Winter Fun

With just two days left until Christmas and little Christmas Spirit in the air, we decided to get outside and sled, even with only 2 inches of melting snow on the ground. So, we drove an hour, out to the middle of nowhere, to Echo Valley - a place famous for it's 60 mph tobaggon run.

We met our dear friends, the Harrisons, there. Jacob and Andy have been friends since birth and it's clear that they are two peas in a pod. And their first request, was not the tobaggon run, but snow tubing. We all grabbed a tube and hooked 9 tubes up. The hill was so steep and I was just a little nervous with Jeb in his own little tube in the back. If something happened, it was on my head. Tracy and I searched for the closest place without any age or height restrictions. But, off we went! My heart was in my throat with fear and I looked yonder to make sure that Jeb wasn't crying. No need to fear, as he had a smile on his face and exclaimed, "that was awesome" in his little voice upon stopping. And it really was.

After a few rides down the tubing hill, it was time to take on the tobaggon run. Aiden and Jeb went with Tom and I thought I'd have it easy with Jacob. This was not the case. Seems he and Andy decided they were not going down. So, I thought it through and used the best parenting technique to get him down - empty threats. It worked. And I'll admit that once I got on and looked down the hill, I wanted to get off and head for the lodge. But we went anyway. And, to make a long story short, the boys continued for the next 2 hours.

On a side note, the local news team was there taping for the news that night. The kids were so excited. We called Grandma and Papa and asked them to tape it. It was a bit dissapointing to see that it was the camera man taking the camera down the run that made it on air. We were left on the cutting room floor. I said sorry to the boys, but Aiden seemed really happy. And we found out why when he opened his mouth - "Wow, that was me going down the run - did you see my boot? I made it on TV!!" No one had the heart to tell him it was the camera man's boot. So begins Aiden's rise to fame...

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Sinterklaas

I'm not sure when or why I started this little tradition of ours, but for some reason it stuck. Each year the kids put out their wooden shoes on Christmas Eve and Santa leaves candy in them. It's all very fun and exciting, but it is always overshadowed by the stockings and presents. This year, since we are in the states, I thought I'd bring the real Sinterklaas tradition home.

Thanks to our recent trip to the Nederlands, we are all equipped with wooden shoes. All, that is, except for mom, but does she really count anyway? Anyway, the boys started asking about it since many people here celebrate Saint Nick. The short version of the story is that in a lot of Europeon countries, they celebrate St. Nick (or in Dutch: Sinterklaas) on the 5th of December and it is actually Christkind (or the Christ Child) who brings the gifts on Christmas. Obviously, we would have a bit of explaining to do if we suddenly decided to ditch Santa, so we are doing our own little version.

There are three reasons for the celebration: 1) To bring back a little Europeon tradition, 2) to have the chance to wake up to a little Christmas in our own house since Christmas will be spent away, and 3) a little reminder to any misbehaved children that Santa is really watching. And I took #3 very seriously. Aiden had already been warned that he was on the naughty list. I was hoping that when he woke up in the morning to find only one shoe filled, he'd change his ways. I admit, when I saw the empty shoe I was worried that he would be so upset. Nope. He looked at me and said, "This is all that I really wanted anyway." You've got to be kidding. We then read the note, written in all Dutch (thank you internet!) that told Aiden if he was good, Sinterklaas would make sure that Santa delivered the rest on Christmas and he was an angel the rest of the day.

It was nice to have a little Europe in our home, I miss the simplicity of Christmas across the pond. And as for Aiden, well, I think this attempt at making him better has lasted only a day. Hmm...his track record isn't so good. First the tooth fairy told him Santa was watching - that worked for a day, then the elf - that worked for a couple days, and now Sinterklaas. Next year, I think we'll send him to our friends in Switzerland to see the Swiss Santa and his friend Schmutzli. He's the one in black below - he takes care of kids on the naughty list. You should have seen Aiden's face when I showed him this picture...better be good next year Aiden!

The Christmas Bell

We had our one and only Christmas program for the year last night. A bit different since we weren't there to see Jacob, who was feeling a bit out of place sitting in the audience, instead of basking in the limelight. No, this time it was Jeb and Aiden.

Both the boys attend Little Lambs, a preschool program at our church, on Tuesday mornings. I had been hearing a little singing here and there throughout the past month, so we were all excited to watch. I sat the boys down and gave a two rules. Jeb: no pulling your shirt up to show everyone your physical therapy tape (which he loves doing), and Aiden: do no pick your nose.

They all made it up on stage with Jeb smack dab in the middle, front row. Aiden was a few kids down. Everyone sat down and then Jeb stood up, just to make sure Aiden was still there - something he did for the next hour. The singing started and Jeb's sweater, well you guessed it, up it went. Just for two seconds, but I was kicking myself for not taking his tape off (it's a big X from his hipbones to his ribs). It didn't stop there, he eventually got bored with singing and started making faces to try to be funny. Can't imagine where he learned that at.

Aiden surprised us all. He came in dressed as a present. Hmm, how curious. And then he stood up with his friend, Ally and went to the microphone. I nearly fell over as he started to sing a duet. My shy boy has an alter ego! And the finger did go up to the nose, but just to itch, not to pick. It was a really fun night. You never know what surprise you'll get.

The Elf on the Shelf Who Changed Our Christmas

I'm not going to lie, it's been a rough week. With last week being an exciting Thanksgiving week back in Michigan, the kids are just plain tired. And when they are tired, watch out. Actually when I am tired, watch out. It's not a good match-up.

I'll give a quick example - last night, I asked Aiden to take a shower. He looked at me and said, "No, I want to take a bath." It was late and we needed to be quick, so I pressed on. This time the answer was a screaming 'no' followed by flopping on the floor. It wasn't a pretty scene.

I was at the end of my rope with telling the kids that Santa was watching. It just wasn't working. I did get a bit of luck last night when the tooth fairy visited Jacob. She left a note with Aiden saying that she had seen Santa and heard that Aiden was almost on the naughty list. Upon seeing the note, Aiden handed it to me and walked away. A few hours later he asked how the Tooth Fairy knew Santa. (btw, google it - there is a story!)

I knew I had to do something. And the answer came through a phone call with a friend who told me all about this 'Elf on a Shelf' thing. Apparently I have been living under a rock, cause all the moms at school knew about it too. Anyway, I rushed out and got it.

The boys discovered it at dinner and were suddenly looking very angelic. We read the story and named him - get ready for it - Tim. After Tiny Tim. I did ask if he could be a girl and everyone disagreed with me. Oh well.

So, we have Tim and he is making a huge difference! I asked Aiden to take a shower tonight and he said 'No'. And then he looked over and saw Tim and immediately said yes, followed by an 'I'm sorry mummy'. Yes, I have found the solution! May the next 21 days be filled with peace, thanks to Tim...the elf on the shelf!