This is Not What Melissa & Doug Had in Mind.

I made this picture extra large so you could see the drawing on our beloved Melissa & Doug easel.  (This is the only easel we own so I have nothing to compare it to, but it is fabulous -- keeps all three of us entertained for hours.  I would highly recommend it!)

When Mom's the easel assistant, we draw shapes, letters, numbers, seasonal-themed items (Christmas trees, snowmen, Rudolph, etc.).  Dad, on the other hand, uses the easel to quiz Fawn's knowledge of hunting and fishing terminology and know-how.  Don't get me wrong, Fawn loves it!  "Daddy draw a big buck" or "Daddy draw a hunter" are common requests.  And, he can tell you everything about this picture -- from the tree stand (as opposed to a shooting house, of course), to the bow and arrow, to the blood-trailing beagle ("just like Hank").  I just don't know if I should laugh or cry...but I knew I had to share.

The Tale of the Lost Christmas Toy.

Yep, lost.  Never arrived.  I'm okay though -- no consolation needed.  I was able to locate a not-quite right but definitely will do (with even some bonuses of its own) replacement.  And, to top it off Amazon gave me a refund.  I will definitely be a repeat customer.  But, I've learned a lesson -- have packages delivered to Buck's office. 

I must say that my dealings with the local USPS, while friendly, have been somewhat odd.  On multiple occasions, I've called seeking an update on the lost toy.
Me: "Can you confirm it was delivered to the right address?"
Postwoman: "Yes ma'am.  I asked the delivery man and he said he delivered it to a brick house on _____ Road."
Me: "Okay." While thinking, every house on my road is a brick house.
Postwoman: "I talked to him and he's going to stop by your house today and show you exactly where he put it."
Me: "Sounds great. Thanks."
Postwoman: "We will continue to check the returned package shelves and call you with an update."
At which point she takes my cell phone number.

This conversation has repeated itself since December 9 with the following results: (1) no visit from any post office delivery worker and (2) no return phone call.  I'm admitting defeat and simply cannot spend any more hours worried about it or having the same deja vu conversation with the post office.  Post office: 1, Belle: 0.

Baby #2 Update.

After a slight early labor scare this week (which turned out to be nothing, no worries at all!), all is well with the growing bambino.  (Sweet Buck has updated his Christmas list:  "I'll tell you what I don't want for Christmas...this baby to get here before Christmas.")  He or she is measuring about a week and a half ahead (as this pregnancy has from the beginning).  I knew I looked HUGE!  I'm still holding my own in the great Buck vs. Belle weigh-in -- while I'm too modest (and vain) to reveal actual numbers, I've still got some poundage to give before I throw in the towel on this one.  And, this baby is helping my efforts -- he or she is so high that I can't really eat much right now in any one sitting anyway.  I've heard friends talk about this, but didn't experience it at all with Fawn...so something new in this pregnancy.

Heart rate is 142.  This is how things went down at the doctor's office.
Nurse: "Oh, you don't know what you're having."
Me: "We're excited about the surprise."
Nurse: "Sounds just like a boy to me."
Seriously?!?!  I mean, while I respect her humble opinion and am grateful for the kind care received, who says that to someone who clearly wants this baby to be a surprise.  Too funny!

Still no baby names.  I think we are getting close on both the boy and girl side, but nothing is decided.  And, if you know me, you'll know I'm a pretty terrible decision maker.  So, even if I "settle" on something there is a greater than fifty percent chance I will change my mind in the next eight weeks.  Yep, eight weeks til chaos.  Oh, and excitement, love, joy, miracles, and siblings!  Can't wait!

Super Fawn.

We're finally into dressing up.  Fawn has a handful of dress up accessories -- fireman hat, cowboy hat, clown nose, reindeer antlers, and a superhero cape and mask (a precious Christmas gift last year from my sister-in-law, that Fawn has admired but never worn...until now) -- but generally just looks and doesn't ever want to play dress-up.  I'm not pushing it, but I know it's a stage of play and development that will come at some point, so I keep them visible in his playroom.  Well, it turns out he does in fact like being a superhero.  He put the cape and mask on for the first time last weekend -- too cute not to share.

