Poofyhead came to town... and brought a friend

The title seems a little weird until you realize that Poofyhead is actually my little Jack's name that he calls his uncle Mark. I do not know where this name came from nor how it stuck in my three year old's head as something to call his Uncle Mark, but that is what he calls him and he talks incessantly about how much fun he had with Poofyhead and when he gets to see him again.

So, we were in for quite a treat when Mark decided to pay us an early Christmas visit and decided to subject his girlfriend to our scrutinization. I don't know who was braver, Mark for bringing her to meet us or Natalie for actually coming along. Just so there is no one anxiously awaiting the verdict... We loved Natalie! Even Jack and Alex could not get enough of having her around. I felt sorry for her a little because here she was on vacation and she had my two little one's crawling all over her vying for her attention.

Unfortunately, for most of the time they were here I was sick to my stomach with something I caught from Andy and the kids (they all had it previous to me and I thought I might have escaped it, but to no avail). Anyway, Andy joined Mark and Natalie the first night they were here for a little while before heading off to his company Christmas party that he wasn't too thrilled about.

The next day Andy and Jack met up with Mark and Natalie to run around and look at all the natural beauty San Diego had to offer. They went to the tide pools at Point Loma, the childrens beach with all the seals, Cabrillo National Monument, and Ocean beach pier. Jack had so much fun with his Daddy and Uncle Mark that when he finally came home he was so upset that Uncle Mark didn't come with him. He cried and cried until I finally broke down let Jack call Mark to talk to him and assure him that his Uncle Mark did not leave him because he no longer liked him. Andy said he was so good all day long and it wasn't until Jack came home that he completely lost his marbles.




There was, apparently several seaweed carvings, due to the size of the bulbs found on some of the seaweed, and a little scaring of Jack with said seaweed carvings. There was also, not sand castle building, but sand pyramid building along with extravagant shell decorations.

The first day that I did feel well enough to do something, Mark and Natalie came for dinner and we had a small and early Christmas gathering so that we could have some family pictures. So we exchanged gifts and watched how excited Jack and Alex got as they were able to open some of their presents a little before Santa was scheduled to arrive.

One thing for sure is that it was great to see Mark and to meet Natalie. We all had fun when we were together and even though the time was short, it was definitely worth it.

The day after Thanksgiving is too soon... I think not!

So maybe I am a little overzealous on getting ready for Christmas, but it has become much more fun now that both kids are older and get as excited about it as Andy and I do. So yes, the day after Thanksgiving we pulled our brand new faux tree out of its box in the garage and began to put it up. This is the first year since Andy and I have been married that we have gone artificial instead of real and it is a little disappointing but makes more sense this year then any other year. The house that we currently rent is much smaller then the one we were in previously and it is not set up in such a way to be conducive to A live Christmas tree. Plus, I have enough to worry about without wondering if the kids are going to make a giant mess or if the tree will catch fire and burn us to the ground. (Maybe I have been watching too many news demonstrations.)

Anyway, so out came the tree, which was painstakingly chosen by Andy, because even though it is artificial he still had to have the very best tree. It had to have pre-wired lights in color, not clear, and had to look more like the real thing then most of the ones you see in the stores. Costco to the rescue.

We spent a good half hour fluffing the branches to make them look perfect before bringing out all the decorations. With the kids wanting to help the decorating process took a little longer then normal and a large amount of ornaments ended up in a cluster all in one spot that was coincidentally as high as Alex's shoulders, so there was some redistribution that occurred afterward. Half the ornaments are plastic and half are glass, so the top half of the tree is decorated with glass ornaments and the bottom with plastic so as to discourage any naughty children from breaking them or hurting themselves on broken glass.


Instead of garland we chose ribbon, but Andy being the Christmas freak that he is had to have the perfect ribbon. So off to Michael's we went. While there we got other decorations and we really are going all out on decorating the inside of our house for Christmas. If I could convince Andy we would do the lighhts on the outside of the house too, but he doesn't want to because it's too much work.

Here is the rest of what we put up.




I really enjoyed putting the Lemax village up. It is so cute and I now understand how addictive it can be to start collecting these little buildings and figurines. Both Jack and Alex love it and get especially excited when they can turn the lights on and off. Since we have it connected to the outlet in the wall that is turned on and off by the light switch, it makes it easy for them to turn it on and off whenever they like.

Even Andy, who was a little resistant to the idea at first, really got into it and had to make it the best Christmas scene possible.




I wish I could have gotten a better photo of the village all lit up, but it doesn't photograph very well and if I use the flash you can't see any of the lights on in the buildings. It really is cute though.

It's a bad day to be a turkey!

So for Thanksgiving we were a little disappointed that James was unable to join us, but on the plus side, it meant I didn't have to cook. Not really a fan, but I can do it if I had to. I am more thankful for the fact that my brother is home safe and sound and that is enough for me.

We ended up at my friend Josie's house like we do every year. She seems to really enjoy cooking and she does a good job, so we let her. This year she had our family and her older sister's family over from Odessa. It kind of felt like old times when I would go over to her house and spend hours just hanging out doing nothing. It is really very nice sometimes to sit and do absolutely nothing.

Of course, like every year, dinner took forever to make and since we showed up early we had hours before it was time to eat.

We all snacked on whatever we could find and that included the Thanksgiving Funyuns. Andy has a hard time breathing in their house because of the rabbit and guinea pig they have that he is allergic to. So he spent his time either on the couch near the open window for fresh air or outside where it was easier to breathe.

The kids spent alot of their time playing inside and later moved to the outside where Jack managed to convince Alena to remove the cover from their sandbox so that he could play. It was not long before all of the kids joined in the fun and became a complete mess.
Alex even went so far as to walk through the freshly made mud from the rain that fell overnite. I'm not quite sure whether I should be glad he didn't have his shoes on so he was easier to clean or upset that he was walking through the mud and cold with no shoes on. Then I remember he is a little boy and this is what he does.

After all the time they had to play in the dirt and sand and mud, dinner was ready. Of course, at that time I had to throw my two dirt balls into the tub and wash them off so they would not sprinkle unwanted seasonings on all the food and throughout the house. So even though it was finally time to eat, we had to wait until the kids were sufficiently clean to begin. Luckily, from experiences in the past we remembered to pack an extra set of clothes for each of them.

Jared had to work until eight in the morning so he slept awhile before showing up at Josie's a little after three or so. Andy was designated to carve the turkey again this year, it is as much a tradition as us spending Thanksgiving at Josie's. Dinner was delicious and we were all fat and happy by the time we were done. Alex gorged himself on mashed potatoes, stuffing, corn and turkey. Jack did well to finish half of what I gave him. I do not know where that boy gets his energy from because it seems like he hardly eats a thing.

I wish we could have had more family around, but Josie is like family and I had my brother there, so that will do. I am thankful for my family and hope everyone had a good Thanksgiving. I am thankful for having such wonderful friends who I love to spend time with and feel the same in return. I am thankful for such a good husband who is willing to suffer through allergies just so we can be with our friends during not only the holidays, but all year long, and for putting up with all the trouble both myself and the kids put him through. I am thankful for my two beautiful, smart, talented, wonderful little balls of energy who keep me running and worn out. I am thankful for my in-laws who are some of the best I could have asked for and am sorry that we live so far from.

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving and feel as truly blessed as I do.