What the Hecka is Going on Here? Part 3

Oh yeah baby, at the end of this winter craft we had somewhere around 12 kids running around the fort painting it with the spray bottles full of paint and water (FYI use food colouring not paint). 

Everyone had a chance to express themselves in the snow and the result is nothing less than fabulous.  My front yard has been transformed into a massive fridge front covered with drawings from all the the neighborhood kids.  So far this morning we have all taken our tuns running to the dining room window to check it out.

This is one of my favorite pictures of the day.  The two moms admiring their work knowing it was thoroughly enjoyed by many.

What the Hecka is Going on Here? Part 2

Part 2 of this neighborhood craft project involved some major snow moving.  Ben and Jack were total troopers and definitely moved a lot of snow in preparation for this craft project.  The lump of snow that we slowly accumulted was many things in the half hour the three of us worked away at it.  A mountain, a cone, a cylinder, and of course Jack prayed it would magically turn into a train.  I think the boys were pretty thankful when Katie our neighbor and Mom of Peyton and Ethan arrived to help with the snow! 

Between the two moms we moved some major snow!  I am talking a good hour and a half of shoveling.  Coats and hats were shed.  We were sweating it out, neighbors drove by and slowed as they passed us wondering what the hecka we were up to.  Slowly what started out as a big lump of snow began to take shape and turned into a super awesome snow fort complete with two rooms.  The energy between us changed and we became SUPER MOMS. 

This isn't something that happens everyday of course but once in a while you do something so cool for your kids that you are elevated to the peak of SUPER MOMNESS and we achieved it on this day.  We were great, plans have been made to expand the fort of course.  We are just waiting for more snow so we can add furniture and of course more rooms.

You can see the excitement (relief) on our faces as part 2 of this super winter craft day is completed.  Bet you can guess what is next!

What the Hecka is Going on Here? Part 1

I love to craft.  I think the boys do too.  I know sometimes my boys get sick of it...clearly I planned a few too many at Christmas time but now that we have had a chance to recuperate from Christmas it was time to get back at it.  Can you guess what we are making?  A few clues:

1) Empty contents of all the spray bottles in the house into mason jars.

2) Fill up spray bottles with water and paint.  Two very excited boys are wonderful helpers for this step!

3) Text all neighbourhood moms and arrange to meet outside.

4) Win the Mom of the Week award!

The Melding of New and Old

For me Christmas traditions are what make the holiday.  This could in part be due to my Type A issues.   Truth be told I am a bit of a list maniac and so sometime in November you will see me planning my daily lists almost a month in advance and on this list you will find that I have carefully planned each tradition ensuring that all necessary materials are available with which to complete the tradition.

For example, on November 26th I purchased the foam Christmas houses that we make each year and I planned 4 days throughout December on which we would have time to complete them.  The same goes for paper snowflake making, cookie baking, Christmas cards, decorating, gift buying....well you get the picture.

My husband will tell you that I get Christmas crazy!!!!  Pretty sure I drive him crazy too but also I know he appreciates it because it makes the boys happy to do all of these Christmas things.  

This year we mixed an old tradition with something new and the result was nothing short of fabulous!  A true success all around, one I didn't anticipate would make everyone sooo happy.

We have our little neighborhood crowd which you might remember from Halloween and this year we had a Christmas cookie decorating party.  Yesterday 8 children piled in to decorate gingerbread and have a little gift exchange and it was a little piece of heaven.

The kids were all so excited (I even got a lovely handmade card from one thanking us for having them).  My boys were just thrilled they were having this event.  The Moms all brought Christmas snacks so the counter was loaded with treats.  Kids ran around the house playing until it was time for the decorating to begin.

You know those moments in life when you are just totally happy?  When all worries fade away and you are just in the moment?  Well I had one yesterday and it rocked-literally!  All the kiddies were working away on their cookies and a song came on the radio that all the kids knew.  It was turned up and there were little girls dancing in their seats and little boys singing in their chairs.  I took a moment and looked around and saw these wonderful women who have become like family and all of our children so happy together and I was overjoyed.  My heart swelled because I knew that everyone would carry this moment with them forever and it was a moment worth carrying around for years to come.

Then came the gift exchange which again was just awesome.  There were silly bands and McDonald's gift cards, beads, paints, cool balloon cars for the boys, and Christmas ornaments.  And so the play continued while Moms chit chatted about the things Moms chit chat about and at the end of the day things just felt nice. It was the kind of day that make Christmas awesome.  Which means that next year we have a date...don't worry I will mark it on the calendar.

A Bad Day For Gingerbread!

I spent a few years wishing both of you were older at Christmas time.  Looking back I see now that that was the single most silly thing I could have wished for because now that I have my wish I want to take it back!!!  I wished you both were old enough to be crazy excited for Santa to come, old enough to absorb some of our Christmas traditions, old enough to really participate in all that is Christmas at this house.

I got my wish but what I din't count on was all the side effects of my wish.  For example, a neighbor reported the following statement from her son the other day...

"Ben and Jack are getting rocks for Christmas because they don't believe in Santa"

"WHAT" I asked?  How could this be.  However it is true, my Benny boy at 7 years old (soon to be eight) heard the nasty rumors on the playground.  You know the ones that go around every year around this time and then again at Easter.  The only thing is that this year he has given them some consideration.

I spoke with him and asked him if he believed and he looked at me and asked in a most serious tone,  one that made me feel he really needed the truth and he trusted me to give it to him,

"Well Mom, is there a Santa"

It was an awful moment because generally I try to be quite honest with my boys and if the question had been about anything else in the world I would have told him the truth.  

I didn't though.  I lied.  I lied so he could have one more year of magic.  So I could have one more year of magic.  I had no idea this might very well be the last year both of my boys believe.  I know that Christmas will still be super fun even if they don't believe but I just wasn't ready for it to be over.

So I have vowed this year will be Christmas overload!!!!

And so this week-end we indulged in some gingerbread cookie ornament decorating.  Oddly enough it really didn't go to plan.  I blew up the mixer before the frosting really got mixed which resulted in thick lumpy glue that the boys had a hard time piping onto the cookies.  Then after we hung the cookies on the tree they kept breaking on falling off the tree.  Blamed this on our little dog for the longest time until I realized what was happening because it has never happened before.

Despite these little setbacks the boys had fun and I had fun doing it with them.  You know one day they will be teenagers and likely not so excited to decorate gingerbread so until that day comes I am going to absorb these moments, commit them to memory and take them with me into tomorrow and all the other days to come.