Santa

We did it! We got a good Santa picture this year! Whew - just one of those things you hope for every year and feel pretty fortunate if it happens.

I haven't written anything since I had strep throat. Yes - I am feeling better. My throat cleared up about 24 hours after starting antibiotics...as promised by the doctor. I was back at work on Tuesday and we rolled through the rest of last week as usual.

We were excited to have an extended visit from Mom this week. She came up on Thursday afternoon and stayed until this morning. She spent Friday visiting some Rogers school and getting some information about year-round schooling. She met me at Westside after school and went with me to get Caleb from school.

Once Rudy got home, we went to the Promenade to see Santa. We got there when he was on "feeding his reindeer" so we had to wait about 25 minutes, but we were first in line when he got back and Caleb did awesome! Before we went, we started talking about what he would tell Santa. With a little coaching from one of Santa's helpers (AKA: me), Caleb practiced asking Santa for some things that just happen to be hiding in our guest closet. As soon as he got the go-ahead, he climbed in Santa's lap and said, "I want Woody and Buzz Lightyear and cars." The boy knows what he wants in life and I guess he's not afraid to ask for it. I couldn't hear the other things he said to Santa, but we managed to coax him into looking in the direction of the camera and got the money shot! $15 later (Thanks, LaLa!), we left the food court headed for MiMi's to eat dinner. Once we got in the car and drove away, Caleb started asking about his toys. I guess he thought he was going to get the toys when he visited Santa. I never even thought to prepare him for that. So - we talked about Santa having to go back to the workshop and how we have to wait until Christmas. Then we talked about how Santa is going to come see us this year at LaLa and Pops' house. He seems to be okay with that, but he did ask me again today if he could go see Santa again today.

Caleb's behavior at dinner was less than stellar, so by the time we were finished eating, we were ready to go home! He wasn't behaving badly - he was just so busy and we were just so tired from the week. We had planned to go to Fayetteville to see the Lights of the Ozarks, but we scratched that plan and went home to put on our PJ's.

Saturday was a lazy day. We sat around all day, playing with Caleb and visiting with Mom. Rudy cooked a fantastic dinner for us and then he and I went to Stacy and Donald's Christmas party. When we told Caleb we were going to a party and he was going to stay with LaLa, he decided that they would have a party too - a Lightning McQueen party to be exact. He immediately started asking for cake. When we left for the party, he and Mom were in the process of making a cake. They ended up having a party in the living room. Mom said that they were having a great time, then Caleb said, "We got no balloons, LaLa!" She assured him that the next time they have a party, they will have balloons. It's funny what kids associate with a party. I guess for Caleb, it's cake and balloons.

When it came time to wind down for bed, Mom was trying to turn on our TV and she told Caleb that she couldn't figure it out. He said, "I show you, LaLa!" and went over and pushed the power button. Mom said it was a little embarrassing that her 2 year old grandson had to help her turn on the TV, but she saw the humor in it too!

I woke up during the night feeling queasy and have had tummy troubles all day. I'm starting to think that my body is rebelling against Sundays. I seem to be sick every Sunday. It's ridiculous!

Rudy played in the Christmas musical at FBC Springdale today. He came home between services and took Caleb to the park while I took a nap. After the evening service, the two of them went to eat at Red Robin.

Tonight, we're looking at the possibility of some crazy weather - including some ice and snow. Of course, we're hopeful for a snow day, but not holding our collective breath...