Habits Are Not Just For Nuns

My daughters tell me that

I am corrupting their children.

I don't know what they mean.

I don't smoke.

I don't drink.

I don't do drugs.

I don't dance in topless bars.

I never swear

okay-I mighta lied about the swear part

but only when nothing else seems to 

work to get MyHero's attention

I don't skinny dip anymore

SO

WHAT SEEMS TO BE 

THE PROBLEM?

Ah...yes....it is Starbucks!

Good old Starbucks.

I start them early with

Smoothies and Steamers.

All good for them.

Here is SweetCheeks at 3!

Look how happy SHE is!

Too young to drink?

Well, they can always bite their teeth

on the sleeve they give you with hot drinks.

Here's my philosophy:

Start them early.

Take them often.

It is never too soon to pick up a habit.

And after all,

it beats thumb-sucking!

Ah....yes...for me...It's the

Nectar Of The Gods.
It is my one treat for myself.
I drive every morning and use the
time to reflect on the day and
say a few little prayers for the
kids on their way to school
and the bigger kids on their 
way to work.
It keeps me connected to
the here and now somehow.

So, as you are reading this I am off....
I'll give you three guesses where

I am this morning and the first two

don't count! 

How To Sew A Horse- WHAT????

You remember yesterday

we talked about the 

Horse Whisperer?

ahhhh...Robert Redford.......

Well, You can't have him

because I saw him first!

Anyway....

 I seem to have a

Horse Theme

running through my head.

You know, not every little boy

will grow up to be a 

Robert Redford.

Some men might not have women

swooning at their feet

and doing their menial things

like sewing on buttons.

Knowing that~ I figure it is 

never to early to start teaching

little boys basic skills.

Here is a quick tutorial for you.

Let me tell you- getting a picture

of this kid is like trying to photograph

the wind- He runs when he sees the 

camera and 

NEVER STOPS MOVING!

No shirts and buttons for this boy.

Nope!

He is sewing something else.

Something only a boy would sew!

Whatcha working on there, BigBoyE?

shhhhh...Nana...Be quiet......

Well,what are you sewing?

shhhhh....Nana....Don't look at me!

Okay...but can I see what 

you are sewing?

Well, aren't you just the cutest little

horse's butt sewer 

I have ever seen?

How's the sewing going?

Shhhhh....Nana.....I am NOT

sewing anymore-I am playing with

THE MONKEY BOX!

Yeah...and speaking of monkeys...

I say-

I think I see a 

MONKEY HOLDING a monkey box.

shhhhhhh....Nana...I'm not

talking to you!

Hmmm.....you and MyHero have 

more in common than I thought.

He's not speaking to me either

but that involves an 

ICE RINK and THAT 

is a story for tomorrow.

Maybe we'll be talking by then...

or....maybe not...

ps- I don't think the little charmer

above will ever have to sew on

his own buttons!;>)

Snips And Snaps Of Christmas At SweetCheeks House

It didn't matter WHAT

SweetCheeks got....

it was 

'ZACKLY what I wahnted.

Gotta love that attitude.

This is an

Exploding Pig Game.

No kidding.

Who knew Santa had that 

in his bag?

Before Gift Opening,

SweetCheeks' Mama

reads the story of the

Birth of Christ.

When it gets to the part

where the 

Three Wise Men bring 

gifts to Jesus,

she stops reading and the

kids look under the tree

to find the

THREE GIFTS

that Santa left for them.

Kind of a nice tie in, huh?
Then they come back and
sit and listen to the rest
of the story before
opening their gifts.

Here they are listening to

the Nativity Story.

Santa bring them each 3 things off

the list they have given him.

It can be as small as a pair

of ballet slippers or as

big as an electronic tablet.

Here are a few expressions

on family faces.......

Ria is all about Justin Bieber.

Santa brought him for a visit.

And he brought Ria a

Justin Bieber Tour Bus.

Lulu was happy with her new 

mini laptop and her boots

and her electronic Uno game.

The little boys were so cute.

They were so excited.

No matter what BigBoyE got

it was PURRFECKT!
We loved his gator STOMPERS.

SweetCheeks was her

usual sweet self.

She loved her big bear

and shared him with Cousin Charlie.

Snippets and Smiles

AND THESE TWO HUSSIES

that stayed up half the night

getting things ready

showed up in matching pj's.

Wondering what THEIR contribution

was to the day, are you?

Well.....

They gave us that whole bunch

of kiddos you see above.

Doesn't get much better than that.

That's it, folks.

No more Christmas posts for me.

You'll have to come back

to see what I'm stirring up tonight.

Jesus, Mary and Jo------WHAT the?

We have a Fisher Price nativity

that we keep specifically for

the kids to play with~

They can move the figures

around and the can kiss the

baby Jesus. 

No one tells them to
"Be careful"...or..."Don't touch"

It is my  GO TO GIFT for

new babies born to

Christian families.

