The Week in Kids and Christmas

This week...

We had company.  My friend brought her four boys by, while she went to take a micro-biology exam.  No problem.  Six boys between the ages of three and nine, and one two-year-old little girl was still my biggest challenge.

I put Cate down for a nap at one, but she refused to sleep.  When the boys arrived around two, she was still awake.  I decided not to fight it.  The boys went straight outside to play, and I went in to get Cate up.  When I got there, she was stark naked.  No clothes, no diaper, no nothing.  That  "no diaper" thing can be a problem, so I rushed into her room to survey any, er, damage and, luckily, found none.  Meanwhile, Cate bolted.  I found her pressed against the sliding glass door in all her glory.

"Cate," I called to her.  "What are you doing?"

She looked back over her should at me, gestured at the back yard through the door, and said, breathless, "Boys!!"

Then she squealed and did a little dance.

Here she is with (not my) Samuel, one of the boys who came for a visit.  He's three.  I warned his parents.

"I think wearing clothes is over rated.  My mother insisted I wear this dumb hoodie, but I showed her.  I'm only wearing half of it.  What do you think?"

"Mother, do you mind?  That flash is killing the mood."

Also this week...

The boys playing that day.  I think this is what they call Leaf Tag.

My Samuel, who, when finding out that there was another one present, started referring to himself as "The Real Sam."

Also this week...

Our church hosted a Ladies Christmas Tea.  I was so excited that I even did my hair.  This is quite a procedure, which requires that Hubband supervise the children.  So, while I was drying, then straightening, and then re-curling my hair.  Hubband "watched" the kids, by reading the news on his iPod, back in the bedroom with me.

Meanwhile, Samuel had climbed over the gate into the kitchen (We know he can do this.  The gates aren't up for him.), liberated a pumpkin pie from the refrigerator, and passed it over the gate to his sister.  When I found them, they had removed it from it's tin, and it was sitting directly on the living room floor.  All but the large chucks they had torn from it, and were then eating, with both hands.

"Okay, I can breach the kitchen gates, here.  Once I am in possession of the target, I will pass it to you, over the gate, here.  We will rendezvous, here.  Wait for me.  Then we will make the split, 60/40 like we agreed.  Do you want me to go over it again?"

If this had been on my watch, so to speak, I would have taken pictures.  But, being the shrew that I am, I was too eager to point the finger of blame at my dear husband.  Guilty as accused, he broke the whole thing up before I could get a single shot.  Poorly played by all parties.  Except maybe the children, who got a few good bites of pumpkin pie.

Also this week...

Jonah found some old pictures of himself.  When Cate saw them, she insisted on keeping one.  She's been sleeping with it.  Everybody now...Awww.  (There are not pictures of this either, because only a woman who did not want to sleep for one whole night would take a flash photo of a sleeping baby.)

Also this week...

Sam (singing): On top of Spaghetti, all covered with cheese.  I lost my poor meatball when somebody sneezed.

Me:  Ahhhhh Choooo!  (I play to the role of the sneeze.)

Jonah:  Don't sing that song.  It makes me sad that someone would lose their meatball like that.  And we never even know what happened to it.

And in other Jonah/music news...he has been learning new songs at Sunday school.  Like this one, which he sings loud and proud.

I'm in the Lord's Army

(to the tune of The Old Grey Mare)

[The REAL words]

I may never march in the infantry
Ride in the cavalry
Shoot the artillery
I may never fly o'er the enemy
But I'm in the Lord's army!
Yes Sir!

[As sung by Jonah]
I may never march in the even tree
Ride in the calorie
Shoot the ability
I may never fly our anemone
But I'm in the Lord's army!

Also this week...

Sam made a wreath.

Our Advent Chain got shorter.

The Nativity Scene went up.

And my heart swelled a little, as it has every year since I became a mother, at the sight of the baby Jesus, held tight in Mary's arms.

See you next week...