How musical

As you may know, Meg has her birthday right after Christmas, so this tends to be a toy-intensive time of year. (I really don't mind.) This year, apparently we were all on a wavelength, because independently the grandmas and I got the girls:

a xylophone
a battery-powered keyboard
a drum and sticks
castanets
maracas
a tambourine
and a recorder.

There's been a lot of music around here.

We only got around to putting the batteries in the keyboard this morning, though, and it didn't work. Nothing happened when we turned it on and pushed buttons. I fiddled with it, Jonathan fiddled with it, and Meg bemoaned its fate loudly. Since it continued to do nothing, and we don't have particularly long attention spans, we all wandered off.

Kate, in very Kateish form, happened quietly along and picked it up. She pushed a couple buttons and threw it on the floor.

Would you believe THE KEYBOARD STARTED WORKING? And it's been fine ever since.

"You know you're a mom when" quotes.

"Mom? Do you have these frog stickers for any particular reason?"
"I'm just saving them for a rainy day."

"We'll eat as soon as the dinosaurs are cooked."

"I think we'll give the Aston Martin to someone else."

Online shopping

I've gotten to where I hate online shopping, and Amazon is the worst. It's incredibly stress-inducing.

I'm not sure the item is really the item I want, and if it probably is, I'm overwhelmed with pricing and choices. Is it better to get it from Amazon or the independent seller? Am I going to get that other one too so I qualify for free shipping? But another website might have a better price. Or a coupon. Or free shipping that isn't so nerve-racking.

Free shipping. I get free shipping at Target. Does Target have the thing? They do online, but then I have to wait like two weeks, and I probably want it before then. And I have to type numbers into the computer. And they might have a better sale in-store and also I'll be able to see it. I'd much rather drag myself and two small children all the way to the store to find out.  The Target cafe has popcorn, but if we go too close to lunchtime we better not get popcorn and then I'll have to fend Meg away from the cafe.

Well, or maybe Zappo's? Or L.L. Bean? They have free shipping but they're too expensive.

At this point I have no idea what I want. I don't need anything after all. And why would I order stuff? I don't even like stuff. I probably have too much stuff. I need coffee.

My pretty mantel, and how decorating is going

Oh, Christmas decorations.

I found a really cute printable Christmas village on Pinterest and I actually printed it out and set it on the mantel. I arranged it with my little wooden snowmen, a rose, and the origami tree made out of a book, and I have been experimenting with a few candles because they are glowy and warm. And because nothing goes better with paper than fire? Apparently. It turned out darling. Also, despite the free printables, nobody will have one like it! But it is a mantel, and well out of reach of curious fingers, so I think I can get away with the candles.

I'm operating this whole Christmas season, as far as I can, on the principle that if it helps us celebrate, awesome, and if it's a burden, we aren't going do it. Isn't there a saying about not letting the perfect become the enemy of the good? Christmas is too good to ruin with perfectionism. For instance, right here, the photo quality is not that great because my camera is not talking to my computer these days. I'd like to have beautifully lit and styled pictures for my blog, because I do actually know what well-done is like, but I would probably have to download the camera to Jonathan's computer and transfer them over on a flash drive, and then actually edit them, which all is obviously not going to happen, so until further notice you get cell phone pictures.

We were able to show hospitality with our Christmas tree this year, which I thought was incredibly cool. Meg had friends over, aged three and four, and she was so excited about CHRISTMAS that they and she and I put our tree up then and there. When we decorated it, I left half our ornaments in the box, because Kate is one and her favorite thing to do is pull everything off the tree. When we had other friends over today, the toddler inspected what was within reach and the older kids all pulled the bells off the tree and rang them to a very loud version of Jingle Bells. I could have a perfect tree, possibly, or I can think indestructible thoughts and include the littles in our celebration. There's precedent for that.

I really meant to do a proper Advent devotional, with cute illustrations and Bible readings, and that just didn't happen this year. I had the craft all ready. I never even managed to buy chocolate Advent calendars. Now that's sad. But I'm pretty sure the Bible never commands us to observe Advent calendars, chocolate or otherwise. Jesus is pleased to have us, squashed candle holders and salt-dough dinosaur ornaments and all.  Isn't that encouraging? And so we are looking back and forward to His coming.

