We normally don’t put our Christmas tree up until the second week in December.  We enjoy getting out the ornaments and putting them on the tree.  We collect airplane ornaments so it’s neat to see how many we have collected.  This year, however, we are making blueprints on how to put up the tree.  You see, Baden is our real dilemma.  It’s really not the Christmas tree. Billy has always been in awe of the Christmas tree. He gets a special ornament each year to hang up and he loves it.  He never touched the tree when he was Baden’s age.  He admired it.  Still does.  Baden is a different story.  If a drawer or cabinet is open, whatever is inside must come out.  I can picture ornaments thrown everywhere.    We are really afraid that once the Christmas tree goes up, there will be a path of ornaments all over the house.  What do you do? Put the ornaments up high and leave the bottom half of the tree bare.  Put the ornaments that won’t get damaged or broken on the bottom so if he does get his hands on them and he will, they can easily be put back on the tree.  Or do you surround your tree with a “play yard” gate.  We are seriously considering the last option.  How lovely, our Christmas tree surrounded.  Maybe a red velvet rope would add a nice holiday touch.  Better yet, a security guard to protect the tree.  Yeah that sounds good.  Know anyone looking for a job?

We had a really nice day yesterday.  We started the day by going to the movies to see Bolt, the new Disney movie. It was really cute.  Everyone enjoyed it even Baden.  He was so good and only wiggled around a couple of times.  It’s amazing how popcorn can keep kids distracted.  Then we were off to the base dining facility, aka the chow hall, for Thanksgiving dinner.  It was really good and we were served dinner by the wing commander and wing chief.  They had everything you could possibly want.  We had no mess to clean up so we enjoyed the evening watching movies and just being together. We hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving.  Gobble, Gobble.

Besides Wii, we do play other games.  It’s true.  One of Billy’s favorite games is hide and seek. His version is different than what you may be thinking of the classic child’s game.  He tells me that he is going to hide and then will hide in the most obvious place like under the covers on the bed or in the closet with the doors partially opened.  Then he will say 1, 2, 3 and we are suppose to find him.  So I say dramatically, “Baden, I can’t find Billy.” “Where is he?” Baden gets very excited and runs right to the bed and tries to lift the covers off of a giggling four year old.  It’s great fun to find him and Baden thinks it’s hilarious.  Baden likes to play a game that, well, doesn’t have a name.  It all started when I was in the bathroom.  Unfortunately I sometimes spend a lot of time in there because of my Crohn’s disease.  So one day Baden was looking for me and I was, of course,  in the bathroom. I heard him walk by crying so I said his name and put my fingers under the door.  This got a great response so now we play this every time I am in the bathroom.  He thinks it is so funny to see my fingers slide under the door and it is pretty cute to see his fingers try to find mine.  I guess it gives him a sense of security knowing that I will come out eventually.  Playing games with the boys is the best part of the day.  Hearing their laughs and giggles, well, it just doesn’t get any better.

My mom was here for two months while I recovered from my mishap with SpiderMan.  It was so wonderful to have her here. She allowed me to sleep in, keep my leg up and she would get me slurpees!  She is the best mom.  Unfortunately, she had to go back home.  My ankle is pretty much healed.  I still walk with a limp, but I walk in shoes.  But since she left, I have been in a funk.  I had to go back to being a mom.  I couldn’t just direct from the couch.  Don’t get me wrong I love being a mom.  I love my sweet boys and wouldn’t know what to do without their hugs and kisses, but it sure was nice to have Bebe here.  Now I am back to mom duty every day and it hasn’t been easy.  Since my mom left I have been sick twice which does not make for a very good mom.  Bill got orders to move to New Mexico and we have to get our house ready to sell.  How do I entertain the kids or have my four year old entertain his brother while trying to help on the renovation/dejunking process?  Not an easy thing to do.  And I think that I am becoming a whiner.  (I have a good role model — Billy).  The other day Billy told me he wanted milk.  Just like that — I want milk. I said well I don’t get milk for little boys that don’t ask nicely.  He said I just want Bebe.  I know how he feels.

