The Only Time of Year Where We Enthusiastically Encourage Our Children to Talk to and Take Candy from a Total Stranger

We don't do Mall Santa. The one and only time we did Mall Santa was November 2003 when Noah was three months old and I was visiting home in Texas. We went to the mall there and it was so totally NOT crowded ( I know the people that are from Southeast TX are going to argue with me, but trust me, it's NOT crowded- try a mall in Jersey!).


Since then, we have always been here for Christmas and I am NOT standing in line for two hours with small children to see Santa. That is a recipe for an epic tantrum. I'm not sure if that tantrum would be mine or my children's, but I don't intend to find out, either. Still, we always manage to find some Santa substitute each year, usually at DJ's squadron children's party.


Yesterday, we needed to go to Penney's and didn't feel like driving to the real (meaning: decent) mall, so we went to our local crap mall. I'm not exaggerating.. this mall still has Penney's, Sears and Macy's and that is all that is keeping it afloat ( that and the Chuck E Cheese in the parking lot). There is also a Bath and Body Works and a Victoria's Secret, but all the other major retailers ( Gap, Children's Place, Express, Limited...) all gone! That's what I mean.. crap mall.


So, we're walking through the crap mall to verify that it is still in fact, CRAP, and we walk through the center to see... Santa! Santa was smiling and waving and "ho ho ho"-ing to everyone who passed. No line. So we decided, what the heck... we haven't been sufficiently tortured today and Zoe has had no major meltdowns yet, so what better than Mall Santa to throw Zoe into a frenzy?


Now, I have to admit, Mall Santa was really good. He discreetly found out the kids' names ahead of time so he could address them by name. He spoke very calmly and sweetly to Zoe, keeping his distance. He suggested that maybe I just have Noah stand next to him rather than sit in his lap and get Zoe to stand on the other side using Noah as a buffer between herself and the overgrown jolly one. We got quite a few shots that included my arm holding a very unhappy Zoe in place, some of a blur of Zoe running away and then Santa pulled out the candy canes.


Stop the presses, the creepy stranger has candy! Zoe was suddenly very interested! Of course she still wasn't going within a thirty foot radius of him. Noah and Santa were instructed to just keep staring at the camera and smiling no matter what. Zoe's need for the sweet striped confection within the jolly old elf's grasp overpowered the stranger danger and she was lured in. She crept over to him and grabbed the candy cane, but still had her back to the camera. DJ and I called out, " Zoe!! What do you have??" and she turned toward the camera, pointed at us to tell us, "No!!" ( as in, "You two keep out of this!!") and the photographer snapped the shot in that small nanosecond because what followed that tiny moment captured on film, was a series of events that are sure to make Santa rethink Zoe's "naughty or nice" status on his list.

So, Zoe snagged the candy cane, turned to yell, " No!" at myself and DJ, and in one fluid movement, whirled around, smacked an unsuspecting Noah in the head with the candy cane ( on purpose, not on accident), threw her head back, let out a maniacal laugh and ran off!

There was silence for a moment then Noah yelped, " Owwww Zoe!!!", Santa snickered under his breath and DJ and I stared helplessly at the photographer who was beaming from ear to ear because she had the shot!

"We'll take it!" we announced in unison and left with a ridiculously overpriced photo and lofty dreams of coal in Zoe's stocking Christmas morning!

Modern Medicine

Yesterday, we spent a good part of the day at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia. I am so thankful to say that it was our last visit. The Pediatric Stroke Team there has been following Zoe since she was discharged from their hospital after being transported there as a result of having a stroke shortly after her birth.

Every time we visit, we see the neurologist, a physical, speech and occupational therapist and a social worker. They all want to monitor her progress and look for any red flags in her development that might result from the brain damage she sustained. So far, we have had none. The visit prior to this one was about a year ago where they told us she was doing well and they wanted to see her in one year and if she was still doing as well, she would not need to see them again.

All evaluations went well and they were very excited to see what a happy and ACTIVE little girl she is. We were given the instructions to continue to watch her and let them know of any concerns that arise especially when she starts school if she were to have any learning delays.

Noah- being the awesome, caring and protective older brother- came home from school and immediately said, " So, how was Zoe's appointment? What did the doctors say?"

I was touched by his concern for his baby sister.

" They said she is a perfectly healthy, normal two-year-old little girl.", answered his father.

"Good job, Zoe!", Noah replied, followed very shortly by:

"But, what did they say about the crying and the meanness??"

Poor Noah... he was hoping for a miracle cure.. and had to learn that modern medicine can't fix EVERYTHING!

