Let's go fishing!

 

One of Liam's favorite Christmas presents this year was a fishing pole he got from his grandma. I was a little unsure about how he would fare with a fishing pole but I was very surprised the following afternoon when we set it up and started to teach Liam how to cast a line. Actually, I learned too because I have never been fishing and I know nothing about it. It only took Liam a couple tries to become an expert caster (if that's a word). He was casting his line across our entire house so we decided to take his training outside. Again, he was casting his line into our neighbor's flower box. We then took his practice to the lake in our neighborhood and we had a great time. He is a little impatient and he was pretty disappointed that there weren't any fish in the lake but, other than being a four year old, he did really well. I think he has a lot of fishing days ahead of him. My favorite part: Paul whistling the theme to the Andy Griffith Show as we walked along the lake.

 

 

Our Abundant Christmas

 

Our Christmas could best be described as abundant. There was an abundance of food, family, gifts, generosity, thoughtfulness and fun. There was also an abundance of exhaustion and overstimulation for the kids but it was worth it. My absolute favorite moment of the day was when Liam was finally able to give us the gift he made and wrapped for us at school. The gift that he has been hinting is "a triangle and green and has a star on top" and has been sitting under our tree for over a week now. He presented it to us and said, "Merry Christmas, Mommy and Daddy," in the sweetest, most sincere voice ever. The rest of my favorite moments are below:

 

Christmas Musical

Liam had his Christmas program at school yesterday and oh my goodness!!! I have heard mothers brag about their child's school play and I have seen the pictures on Facebook but when it's your own kid there is seriously nothing like it. Like, seriously, he put some antlers on his head and sang "Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer" into a foil microphone and I nearly fell off my chair in glee. It was like this existential moment where I felt overwhelmed with love and pride and I was made immediately and incredibly aware of how fleeting life is and how every moment counts and I saw my priorities all lined up and I'm pretty sure the face of God appeared in the clouds. Ok, I took it too far but, moms, you know what I'm talking about. It was incredible. He came out on stage and searched for our faces and then he sang his little heart out while trying not to smile.

But the best part was when he peeked his head around all the other parents and gave us this little smirk. Brygit was starting to get upset that she couldn't go to her brother so he mouthed to her, "I'm coming." Kill me now.

Snow Day

Our home owners' association put on their annual snow day over the weekend. They brought in a bit of snow from... somewhere and layed it out at the park for the kids to play in. They even built a little ramp and some kids brought sleds to go sledding. We were not as prepared much to Liam's disappointment but all he wanted to do was throw snowballs at us and build a snowman anyway so that is what we did. It did feel a teeny bit pathetic to be standing there in melting snow without a coat under the warm Southern California sun but the kids loved it. Liam was a little peeved that it was "ice." I'm not quite sure what he was expecting nor what he remembers snow feeling like last year. So he put me to work making snowballs with my bare hands for him to throw at his dad and his sister. Paul helped him build a miniature snowman that was admired by all the little kids then we concluded our California snow day.

 

Our Elf

Yes, we do the elf thing. I know people are kind of split down the middle with this thing. I know people who absolutely love it and who go all out catching their elf in all kinds of shenanigans each morning leading up to Christmas and I know people who think it's a creepy little elf watching your children as a behavior modification technique and they would rather opt out. Honestly, I get both sides and I am kind of in the middle. Our elf is in a new spot each morning and, on occasion, he will bring fun stuff for the kids to help them celebrate this season. We aren't that creative in relocating him but we try to be. We have been known, on a few mornings, to run downstairs ahead of Liam to quickly retrieve our little guy and toss him in a new location. Liam likes looking for him each morning and he proudly points him out to anyone who visits our home. Here is what our elf has been up to this year.

 

He arrived December 1st with Advent Calendars, festive drinking cups, a letter and donuts.

 



 

Liam was actually very excited but this was the first face he made. It looks like he's thinking, "What the..."

 

 

He has been busy finding new spots to hide but then we found these pajamas and we couldn't pass up an opportunity to make our kids wear matching outfits. Our elf left these in the kids' stockings and they have been wearing them ever since pretty much. Sometimes, even under their clothes. Brygit insists it's a "baby" and she was pretty upset last night when her "baby" pajamas were still in the dryer.

 

Our little guy is currently hiding in the gingerbread house and the kids got a kick out of how the "baby" was saying "peek a boo" in the "cookie."