I have been told by a very good friend that babies born now a days come hardwired. They already know how to use the vast amounts of technology before them.  I think she is right.  Billy has always been a computer geek.  When he was not quite two he amazed fellow diners at a Thanksgiving Day dinner with his expertise on the computer and how well he can use a mouse.  Now at the age of four, he is, I am afraid, addicted to Wii.  I am totally at fault here.  I always say I am going to set a timer and sometimes I do, but a lot of times I let him play and I get a lot of stuff done.  It also entertains Baden which is a bonus.  But now I think that I am going to have to cut Billy off. He is going to have to go cold turkey.  Lately his favorite game has been Super Mario Galaxy. This is a fun game, but Billy is in overload.  Every morning he wakes up and talks about how he needs to get to a galaxy and defeat the bad guys.  When he is tucked in at night and we are about to leave the room, he says wait I have to tell you something.  His something is about the galaxy that he needs to get to and how he might need our help.  His choice for a book at night is the Super Mario Galaxy instruction manual.  Now that is some compelling reading.  I will be doing my own reading in the Yellow Pages under Addiction Recovery Centers — Wii Addiction, that is.

So I will have to write a note for Billy tomorrow to let his teacher know why he wasn’t in school today. I guess I can just say I was sick and not go into detail about how I really felt.  I thought that Billy would be okay with the decision not to go to school today, but he told me that his teacher would miss him and he needed to do his worksheets.  I felt horrible.  It makes me smile that he likes school so much.  He will definitely be there tomorrow. I will drag myself there.  I am feeling better so hopefully that won’t happen.  It really stinks to be a mom and get sick.  Yesterday was the worst and Bill took Billy to school which was great. Then I had to go pick him up, but I was the last mom there because I had fallen asleep on the couch and woke up at 10:30am and Baden was still in his pajamas. I had to get him dressed so poor Billy was the last one to be picked up. Today I woke up achy everywhere and not ready to face anything.  Billy really took everything in stride. Baden even helped me out by hanging out with me in the family room and only escaped once through the gate up the stairs. Then my sweet husband came home early from work because I was sick and brought lunch.  What a great guy.  Tomorrow is a new day and a healthier me will emerge, I hope. Nyquil might help with that.

Every day we have several tornadoes tear through our house.  It usually hits around 7:30 am and then another touches down in the afternoon.  This tornado is small, but packs a powerful punch.  We call our tornado, Baden.  He loves to open cabinets and drawers and throw everything out.  I think it is his favorite past time.  When he’s really quiet is when the big one has hit.  It’s just like the real thing — the calm before the storm.  I never knew a sweet, cherubic faced 14 month old could destroy almost everything in his wake.  He is such a sweetie and I thought he is a good balance to Billy who can be difficult at times.  Well he is a good balance, but he is a walking diaster.  Nothing is safe.  I thought I had things pretty well child proofed, but I must have gotten lax because if it’s not Baden will find it.  Bill’s scriptures have paid the price of our little tornado along with several other items throughout the house. Speaking from experience tornadoes are no fun, but this one sure is cute.    

We had a fun Halloween. We went to our church for a carnival and trunk or treating.  Billy was in hog heaven jumping in the bouncy house.  I didn’t think he would ever come out.  He did emerge for water and finally when it was time for trunk or treating he was ready to go.  Bill dressed up like Charlie Brown. It was just a shirt, but he really looks the part.  Maybe it’s the head.  Billy was Optimus Prime with a really cool helmet that morphs your voice to sound just like Optimus Prime.  Neato Burrito! Baden was a little bat.  He loved just being with all the kids and knocking over the bowling pins they had for one of the games and he almost made off with a full cup of candy corn, but I stopped him.  Baden really loved trunk or treating.  Billy likes it too, but he had more fun handing the candy out and even got mad when we left because we still had a couple of pieces of candy left that we didn’t hand out.  When we got home Billy immediately opened his bag and got some candy. Baden  saw this and got really mad so we had to get him something from his bag.  We have learned he is pretty territorial when it comes to his candy bag. If he is looking at his candy and someone touches a piece of candy, he will immediately grab it from you.  It was a fun night for all.