Christmas (last one, I promise!)

Santa is a pretty great guy.  Every year we send him a letter asking him to swing by our house a few days early, and every year he kindly obliges.  It was a bit of work to get ready for his arrival, but Ava was up to the task.  We started with the cookies.  The decision-making process went something like this:

Me: Ava, what kind of cookies do you think Santa will like?

Ava: I want cookies for me.

Me: Yes, ok.  But what about Santa?  What kind of cookies should we make for him?

Ava: Pink!

So, pink it was. 

 

 

Next, it was time to make sure Santa's reindeer could find our house.  A little reindeer food sprinkled in the yard took care of that.

 

 



Santa showed, and he did not disappoint.  Thanks, Big Guy.

Christmas

As always I'm a bit late in posting this, but I wanted to make sure I didn't leave it out because it really is one of my favorite times of year.

My girls have a fantastic family.  On both sides they're blessed with wonderful people that love them, and the fact they are - despite the physical distance between them - so often surrounded by these people makes me happy.  Really happy.  Which is why I love our yearly trips to Iowa for Christmas.

Grandma patiently helps the kids bake cookies, and never fusses when Ava eats all the dough.

Plus she gives really good snuggles....

 

Rivaled only by Uncle Joel.  Who, much to the heartbreak of certain Aunts who shall remain nameless, is a major favorite with both my girls.

 

And of course, time with their cousins is priceless.

 

Aunt Lisa was pulling this.  You go, She-ra!

 

Baby's first wet willy.

I'm already looking forward to next year.  


Snow chic.

Sweet Kellan.  I love this picture.

Merry Christmas, all.

A Christmas Miracle

A visit to Santa is a rite of passage, and not just for the kids.  All parents have an image in their heads (before the kids actually arrive, of course) of taking their children to see Kris Kringle that goes a little something like this: You wake up on a beautiful, snowy Saturday, and dress your sweet babies in their picture-ready best, hair combed, shoes shined, and bows perched neatly on heads.  You trek to the mall and sit them on the lap on the world's most authentic-looking Santa, where they smile angelically while the "elf" takes the perfect picture that will sit, proudly displayed, on the mantle until the end of time.  Or until one of them draws a mustache on it. 

Now let me tell you how it actually goes down in my house every year: we get the outfit and the bows in place, then, because Ava senses that we're running late, she has a complete meltdown, spills juice on her dress, and rubs her head on the couch until her hair looks like I styled it with a immersion blender.  We arrive at our intended venue - still foolishly optimistic - and stand in line behind 20 sets of similarly delusional parents, while our kids scream and we think about how much money an elf selling cocktails could make in a place like this.  Finally, our turn arrives and.....nothing.  Yup, you'd never know we were there, because Ava won't get within 10 feet of Santa Claus.  Another year, and no pictures.

This is the scene I was expecting when I was told that Santa would be visiting Ava's school for the annual Christmas party.  After all, this scene had already played out just one week before, so I didn't flinch when she dropped chocolate ice cream all over her dress.  Who cares?  I didn't even bring a camera. 

And then, Ava's friend sat on Santa's lap and something amazing happened: she asked if she could too.  His mother (I love her for this) ignored the stink eyes she was getting from the mom's of the 15 other kids waiting in line, and told Ava it was her turn.  And she had a camera.

 Luckily, my little Lila is still too small to argue with me.  We'll see what next year holds.



Dear Santa...

The magic of Christmas would be nothing without a proper letter to Santa. 

There is something so charming about a letter to Santa that's only asking for two things.

We added the appropriate postage...

And sent it on it's way to the North Pole.

I have a really good feeling that my sweet girl is going to get everything she asked for.  And then some.

Decking our Halls

I am of the opinion that childhood should be magical whenever possible.  There should never be a doubt that Santa Claus is real, there is gold at the end of every rainbow, and pixie dust can be found, if only you look hard enough.  And there is no time of year that holds more magic than Christmas.

We began our yuletide preparation with - what else? - the tree.  Well, trees, actually.  I scored an adorable 2 ft. tree at Target for Ava's room, and let her have her pick of tiny decorations. 

Lila hung out and supervised.

Here's the uber-fabulous finished product:

Jealous?  You should be.

A few days later it was time to tackle the big tree.  Step 1: hit the tree farm.

"Hey Lady, get that branch off!" 
Yes, she said that.  Repeatedly.

Step 2: Bring that tree home and make it beautiful.

 

For the Lundstrom household, the magic of Christmas has officially begun.  

Front Yard Follies

It all starts when she points to the sidewalk and tells you to take a seat.  She issues a hearty, "Ladies and Gentlemen!", and then begins what I think is The Greatest Show on Earth.  It's a one-woman show with singing, dancing, audience participation, props - and I wouldn't miss a minute of it.  Here are a few visual highlights from last week's performance.

Halloweek

Nope, that title is no typo.  Since I was a kid, Halloween has gone from a single night of costume wearing and candy procurement, into a celebration the length of which is beginning to rival Hanukah.  We kicked off the festivities in downtown Littleton the Saturday before the Big Day, Ava making use of her favorite mode of transportation (her dad) to gather treats from the local merchants.

Yes, she was dressed as a princess.  If you're surprised by this choice, then you clearly have not been paying attention.

And the girl was good.  She zeroed in on whoever was holding the bucket of goodies, flashed a megawatt smile, and offered up her most polite "thank you" to each and every one.  She was a hit. 

Lila got in on the dress-up action too, but since she was covered in a blanket for the entire outing, all the good pictures were taken on the couch.

Sunday found us - same costumes, washed of the previous day's lollipop stains just in time - at Boo at the Zoo, Tuesday was Ava's Halloween party at school, and Wednesday was, of course, the day we had all been waiting for. 



"Oh yeah, I'm wearing this dress.  Now give me all your candy."

Lila got her game face  - and her mouse ears - on to help me hand out candy while Andy and Ava patrolled the neighborhood.

We'll be swimming in Halloween candy until Christmas, and the sugar high may last until Easter, but I'm loving that Halloween is a whole week now; think I can get away with doing this for our birthdays?