Great Grandmama Maline

Christmas pictures. I know. You want to see Christmas pictures. Well, there a quite a few of them but I really wanted to tell some stories about my Grandmama's brief visit. She made things interesting! And it deserves a post of it's own!

First things first. Grandmama cannot say Kingston's name. It comes out Kinston, Keenston, or any other version other than the correct one. Her last name is King. Her son's name is Winston. She can't seem to put it together.

Grandmama watched as Kingston opened his stocking and Uncle Mark helped him get things working. She spent most of her visit sleeping in this chair. She would stir just long enough to put some Bath and Body Works stinky hand sanitizer on her hands. To quote Kingston, "Eeeeeeew!"

Kingston showed Grandmama his mini Pound Puppy (remember those?!). She thought it was a frog at first. Ummmm, OK. Then she posed with him. Kingston thought she was crazy. Ummmm, maybe.

Great Grandmama Maline gave Kingston a two dollar bill for Christmas. She called him over and wanted to explain what it was and how he would always have money if he kept it in his piggy bank. He didn't care.

Family photo. Not sure why the camera put a green splotch on Nana's neck. Otherwise it's a good family shot. Notice how my dad is having to hold his mother up. She didn't want her walker in the picture.

Nana and Grandpa took Great Grandmama home Christmas night. She had a good visit but it was time for her to go. Oh, Maline. What a piece of work.

Merry Christmas, Great Grandmama! We really do love you.

Where to Begin?

Kingston is 2 years old.

We started a new tradition this year where he wears new, special pajamas the night before his birthday and then gets to wear them on Christmas Eve before they get put in the regular jammy rotation.

I made a special choo-choo breakfast.

Kingston opened presents.

We had a birthday party.

Kingston cried. A lot. And hard. Kids were playing with his toys. The nerve!

We ate choo choo cupcakes.

Twice.

We lit an extra girlie cupcake in honor of my cousin's new baby girl, Kori, who was born on Kingston's birthday! Congratulations, Jason. We cannot wait to meet that sweet treat of a baby! And soon. Hooray!

Kingston opened presents.

Riley helped.

What a great day! It was Kingston's best day ever, I think. All choo choos, all the time!

My baby boy is 2 and he will tell you, too. Just ask him!

Santa's Lap!

Kingston sat on Santa's lap! I am so excited about this because I wasn't sure that it would happen this year. Or at least that it would happen without him screaming his head off. Now, I'm not saying he really loved it, but he at least tolerated it. Which is enough for me!

To quote Kingston, "Ho, ho, ho lap." Success!

We are getting geared up for a big birthday on Sunday! Kingston will be 2! We are having a very few friends over for a very small, low-key birthday party on Sunday afternoon. Keeping it simple is what will keep us sane!

And Kingston has already gotten his biggest birthday present from Nana and Grandpa. He got it about a month ago so that he could enjoy it before the weather got too cold. Thanks Nana and Grandpa! Kingston loves his car today just as much as he did in November when you gave it to him!

My Brave Boy

Kingston is such a brave little boy. He took a bath in our bathtub tonight. Can you believe it? What a very brave boy. I am so proud of him.

What in the world, you ask? Well, on Sunday I was participating in the dreadful act of scrubbing the tub. Kingston came in to supervise. I took the handheld sprayer and wet down the whole tub in order to sprinkle it with Comet and commence to scrubbing. I haphazardly replaced the sprayer and began huffing and puffing and scrubbing. Midway through the ordeal, the sprayer came flying down and conked me in the head. Do you know how heavy one of those things is? A 15 pound sprayer make of solid steel and granite came crashing down on my head. (I may or may not have exaggerated that part about the composition of the sprayer. I cannot be sure.) Anyway, Kingston was standing next to me when this catastrophe left me dazed and confused. I shouted a few words of surprise and anguish. He looked at me like I had grown 2 heads, when in fact I had, what with the giant knot that formed on top of my original noggin.

Ever since then. . . impossible to get the kid in the tub. He looks up, frowns the biggest, saddest frown, then pats his head and says, "Get out! Get out!" and tries to scramble out of the tub as fast as his little naked self will let him. My name is Lori and I let my child go 3 days without a bath. There. I said it. Eeeew! Something had to give.

Tonight I gave the sprayer a good scrubbing and let it dangle in the tub. I coaxed him in (after he sat on the potty an pee-peed, said he was all done, got off, flushed and put down the lid then went into the living room and peed some more on the rug) and he semi-enjoyed his bath for about 10 minutes! I turned the sprayer on and he enjoyed playing under the spray as long as it was only a few inches above his head and hands.

Hooray! We have a bather. Now Social Services can scratch me off their list of people to do a home study on.