Decorating

Meg was helping me decorate the tree. She took a toy trumpet and started blowing on it. "FWOOM, HOO HOO HOO HOOM! FWOOM HOOM HOOM! Hmm, interesting sound. An interesting sound."

Meg and the wise men

"Do you know who the 'starlit magi' were, Meg?"
"No, who?"
"The three wise men, who followed the star!"
"Oh. What were their names?"
"Well, the Bible doesn't really say, but according to tradition, their names were Gaspar, Melchior, and Balthazar."

I was vaguely pleased with this passing-down of knowledge that Everyone Should Have. I'm so glad to have seized a teachable moment. Meanwhile, Meg was contemplating.

"I think their names were Pinky, Dinky, and Binky."

The unicorn egg

We have developed a mystery. We got a unicorn egg for Christmas with no return address.

It's a white egg about six inches long that splits open to project rainbows. I think it works on a principle of LED lights and a curved mirror, and I never knew such a thing existed. Did we need a unicorn egg? No. Is it awesome? YES. It is especially awesome in connection with Meg's new star projector nightlight. I will treasure it always. Jonathan, on the other hand, started singing about Strongbad and his crystal fortress.

However, I do not know who would have mailed us one all the way from China. (Naturally, China would be a final refuge for unicorns, where else?) We guessed it was from Jonathan's parents' business partner, but he doesn't know anything about it.

So, my friends, if you sent us a unicorn egg, please let me know so I can thank you.

I laughed; I cried; it moved me, Bob

Tonight I got onto the World Magazine site and went back through all of Chelsea Kolz's articles because, obviously, you need to read about a parasailing version of James Joyce on a snowy Christmas Eve instead of filling stockings with care and putting French toast into the crock pot. G. K. Chesterton would have painted a big blue James Joyce on a guitar box, too.

Dr. Libby turns up in this particular story, incidentally, being very Dr. Libby-ish, and I do like coming across stories about old friends. It's like finding a new story by an old favorite author.

The best things happen when it's snowing

Merry Christmas Eve! It's actually snowing here, with big fat flakes that are even sticking a little bit. I kind of can't believe it. Jonathan is off playing games with friends, Meg is watching a movie and eating candy, and I did a last couple bits of shopping this morning. Just now I came home and downloaded songs from White Christmas, and we're expecting a girl friend to come wrap presents with us in a little bit. It's just about perfect, in my opinion.

Any of you doing nice things today?

That was my day

I woke up this morning with a sore throat, so that was pretty much that for the day. I did a little crocheting and a little mending and took a nap. I got absolutely no Christmas prep or grocery shopping done, though I did turn on the tree lights. It was cold and windy out and I'm sure the crowds were awful, so a slightly peculiar dinner was totally worth not having to leave. In fact I didn't so much as poke my nose out the door until nearly Meg's bedtime, when I opened the front door and poked my nose out. Then I pulled it back in. It was still cold out.

I'm developing a theory. Christmas stress seems to be catching. Even though I don't have to go anywhere, buy any more presents, or cook anything unless I want to, most people do have to and it makes me really tired by proxy. And, it makes me feel slightly guilty that I don't spend all my spare time baking cut-out cookies and elaborately styling the decor in my apartment. Because clearly Meg will have a warped childhood because I didn't make bizcochitos with her before Christmas Day. Now I'm getting cranky, so I should wrap up this blog post. Either Christmas is in honor of the Lord Jesus and His incarnation, and the low-hanging mommy guilt can go jump off a cliff, or else the mommy guilt really is what it's all about. I will therefore choose to rest in Christ and his finished righteousness, and go to bed.

Good night!

But I did get a phone for Christmas, early

The rice didn't really help my poor phone much. I don't know if it could have saved the display from shorting out if I'd tried the rice solution earlier, but the display never did come back on and the phone started developing... quirks. It beeped randomly during calls, and when it wasn't making calls, and it sent a ghost text message to a friend.

