A Ghost from My Christmas Past

Oh my. At thirteen, I remember highly anticipating this Arsenio Hall episode and recording it on VHS when it finally aired. I then watched it over and over again, using slow motion on any part with Jordan Knight. Have a funky, funky Christmas everyone.

The Ranch a la Christmas

Look at how much fun we had with nine bucks and a bunch of leftover Halloween candy! Thank you, Wilton! This year, we decided to make our gingerbread house into the Stewart family "ranch house." There are, of course, minute deviations from the actual establishment, but I think we did a pretty good job at turning the Ranch into Candyland!

The master builders hard at work.

Here we have our woodpile...

...and the fishing pond at the beaver dams! Good times!

Thanksgiving

I'm finally getting around to posting! We have had a whirlwind of activity the past few weeks, and an evil cold virus trying to thwart my posting plans!

First...Thanksgiving. We had my parents and brother, Mark, come out to celebrate with us. Lucky us! Mom came a few days early and kept the boys busy and having fun with her great Turkey Day crafts! So cute! Everyone helped out with the prep for the feast. Due to the immense amount of food and need for additional buffet-style service in the dining area, we moved the table into our tiny living room and cozily enjoyed dinner! Parker & Tyler opted out of the mainly foreign food offerings and watched a movie in the basement. Note their empty table in the slide show. For dessert, we decided on a "one pie-per-adult" ratio. Pie selections included the much-requested Mom apple pie, pumpkin pie, pecan pie, chocolate cream pie and a blueberry sour cream pie that Mom & I kind of invented ourselves. They were all deeelicious. We had leftovers for five days and froze the rest.

Second...the Christmas tree. Since the above-mentioned virus had attacked Tyler full-force, our original plans to visit Kirtland were canceled. We decided that with more male muscles around, we would follow last year's agenda and visit a local tree farm to cut down our Christmas tree. I found a farm that looked promising online, and we headed out sans Mom & a coughing T-bone. The place had a cute "nativity donkey & sheep" and a fun way to drag your kid...I mean tree, around on a sled. I was pretty disappointed with the selection, however - most of the trees were very short and although we were seeking something smaller than last year's "very fat tree," I was hoping for a little more than the Charlie Brown tree we ended up with. Oh well! After freezing for over an hour out there due to my pickiness, Parker being dragged all the way, we chopped one down and hauled it home. It was fun to watch Parker & Tyler's excitement as we decorated for Christmas.

Overall it was a very fun time to show my family around Columbus. We hit many of our favorite spots and I think my Mom & I literally shopped 'til we dropped. It was awesome. Parker in particular was very sad to see Grandma Brown go, but lucky us! We see them again and every other Stewart and Brown we know in two weeks at Christmas!

For Mothers Who Know

I came across this article and thought that it really epitomized what we, as young mothers especially, try and remind ourselves of each day. It was a great Thanksgiving reminder, and made me love my little guys even more!

A Parent's Thanksgiving List

by Janene Wolsey Baadsgaard

I’m grateful my children demand I talk to them when I don’t feel like talking, feed them when I’m not hungry, and change their diapers even when I’m all dressed up and ready to go somewhere special. I don’t think I’d discover the world outside my own needs without them.

I’m grateful my children haven’t learned how to hold back their tears when they’re sad, laughter when they’re happy, or screams when they’re frightened. They constantly remind me that emotions are for sharing.

I’m grateful my children have broken nearly everything in my home and used a crayon or ink marker on the rest. They’ve taught me that things aren’t important, but people are.

I’m grateful my children start out small and helpless so they don’t become aware of my incompetence until they’re teenagers. By then, we’ve both grown so accustomed to each other, we somehow manage to make it through the rest of life together.

I’m grateful my children get their pants dirty, pick their noses, burp without saying “excuse me,” and quarrel in public so I’ll never be able to get too arrogant, proper, or judgmental of other people’s children.

I’m grateful my children sometimes call me names like “weird” because sometimes I am “weird,” and it helps keep a person humble to be told they’re “weird” when they’re acting weird.

I’m grateful my children occasionally miss the bus at the precise moment I’ve stepped out of the shower, contemplating the well-planned, organized day ahead of me. Experiences like jumping into the car after throwing on whatever’s handy and racing to school have a tendency to loosen rigid plans into something better known as spontaneity.

I’m grateful my children always need new shoes, piano books, prescriptions, haircuts, fieldtrip money, tuition, food, toothpaste, and underwear. That way, I don’t have to waste my time thinking about a new sofa. It’s difficult to get wealthy and think about luxuries when you have to buy toilet paper and milk by the truckload each week.

I’m grateful my children know how to play. My five-year-old asked me to come downstairs so he could “teach me how to play” with his plastic animals. While Jacob demonstrated the subtle techniques for sinking a rhinoceros into couch cushions while pretending it was quicksand, I realized my young son was right. I really do need someone to “teach me how to play.”

I’m grateful my children question my every command and giggle when I get angry. It’s difficult to feel too powerful or self-righteous with kids around to remind you of how funny you look when you’re pointing your finger.

I’m grateful my children insist I hug, kiss, rock, or put my arms around them often. Otherwise, I think I’d forget how the sense of touch is so healing.

I’m grateful each of my children is unique when the same strange, inexperienced mother raised them. Somehow they don’t seem to let me ruin them much.

