Turkey Day at Grandma and Grandpa's House

We are back from a very fun trip to Grandma and Grandpa's house (or as Ace would say, "Backah and Papa's house). We arrived on Thanksgiving day and were greeted by a Pilgrim and and Indian. We let the buddies run around for a while before sending them upstairs for a nap while we feasted on Grandma's good Thanksgiving dinner. It was so nice not to have to cook this year.

The weather was quite cold, but we bundled the buddies up in their warm coats, gloves, and hats and spent a lot of time outdoors. Ace loved being in the wide open spaces in their neighborhood and especially Miss Jean's swing park. Ben loved it too, but if we stayed out too long and he got cold, he'd announce, "Grandma's house!" and head home. We decorated turkey cookies, had fun with friends: Suzi and Sally, and played with Grandma's toys. Ben discovered Uncle Jeff's Perfection game, which he calls, "shapes", and sat quietly for long stretches carefully placing each of the pieces. It was really pretty impressive for a 2 1/2 year old.

They both enjoyed very chilly golf cart rides and a special treat - a visit to Grandpa's Frito truck. Grandpa let them each pick a snack and they loved that. Both picked Cheetos - of course!

Best of all, we spent lots of quality time with Grandma and Grandpa. Ace and Ben have truly bonded with these two. Tonight, three full days later, Ace played happily with his Little People, calling them "Backah and Papa". I think he misses them but we'll see them at our house soon.

Santa Claus is Coming to Town!

The buddies and I had a long discussion about Santa Claus this morning. I explained that Santa is a real person who looks a lot like their Santa dolls from Grandma and that he brings toys to good little boys and girls every Christmas. I told them we could visit Santa and tell him what they want for Christmas. Then, to practice, I asked each boy what he would say to Santa. Silence. So, I helped them a bit:

Me: Would you like to ask Santa to bring trains for Christmas?
Ben: (in his very loud, very whiny voice) YES! I NEED TRAINS!
(we've been working on not whining...and not saying "I need")
Me: Ben, you should say, 'Hi Santa. I would like trains, please.'
Ben: (in his nice voice) Hi Santa. I like trains, please.
Me: Ace would you like trains too?
Ace: Beep-beep!
Me: Okay, you can ask Santa for cars. Say, 'I would like cars, please.'
Ace: I like cars! Beep-beep!

We were ready. I loaded them up in the car and were on our way. We arrived to find the same very nice Santa from last year. There were no lines so we went right up to him.

Me: Hi Santa! Ace and Ben, would you like to sit on Santa's lap and tell him what you want for Christmas?
Ace: No.
Ben: No.
Santa: Look, I have candy!
(that sounds creepy as I type it, but it wasn't)
Me: If you sit with him, he'll give you a sucker...
Ace: No.
Ben: No.

After a bit of coaxing and a little bit of bribery, both boys agreed to sit on Santa's lap. We took about 6 pictures, all with very serious expressions. Then, I had an idea. I grabbed two candy corns (a new favorite since Halloween) out of my pocket and held them up. They saw them exactly at the same time and this is the picture we got:


They were both still sitting calmly so I asked them to tell Santa what they would like for Christmas.

Ben: silence
Ace: (reverting to his baby-talk) choo-choo!

I think Santa got the point and I suspect the buddies will find a brand new train table on Christmas morning.

Mommy's Little Helpers

Not much to report today. I just wanted to post these pictures of the buddies helping me make dinner. They think they are really grown up now.