Happy Birthday Jesus!

My mom is always encouraging me to save and freeze extra cake layers when I make birthday cakes.  She insists that they freeze and thaw wonderfully -- and she's right.  Not that I ever doubt her cooking tidbits, but I'm not so much a fan of frozen and reheated food.

So when our Advent calendar said it was the day to make a birthday cake for Jesus -- all we had to do was the fun part -- the decorating.  (I left a frozen cake layer on the counter the night before and when we woke up it was perfect for frosting and sprinkles.)

Fawn decided we needed three candles, I think because we're in the stage of attending 3-year old birthday parties.  He sang Happy Birthday to Jesus all by himself.  It was a fun, age-appropriate activity -- and I hope may instill some of the true meaning of the season.

Santa Claus.

We went to (of all places, I know) Bass Pro Shops to visit Santa this year, as we have the previous two years.  They really do have an awesome Santa -- and a great set-up to keep the kiddos entertained through the long Santa line.  We were there when the store opened and I still stood in line for about an hour before it was Fawn's turn. 

To say he was eager to tell Santa his wishes was an understatement.  He was thrilled when it was his turn and jumped into Santa's lap.  Despite this eagerness, the skeptical look was a permanent fixture on his face.

Then it was time to get down to business and tell Santa exactly what he desires this Christmas:

1. a Mickey Mouse fishing rod
2. a Pat the Hammer (from Handy Manny)
3. a small Lightening McQueen car (he's never seen Cars, so I'm guessing they talk about it at school?)

The goofy, yet adorable, half-grin is all we could get out of Fawn.  But, hey, it sure does beat tears!

Christmas Countdown Fun.

So, I realized the weekend after Thanksgiving that we had to have a way to countdown Christmas (and Santa's) arrival around here.  The first thing Fawn was asking each time he woke up from a nap or in the morning was "is it Christmas yet?" or "did Santa come?"  I'm thrilled he is excited about the season and seems to get it this year, but I felt like the source of constant let down..."not yet sweetheart."  Bottom line...we needed an Advent calendar and pronto.

I pulled out some scrap fabric to see if I could quickly sew a calendar for us this year and then decided that if I really wanted it done by December 1, I would have to do something much more simple.  Thanks to Pinterest (which I don't really use -- just afraid to get sucked into something else), I saw lots of cute and easy Advent calendars made in muffin tins.  They range from the super-fancy (think magnetic tape, scrapbook-looking, reusable) to the super-simple (cardboard circles taped over the holes).  We went with super-simple (I'll take a picture tomorrow when it's full again -- I used a big 12 muffin tin and plan to "re-fill" it tonight, though you can definitely use a mini-muffin tin and capture the whole season).  Red and white marker on white index cards cut into circles and taped on!  It fits great in my cookbook holder, so it's prominently displayed in our kitchen.

While it was suggested you could put a treat behind each number, I am currently anti-treats (we have weaned off the gummies/marshmellows that were potty training rewards and I'm not ready to start another candy high).  So I wrote a fun Christmas activity on the back of each card that Fawn gets to do (also a Pinterest idea...and I thought a great one!).  Some examples: make a Christmas sticker picture, read Christmas bible stories, go to the library to pick out Christmas books, make candy covered pretzels, paint Christmas trees with sponges, go to Zoolight Safari, watch a Christmas movie, go to McWane to play in the snow, decorate a birthday cake for Jesus...you get the idea.  Basically, things I would aspirationally want to do with Fawn anyway, but now schedule them ahead of time to make sure I have all the supplies on hand.  It's been fun!  Though this little guy is still eagerly anticipating Santa's big arrival (and trying very hard to stay on the "nice" list).

The Tale of the Missing Christmas Toy.

Subtitle:  You know you're pregnant when....

....your husband catches you crying on the phone to the Amazon.com customer service representative in who knows where over a lost Christmas package.