My mother-in-law, bless her, stepped in and told me she was getting me a new phone for Christmas, so go pick it out already. So I did. :-)

I chose a Samsung Intensity III, which has been out a couple months. It's got a "ruggedized" cover, though not a waterproof one, and it definitely looks like the best non-smartphone available for Verizon right now. I'm pretty excited.

Verizon, I'm convinced, truly believes you should feel honored to pay them another thirty, fifty, or seventy dollars for services that (in some possible worlds) would be considered standard, or else unnecessary. And if you don't want to pay extra for them, you're weird and probably un-American. But today I exercised my awesome mommy negotiating skills and listened to the sales rep's entire effort to sell me lots of things, anything actually - monthly-payment, one-time, discounted, or bundled! - to go with the phone, and I said no to all of them. I win. As long as I don't drop the new phone in apple juice... in which case I will lose. But that's just a chance I'll have to take.

That's a wrap

I am pleased to announce that, after a full day's effort, I have prepared three (3) packages to be sent through the mail, and actually gotten one of them sent off. The crafts are done; the presents inside the packages are wrapped and tagged; the boxes are the right size and not the $40 express postage kind; and they even all have the right address on the front.

Oh, and we ate dinner tonight. That's good too.

Advent

Meg narrated as she did the advent calendar. "We'll put the star up there [on the top point of the stable] so they can have light." Jonathan and I laughed, so Meg defended her placement. "And God said, let there be light!"

Then she started using known board book forms. "Mary, Mary, what did you see? A great big angel looking at me!"

I tell you, this is exactly like classical education. You have a scheme of words and make up your own version to that pattern. Meg does it so naturally.

Seen at the mall

Sears had a holiday display up with giant inflatable Peanuts characters. A little girl was happily using inflatable Lucy as a punching bag. Wham - wham - wham - until her dad called her, and she scampered off.

I feel like there's a metaphor or a moral or something in there, somewhere, but I can't quite track it down...

The great wrapping paper conundrum

This evening as I was wrapping presents, I discovered I had no Christmas paper, only Christmas tissue paper. Additionally, we have no tissue paper except Christmassy, which I discovered last time I tried to wrap a birthday present. In the wrapping paper department we're down to the pink flowers, the purple penguins, the little blue trains, and some kraft paper, which clearly sounds like Murphy's Law to me.

But I really did want to wrap Christmas presents tonight, and not in purple penguins because that would be weird, so I used the plain brown kraft paper. I'll tie it up with fancy ribbons and it'll still be pretty. So I wrapped two presents, which were pretty in a brown paper packages kind of way, but then that was the end of that roll too. I did what else I could with tissue paper, and out of desperation put another present under the tree in a plain shoe box until further developments.

If I give you a pink flowerdy-wrapped present with red poinsettia tissue paper, just know I still love you.

It was like ice skating

Meg ice skated this morning for the first time! Kirsten and I took her and then went shopping afterwards. Monday morning is a great time to go, with just a handful of adults on the ice practicing spins and other interesting moves and, best of all, not running us over. The thrift store skates fit Meg just fine with a pair of extra socks.

About a quarter of the way around the rink, she got frustrated and asked to go home, but she pulled it together and we made it around several times. She skated holding onto one of us, holding onto both of us, holding onto the wall, and even, just for a foot or two, all by herself. She's good at getting back on her feet, though she preferred to sit on the ice and watch everybody, and her balance definitely improved while we were there.

"Did you go ice skating this morning?" Jonathan asked.
"Yeah," said Meg.
"What was it like?"
"It was like ice skating," she said.

And that seemed to sum it up.

Sounds of the season

You know "Mele Kalikimaka," right? Hawaii's way to say Merry Christmas to you? I had a brilliant idea for a playlist of perky tropical songs centered around that one. So I made my playlist, only to discover that I didn't actually own any versions of "Mele Kalikimaka," not one. Drat!

Quote

When I put on Bing Crosby's "Silver Bells":

"Mommy, is that Santa Claus singing?!" Meg