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Journal Key:

Green = Steve | George = navy | Janet = Purple | Evelyn = Black

12/20/12 (Thursday)

Today Steve worked late and I had a huge amount of grading that had to be done fast, so the kids got really parented extra well. We got takeout and ate in the living room. While I graded, the kids watched a movie. Cara lay on the couch, and Owen climbed up and lay on top of her.

"You're squishing me!" laughed Cara.

"I'm not skishing Cara!!" insisted Owen, "I'm licking her!"

Cara and I liked that idea less.

When Steve got home, he flopped onto the couch. Cara piled on top of him. Owen snuggled in, but then he climbed off and went to get Cara's hairbrush to brush Steve's hair.

The other day, leaving YBR, Owen and I discussed which dwarves we would be. We had fun sneezing for Sneezy. This evening, I described to Steve how my kids were doing on their test. "I"m happy," I concluded.

"No, you not Happy!" said Owen. "You Sneezy!"

12/21/12 (Friday)

Owen found a Sesame Street book to read.

Owen: He's big!

Me: That's Big Bird!

Owen: I think he's Giant Bird.

Me: ....

Owen: (singing) Giant Bird is a giant bird! Giant Bird is a giant bird!

12/22/12 (Saturday)

Our Saturday excitement involved PJ, Casey, Cara, and Owen decorating graham cracker houses with Grandmama and Grandpapa while Em and I went to the Melting Pot. (Steve went to see The Hobbit.) When Em and I got back, three of the kids were still at work at the table. PJ had gone downstairs, and Owen and the girls were still hard at work. I hadn't expected Owen to really have any part of this, so I was pleasantly surprised. Grandpapa had helped him to decorate his own little house and tree! He was very proud of himself; he had to show us what he had done.

When I turned on the water, later, to give him his bath, the Schmutz headed into the bathroom to check things out. Grandpapa got pictures of the cat and Owen both investigating the tub.

It was late when we headed home. We got here around 9:15, and Owen was still awake. By 9:30, both kids were down.

12/23/12 (Sunday)

Steve and I stayed up wrapping presents and didn't get to bed until about 12. At 12:30, Owen was up. I read him a book--actually, he picked out an open-the-doors book, so I just held it while he opened and shut everything, and then I told him it was time to turn off the lights. He slid off my lap, got his step stool, turned off the light, moved his step stool to the crib, and climbed up to be put in. He went back to sleep.

At 1:50, he was up. I had to actually read him a book this time. The only explanation I could come up with for his being up was that perhaps he was hungry (Grandmama had said that he hadn't eaten much), so I carried him downstairs. He snuggled in my lap while he ate a snack. I carried him back upstairs. I told him it was time to turn off the lights. He got his step stool, turned off the light, moved his step stool to the crib, and climbed up to be put in. He went back to sleep.

Around 4, he was up again. I read him a book. I told him it was time to turn off the lights. He started wailing. Still wailing, he got his step stool, turned off the light, moved his step stool to the crib, and climbed up to be put in. He was still wailing when I left.

At quarter to five, I got up with him. We snuggled on the couch and he watched some tv. It was one of the most amazing nights of my parenting existence. I went down to Middletown, doctoring myself with caffeine, to make pierogies, and Grandmama and Grandpapa pointed out that Owen had eaten a lot of nonpareils last night. I did see him grabbing them by the handful. Sugar and caffeine. Fun night.

While Evelyn was in Middletown, Grandmom and Granpop came to visit! We opened some Christmas presents early. Cara got a new Monster High doll and an Easy Bake oven! Owen got a giant Bat Cave playset, which was lots of fun to figure out. He got a big kick out of it. He also got a big cardboard house that we could color. Cara had a castle a lot like it when she was about his age. I was hesitant to get it out because of the space it would take up, but Cara wanted to do some coloring, so we did it anyway. It was a nice idea. We all got to help color it--even Owen--and Owen loved going inside and peeking out.

We continued playing with the house even after Grandmom and Grandpop had left. Owen, as has been explained, had had a long night. He had seemed perfectly energized for most of the day. But I had also chosen not to even try giving him a nap, and by the afternoon he seemed pretty punchy. For some reason we found ourselves all in or around the cardboard house, screaming (happily) at each other. I decided that we should run out to the grocery store, and it wasn't long into our visit that I noticed Owen was basically asleep in the cart. He kept almost collapsing to one side or the other. It was very amusing. I was sure that when we got home and I parked him in front of the television, he would doze. Instead, I fell asleep and he apparently found a second wind.

