Dex- blue; Jax- brownI am loving December. Everyday is a new opportunity to show the boys something new and magical (at least for them) and I love how exciting this is for all of us. We've started a family movie night (yes, we're allowing TV, now... one night a week) and have been watching some really fun holiday movies. The boys get so excited about snow and Rudolph and Santa Claus. I love that the morning after we watch one of these movies, the first thing they mention when they wake up is their favorite character from the night before.
I've been checking out holiday-themed books from the library, which has also been really fun. I tried the Polar Express this week, thinking MAYBE it was a little too old for them, but they're totally into it. They love the big train, the love that it travels to Santa and his elves and they always want to talk about that silver bell off of Santa's sleigh. Last night, while running errands, I found a small bag of giant jingle bells and picked it up for the boys. I wasn't quite sure if they would think it was fun, but thought it was worth a try. I tied ribbons on the bells and then handed them over to the boys. They went crazy!! :) They were shaking their bells, singing "Jingle Bells," and dancing all over the place. I couldn't help but wonder why we EVER buy toys when something as simple as a storybook and a couple of bells easily turns into the highlight of the day.
We took the boys to see Santa this week-end, too. Again, I wasn't too sure how the boys would react to the big man dressed in red, but we really thought it would be a good thing to do with them. We explained how they had to tell Santa what they wanted for Christmas and that they would get to sit on his lap. When the moment arrived, Dexter was all about sitting on Santa's lap, but Jaxon was a little timid, so I just held him nearby. And, as it happened, Jaxon was totally obsessed with the Pirates of the Caribbean movie case that I had let him hold the night before (he loves carrying movie/CD cases around with him), so the ENTIRE time we were with Santa, Jaxon emphatically kept looking at Santa, saying, "Pirate! Pirate! Pirate! Pirate!". Tragically, when he realized that Santa wasn't going to give him the pirate movie RIGHT NOW, he just fell apart. Of course, at the time, there was nothing funny about it... I was so sad for Jaxon and mad at myself for not better explaining how this whole Santa/Christmas thing worked... but, looking back, I think it's adorable and just another example of how sweet and innocent toddlers are. Besides, it will make a great story to tell Jax when he's older.
Today, the boys and I are going to attempt the Macy's Christmas display with T. It's the Nutcracker, which the boys know nothing about... so it could really go either way. Regardless, it's another "something new" and they can't seem to get enough of all the "new-ness" these days. Besides, I'll most likely let them bring a jingle bell, or two, along and how can you beat that? :)
