Note to Santa

Christmas Elf

Paparazzi ready on the way to her sitter- 

Choose the outfit herself ; ). Complete with the headband that was a gift

Phone Call

I asked Vivian to please use the potty the other day as we were (trying) to leave the house.  She went into the bathroom and then half turned to me, held up one finger and told me, "just a minute, I need make phone call."
While I tried to think of a response, she opened her purse (that she was carrying around the house), pulled out her toy phone, and said, "hello?  Yes..."

Gingerbread Houses

Some construction was a little more sound than others.  And one little girl wanted nothing to do with engineering concepts!  She was very pleased to dump all of her gingerbread people and candy into the house and then attempt to  balance the roof with a load of frosting on top.  It ended with, "ta-da!  You take a picture of me?!" 

Meanwhile, Sam was content to adhere candy on for hours. 

Christmas Cookies

I found an adorable reindeer Christmas cookie on Pinterest for which we had all the ingredients in the house.  I figured it would be easy enough to execute.  The kids had a great time but the cookies obviously turned out nothing like what I had hoped for.  Vivian promptly ate all of her decorations and balled up her dough several times to cook in a mound.  Sam took his duties very seriously but they both exercised a creativity to say the least.  I made some reindeer heads just to have a few!  

New boots

Little boots, little stinker. 

Bathroom Tantrum

Vivian wasn't feeling well this weekend, I thought her molars were coming in, but it turns out it was a bout of hand, foot, and mouth virus.  She was very sensitive to say the least and either wanted to be held or was crying about something.  
She's potty training, so she used the toilet and then got off.  I automatically reached over and flushed the toilet and she erupted in fury. 
"NO!!! I FLUSH TOILET!"
"Oops, sorry Viv.  I already did."
"NO Mummy!  I FLUSH!"
"Go ahead, do it now."
"NO! NO! You no do it!!!" she started crying and screaming hysterically so I tried to pick her up which made it worse.  She tried to push me away.
"Okay, I am going to the kitchen.  Tell me when you're ready and I'll come get you or you come to the kitchen."
"YOU GO!!!"
It was about the tenth tantrum of the day, so I was all set and left her.  She slammed the door shut behind me.
Sam and I finished our dinner while she wailed and cried.  I went back twice and she refused to let me push the door open.
After about 20 minutes (and me starting to feel bad for the tenants who could most likely hear the racket through the bathroom radiator), I got Sam to come into the living room, where we started loudly reading her favorite books about the five little monkeys.  She screamed louder initially, then there were pauses to her cries, then finally she asked me to open the door.  Turns out she had barricaded herself in with any movable object she could find in there. 


But she came out and read with us and then laid on the couch totally worn out.