Tis the season to eat chocolate !

Tis the season to eat chocolate fa la la la la la la la la
Eat and rub some in the carpet fa la la la la la la la la
Darn our mom came in and caught us fa la la la la la la la la
She yelled real loud and threatened to slap us fa la la la la la la la la
fuh la la la laaaa laa la laaaaaaaaaa

and because I've had to clean so many floors over the last 2 years.  my steam cleaner is out of order right now.   Carpet guy coming on Monday.  (sigh)

They put themselves in time out while I cleaned up.   Together.   They were wrestling when I finished taking pictures of the floor.    I told them to say guilty instead of cheese.  :)   Little shits.

In a side note.  I STILL haven't taken Christmas card pictures this year.....I'll just use this one and call it 1/2 way done.

Nathan's song

Nathan walked up to me with 3 round hot pads and said, "listen to my 3 hot song mom"
He carefully and precisely laid them in a row on the floor and began jumping and stepping on each one while singing with the sweetest voice :
Froggy jump, froggy jump.
Captain Hook jumps.
I throw them at the ghosts to kill bad guys.
Go to sleep.   Go to sleep.   Go to sleep.

He whispers stories of Captain Hook too.   All about trees and crocodiles.  :) Quite the imagination this kid has.

Let it shnow let it shnow let it shnow

I hold absolutely no responsibility in their being outside, in the snow, in short sleeves, jumping on the trampoline (and Ryan without socks on)   They refused to come in when I found them outside.   I left them, thinking that they would come in soon, as it was....snowing.....and FREEZING.
They didn't....so instead of putting my coat, hat, gloves, snow pants and boots on to go out and fetch them....I fetched the camera instead :)
By the time they did come in....Ryan's hands were in the early stages of frost bite :) and he started crying that he was in fact freezing.
They took a bath and are now warm and dressed....and quietly watching Word World so's that I can type this.
Ryan has since repeatedly reminded me that you wear coats, gloves and boots in the snow.  :)

Update on Want Read Wear and Need !
We've decided on the Want coming from Santa.   The rest will come from us.   We've already talked about them getting one thing from Santa, so they're already prepared.  
We'll explain the Read Wear and Need on Christmas eve.
As for sibling gifts....we drew names.    They will each have a small amount to purchase a small gift for the person that they drew.
I still think it's going to be a LOT.   We'll see.

It's starting to feel like Christmas.   The snow helps.

Now....PLEASE let there be snow for Christmas.
12 more days.

Sinterklaas kapoentje

We finally went to see the big guy in the red suit.  
It was mid afternoon on a Saturday at the mall.      Kinda explains the 1 1/2 hr wait.   geesh.
Thankfully.....I was able to stand in line for an hour of it, while J took the kids to the play area.    They would have NEVER made it the whole time.   I was very much impressed by all of the kids who did.
As we made our way to the holding spot just before seeing him.  ie.  the place behind the red velvet rope holding us back from running for Santa before the childs turn ahead of us was over.....Santa's helper gave the kids high fives.   Asked them what they were going to ask from Santa for Christmas.  
It went like this :
Helper :  What are you going to ask Santa for ?
Syd smiled shyly
Cam :  A star wars ship
Nathan :  A sword
Helper :  Do you want a sword or a light saber ?   Light saber's are by far the best.
Nathan :  and I'll kill bad guys.
Helper :  Oh wow.   and what do you want ?
Ryan : a sword.   and I won't kill Santa.
but because of the noise level and that he's only 3 I can understand how it may have sounded.
Helper : OH NO !  You Can't kill Santa.   We can't allow that.   Who would bring you presents.
Spencer :  I want a chainsaw gun.  (ie. some chainsaw leaf blower tool toy he saw a Toys R Us)
Me : umm, it's our turn.   Santa is gesturing that it's our turn.
Helper :  (mouth open slightly with a  dumb founded look on his face and still a little shaken) oh yeah, ok, do you want a picture ?

Whildst sitting on Santa's lap after the photo was taken, each child asked for what they wanted.
Syd piped in with her request.   A white board with every color of the rainbow markers.     I'm sure this goes with the school and speech classes she's written on my calendar that she's apparently conducting with Cameron and Spencer.  :)
They all started spouting off what they wanted.    There were 5 of them.   Santa looked tired and had bad hearing.   Maybe it was all of the background noise.    You want a "word" ?   I would correct him, "no, a sword" and then hold my breath hoping killing bad guys and Santa didn't come up.    As his head flipped back and forth trying to listen to each child Nathan tried to take his hat off and then pulled on his very real beard.    Ryan then put Santa's hand sweetly in his hand and asked him, "Santa do you want a drink ?"
I kid you not.
Santa told them to leave him Milk, Cookies and Carrots.   We grabbed our little candy canes and it was over.
Nobody was afraid of him.  (I know it doesn't look like it from the picture above..but they were just being pills for the picture) you know...unlike last year when Cam didn't want to be by him and Ryan cried. :)  

Oh the memories !!!

