Dear Mr. Postman

This week in 1st grade, they read The Jolly Christmas Postman. Although I haven't read the book, I know that its about a postman who delivers Christmas letters to fairy tale characters. After they read the book, the students were asked to write a letter to the postman telling him what else Christmas is about besides mail and Santa.

Here's the short but sweet letter my Emma Kate wrote (click on the picture to make it easier to read)

Makes my heart fuzzy and warm to read that.

19 months

Zane and Zander turned 19 months old today. They are talking a lot these days. They have mastered all the basic words like mama, dada, dog, cat, ball, go, etc... But its all the other words that they don't say quite right that I want to remember.

Here is what I've jotted down over the past 2 days:

**"yie-yie" or "E-yie" (Eli)
**"Mimmy" (Emmy) which is what they call Emma Kate
**"Yane" (Zane)
**"Yanner" (Zander)
**"quack quack" (duck)
**"yoyert" (yogurt)
**"ra-rat" (rabbit)
**"kuck" (truck)
**"kah" (car)
**"ane" or "choo choo" (train)
**"tup" (cup)
**"booh" (book)
**"kha-ow" (cow)
**"dohs" (clothes)
**"melmo" (Elmo) which happens to be Zander's favorite!
**"peeg" (pig)
**"moon" (spoon)
**"mooh" (moon)
**"mah-oon" (balloon)
**"Mah-ee" (Mollie, our dog)
**"nink" (drink)
**"ca-kuh" (cracker)
**"at" (hat)
**"yok" (sock)
**"oosh" (shoes)
**"tee" (tree)
**"yite" (lights)
**"buh-ball" (football, basketball and baseball)
**"aise" pronounced like the end of mayonnaise (eggs)
**"ice" (outside)
**"nana" (banana)
**"bapple" (apple)
**"own" (phone)
**"doos" (juice)
**"ve-vee" (fix it) which is what they say when the straw cover comes off their cups
**"nigh-nine" (Einstein) which is what they call all the Baby Einstein DVD's
**"row-row" and "yie-yie" (cereal) This is the only word that they say completely different. Zander is the row-row and Zane the yie-yie
**"abby" (happy) This is Zander's word only. I think he is saying happy (from when we sing "If You're Happy and You Know It")

They have just started putting 2 simple words together. For example: today Zane said "Mimmy oosh" which meant he saw Emma Kate's shoes in the floor. Also today Zander said "ball Yane" which meant he was giving the ball to Zane.

They have also started picking up some speed when they walk. We tell them they are running and they laugh and think its so funny! I'm sure after watching this video, the track recruiters will be calling us!

Visit to Santa

Not a lot to say about this. We knew Zane and Zander would not like sitting on Santa's lap but parental guilt forced me to take them and do the yearly tradition of getting their picture made. I didn't even try to get the boys to smile. Just told the lady to take the picture so I could pick them up and they'd quit crying.

I think Santa even looks a little scared....

Blue 42...Set...Hike!

I have no idea where Zane picked this up at, but it is one of the CUTEST things to watch. He gets the football and bends over... pushes it through his legs....

and snapped it like an NFL center (well, he's ALMOST that good!)....

Poison Control

Today started off like any typical Friday...you know the kind where you're calling Poison Control????

I always keep the laundry room door shut (well actually all the doors downstairs shut) to keep Zane and Zander from prying into places they don't need to be.

I started looking around for Zane and couldn't find him. Whenever he does wander off into one of those rooms, he always shuts the door (thus shutting himself in the room he shouldn't be in). I opened the laundry room door and first saw this.... That's Emma Kate's spin art. Okay, no big deal. He got the paper and paint out but all lids are still on. Everything's okay.

Until I spot this...

See that cup and those hands in the picture above? That is the lid to a BIG container of Tide. Now look at his mouth in the picture below....

HE ATE THE TIDE THAT HAD DRIED IN THE LID......GROSS!!!!!

So just to be safe I called Poison Control to make sure he was going to be okay. (This is where I get Mother-of-the-Year award: I snapped all these pictures BEFORE calling Poison Control. Obviously I wasn't THAT concerned about him, huh?)

After I got him all cleaned up, I gave him a whole glass of Krystal Light to hopefully get that awful taste out of his mouth. Then went back to take more pictures!

By this time, the little pilfering boy, I mean sweet child, had already chosen something else to do a little damage. See Eli's box of colored pencils in Zane's hand? He dug those out of Eli's backpack. The picture on the left shows the Tide lid. I can clearly see fingernail scrapings in there.(you may have to click on the picture to make it big enough to see) Yuck! Makes me want to throw up just thinking about eating that.

We're not Twin-Proofed

These are the doors leading into our study/computer room. We always keep them closed to keep Zane and Zander out. That plan has worked fine until last week. They are now strong enough or smart enough (not sure which one) to push the doors open and go in whenever they wish. The doorknobs are really for decoration only, as they do not turn or lock...so the standard door knob locks like these... won't work!

Eli had a great idea by tying these 2 stretchy bands together to lock the boys out!

We thought it had worked beautifully until Zane started studying the bands and door knobs today. He was finally successful at getting them open....

but then he couldn't figure out how to get in....

But guess who came along and decided to give it a try?....

and he succeeded!

So for now they are back to going in and out of the office at their leisure. Destroying everything they can and enjoying the freedom!

Christmas Cookie Mix

I won a great Christmas box full of goodies at Providence's Annual Gala and Silent Auction. The container mainly consisted of fun stuff to decorate a Christmas tree. But also included was this M&M Cookie Mix....

Emma Kate helped me make them today.

We stirred all the ingredients....

She then dropped them onto the cookie sheet and just like her mama taught her, licked the bowl and spoon when we were done....

A few minutes in the oven and voila....

Yummy Christmas Cookies!