Christmas is...

...ten days away.  Are you ready?

I can't believe Christmas is almost here.  I shouldn't be surprised or caught off guard.  Christmas has been THE topic of conversation in our house for months.  Back in October, I picked up a LEGO catalog in Toys 'R Us.  The second Jacob caught a glimpse of that little magazine, his eyes lit up.  He quickly thumbed through each page.  He spotted a page entitled, "Wish List."  He disappeared for a few seconds, but returned with a crayon and the writing began.  He wrote down the names of several LEGO sets along with item numbers.  When he had filled every available line, he began checking off the different sets throughout the book.  Over the next several weeks, he continued to check off LEGO sets.  Now, with Christmas just ten short days away, you'll find a little crayon-drawn check mark next to almost every single set in the catalog.  Oh, boy.

Jacob took this catalog with him to see Santa.  He hopped up on Santa's knee, opened up the magazine and began pointing to every LEGO set he wanted.  I didn't hear their conversation, but it was obvious, Jacob wasn't playing around.  He was serious.  Santa HAD to know that he NEEDS ALL those LEGOs.  I'll say it again...oh, boy.

Annabelle was clutching on for dear life.  She was not thrilled about sitting on Santa's knee.

Mrs. Claus told Jacob where he was on the naughty - nice meter.  He was right in the middle.  :)

Santa visit -- 2011

Heath told Jacob if he misbehaved, Santa wouldn't bring him anything but a lump of coal.  Jacob said that would be fine.  He would add it to his rock collection and take it to show and tell.

Three toy soldiers...

...and then there were four.

Frosty!

Lights!

 Annabelle, of course, wants to be like her brother.  She has also checked off all the items she would like Santa to bring her from the American Girl catalog. I wasn't aware that she had checked off anything in the magazine.  I picked it up and burst out laughing when I reached the Bitty Baby section.  She had made the faintest little crayon scribble marks beside every Bitty Baby accessory.  Too cute...but again...oh, boy.

Just your typical Christmas cookie baking outfit.

So, what is Christmas all about?  Santa?  New toys?  Lots of presents?  Fun Christmas movies? Lights?  Decorations?  Baking cookies?  Great music?  Parties?  Well, yes...and no.  Each of these things plays its own role in the season, but we know Christmas is about more...... 

I found advent coloring sheets online a while back.  Each sheet has a verse printed on the bottom -- part of the Christmas story.  These coloring sheets have become an important part of our day.  The kids have colored a sheet each day since December 1.  On Christmas eve, they will put them all together to create an advent book, which we will read together.  We've been listening to Christmas carols and reading books about Jesus' birth.  Each day we pray for God to give us opportunities to share His love.  We've talked about shepherds.  Angels.  Mary.  Joseph.  Bethlehem.  The star.  Wise men.  Jesus.  I think they're starting to get it.

A couple days ago, as Jacob and Annabelle colored their advent pages, I listened to their conversation:
Annabelle:  Jacob, Jesus is in your heart.
Jacob:  Yes, I know.  And Christmas is Jesus' birthday.
Annabelle.  Yeah...Jacob, do you know that Santa Claus is coming to town?

I had to laugh.

This evening, Jacob was sitting on the living room floor working on his mosaic puzzle.  He paused for a moment to look at our Christmas tree.  "Mommy," he asked.  "Why do we have ornaments with Santa and all kinds of other stuff on our Christmas tree when that isn't the real meaning of Christmas?"  Hmmm.  Good question.  I explained that they were just for fun.  "They're just...decorations," I said.

Leave it to kids to get you back on track.  They're pretty good at that.  Jacob's question made me realize how important it is to watch where I put my Christmas emphasis.  Even though I try to pound the real meaning of Christmas into their brains and hearts, I don't always live it out.  I get caught up in the gifts, the parties, the chaos, movies, the shopping, Santa.  And my kids recognize this.  The thing is, all those things are fun.  They are a part of the Christmas season.  And I see nothing wrong with them.  As long as my focus is always on Jesus.  The fact is, knowing I have a real reason to celebrate the season makes all the fun things even more fun.  The miracle of Christmas --  when God stepped down from Heaven in the form of a baby....our Savior...the Savior of the world.  Christmas is a time to rejoice...to praise...to celebrate! 

Ring, ring. Waaaaaaaaaaaaa!!

Ring.  Ring.  Ring.  "Hello..."  "Waaaaaaaaaaaa!!"  "Aaaaaaaaaaaagh!!"  "Hold me!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"  "I want to talk!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"  'Who is it?????"  "Where's my Minnie Mouse????"  "Waaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!!!"  "Mommy, she stepped on my LEGOs!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"  "Mommy, he knocked me down!!!!!!!!!!"  "Aaaaaaaaaaaaaagh!!!!"  "Waaaaaaaaaaaaa!!!!!!!"  "I waaaaaaaant a snack!!!!!!!!!!"  "I'm huuuuungry!!!!!!" 

If you've ever spoken with me on the phone, odds are, this is what you've heard -- crying, screaming, fighting, yelling, etc...  Please, don't judge.  The sounds of wailing children you hear in the background (or the foreground) are not my kids.  Whenever the phone rings, aliens come into my house, steal my little angels and replace them with these noisy creatures..  No...really.  I'm serious.

Ok, so that's not completely true.  That is to say, I can not effectively prove this theory since I have not actually seen any aliens.  But, what I do know is the telephone makes my kids crazy.  The second I pick up the phone and say "Hello," I might as well be firing the starting gun.  "Let the crying and fighting BEGIN!"  Perhaps the phone is a threat to them.  They know the person on the other end of that phone has my attention.  While I am on the phone, I can't give either child the attention he / she wants, so they act out in the best way they know how -- yell, fight, scream.  Sounds valid, I guess.

The thing is, their screaming and fighting does not give you an accurate picture of our day (usually).  Sure, we have bad days, but I promise, my kids don't act like that all day long. They dont yell...all the time.  We do have fun.  We play, draw, dance, sing, laugh, learn.  The kids even play together nicely sometimes.  Just this morning, they sat on the floor building with LEGOs together.  Jacob told Annabelle he was going to be a garbage man when he grows up.  Annabelle said she was going to be a real mommy.  Jacob told her she had to have another job besides being a mommy.  He gave her a list of choices and she chose firewoman.  Then they happily continued building.  See?  They don't fight all the time.  Only when I am on the phone.

I suspect my mother-in-law might question my parenting abilities.  If I were her, I certainly would.  I can't remember a time when she's called that my kids weren't crying or screaming about something.  I imagine each time she calls and hears a child throwing a fit, I drop down another level on the "good parent chart."  "Hmmm," she must think to herself.  "Annabelle's screaming again...what in the world is Paula doing to those kids?"  What?  Crying?  My kids?  Crying?  No, I don't hear a thing.  We're all happy here.  Happy, happy.  The noise must be on your end. 

All joking aside, my mother-in-law has been around my kids enough to know the type of behavior or misbehavior they are capable of.  Today, for example, it was time for Annabelle's nap, but since Annabelle had not put her toys away like I asked earlier, I made her clean her room first.  She grew more cranky with each passing minute, but, together, we cleaned her room.  While we were putting toys in the toybox, the phone rang.  I answered.  Annabelle erupted..in dramatic fashion.  I could barely hear the person on the other end of the line, but the caller ID told me it was Grandma.  I am hopeful that one day, she'll call and the kids will be laughing instead of crying. Laughing...or happily doing school work...like this....

or playing with dolls like this...

or singing like this...

Please excuse the nosepick at the end.  Actually, that wasn't my daughter.  My kids don't pick their noses.  It must have been an alien.