Our Southern Christmas

We decided we weren't up for traveling this Christmas with two little ones (sorry, Grandparents!). Some friends in town here were kind enough to invite us to join their family gathering. I was excited to experience my first authentically Southern Christmas!

I had so many questions leading up to the event. First, the hostess asked me if I could bring carrots. My initial thought was to bring cut up carrot and celery sticks because that's what my Oregonian grandmother always serves on holidays - in a fancy crystal dish. But then I was like, hmm, wait, Grandma is from Canada...maybe not all families eat raw veggies... So I double checked with the hostess who confirmed that I should bring cooked carrots. Glad I asked! I googled "Southern cooked carrots" and found out that as long as they were swimming in butter and brown sugar, the dish would probably pass muster.

Then on Christmas Eve as I was going to bed, I suddenly realized I didn't know what Southerners wear on Christmas. Would the kids be shunned if they showed up in their matching penguin/winter onesies instead of something smocked? Should DF wear a coat and tie? I texted the hostess who kindly informed me that any attire would be just fine; it was not a formal affair. Whew!

We made our short 20 minute drive to dinner on Sunday afternoon (sooooo much easier than flying all day!) and were greeted by our friends, their kids, and about 15 more of their relatives who had gathered for the day. The people were half from Memphis and half from Indiana, so I guess maybe it wasn't a 100% Southern Christmas but I'll take it.

Everyone was so friendly and welcoming! The boys were the youngest kids there. Once they warmed up to the big crowd, they had a great time. In this house, they don't barricade their Christmas tree behind a playpen, so the boys were very excited to touch all the ornaments and lights. I only caught Gus eating one decorative berry... They got to sit in booster chairs at the kids table to eat dinner, and they were totally entertained by all the bigger kids. After dinner, they bounced on a trampoline, played with a musical dancing dog, and even received some toys as gifts. Wow, what a treat!

As for the parents, we also had a lovely time visiting with everyone and enjoying the delicious spread. Oh, Southern food, you are the best :)





All in all, it was a very Merry Christmas indeed.

18 Months

Happy 1.5 years to our little bundles of energy! Here are some of their latest developments.

Language/Talking
They are saying a few more words lately including "wow" and "no." I wasn't sure if they actually understood the word "no" until the other day when Gibson tried to take a toy Gus was playing with. Gus hugged the toy to his chest saying "nononononooo!" Ah ha, I think he gets it!

I can tell they understand new things every day. When I say, "Do you need me to wipe your nose?" they both make sniffling noises. I've even gotten them to carry things from one room to another, just by giving verbal directions. I love watching their little brains catch on to stuff like this!

Eating
Their newest obsession is cantaloupe. All summer, they devoured watermelon and I found cantaloupes on sale at Aldi last week. Good deal, because they've been turning their noses up at my other fruit offerings lately. Oh, except canned pears. Fresh pears are hit or miss, but Gus slurped down almost a whole can of pears by himself recently.

Gibson is the more carnivorous kid. He enjoys all types of meat - fish, poultry, beef. I'm teaching them to like the good salmon (wild caught Alaskan) from Costco. It's got a kind of spicy sauce, but they don't seem to mind.

Ketchup is their new favorite thing to eat with pretty much all food. I see they take after their uncle, Jr. Fuzzy...

Health & Hygiene
They survived getting tubes in their ears and adenoids removed last month. Really, it didn't seem to faze them too much. It was more of survival on the parents' part, especially the really long surgery day at the hospital when it took them forever to recover from anesthesia! After a couple days, they were mostly back to their old selves. They both had colds at the time which didn't really help with recovery. But we've now gone 3 weeks without an ear infection, so that's good!

They are working on getting a bunch of teeth right now - lots of chewing and drooling. Gus has all 8 of his front teeth with molars coming soon. Gibson has 7. They both hate getting their teeth brushed. Sometimes we let them "brush" their own teeth but they mainly want to throw the toothbrushes on the bathroom floor or gag themselves by sticking the brushes all the way in their mouths.

