Thankful

I can hear the crowds beginning to gather in Times Square already...the end of a year and the start of a new one is upon us. This year has given us a lot to be thankful for and a few reminders of what is most important. It seems hard to believe that with the Christmas decorations and lights, we are also packing up '09 and the first decade of the 21st century...but, I'm getting ahead of myself...let's talk Christmas!

Jayden wrote his own letter to Santa this year. Of course it was like pulling teeth with that kid. One would think if you threaten a child with absolutely NO presents from Santa unless a letter is written and delivered, a fire would be lit under them and the letter would be finished and sealed before you complete the previous sentence...not Jayden. Jayden delivered his letter to Macy's Santa's Letter Mailbox on...December 21st! (Which in case you missing it, meant I had to go to a mall THE WEEK OF CHRISTMAS!) The good news is that Santa recieved his letter in time for gifts to arrive on Christmas morning and I didn't have to hurt anyone to get a parking spot :)

Landon wanted absolutely nothing to do with Santa and the whole Santa thing. He didn't want to talk to, walk near, see or acknowledge anyone with a white beard, red suit or goes by the name of Santa. He did however fall in love with The Night Before Christmas book at the last minute...and Santa rewarded him, handsomely.

We want to thank everyone who gave so generously to Jayden and Landon this Christmas; I wish you all could have seen the excitement in their eyes on Christmas morning.

So the kids have been home for one week of their two week break. Landon usually only heads off to "school" twice a week but he too is staying home for a break. I have to say, it's a much easier day when they don't have to go off to school...they are on my routine and all is quiet...very little fighting, shouting or crying, no tantrums, lots of sharing and the occassional kiss on Landon's forehead from his big brother. I'm really going to miss my time with them once school resumes next week...until Monday afternoon when all hell breaks loose and they begin yelling and screaming at each other (which isn't really fair for Landon because he...nevermind, he makes up for a small vocabulary by trying to scratch his brother's eyes out...yep, all's fair again) and I will be counting the hours until the next school day begins.

And with the Winter Break comes milestones...Landon has left babyhood behind, he is now a big boy in a big boy bed. Okay, so really he just moved out of the crib and into a toddler bed but it's a big milestone...for us all. It means that he's no longer a "baby" and now our house is "babyless"...forever. We are done with cribs, bottles, formula and baby food for good...no going back...finished. I'm not that sentimental about potty training...the sooner the better on that one, I will gladly say goodbye to that last phase without a tear.

Oh yeah, and one more bit of good news...the cat made it to see another Christmas. I'm really starting to question her mortality. What other cat do you know is 17 with heart condition, asthma (that has gone dormant), diabetes (that is no longer detectable), a year long upper respitory infection (that is now cleared up), a case of "bulimia" that turned out to be an ulcer that dropped her weight down to 4 pounds but is now rebounding nicely and putting the weight back on. In the words of Grey's Anatomy...Seriously?

So to all, I wish you a wonderfully happy, healthy, and safe New Year...see you all in 2010.

P.S. As I was finishing up this post Tony informed me that Tiger is in kitty confinement because...she threw up. Great.