Rebel With a Cause

There comes a point in almost everyone's life where they reject the very essence of themselves. They rebel against their family, their roots, their upbringing. Usually it occurs in the teenage years, sometimes in the adult years.

Zoe has begun at the tender age of two.

DJ is Native American. I don't mean, he has 1/16 in him and likes to bring it up at family gatherings, I mean, he is actually on a tribal roll. He is half Poarch Creek Indian. His father is full-blooded.

Here is the cute little Thanksgiving decoration I have in my entryway:

Since I first put him out a few weeks ago, Zoe keeps kidnapping him. Luckily, I usually catch her in the act and make her put him back. Today her angst overwhelmed her and she just decide to take care of her deep-seated urge right there in plain view for all to see:

She tried to scalp him!

It's going to be the French and Indian War all over again right here in my house, but this time with Creek Indians and Cajun French (my heritage, by the way).

November 21, 1998

Ok, so I meant to do this yesterday, but simply ran out of time. Yesterday was my eleventh wedding anniversary. My hubbie knows me well, he made me a card with pictures of our adventures in it and wrote " What a long strange trip it's been..." (HAHA! Grateful Dead!!) and "... thank you for eleven wonderful years. I keep falling in love with you year after year."

How right he is... a long strange trip... during the past eleven years, we've lived in England, visited Scotland, Ireland, Wales, France and Italy, moved to New Jersey and created two beautiful, spirited, hilarious and unruly children. (click on individual pictures for detail)

November 21, 1998 :

With our first child, fur-baby, Isabella:

me overlooking Roman ruins:

DJ in Trafalgar Square, London:

Me in front of Sacre Coeur, Paris:

August 30, 2003- Noah's birth:

August 22, 2007- Zoe's birth:

August 24,2007- major health scare- Zoe was transported to Children's Hospital of Philadelphia where she spent four days:

This is the only family photo I have of all of us... usually DJ is taking a picture of me with the kids and vice versa... this is still quite old... Zoe is about 9 or 10 months old here... taken at Sesame Place I'm guessing June 2008:

October 2009:

Happy Anniversary, love.

I love you!

Christmas is in the Air

Previously I mentioned that one of my daughter's strengths is resilience. My son, however, has a completely different set of strengths. One of them being his drive to get things accomplished. He is no procrastinator (unless he is supposed to be cleaning his room).

This morning, while getting ready for school, Noah casually said to me, "Mommy, I think when I get home from school and Daddy gets home from work, I am going to go ahead and give you your Christmas presents."

We don't even put up our Christmas tree until after Thanksgiving. I looked a Noah, puzzled, and said, " We don't even have the tree up. Why don't you wait until closer to Christmas?"

" Naaahhhhh" **sigh** " I think I'd just rather get it done now."

I have to admit, I'm curious as to what our gifts are. I forsee a hand-me-down GeoTrax train, soccer trophy or Star Wars book in my near future.

I'm Doing a Goofy White Girl Dance All Over the House!

I'm arrogantly running around today listening to Beethoven's Fifth Symphony. Why do I say "arrogantly"? Well, what is the roman numeral for five? That's right, "V". As in "Victory!" Just for grins and giggles, I wanted to add an FYI.... did you know that morse code for the letter "v" is ...- ? Short, short, short, long. For a moment, sing Beethoven's Fifth in your head.... short short short LONG! Pretty cool, huh? There's your music lesson for the day. Now.. on to more important things... like VICTORY!

**singing: SHORT SHORT SHORT LOOOOOOONNNNNNGGGG!"**

Zoe is still sleeping in her bed! I'm absolutely giddy! I'm on the verge of slap crazy! She's sleeping in her bed! She's sleeping in her bed! And guess what else!!!????? The other night, we put her down and she whimpered.. she didn't scream, she whimpered for a few minutes and then I head her in there, singing! SINGING!!!! After I sat stunned for a moment... then sniffed my sweet tea to make sure that DJ didn't spike it.... I went to get the monitor and turned on the video to see what she was up to. She was lying in bed singing. And she sang for an hour and drifted off to sleep!

BWAHAHAHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!

TAKE THAT, ZOE!

WHO'S THE BOSS IN THIS HOUSE NOW???

WHO CALLS THE SHOTS AROUND HERE?

WHO IS THE SUPREME STUBBORN ONE???

THAT'S RIGHT, IT'S ME.... MOMMY!!

IN. YOUR. FACE.



umm.... I mean, I am so proud of my sweet little girl.

