Complimentary...

Holy story book and magic... this time of year with three little ones to enjoy.  If you could hear me talk about it live and in person my voice would literally be two octaves higher and thirty decibels louder.  It's better than I ever imagined it would be.



Today I asked the boys if they thought they were being good enough for Santa to come visit and deliver some toys on Christmas and Kael launched into a diatribe about how he has been "eating all his begetables and shobeling snow and being a good brother".  Then I asked Dax and he said, "Well, I've been good for fifty hours I think."  That's actually probably a pretty good guesstimate.

I don't know, chalk it up to the holiday magic or something, but I can't wipe this silly grin off my face.  I'm even contemplating hosting a little get-together with the friends of the hood to make reindeer food to sprinkle on the lawn for Rudolph and Company on Christmas Eve.  I think I'm turning into a jolly ole' elf, or this season just compliments me... what can I say.

And other news that seems fitting to type...

Let me tell you about the mischievous genius of my kids... they have seen Santa three times now.  They ALWAYS want to talk with the guy and I mean talk... about the weather, what they had for dinner, the phone conversation they had with Grandma, how Acey was naughty this morning...  It's a fairly robust report of the Gardner happenings.

At the mall last week, these two oldest of mine solidified the fact that this ain't Santa's first sleigh ride.   Kaelster said, "I forgot to tell you something last time I saw you, Santa.  I forgot to tell you I want Peanuts and a Basketball... so don't forget, OK?!"  And he says the whole thing in this deep, "I mean business voice" and it fairly slays me, dead.  

Then Dax, our sly little fox, with his eyes lit up with brilliance pointed a tiny finger at the big man and said, "Do you remember what I told you I want for Christmas?"  My.Heart.Stopped.Beating.  And Santa didn't even miss a note as he said, "Oh yes, I remember... do you?"  Holy Hannah... I could almost feel a couple of new gray hairs springing out of my scalp.

And so it goes... Santa rocks.  And these boys are somethin' else.

Acey isn't quite grasping the entire Christmas/Santa/Presents thing yet, but he waves at Santa incessantly and says, "HI SANTA!" like his life depends upon it.  He also LOVES Christmas music.  He'll bop along to Jingle Bells and then say, "Wow, dat's a great song, Mom!"



And then there's the daily question... "Mommy, Is it Christmas today?"  We've staved them off by slowly delivering friend gifts and soon we'll be out of those and we'll advance to neighbor gifts and then... who knows, I might just fake it one of these days.  Patience is hard... no matter how old you are.

I already got one of my favorite gifts... seconds after snapping this picture Acey sat up and said, "Hode You, Mommy", which really means, "Hold ME, Mommy."  If there is a better thing that can be uttered from the mouth of a two-year-old, I just don't know of it.  So, of course... I did.  

On a cold & silent night in December.

Discovering...

Well, you know when it gets to be winter and everyone starts getting a little stir crazy and a change of scenery would really do you good... well, we are the opposite of that. 

We've been, we've traveled, we've conquered all week long.  And now, we've been recovering at home this weekend... in our white winter wonderland.

This past week we went to the Gateway twice.  And, even more noteworthy, I spent no money at the Gateway.  Which has to be a record of some sort, right?  How did I make this miracle happen?  Well I'll tell you.  The first trek was for Kael's preschool field trip to the Planetarium.  There is basically zero photographic evidence of this trip because I was just trying to keep all boys inside the Planetarium and out of the vapor machine & the swinging pendulum display, oh, and far away from the breakable lightning ball.   And then they discovered the moon and made Buzz Armstrong proud.

The next trip was for a holiday party at the Discovery Gateway Museum... and I have obviously been living under a rock because we've lived on the Wasatch Front for ten years now and I have never ever been there.  What is my problem?  I should be high-fived to the face for that one because this place... we had to bribe our kiddos out the doors as they were turning off the lights they loved it THAT much.

This construction station was basically the highlight of their short lives thus far.  The cranes, the trucks, the big "concrete blocks".  It was pretty much the best forty minutes a pack of little boys could ask for.

The water station just about made Kael hyperventilate from giggling.  He would turn a crank and water would be scooped up in little tins and go up the big Ferris wheel contraption only to come spilling out on the other side.  Giddy is what it made him.  For a full half-hour.  Meanwhile, Ace was a bad-to-the-bone ball collector and no one even dared come near him... they could see his game face from a mile away.

This one didn't even notice the water display because he was driving and subsequently gassing up his car... At least seventy-two times.

Why don't I think the gas station is this fun?

Somewhere amongst all our playing we saw Mr. & Mrs. Claus.  It was a struggle to get the little men to stop for a chat this time... not because of nerves, but because we were requesting that they STOP.  Which is downright rotten of us, apparently.  You can see how well that went.

And then there was a little grocery store, and you know what?  It was probably the second favorite display of the entire day.  Kael was a dedicated shopper who was surprising selective.  And Dax was the checker guy.  He would punch in two dozen numbers and finally arrive at transaction satisfaction and place the produce in the basket.  It was pretty adorable.

I've mentioned Ace's thing for horses, yes?  I think he speaks Mister Ed or something because he and this horse had a good old heart-to-heart.  And then he rode him for what seemed like forever as he shooed other little kids away from his perch.  "No, No... Acey's Toin.  This is Acey's Hoisey".

And I kinda need to post a plethora of these pictures where the misters are all bundled up warm and cozy and hitchin' a ride.  Because some day, I want them to push me around all snug as a bug in my wheelchair or maybe even spring to buy me a Jazzy so we can go see the Christmas lights.

It's only fair.

Acey didn't want to talk to anyone, so he requested that he, "Be hiding"... 