And lastly, I’m grateful for the gift of children in my life. God willing, I’d like to fill the rest of my days with those interesting people who call me Mom (yes, and sometimes “weird”) but eventually “weird grandma.”

And the Winner is....

Check out a preview here.

Click on "book preview," and then click on the little paper icon in the upper left-hand corner. Click on each thumbnail for a closer peek. It will only show you the first fifteen pages of our 90-page spread, but at least you get a taste of what it will look like! We'll let you know how it turns out when it comes in hard copy!

Name Our Book!

The last few days have been spent cramming to get my "family yearbook 2006" published by the holiday deadline. I can't seem to remember if I've mentioned it or not, but I am publishing my blog, plus additional pictures and commentary through Blurb. I plan to do it each Christmas, hoping it will be worthy to take the place of scrapbooking and will be like our family yearbook each year. I will order one copy of the book for Peter and I and a book for each of the children.

That said, I was planning on naming our yearbook "Three Men and a Lady," after our blog title. But the more I got to thinking, that name may not always fit our family situation! I would like to pick a timeless title...one that is unique to our family, yet works across the years. Peter and I brainstormed the other night until we were blue in the face and came up with only a few suggestions, none of which we really agree on.

So I thought I would leave it up to you! You only have until tomorrow night at midnight, eastern time, to get your vote in. I've listed our options so far in a poll on the right. However, we are open to new suggestions! Let the voting begin!

A.M. photo shoot

Tyler really misses Parker while he is at preschool.

Oh, it's so early.

Ho, hum.

Neener, neener, Mom.

Is he back from school yet?

Gratitude

In the spirit of Thanksgiving, I thought I'd share this quote that came through my email today. It's dedicated to all of my very grateful friends & family out there who have brightened my days!

"Gratitude is a mark of a noble soul and a refined character. We like to be around those who are grateful. They tend to brighten all around them.They make others feel better about themselves. They tend to be more humble, more joyful, more likable."

- Joseph B. Wirthlin, "Live in Thanksgiving Daily," Ensign, Sept. 2001, 8

Can We Fix It?

Last night Peter & I had a realization - today would be the first Saturday in a loooong time that we were going to be together, just our family, without a plan, project, or major to-do hanging over our heads! We sat there, stunned, with smiles spread across our faces. What, oh what to do?

I should probably intervene here and report that this week has been somewhat of a beastly entrance back into post-vacation life. Monday, Monday. On top of normal catch up stuff (budget checks - ugh, bill pay, etc.), Parker had his first barfing experience at preschool. On the same day Tyler had a well check in which he had two shots and basically had to be recircumsized. NOT a pretty picture. To top it off, he also got a cold. Poor little guy! After a week of sleepless nights and very cranky days, we are finally getting back to normal.

Of course, this meant that we were going to have fun today. We decided that since Peter had never experienced COSI, Columbus's very awesome science center/children's museum, that we should go. It was so fun, and so nice to have him there to play with the boys. COSI has a traveling Bob the Builder exhibit on display until January, and although these pictures were taken the first time we went (a while ago), the boys loved discovering it all over again. They also have a really great children's play area that is totally closed off, so you don't spend your whole time trying to corral the toddler escape artists.

Then we headed off to North Market - a fabulous place to sample every ethnicity of food you can imagine, plus enjoy their open-air farmer's market and other local wares. It reminded me so much of Pike's Place Market in Seattle, sans the sea air and flying fish. The boys gobbled up popcorn balls from Pam's Market Popcorn while Peter and I shared a dark cocoa gelato with smoked almonds from Jeni's Fresh Ice Creams. Divine. I can't wait to take my parents there when they come for Thanksgiving - they're gonna freak.

We're having a great time playing tourists in this part of the country we live in for a year. Now Peter is at priesthood session of stake conference and here I am, blogging away while the kiddies color. I should probably do something more productive after so much fun, but why spoil the day?

Hallowashington

The boys and I have been back since Saturday night, but life sure does get crazy fast when you're trying to catch up after a 9 day vacation! We were so happy to get back to the good ol' PNW for some fun Halloween traditions with family. Poor Peter had to stay and work, so I braved this one alone. Luckily, I had the help of my parents, Uncle Mark, Auntie Mollie & crew, and Great Grandma Joan, who came up from So-Cal to see (and meet!) some of her great grandkiddies.

Let's see...we did the pumpkin patch (check out Mt. Rainier in the background...awesome), Meconi's, my Uncle Cory's famous barn Halloween Bash (you have no idea of the magnitude of this event...it rivals Christmas), a ladies' El Sarape lunch and trip to Thompson's, Percival Landing, Kennedi's primary program and Dinner in a Pumpkin, halloween pancake making, sugar cookie decorating, caramel apple making, pumpkin carving, Kennedi's birthday party, Auntie Mollie's ward trunk or treat/carnival, a side trip to Portland to visit Grandma & Grandpa Stewart, John's Mountain Home donuts, ladies' escape to the holiday craft fair, guitar lessons from Uncle Mark, and lest we forget, Chuck E. Cheese. We also had lots of traditional Grandma & Grandpa fun with storybooks, blanket fort building, hide n' seek, and chasing the cats. Phew!

Thanks, family, for such a fun and faBOOlous Halloween! Love you!