  As the woman dropped her jaw, she asked in bewilderment, "WHAT took you so long and WHAT IS ALL of THIS?!"  Her husband shot a glare at her and said with frustration, "Do you have ANY idea how HEAVY it is to carry SEVEN bags of sugar and EIGHT BAGS OF POTATOES?!"
    Aaahhhh - I used to think that was funny.  That was of course until the other day.  It seemed like we were out of everything - so I asked Adam to run to the store.  The two older boys wanted to go with him, so I stayed home with our two little ones.  
    All we needed were the basics...milk, eggs, bread, fruit...nothing in particular, just the staples.  In his defense - I didn't write a list. 
    Just like the woman in the joke, I became worried at how long they were taking.  I waited and waited...and when they finally got home, the boys came in first - each loaded down with grocery bags.  Strangely enough, regardless of carrying the weight, they both had the biggest smiles on their faces.  "Dad is AWESOME to go to the store with mom!  We want HIM to get our groceries from now on!"
    Ohhhhhhh no. Shooting a look at Adam as he walked in behind them, he looked back at me with an innocent smile and muttered, "It's not THAT bad."
    Sure enough, bag after bag of chips, cookies, ice cream, gummy bears, gummy worms, gummy fish...anything and everything you could imagine.  There were no eggs, no milk, no yogurt...no anything of nutritional value.  It literally looked like three 12 year old boys went to the grocery store with a stolen credit card.
    Needless to say, as much fun as it has been to have a Willy Wonka Factory instead of a kitchen over the past few days...I have learned that if we're going to have anything with some level of healthy value in our home...I canNOT send my husband and the kids to go and get it.
    There is something I will say though, he does have one good point...ice cream IS made out of milk.  
    Here's to hoping that gummy fish have Omega 3 in them too.

    Looking at my inbox today, I found an invitation to a "Cookie Exchange".  I've always been a chocolate chip kind of girl, with maybe a peanut butter cookie thrown in for good measure...but good gracious...I have seen the light.  
    Our two older boys were in the church choir last year and their director was a Wonderful woman named Mrs. Z.  For their Christmas goodies, she gave each child in the choir, a huge angel sugar cookie...or so I thought.  It was very pretty and had sparkly sugar covering it.  When we got in the car to drive home, all four kids were sharing the two big cookies and a rare occurrence happened...the car was completely silent.  "How's everybody doing back there?"  I questioned.  One tiny muffled voice answered, "Fine...dees tooties are weewy dood Mommy!"  I could all but feel the crumbs hit the back of my neck.  
    Asking for a bite, one tiny hand reached forward with a small piece...it was amazing.  Nothing less than confection perfection.  I was obsessed with getting the recipe.
    The following week, I begged Mrs. Z for the key to my newfound love and she graciously complied.  I asked her today if she would mind that I posted it as well and Thanks to her...here it is.  She actually said that it wasn't a sugar cookie in fact, but a shortbread cookie.  No matter what it is...it's amazing.  Thank You Mrs. Z!!!

Shortbread Cookies:
3 Sticks of Butter at room temperature
1 Cup of Sugar
1 tsp. of Vanilla
3  1/2 Cups of All-Purpose Flour
1 Cup of Confectioners'/Powdered Sugar (for glaze)

Mix the butter and the sugar together in a bowl until combined.  Add the vanilla.  Sift the flour and add it to the butter and sugar mixture.  Mix on low speed until the dough begins to come together...do not over mix.  Dump on a floured board and shape into a disk.  Wrap in plastic wrap and chill 20 - 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 350*.  Roll the dough on a floured surface until it is 1/2 inch thick.  Cut into shapes.  Place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and bake 15 - 20 minutes depending on the size of the cookies.  The edges should begin to brown a little.  Cool on a rack.

Combine confectioners' sugar with 2 Tbsp. of water to make a glaze.  Brush onto cookies and sprinkle with sanding sugar.  Enjoy!

    Now that the end of the year is drawing near, it's fun to look back on different things that have happened.  One of the biggest reasons that I started writing this blog was due to the passing of my Grandma.  She always told me throughout my life to write (even if it's just a little) every single day.  Because of her, I have kept a journal since elementary school...oooooo, you should read what happened in the third grade!
    I like to blog, to basically journal for the kids.  When they're older, I'm happy that they'll be able to look back on the year 2012 and read what happened.  When they have their own children and call saying, "Mom, Dad, I NEVER did this when I was their age..."  We will gladly remind them to turn to the month of April. 
     It's fun to be able to go back and read through it all.  If you have even an ounce of a pull to blog, journal...or write in any form...(wow, I sound like my Gram) but, do it!  You'll love looking back on the things that you wouldn't believe you had forgotten.  
    It's been great to write and has made me happier beyond compare if anyone else found a giggle or smile in the blog as well.  
    Earlier in the year, one of the nicest people on Earth named Cathy Kobre, an editor from a wonderful website called "Mamapedia" agreed to use one of our posts.  She could have heard me screaming from across the country when she put it online.  She used a post again today, and yes...just go outside...that will be me you hear screaming.  
     Thank You Cathy and Mamapedia for making the end of this year have such a special treat.  I'll bet my Grandma will be smiling down today.

www.mamapedia.com is their website,  the blog that they used for today is posted on: http://www.mamapedia.com/voices/kids-on-a-plane