Tiny Trees

Daniel had school this morning so Addie and I went to Hobby Lobby to return a picture frame and buy some wrapping paper. The wrapping paper selection was awesome and half off! And that's the problem with Hobby Lobby. On any given week half of the store is 50% off. It's so hard to say no to 50% off. Today was no exception. They had tiny trees, lights and ornaments all on sale. Years ago, the home of a family I know whose decorating sense I covet was featured in a magazine. It showed their house all decked out for Christmas and everything about it was magical. One detail I especially loved was that they put tiny trees in their girls' rooms and let the girls decorate the trees themselves. They were so sweet and hopeful. So after we picked Daniel up we started decorating. The kids loved it and can't wait to set them up in their rooms tonight. And the best part is the rainy day activity potential for these trees. Think of all the paper chains and ornaments we can make...

I love how they pile everything in one spot. Daniel decorated his with cars. Addie with ballerinas; her new passion. Video of Ballerina Addie coming soon...

The Business of Christmas

I love Christmas. I embrace the appearance of Christmas decor in stores even before Halloween. I was surprised that a local radio station started playing Christmas music 24/7 on November first, but I embraced that, too. I can hear my little tree calling from the basement (lame that we have a fake tree, I know, but it turns out I'm allergic to the real ones) and I want so badly to start decorating, but I'm too busy. Ironically I'm busy designing holiday cards for a licensing company along with my own holiday cards for my etsy site. And it occurred to me today that people who sell holiday items are always going to be busy right before Christmas. Duh. What did I get myself into? I did hang a new wreath on the front door to get a quick fix and I've clicked the Bing Crosby Holiday station a few times this week on Pandora. With a full work schedule through mid-January I feel the need to jam a little Christmas in where I can.

The Pumpkin Patch

Last week my super cute nephew Tucker was in town so we met him at the pumpkin patch for an adventure. Tucker isn't quite old enough to enjoy everything Rombach's has to offer, but he had a good time hangin' with the pumpkins and he found Daniel to be quite entertaining.

Gram lifted T on to the tunnel so he could watch Daniel yell "HELLO!" into a hole in the tunnel top. Tucker thought it was pretty funny. The kids inside the tunnel might have lost some hearing.


After exploring the fort, the old fire truck and tractors, and making obligatory animal noises at the farm animals we headed out to the field. Steve was playing around with the camera and somehow made the pumpkins glow in this one.


Finding the perfect pumpkin can be exhausting....


After a quick nap, the kids found their favorites and we headed home. Thanks for a fun afternoon at the pumpkin patch Gram and Tucker! Jack-o-lantern pics to come....

Potty Time

Addie is potty training. She started off with a few messy days, but seems to be catching on. I don't want to jinx it.

Tonight Miss Hannah watched the kids while Steve & I went to a wedding reception. Hannah told us that Daniel went into the bathroom while Addie was on the potty and sat on the floor. Hannah asked Daniel to come out and give Addie some privacy. He replied, "No, I want to stay with her. Addie, I'm going to tell you some potty stories....Once upon a toot...."

Awesome.

Father's Night

Last night was Father's Night at Daniel's school. Steve and Daniel toured the different classrooms, listened to stories, and made a couple of Halloween crafts. During the tour, Daniel showed Steve a special tree he made for him and a nice letter the teachers helped him write about his dad. The teachers hung the pictures and letters in the hallway for everyone to see. Steve took a picture of Daniel's art and letter for me. Isn't it cute?


Allow me to highlight my very favorite part of Daniel's letter about his dad:

I wonder how much the teacher loved writing this down. Once Steve got over the initial embarrassment we had a good laugh. I laughed a little harder than he did.

The Storyteller & the Comedian

Daniel likes to recount past events over and over (sometimes ad nauseum,) replaying who did what, who said what and how everyone felt. It's freaky that he brings up events that happened more than a year ago we never assumed he'd remember. Talking about the past or about movies and tv shows he's seen is his favorite pastime in the car. It's rare to have more than 2 minutes of consecutive silence when Daniel is traveling with us. Addie tries to get a word in, but is quickly scolded by Daniel for interrupting. Today on our way home from the park she found an opening, and started in with her version of the story...

Daniel: Mom, remember on Transformers when the Decepticons crashed into the building? They smashed into the window, and crashed the walls.......(I admit I stopped paying attention here.)
Daniel stops to take a bite of granola bar.

Addie: Mom! Mom! Decepticons crash the building 'cuz.............they toot.
I laughed. I didn't mean to.

Daniel quickly started in with a new story. Which Addie interrupted with, "They toot! They toot! Hehehehehehe!" Daniel scolded her for interrupting to which she replied, "Toooooooooooooooots!!!!" at the top of her lungs. I had to turn on the radio so they wouldn't hear me laughing.

Naptime Studio on Etsy

I am officially on Etsy! For those of you who are unfamiliar with Etsy it is the biggest online art and craft gallery in the world. I love the collaboration, community, creativity, and incredible handmade goodies! For now, my shop features holiday cards and baby announcements. Some day I hope to sell gifts, prints and originals. Check it out: Naptime Studio