Well, it appears that we all have survived the Christmas holiday. All of the out of town guests arrived safe and sound last Wednesday and then the games began. The days before Christmas consisted of:
Then there was that whole death in the family, the many dinners and celebrations with family that doesn't come to our house, plus preparing a Christmas Eve get together for 11, a Christmas breakfast for 9, and a Christmas dinner for 13. Wow, it is amazing that we were able to drag our lifeless bodies out of bed at 4:45 am on Christmas morning to open presents.
Kaylea was thrilled when she saw that Santa pulled through once again and he had brought her the Wii that she had been longing for. Hey, he is such a nice guy that he even through in a couple of games to go with it. She got the much sought after Hannah Montana game and a Harry Potter game. Boy, he is such a swell fella! Kaylea, also, received a Zune, lots of Gymbo outfits (we luv Gymbo), and too many other things to mention. I do have to say that Auntie M and Mr. Bob get the prize for the present of the year. You know the one; it's the one that the child will not put down and plays with constantly from the time it is opened until it breaks. Well, this year, they decided to give Kaylea the redneck child's dream giftbox. It included a remote control fart machine, a can of Flarp, a whoopie cushion and a belch-o-matic. I'm telling you it was like a regular symphony around our house.....THANKS SIS!!!!
You know, it is pretty bad when you have to rearrange the furniture to accommodate all of the presents. In our defense, all of these presents are for 9 people. So, we didn't go too overboard, did we?This time of year is so busy for our family as I am sure it is with yours. Kaylea sings in the children's' choir and plays the hand bells at church. She is also a member of Chorus at school. All of these activities have involved Christmas concerts over the past couple of weeks. As I helped Kaylea get ready for her performances, I was reminded of when she was little. Kaylea always thought is was a big deal when she was able to wear "panty toes" with her dresses. And she especially loved trying on my dress shoes and walking around the house. She would always say, just to make sure I was aware, "Look Mommy, I am wearing your 'knocking shoes'" You see, we had wood floors in the dining area and linoleum in the kitchen and she just loved the sound the shoes made as she walked across the floor.
While thinking back on these moments I realized that my little girl wasn't so little anymore. She has become a very grown-up and independent young lady. I no longer have to help her get dressed; she can now put on her own "panty toes" and "knocking shoes." Though she has grown up a lot, she still thinks it's a big deal to get dressed up and still loves the sound of her heels clumping across the floor, as do I.
Yesterday, Kaylea brought home the proofs of her school pictures and they were great. I am very excited about receiving the prints! Many of you are probably thinking, "Wow, they are getting their school pictures awfully late in the year." Well, we had to have retakes this year. And yes, of course, there is a humorous story to explain why.
You see, this year is the first year that Kaylea has been able to take a morning snack to school and keep a water bottle on her desk all day. WHOOT!! WHOOT!! (She thinks she is a BIG kid, now) Anyway, on the first picture day, Kaylea asked, for the first time, if she could take a Cherry Kool Aid Mix Stick to add to her water at snack time. I was trying to be a super cool Mom and I didn't see any harm in it, so I said, "of course." (See where this is going?)
Well, that afternoon when I picked up by beautiful daughter from school, imagine my surprise (you will hear me say that a lot when referring to Kaylea) when she got into the car and had a lovely red Kool Aid mustache. Oh, but it wasn't the typical Kool Aid mustache; you know, the kind that peaks out the corners of their mouth and makes their smile a little more exaggerated. OH NO, you see Kaylea sticks almost her entire upper lip inside a water bottle when she drinks, so her Kool Aid mustaches kinda resemble Hitler's. They stretch from her upper lip to right under the tip of her nose.
I very calmly asked Kaylea (with all of my fingers and toes crossed), "So, did you have your picture taken before snack or after snack. She replied, "Oh, way after." I just kinda sunk into the seat and said, "Well, you are going to have a really pretty Kool Aid mustache in your school picture, then." At that time Kaylea proceeded to argue with me and tell me "No, I won't." I was very insistent in saying, "YES, you will, because you still do." Apparently they have no mirrors at her school, or she is the least vain person I know, because she had no clue that she had walked around all day with her upper lip stained cherry red. To my surprise, she was only minorly embarrassed when I brought this to her attention. So, to stress the importance of GOOD school pictures, I pointed out to her that this picture was going to be in the yearbook and everyone in the school was going to see her Kool Aid mustache. Of course my message fell on deaf ears because she just rolled her eyes and said, "Mom, the mustache isn't going to show because the yearbooks are in black and white." (DOINK!!!!!)
Anyway, we have beautiful pictures, now. We will just keep those fingers and toes crossed that the yearbook staff will take mercy on her and put in the retake.
Once again, you might wonder what lesson I, as Kaylea's mother, have learned from all of this. Well, once again, there are a few:
1. Kaylea does not take Kool Aid Mix Sticks to school anymore.
2. I have a lot more vanity that my daughter.
3. In Kaylea's future, I think she will hear the following saying quite a lot, "bless her heart."