Sweet Fawn has asked for a very specific toy this Christmas that I located on Amazon.com on Black Friday -- yes people, ages ago.  He saw it in Walmart this summer, but they no longer sell it (nor does Target, Kmart, Toys R Us, you get the picture).  I located *7* of the toys online and ordered one through Amazon.  It was supposed to arrive at my house by Wednesday, and the delivery confirmation says it was delivered on Monday BUT IT'S NOT HERE!!!  We've looked everywhere and I have been home each day around mail delivery time. 

I was so proud of myself for being basically done Christmas shopping (and completely done for Fawn), so this setback is a little disappointing...or a lot disappointing, considering I got up at 5 am to check my Amazon account for any new information on the missing package.  And, considering I cried my eyes out at the thought of Fawn not getting what he asked for this Christmas.  (After which I admitted to Buck that pregnancy hormones have simply got the best of me as he stifled a laugh, and -- shockingly -- didn't disagree.)

My local post office will be getting a cheery (but where the heck is my package) phone call from me in about 2 hours at opening time.  And I'll keep you posted on the missing package...  

A Boy and His Dogs.

What started as an attempt to get a sweet picture of our three children (or our one child with his two best friends), quickly turned to this:

And then chaos ensued:

What joy and love!  Thank you to our four-legged friends for loving our little man so much and bringing him so many smiles, not to mention putting up with his antics!!!

Thankful.

We enjoyed a wonderful Thanksgiving week this year.  I have to admit that I was a little hesitant going into the week because we had nothing on our agenda in terms of activities for Fawn...no school, no library programs, nada.  But, it turned out to be such a great week and just what we needed.  We spent a lot of good down-time at home, made a trip to the zoo for a train ride to celebrate Fawn's potty training success, finished building phase one of Fawn's fort in our backyard, ate our Thanksgiving meal with my family, spent Friday and Friday night at the farm with Buck's family celebrating my father-in-law's birthday, and enjoyed a peaceful Sunday celebrating the beginning of Advent. 

We are so thankful for this little guy who is the source of so much joy:

and laughter:

and wonderful family memories:

Reluctant turkey.

Fawn's school had a Thanksgiving program for the little ones the Friday before Thanksgiving, and the two-year olds were the turkeys.  Quite fitting and quite cute.  The week before the program Fawn came home with a handout from his music teachers with the words to the three songs they were singing so we could practice at home.  Fawn loves music and loves to sing so I didn't anticipate any resistance to my suggestion that we sing his turkey songs.  When I suggested it, though, his response was "Mommy, I can't sing those turkey songs with you.  I can only sing them with Miss Lani."  (Miss Lani is his music teacher.)  I got the same response when I made the same suggestion a couple days later, so I dropped the issue.

He was a precious turkey, despite being in total sensory overload by the costumes, noise, people.

He really did not like his turkey hat -- and cried through the "dress rehearsal" because it was itchy.  I had to be there early for monthly mom duties, and got to watch the meltdown.  I figured we'd have a very unhappy camper come actual show time, but he surprised us.  Though there weren't many smiles, he did all the motions with the songs.  But, no words came out of his mouth.  If you've spent any length of time with Fawn you will find this shocking because he loves to talk, sing and be loud.  He is constantly making noise.  He later told us it was scary with all the people.  Sweet thing.

Don't worry, though, we've been singing all about turkeys for the past couple weeks...Mommy is ready for some Christmas tunes.

Flashback: Disney On Ice.

Yes, the first week of November (I am so behind on getting pictures loaded!) I took Fawn to see Disney on Ice.  It was a last minute decision -- a friend texted me that she was taking her daughter and the weather was supposed to be really dreary so I thought it would be a fun, indoor activity. 

It was fun -- and Fawn sat through the whole thing.  Though, I have to say it was a little over his head.  While he knew the Mickey characters, they served as the narrators of the show, which featured various Disney movies.  Fawn has not seen any of the Disney movies, so he asked lots of questions but still seemed to enjoy himself.

The highlight, of course, was the light up toy (which I believe cost more than our tickets after I used half-price coupon codes).  Gotta love a light up toy.