Just in Case You Missed It

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Microphone Madness

Last night Grant and I celebrated a belated Christmas with Brooke, Dru and Laine.  We had such a good time catching up and watching the kids play. Laine made a purse out her gift bag (so cute) and attempted to walk in the *way too big* boots I got her.

The cutest little girl EVER.

You get her a book and she plays with a screw driver

Brooke helping Grant get the hang of things

Grant using his microphone as an Airbender weapon

Grant brought his Star Wars Storm Trooper Gun to play with (as if Laine had no toys, seriously). He found a way to utilize toddler toys while fighting the bad guys:

2 sizes too big

Laine and her purse, Grant and his gun. Nice.

It is possible for these two to actually play **Together**, although it took a little time. I think Grant secretly likes pink chairs and girls.

Christmas

Grant had Christmas with his Dad and family in Kansas this year, so we celebrated ours a little before and a little after. It's hard to do the "every other holiday" deal, but I know Grant had a great time with his "Kansas City people". So, I don't have any pics to share of that celebration, but have a few to share of ours.

I have to say this year was different. I gave Grant only 3 presents to remind him that just as Jesus received three gifts from the wise men, so would Grant. We still have Santa, we just try to keep the focus where it should be. Grant was very appreciative. More so than he was last year when he got a bazillion toys. He even appreciated his new sweater and underwear *Shocker*. His only comment was that he really wished he got a tie.....(Nannie later came through on that one; he's already worn them both).

Thanks, NeNe and Mike. (I mean Santa)He loves his light-up loud pen :)

 Jesus cupcakes, anyone?

It was so nice to have Grant home. He opened his remaining gifts from our family and friends and then immediately went to the neighbors house to play. And, the routine re-established itself and the neighbors were back at our house in a flash, rummaging through Grant's new toys and playing with the Playdo fun factory. I made cupcakes for Jesus's birthday and every time someone came in, Grant asked if they wanted a Jesus cake? Funny kid. What a joy and blessing he is.

Yoga for Kindergarteners?

    So Grant came home from school yesterday and was negotiating his "snack":

His reaction to the "NO" you can't have 5
Reese's Peanut Butter Cups because you are 5.



And "NO" you can't have 5 packages of Whoppers


He settled on "5" Starburst's. 5 is the magic number because he is 5, get it? Anyway. A few pieces into the "snack" he informs me he can now do downward facing dog pose.  Um, what did you just say?

Mickey Mouse Aerobics is responsible for this. I'm not a Yoga person. It seems a little ridiculous to me. Twisting and holding random, silly named positions for minutes at a time. And what on Earth does a 5 year old need to do this for. He needs to run around. Play ball. Anything. Just not Yoga.



"Downward Facing Dog"



"Upward Facing Dog"

              

After the Yoga discussions we just got silly with the camera, mainly because Grant had his "5" Starbursts:

Notice the Starburst in his mouth?  We couldn't stop laughing

The "Politician" Phase

I had Grant's clothes picked out for him today. It's no uniform week at school, so we have some room for our own style. Clearly *MY* style and *GRANT'S* style are different. I picked out a turtle neck and a tee-shirt with some cords.

Ah, no. Grant was very precise in his attire yet again today. What he doesn't get is that he's outgrown this blazer and shirt. The tie, well, it still fits. Clip on is a "one -fits- all" kind of deal for kids. He agreed to wear the cords, but this is what he ended up wearing, AGAIN.  I love my preppy little independent boy.

Seriously? He looks like he is running for office.

Meatballs and Meltdowns

Grant will NOT eat meatballs. He says he'll take the long noodles with sauce, but no meat balls. It's like torture trying to get protein in this boy. So, I got creative last night and got him to eat a meatball without him even knowing.

It's all in the presentation: *And yes, food group judging people, he had a salad as well*



I thought he figured me out here.

Ta da. Still sick but full of homemade meatball none the less!

 Toothpicks. That's the secret everyone. I bet I could put anything on a toothpick and he would eat it.

He's been under the weather and our weekend was a bit "tense":


Refusal of fit photo #1




Fit photo #1



I took a few more, but none really captured him quite like this one. I had him sit on the counter while I finished our fabulous cookie making and decorating. He chose to not be a part. Instead he threw his shoe on the stove. The two flames lit cooking stuff stove. It did not go well for him Saturday. He lost all his "life" (which means video games, TV and neighbor playing). He did regain his "life" the following day, so don't worry. I went from being the worst mommy in the world to the best in 24 hours. Not bad, huh?





Mom worn out and Grant still mad. Awesome.