After dinner, however, he did in fact fall asleep on the couch. Which was unfortunate, because then we had to wake him up and change him, and he really didn't like that. But he is at last back in his bed for what will hopefully be an uninterrupted night. Tomorrow night we'll all be sleeping over at Middletown, so we could use a normal night!

12/24/12 (Monday)

Owen and I got twelve and eleven hours of sleep, respectively. We felt much better. He also took a very, very long nap in the afternoon, from which we eventually had to wake him to head down to Middletown for Christmas Eve.

The central event of the evening, in my mind, at least, was the presents. It was, as usual, overwhelming. Owen must have gotten a dozen new little guys, some of whom came in a big castle from Uncle John and Aunt Theresa. The castle has many features, and I suppose it makes sense that Owen has not been kept in ignorance of the operation of the many projectile weapons. He and Steve had a really good time exploring the castle and the other guy-related toys that he got.

Cara got a Nook! It was my old Nook, in a new case. I'd brought it down to show Steve earlier, and Owen had caught a glimpse of it. He'd followed me upstairs, past the oblivious Cara, crying that he wanted to play on the "beautiful Nook!" I'd downloaded a couple of new books onto it, and she settled down, in the middle of everything, to read. She read The Fantastic Mr. Fox that night. For the whole family, Steve and I had bought a larger Nook tablet. It has profiles for the whole family, so Owen should be able to get to his games without getting into our stuff.

Owen also, fortunately, got several new pairs of footie pajamas. His old ones have become very small, and we've been jamming him into them night after night, waiting for salvation. He can now, however, be Superman, Batman, OR Scooby Doo. These new ones are a little big, so he's a floppy Scooby. He's a very happy floppy Scooby. Grandpapa gave him a bath and got him into his Scoobies, and he came out of the bathroom and got onto his hands and knees and started barking.

It was flurrying a little when the kids and I went out to sprinkle reindeer food so that Santa could find us. We went upstairs and Owen brought lots of books over to me. I let him keep bringing them, because most of what he was bringing were completely inappropriate: they were chapter books. Eventually we had enough picture books, and I read him a few and snuggled him into the pack and play for the night.

12/25/12 (Tuesday)

We all woke up happy around seven and, when all of us were ready, went down to see whether Santa had come. He had! He brought Owen just what he needed: more guys! In his stocking were two little superheros in cars. One was clearly Wonder Woman, and the other was Batgirl. He was (and remains) pretty sure it's Batman. Actually, I thought it was Batman when I bought it. Steve pointed out my mistake. Now it makes more sense why those were the only two left at the store!

After a long breakfast, we took a long drive down to Pennsylvania for Christmas with the Croces. The four kids, as always, had a wonderful time playing together. The highlight, for me, was playing hide-and-seek. Griffin and Lily are very invested in the game. Cara is good at it, and Owen only sometimes actually plays. I would close my eyes and count, and when I opened them, there Owen would be. I found him. Griff and Lily would pop out almost as soon as I came into the room with them, yelling "here I am!" They didn't give me enough time to dramatically look. Then they would help find Cara. Owen eventually wandered back to playing with toys, but Lily and Griff would always go and find him, too. He probably didn't notice.

We got home fairly late and let the kids sit around while Steve and I started to get things organized.

One reason we gave Cara a Nook was that we know she's not going to overuse it. She's really very moderate. Owen, however, is not. Cara was happily playing with some new Legos, while Owen sat on the couch and screamed that he wanted "his" Nook. We're doomed.

12/26/12 (Wednesday)

Thank goodness for routine--Owen went back to school today. He was playing with Play-Doh when I got there to pick him up. Fortunately, he was ready to run "so fast" over to the fridge to get his lunch box.

We headed straight home because Steve and Cara and PJ and Casey were there already, playing. Over the course of the evening, Owen got to play with each of the other kids. Casey was in the kitchen after dinner, waiting for hot chocolate, when Owen came in looking for a snack. He got out a box of Kix. "Casey and I want some Kix," he said. I got "them" some. He sat at the table with the bowl and she played with him while I got the hot chocolate set up in the living room for the big kids. She was very punny--there was a good deal of kicking involved.

I brought him and his hot chocolate (and his Kix) out last. We sat on the Elmo couch and I spooned him some chocolate with tiny marshmallows. Soon, just as his sister does so often with goldfish, he had started to put Kix into the spoon. Fortunately, he got distracted and wandered off.

After his bath, I got him into his new Batman pajamas. Em was over to pick up the kids, and Owen went running to the top of the stairs to say goodnight and do some air guitar.

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