Random Happenings

First on the list- haircuts! Liam and I were both treated to haircuts this week. Mine involved about 2.5 hours of sitting in a chair looking like the little kids from Signs. You know, the ones who wear the foil hats so the aliens can't read their minds. Liam's involved about 2.5 hours of lollipop eating, cartoon watching, song singing, and an army of distraction comprised of his mom, dad, grandma, grandpa, 2 uncles, an aunt, and 3 cousins. We finally found a way to get it done and that was to use scissors (clippers make a scary noise and feel funny on his head) and to cut it a little at a time while he runs around and plays. It looks great, though, and now all we need is for Paul to shave his vacation beard and we are ready for Christmas pictures tomorrow!

In other news, as stated above, Paul is officially on vacation and we are enjoying every second of it!

Also, we took Liam to pick out a Christmas tree today. We have a prelit fake one that we absolutely love but we both have such fond memories of picking out a tree as children that we didn't want the tradition to die. So, we have 2! We haven't decorated it yet but it is already so nostalgic to have the needles all over the floor and the smell of pine in our home!

One last thought... I was Christmas shopping at Target yesterday when I heard a mom yelling at her kids. We all know the kind. It's the woman who makes child-less people think, "wow what a horrible mother," but makes fellow parents think, "wow she really needs a break." But this one caught my eye. She was shouting pretty loudly telling her boys that they were going on the naughty list. My first reaction was, "you don't make the naughty list. Santa does. So there." My second reaction was, "oh Lord, I hope I'm not staring into my future." It's a fear of mine that one day I will be that mother. Maybe not the one who threatens to do things only Santa Claus can but the one who makes a fool of herself because her children have pushed her over the edge. Let's face it, I've already been the new mom with the screaming collicky baby who everyone stares at thinking, "feed the poor thing, already!" I've been the one letting her baby crawl down the aisles because he wants to explore and she doesn't see a problem with that just as a fellow shopper comments on all the dangers of doing so. And, most recently, I'm the one chasing her toddler around the store while he runs from her laughing as hard as he can while people roll their eyes. Who's to say that I won't be the mom yelling at her 6 year old in front of strangers? Well, let it be known that this is one of my goals in life. To keep my cool, take my breaks, and, if all else fails, go home and finish my shopping later.