Santa and Crazy Neighbors

I picked up Grant from school yesterday and asked how his day was. He informed me that "Sam" had been bad IN FRONT OF SANTA (wow, that's pretty risky) and instead of bringing him presents this year, Santa was going to bring him a coal  **Cold**.  Grant isn't aware that if you're bad Santa will bring you a lump of coal. It's clearly a cold. Duh?

Grant and I at the Winter Wellness Bash @ Chesapeake.

My Co-Workers. Great group of people. All of them.

I scheduled a Carriage ride around our neighborhood last weekend. Linwood neighborhood association was so kind to put this together. It was a short ride around the neighborhood to view the lights and then a visit with Santa (glad Grant didn't look close, because this one was about 30).

Things were on track for the fabulous ride until my very favorite neighbors cancelled on us last minute. This meant we had to share the carriage with other *neighbors*.  I know a lot of neighbors, so I wasn't worried. We climbed in the giant carriage and got to sit in the front part, all warm and cozy with our blankets and hot cocoa. We ended up sharing with the "McCrazies" (I'll not use their names in case someone out there knows them and thinks they aren't totally nuts). 
They live 2 1/2 blocks from us. I know that because they went on and on when we passed their mediocre house. Then they had the nerve to yell something sarcastic at the sweet old man who was putting the final touches on his absolutely beautiful house lights. I won't go into the tiny specifics of all the comments they made, but it was enough to make me want to walk on a different side of the street next time Grant and I head to the park. Ca-Ra-Zy. Maybe Santa will bring them some straight jackets for Christmas. Ho ho ho.

Winter Lights

Last night was my work's  3 year anniversary "Winter Wellness Event". Chesapeake had Santa and a hayride around campus to view the lights. The lights on campus are absolutely stunning. You just don't do them justice by trying to verbalize it. Grant actually sat still and sat in awe.

And.....the Santa visit went GREAT! This was the first year Grant actually was excited to see Santa. He jumped in his lap and immediately struck up a conversation. Santa knew Grant's name, without me telling him. I actually felt that magical feeling again like I did when I was a little girl. 

Of course then my grown up intellect kicked in and I realized I had lent Santa my office to prepare for his evening. Santa enjoyed the art work and card I had and made a mental note to remember **MY** kid's name. He was a great Santa. He drove a Hyundai. Who knew? He said in Oklahoma that's all he could drive, as the sleigh was only available on Christmas Eve.

Santa's View of my Office

And, here are a few pictures of the lights: (I took them with my phone, so not the greatest quality)

John J. Johnson

The Tree

I usually put the tree up the day after Thanksgiving. This year things are a bit crazy, so I did it Sunday night. When I say "I", I mean "I". I have great expectations every year. Maybe the better thing to say would be I have visions of Christmas movies running in my mind where everyone is happy and having a wonderful time,  remembering Christmas's past and hanging ornaments.

That didn't happen. Not even close. After I got the lights on the tree, I called Grant in to start help decorating. He decided to gently place dump all of my ornaments on the floor so he could "pick which ones he wanted to hang". He broke one of my favorite ornaments and then "didn't know how to hang them on the tree". Really, Grant? So I showed him. He then proceeded to hang 5 ornaments. 5. In the same spot. Which drove me crazy. I like all the ornaments evenly spaced and hanging at the perfect length and all facing the right direction. Call me what you will, but it makes the tree pretty. And Grant didn't notice I rearranged his ornaments. He's a boy and isn't so uptight about things like that.

Kinda blurry. Camera malfunctions.

Another Christmas, another Gingerbread House

I do it every year. I get all excited about Christmas and go out and buy a gingerbread house. And every year I get super stressed while trying to put it together. Last year it took me 2 hours. Grant ate most of the roof candies and nothing worked as it should. NOTHING. The thing collapsed at least three times.

So this year, I decided on letting Grant choose the Christmas craft. We went to Michael's. The location of numerous meltdowns. I braved it and in we went. Grant immediately couldn't make up his mind. It takes him forever to make a final decision. He's indecisive. So am I. I can't fault him.

After much debate and encouragement for anything else, he chose a gingerbread house. A foam one. At least that was a bonus. We took it up to the hospital to assemble, so Grandpa Dod could partake in the crafty Christmas cheer.

It wasn't so cheery. I think I said the "s" word so many times Grant could spell it phonetically. Bless his heart. Foam isn't any better than the real thing. The directions weren't really directions at all. Just diagrams of shapes. The pieces were labeled on the directions, but not on the actual pieces. Helpful. Really?

So, two hours later, here it is:

Giggle Box

Something happens to Grant right before bed. I vaguely remember it happening to me. He gets super hyper and then finds everything humorous. Apparently I'm hilarious.