Overheard

While getting ready for the bath, I put Zoe on her little potty. As always, she screamed, "NO!" and got up, but then Noah got on the big potty and so she sat back down. And she peed!! I made a big deal, clapped, hugged her and gave her some candy ( yes, I am bribing her.. shut up!). Then they got in the bathtub and I went across the hall to pick up Zoe's room.

I overhead this from Noah:

"This is Noah with Channel Six Action News. This just in, Zoe has gone pee on the potty! Zoe, tell us how you did it."

And Zoe giggled, said, "YAY POTTY!" and then proceeded to babble at him.

I would have loved to hear the entire interview, but I couldn't contain my giggles and once Noah realized I was listening to him, he got embarrassed and stopped.

Thankful Thursday

We are full-on in the terrible twos at my house, so I am trying to be positive today and think of all the things I am thankful for.

1. My daughter is extremely stubborn and this will be a tremendous asset when she is an adult. She won't be pushed around and will always get her point across.

2. Directly related to #1- although it took almost NINE weeks, we have finally ( almost) won the bedtime war. A week and a half ago, she went from sleeping on the floor in front of her door like a dog, to dragging her blanket and pillow down there with her. Three nights ago, she actually spent the entire night in her bed... and has continued to do so every night. Not surprisingly, she is sleeping later in the mornings because she is sleeping so soundly! The reason I said that we've "almost" won the war is because she still screams at the top of her lungs when we say goodnight and close her door. It only lasts about ten minutes though and as previously mentioned, she is now staying in her bed. WOOHOOO.. that is a HUGE victory for me! And I think I get some bragging rights for being more stubborn than she is....

** doing victory dance** " I WIN.. YOU LOSE... I WIN I WIN, YOU LOSE!!"

Ahem... **smoothing hair back down and regaining composure**

Annnnnddd

3. As big of a pain as she has been lately, I have moments when she comes out of her room looking like this:

..to remind me how much fun having a girl can be.

4. She already has impeccable manners. In fact, today, I said, " Zoe, would you please go put your shoes in your room?" and she answered, " No, thank you."

5. She's fiercely loyal. I have to pry her blanket out of her hands in order to wash it and she accepts no substitutes.

6. Unlike her brother, she is NOT a picky eater. She loves food... all food... with the exception of sandwiches. Two weeks ago, she ate gumbo. Today, I gave her popcorn chicken and sweet peas for lunch. There is no way Noah would eat a green pea, but she shoved them in her mouth, smiled and said, "Mmmmmm Yummmm!"

7. She likes to help around the house. She isn't really helping. In fact, she's making a bigger mess, but she THINKS she's helping and that's really sweet.

8.I sliced my finger the other night. The next day, she saw the band-aid on my thumb and said, " Bo bo??" I nodded and she kissed it!

This post is mostly about Zoe because she has been the thorn in my side lately, but I wanted to add a little blip about Noah because while writing the beginning of this post, the end of this post came home in his backpack.

Which brings us to:

9. Apparently Noah enjoys composing his own music. He wrote a song on the bottom of his math test... I was impressed with the notation... not so much with the typical boy potty humor. The words are: " Pee pee versus poo poo in a jar. Die for your candy."

Profound.

Mystical Saturday

...Because every yard needs a cute little garden fairy.

Grammar School

The kids are out of school today and tomorrow for the NJEA Teacher's Convention. We took the opportunity to take them to the Philadelphia Zoo. I love the zoo. DJ loves the zoo. Zoe loves the zoo. Noah says he loves the zoo but in reality, spends the entire time reading the zoo map, complaining that he is too cold/hot/tired/thirsty/hungry and asking when we are leaving.

Today was no different. Noah, however, has evolved. He picked something else to obsess about today. Today's target? A sign on a door for an exhibit. It read, " Please use other door". Noah eyed it, read it aloud and then said, " Well, that doesn't make any sense!" I was a bit puzzled because Noah is pretty smart, but I explained the sign's meaning to him.

Noah rolled his eyes and said, " NO! I mean, it doesn't make sense. Shouldn't it say, 'Please use THE other door' ? There's no THE in the sentence!!"

He wouldn't let it go. That and the hunger. So, we left after a relatively short visit. Thankfully we are members so we didn't feel like we were cheated.

**UPDATE** While transferring the pictures from the camera to the computer today, I found, much to my delight, that DJ took a picture of the sign!! YAY! ( He was actually taking a picture of the whole building, because he liked it, but I was able to crop it with photoshop so we could see the sign)