Back to the drawrring board !

So we have been doing the chart thing.  And it's great.
The problem.   They don't care if they brush their teeth and get dressed so that they can have some TV time. TV time has been forgotten.  and please please please go down and watch TV.  oh how I miss you TV time.    They could care less.    So I let the consequence be that they don't get dressed and earn their star.
Thing is.  they don't really care about earning the star because the end of the month thing is so far beyond their concept of time.  ie.  is Christmas tomorrow mom ?  is Christmas tomorrow ?  nope it's at the end of the month in just a few weeks.  so is it in 2 days mom ? is it in 2 more days ?  (sigh)
We still have our family game night on Monday and movie night Fridays.    I hate to make them earn that time...because family time isn't something that I want to threaten them with.   Like reading.   I KNOW it's something that they love to do with me and threatening it would get results.  sometimes.  but it's not something I want to use as a punishment.  you know ?  that whole follow through crap.
Any ways.   I think we are going to have to work on some kind of weekly reward.  or even bi weekly.
Maybe do something fun twice a month.   I mean.   We're fun people.   We were doing that before any ways.
Some pictures of our star chart successes.

Making his bed

I have actually been able to appreciate and love the imperfections 

It makes me smile picturing his little body making this by himself.

It makes him smile too.   

and what I've learned about all of this bed making is.

Practice (and age) makes perfect.
oh.  and.   I'm not doing it :)

They get themselves dressed

Sometimes backwards and inside out.  :)

And they brush their teeth.

And that makes for a clean smile and a happy mom

The Big Apple, Baybee !

We had an opportunity to go to New York City and couldn't pass it by.
I've been to NY with my mom 3 times now.   It obviously tells you how much fun she is to travel with.
This time was no exception.   Only this time we took my Aunt Marie and called it a girls trip.
Marie has never been and it was really fun to show her all things NY, it made it a much more New Yorky trip for us who have been a few times.

We had planned in advance to see Wicked and had purchased our tickets.   Jan and I have seen it, but you can ALWAYS see it again.  SUCH a good show.  
A friend of mine has an apartment 1 block from the Gershwin Theater where Wicked was playing.   She also has a home in Mass. and goes there on the weekends...so we were able to stay free of charge within walking distance to Time Square and any Broadway show/play you can name.
We took a subway out to battery park and saw the statue of liberty, albeit through the fog, she's still so majestic to see.  
We went to the Metropolitan Museum and due to poor scheduling and sleeping in and early matinee tickets to Wicked, were only able to shop.  :(  Which is a real bummer because I think Marie, and I know me and my mom, could have spent a few hours there no problem.    I love the Met.  
We did buy art work.   PRETTY DARN Sweet artwork.  :)
We drove in a cab, had a limo service pick us up and take us back to the airport.  
We ate NY pizza and bagels and mmmmmm, were they GOOOOOD !
My mom bought us last minute tickets to see the Rockettes Christmas Music SpActacular :) at Radio City Music Hall !  7th row orchestra !  I'm sorry...but you don't get more Christmasy than that.   That IS New York at Christmas time.   I truly felt like Annie.  Thank you Mommy Warbucks.
We saw the Tree at Rockefeller center and bought stuff from street vendors.
We walked around with our heads up and our cameras out and looked like any other tourist on Time Square.
Oh.  and we LAUGHED.   HARD.  A LOT of laughing.   I can't remember the last time I've laughed that hard and that often.
Even if it was at the expense of others.  (all of whom were sort of willing participants)  Such great memories.

I wanted to take my good camera.   Jan wouldn't let me.   She knows that when I take it...she ends up holding it until I want to take pictures and then she ends up holding it after I'm done taking pictures.    :(  bummer.   So instead I took my little camera and even though it's little I still didn't take it with me most of the time.
I think between Jan's cell phone pics and my little forgotten camera, we were able to capture it pretty well.
(please excuse the quality of some of the pictures)

the Subway

Ground zero from across the harbor 

Ground Zero's construction of a new building.

I must have really liked this

I took about 8 pictures of it....here are 2 of them :)

On the stairs at the Met, looking down the street

Wicked.  Super good seats.

Radio City music hall

A terrible picture of the Rockettes doing a SUPER cool routine.

Always laughing

Always a tourist 

This is what NY at Christmas time is like on Time Square.  
It's this crazy busy until after the first of the year.    WOW !
And the closer you get to cool stuff, like the Toy Store, or the Tree.....it was even busier.  if you can even imagine it.  

 Love NY !  Thanks for making it such a fun trip ladies !

Hip to the Hop to the hippity hop !

The boys started learning their routine last night.
As promised.......I present Spence and Cam....and class.  (Cam's the blond wearing the blue shirt up front and for some punk cool reason...Spencer's wearing his blue coat)



Cam can do the worm and they are both pretty good at the windmill.
Mostly it's just fun....but they seem to pick up on stuff fast....so maybe there's a future in hip hop for them.