NO ONE else gets 

a nativity for a new baby.

Well...except me....and now maybe

a few of you.

Anyway......

I am walking by the manger.

I see the sweet little

BABY JESUS.

Then I see sweet

BABY JESUS AND MARY

So far, so good, right?

Oh-Look-

There is Jesus, Mary and......

and.....and.....

PEDRO?

SOMEONE who shall remain nameless

LOST Joseph.

So...what do you do when you 

LOSE SOMEONE?

Well, if you are THREE

you simply replace them.

So...

We now have 

Jesus, Mary & Pedro.

It works for me.

And because the angel

looked a tad lonely on the

thatched roof of the stable

she is now keeping company with

her new friend.

I guess Heaven if full of wondrous

things.

The three wise men seem okay.

They came bringing gifts.

Oh....wait...

That is not the ONLY visitor

to see the baby.

No, indeedy...

Here is another new friend.

Look at Jesus smiling.

He likes all sorts of 

creatures-big and small.

There are a few lowly animals

And One 

VERY SPECIAL FRIEND.

I think he is here to sing...

AL-VIIIIINNNNNN!

Come back tomorrow and 

I will show you 

MY Nativity!

No duck allowed!

The Elf On The Shelf

Presents For Everyone!

SweetCheeks Goes First!

Her birthday celebration

extended a couple of days.

She reads her cards now.

And loves everything-no matter

what she gets.

Uncle MamasBoy helps her

with some of the harder words.

MamasBoy's birthday was worth

a little extra recognition, too.

SweetCheeks returns the favor

and helps him read HIS card.

Whatever it said

was pretty funny.

SweetCheeks couldn't stand

how loud he laughed so

Ria took her place.

Do you know what he is laughing at?

He is SO GOOFY!
He is laughing over the comics
on Bubblegum wrappers.
He likes an audience!
Actually, he is 
HIS OWN BEST AUDIENCE.
Also adding to the 
entertainment...
The Amazing BigBoyE
doing his upside down
trick.

While sweet little
CharlesInCharge
looked on.

After presents we watched
The Christmas Story

Can you believe I had 
never seen it?
Cupcakes,

Lots of food,

a game or two that
produced a lot of laughs
and everyone went home
with this.

And if you click on the picture
above it will take you to an
Elf on the Shelf giveaway.

Yep- You get to live with an
Elf on the Shelf
and I get to live with this....

MyHero with a
Penguin costume on.
Uh-huh!
My!  What a big beak you have!

SweetCheeks Is Sick-So Is BigBoyE

Poor, poor 
Princess SweetCheeks.
No funny post today!

Our little 

SWEET CHEEKS is sick.

She has a fever and chills

and a sore throat.

Is that pitiful, or what?

Even her dog looks sad.
She's hanging out here today
because Mama & Daddy
both had to work today.

And, not to be outdone,

Our BigBoyE

is sick, too.

Wing a couple prayers

Heavenward for these

two precious babies,

will ya?

Tomorrow's post

will bring a smile-

pinky promise!

ps.  uh-oh I'm not feeling so great myself!

The Lion Rides Tonight

In the Jungle

The LOUD LOUD Jungle

The LION rides tonight.

In the Jungle

The CRAZY KID Jungle

The Whirlwind Lion rides tonight.

READY?

Set?

GO!

(This is 15 seconds-

down our steep kinda scary drive)

Uh-Huh!

NEXT!

BigBoyE And The 'Puter

We have an old computer

that is as slow as molasses

in the winter.

However,

It is great for the kids

to use to play their games

and have fun with.

My daughter and I are 

sitting on the couch.

I am drinking my coffee

and she is waking up.

We look over and 

see BigBoyE

(I am henceforth

going to refer to him as

The Whirlwind)

sitting at the computer.

Hey...BigBoyE,

What are you doing?

I'm checkKING my

email!

I about spit my coffee out!

I walk over to take

his picture

and he is embarrassed....

Go 'way, Nana! he says.

Maybe noone wrote to him?

Not sure!

Got any 3 year old

emailers at YOUR house?

Alphabet Laughs- P Is For Places And Pickles

I try to meet my daughter, Mimi,

and her two little guys,

BigBoyE & CharlesInCharge,

for lunch in Sheboygan  every

so often.

This time we met at a great 

place on the waterfront

with a fantastic view of the

channel into Sheboygan.

The place we meet is usually

Brisco County Grill.

They are kid friendly and it is

reasonably priced.

Someone was good natured today...

and hungry...

And our BigBoyE was as busy

as usual.

As you can see he is already a 

multi-tasker.

He was quite excited to see one of these...

Listen to 

HOW BIG 

he thought the pickle was.

This little video is

SIX SECONDS LONG
Click on it and
WATCH how animated
he gets  over a PICKLE.

And has THIS QUESTION been
burning in your mind?

The End Of Silliness?
Probably not anytime soon....

at least on MY blog!