And he stuck to his guns until we reached the car.  Who is this kid?

And now we put our snow things on and remove our snow things several times a day which is basically like marathon training.  I swear, when they all learn to put their own gloves and snow pants on I will be happy, happy, happy!  :)

And then we remove our wet layers and have a mandatory snuggle-in that lasts exactly the length of the Christmas Doc McStuffins or Mickey Mouse Christmas Spectacular at the behest of our Mom who claims we'll get frost bite or something ridiculous... 

She's such a downer.

Obviously.

:)

Reindeer Rampage...

I just want to level with you.  I had Diet Coke and homemade fudge for lunch today.  I'm feeling pretty dang content about it too... maybe even borderline giddy.

You know what else we've been up to?  Holiday merry making is what.  These little men of mine may not be crafters at heart, but where there is a mess to be made and "dumping" to do... they are all in.  I present to you, a bit of a manly Christmas gift for friends of the little men.... Hot chocolate Reindeer.

How adorbs could they even be?

It's pretty much a no brainer that began with a Santa version on Pinterest and ultimately led me to this, but the deets are...  

-Frosting piping bags from Wally or your local baking shop

-A big old container of Hot Chocolate Powder

-Mini Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips

-Mini Marshmallows

Dump in sequence into bags (perfection that there are three ingredients and three little elves to assist) tie top with baking twine, and adorn to your hearts content.

The boys are mighty pleased about them.  They made a list of everyone that will get a reindeer from them and if I can stave them off for another few days it will be a total miracle.

On another note, Ryan works with the youth of our church and for their December service project, they were gathering gently used clothing and toys for the children in the Philippines that were affected by the recent tragic storms.  He asked the boys to run up to the play room and bring down a few toys that they could send to the kids that lost all of theirs and they started asking a zillion questions... so, we explained it all as best as we could with a lot of "ums" and "well, yeah, kind of like thats" and then they madly dashed around the house finding toys and food and blankies and everything else they could think of for the people in the "Fil-Peans" and they even tried to convince us to send a Christmas tree to them "because they probably don't have one now". 

These kids.  I just don't even know what to tell you.  They are it for me.  They are just good (sometimes it's hidden deep, DEEP down in there) but at their cores, they are just good little eggs and I am so SO lucky to be their mama!

The next morning we were greeted bright and early with... "Mommy, did 'Bean' come get her bags of stuff?" Now, Bean is the nickname given to their little teaspoon of a cousin, Sophia, due to her size.  And overnight they had marinated all this new information about the Philippines and it came out as, "We gave stuff to Bean because an ocean came and washed her stuff away"... so, you know, Ry and I have some work to do on our talks about humanity and charity and such.  :)

Regardless... this season is bringing about it's magic for us -- the family time, the giving, the wonder and the love.  Christmas is pretty rad.

Wide Open Spaces...

I THINK this post might come full circle... but this is me talking, so you never know.  With that disclaimer in mind, shall we dive right in?  I decorated our Christmas tree totally differently this year.  I didn't buy anything new, just pilfered through all the "old stuff" that we don't regularly use and then got out my glue gun and some coffee filters in a momentary stroke of genius and of course, some spray paint & BLAMMO.  I think I almost have the country tree of my dreams.  

And a Side Bonus... the pinecones are cinnamon scented.  So I wish that smell would transfer over the Internet so you could have a little whiff.

Which brings me to what I think is the reason I'm so happy about my newfound woodsy tree decor... the truth is, I feel most at home in wide-open spaces.  And this may or may not be on my mind because a gorgeous house in the middle of nowhere was on the market and we took a walk through and we were THIS close because it was THAT perfect but the timing was, well, OFF.  But it solidified what I know about myself...  When I get out into an open golden field and watch the sun set on grain, and feel the wind blow throw my hair... my soul sings.  Or when I'm tucked under a nubby blanket looking out big windows at snowflakes flitting down onto the valley floor painting everything white... it's almost spiritual.  It's the girl of the west in me... and I know that all I really want out of life is a happy family, a big spread of land, and probably some chickens roaming around with a fat cow in the pasture.   And no less than two horses and three boys.  :)

OK, and a giant tire swing in a big oak tree in the back yard for little crazies like this one...

If you want me to get specific.

Yes.... That is why this girl, who can appreciate the wonders of the city just as much as the next girl, is head-over-heels in love with this earthy version of our Christmas tree.   Don't panic.  The kids' trees are all sorts of fun and the ornament clumps are epic as they do the decorating all themselves.  You know, lest you thought I was being super stringent about all things tree.  And the basement tree is a hodge podge of the red and white hand-me-downs from upstairs and all in all... these halls are decked.  And I love it; even if the halls are not on a big old ranch in the middle of nowhere.

Ornament Clumping 101...

Meanwhile, the Light Master General was up to all good things last night, outside, in the dark... to beat the snow storm that is whipping things up today.  Is that a good little Clark Griswald or what?  I know, where on earth did we find him?



And where did we find his little helpers who would come dashing out to say the dang sweetest things of all time, like, "Daddy, you OK up there?"  and "Daddy, you're doing a bery good job."  and "Whoa Daddy, you're almost done and it's looking REALLY good!"  He loathes this task every year, but with his new cheerleaders and the odds 4 to 1-- I think it's been written in stone... we will have lights on our house for Christmas!  Secret victory laugh...

 And now it feels official.  It's Christmas!  One of the best times of the year... and as usual we'll be in a holiday mad dash all the way through New Years, with the occasional time out called for deep breaths, hot cocoa, Charlie Brown Christmas specials, and little mental snapshots of growing babies in front of lit Christmas trees.

 It's a good season of life right now, right here, in our space.