Brush that they love = hair brush. Perhaps because they finally have grown some hair? For whatever reason, they are always asking me to brush their hair. I don't let them play with the hair brush, though, because it's too perfect of a weapon.

Playing
They like to chase each other around, and since they're getting better at trotting, this activity is more enjoyable. We have some big boxes that they run around, hide behind, and then squeal with delight when they catch each other.

Gus's favorite games are "tackle brother" and "whack-a-brother," the latter involving any object and Gibson's head. If I hear a yelp coming from the other room, I usually respond, "Gus, get off your brother!" and I'm right 90% of the time. He's got about a pound weight advantage that he literally throws around. I'm not saying Gibson is an innocent little angel - he likes to whack his brother, too - but Gus is definitely the more aggressive one.

Large Motor Skills: Climbing
I took them to a play group held in a space with a raised stage, maybe 18" off the ground. Danger zone! They both kept just walking off the edge while I hopped back and forth trying to teach them how to get down safely. But one time they went two different directions which meant I only caught one of them. Bonk goes the Gibson! After that, though, he figured out how to climb up and down without falling. I believe that is what we call natural consequences being the teacher. Gus, meanwhile, continued to fling himself off the stage, blissfully oblivious to the effects of gravity since Mom was there to catch him.

Holiday Celebrations
I think they like all the sparkly Christmas lights and decorations we see when we're out and about, but I don't think they really understand the idea of "holidays" yet. They got to open a couple presents already and were more into ripping/eating the paper than the contents of the package. That seems pretty normal to me for their age.

Christmas Traditions (Now with Chocolate!)

For me, there are a few traditions that signal Christmas is coming.

1) Watching A Muppet Family Christmas. This late-80s TV special where all the Muppets descend on Fozzy's mom's house for Christmas is a total holiday classic. If you've never seen it, you're missing out on endlessly quotable lines like, "It's cold enough to freeze your Winnebago!" and "Mind the icy patch!" Plus there's an epic singalong at the end where Count sings "I saw three ships come sailing in." Seriously, mark out 45 minutes on your calendar to watch it sometime soon!

2) Decorating the inside of the house to some extent. Vague tradition, eh? I haven't always had a tree, but I've at least hung up lights or something to make it look festive. I've got a nice collection or ornaments that are sitting safely in a storage box this year, out of reach of inquisitive little toddler fingers/mouths.

3) Making sugary treats. This one has taken several forms through the years, from childhood cookie decorating parties with relatives to teenage gingerbread house construction as an activity with friends before our school's winter dance. In my adult years, my attention has shifted to chocolate.

It all started in the early 2000s when my cousin invited me over to make Christmas goodies. Now, as background, let me explain she grew up in a family of 7 kids and, as a result, doesn't really know how to make small batches of anything. That first year, we spent two solid days filling every surface of her apartment with cookies, breads, and chocolate creations. We made 10 batches of truffles. Ten. If you have ever made truffles before, you know that is a lot of rolling little balls of chocolate! It was exhausting, but by the end I had simply glorious little gift boxes of goodies for all my friends, family, and coworkers. And I was hooked! I mean, what says "Merry Christmas" better than chocolate?

That same cousin and I were both living in DC a few years later, and she came over for another great baking extravaganza. My roommates were duly impressed with the deliciousness known as peanut butter balls. Since then, I haven't undertaken quite an ambitious baking schedule again, but I do like to make at least a few tasty treats during December. 

As I was rolling some truffles the other day to send with DF for his office's party, I reflected on all the times I've stood over my double boiler, dipping candies. Back when I worked with exchange students, it seemed someone was always having a problem around mid-December. As I stirred the melting chocolate, I would ponder their issues and try to come up with a good solution. Although I did like that job, I'm glad not to be dealing with a lot of international drama right now. This year, I hummed Christmas carols to myself and just enjoyed the moments of quiet with the kids in bed :)