Hospitaled Out

Well, Grant and I have been running back and forth between home, school, work and "the hospital". Grant has become so accustomed to this routine he just assumes that's where we are headed each afternoon. He's made friends with all the nurses. They LOVE him. We walk in and they all say "Hi Grant!" He acts all cool, casually giving them a little wave.

Trying to keep him occupied the other day, I gave him my camera.  "Go take pictures from your favorite windows". He took a ton. He's really not a bad photographer.

The view from St. Anthony's 10th floor

We love you Grandpa Dod. Get well soon!!!!!

Grandpa Dod

Our lives have been turned upside down the past week. Grandpa Dod has been in the hospital. Grant has been great, rolling with each new day. Praying every night. Spending each evening at the hospital watching movies and eating ice-cream or going to spend time with Matt or Nannie. We continue to take one day at a time and rely on the grace of God to bring us the strength to move forward. I find strength through Grant and seeing the world through his eyes. Our children are truly a gift from God and honoring that is our gift back. We love you Grandpa Dod and thank you for all the years of genuine love you've shown us. As you would tell us, "chin up" and "put yourself on top of the ladder". Get well soon!

Grant using a glove balloon as a gun at the hospital. Great......

Tooth Fairy

Apparently Grant has been learning about the tooth fairy.  A song about the tooth fairy.  I  tried to video. See:

Spelling Can Be Fun

Things have settled back down at our house and our routine was back to normal. I missed the late afternoon knock and walk in from Beckett. Of course, they went through their usual disagreement about what to play, but after a little suggestion from me, they went right to work.

Today's inspiration was Mythology. My LEAST favorite topic. Why they still teach this is beyond me. I'm so not looking forward to when Grant has to learn this mindless, useless material.  Anyway, back to the topic. Beckett was drawing a monster, a cyclops to be exact, and Grant chose the always popular super heroes.

Notice the Red lips? That's Sicilian Orange Sherbet. Grant's Favorite!

Grant decided to throw his marker in Beckett's general direction. I was not pleased. Beckett then politely asked if I could write on Grant's forehead the way I did last week when he made a bad choice.  I thought for a minute and realized there was a great opportunity for the boys to learn how to spell. So I let Beckett write on Grant's forehead.

rUDe

I had Beckett write nice on his arm. I hope his Mom doesn't think I'm nuts.

Super "Attitude" Man

Grant decided on Superman for trick or treat night. I'm not sure if it was the early birthday party he went to or if he had a bad case of what I call "Crabs in your belly" (crabby attitude), but he was in a MOOD.

Grant made it about 4 blocks, had a little fall (candy went flying) and made it another 3 houses and was ready to come home. Via being carried. The whole way. Thank goodness for Matt. He did most of it. I think I managed a block. Maybe.

Superhero Serious Face

These are the kids of our lives. This crew is together much of the time. Riding bikes, playing outside or completely destroying playing inside my house. Our neighborhood was like one out of the movies on Halloween night. So many kids and parents. Everyone saying hello and loving each other's costumes. I love my neighbors and cherish the memories Grant is able to make.

This house is owned by the people who lived in our house before us. They go all out.

Next door: They really decorate

Rocky and Carly: Our next next door neighbors. They went with us.

Girl Parties

Grant attended Maya's birthday party this weekend. At Metro Gymnastics. I asked him if he wanted to go. I told him it was a "gymnastics party". Clearly there was an error in communication.

This is how he looked most of the party.

All he wanted to do was jump in the foam pit. Nothing else. He tried the balance beam. He reacted much in the same way I did to it. He HATED it. Now, don't get me wrong. He tried. In his tie and all.

This just doesn't seem right

The only "semi-smile" I was able to capture was birthday cake time. He got much happier when we left and Matt let him start the car. The push button kind of start the car. Matt got a rental. A Nissan Murano. Of course, everywhere we went, Grant wanted to start the car. Just what every parent of a 5 year old needs. Thanks, Nissan. Good thinking!

Really?

Batman, Again

Today was the big Halloween party at school. Grant was so excited last night he didn't want to go to sleep. Funny how he'll wake up without a trouble on days like today. He was happy to get out of bed and put on his costume. It was sooo nice. Except he was ready before me today.  He stood at the bathroom door in his costume AND mask and stared at me. Are you ready yet????? Seriously?  Come on, Mom.

First one at school.

Tomorrow night is the big trick or treat night. We'll see who he decides to be tomorrow. He assured me this morning that Grant was indeed underneath that mask. Don't be worried.