I Can't Wait For Tomorrow!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The Christmas season is upon us and we've been going nonstop here.  On Friday, the world did not end, so all the kids had classroom parties.  I had baked 20 dozen sugar cookies for the kids to frost and decorate in the classroom, and I started panicking an hour beforehand because not one single parent of the 39 kids in the two classrooms had called to say they could help.

I even wrote on the memo, "I've purchased everything, I just need volunteers."

Then I started cornering kids and asking them if their mothers could come in.  Three kids told me their mothers didn't drive.

Give me your address, I'll go get them.

Then another one told me her mom had to stay with the baby.

Bring the baby.  What's one more?

I was literally running from classroom to classroom, when a mother and a father showed up in Gregory and Amanda's classroom, and I immediately put them to work.  Whew!!!!!!!!!!

So it all turned out well.  It's a lot of work putting those parties together, but as you know, if you've read this blog for awhile, a lot of the kids that are bused in from the really bad part of Vegas have never in their lives frosted a cookie.  I had to tell kids, third graders mind you, that they had to put the frosting on first, then the sprinkles.  So it's all totally worth it.

I mostly worked in Sarah's classroom and didn't get a single picture of Sarah.  Oops.

I only barely had time to run to Austin's classroom and snap his picture.  Given the state of his shirt, I'm thinking he had fun.  

On the homefront, we've been baking, baking, baking, baking.  

I made the annual S family Slovak nut roll and got a little physically ill when I had to grind up 4 pounds of walnuts for $24.  Can anyone believe the price of walnuts these days?

What in the world is going on with walnuts?

I got a little excited when I saw the price, because I figured Greg would never go for buying walnuts at $6 a pound, but I underestimated his need for nut roll.  

All the neighborhood kids have been running in and out of my house for two days, so that's kept me busy.  I was in the kitchen, when I looked out the window and saw Gregory standing on the roof of my van, then he leaped through the air, and landed on the roof of Greg's truck.  

I rushed outside and screeched at him, "WHAT'S WRONG WITH YOU?" and sent him to his room.  I tell you what, you get a pack of boys together, and anything can happen.  Friday night, they decided to build a fire in our fire ring.  I walked out to check on them just as the smoke started rising.  

Which caused me to round them all up and sit them down and scold them all.  You don't have to be related to me to get yelled at, by the way.  

"Look, boys.  You did a good job building this safely, but if you want to build a fire, you need to GET AN ADULT.  OKAY?  You never, ever, ever build a fire without GETTING AN ADULT.", I reprimanded them.  

Ohmygosh, these kids are going to give me a heart attack.  Then Greg showed up, saw fire, and started splitting wood and made it huge.  Cuz, you know, fire is irresistible for the male species.  

Meanwhile, the girls were all in the house, crafting, taking no part in the fire incident.  It's amazing to me how different boys and girls are.  I'm thinking the boys are going to be higher maintenance right now, until the girls hit puberty.  

I finally feel like a well-oiled machine getting Christmas ready. The first two or three Christmases after the kids were born, I felt stressed out beyond belief.  Now it just seems to all come together and I don't freak out anymore.  I've got all the presents wrapped and we won't be spending tonight until midnight wrapping presents.  

Greg called me from Sam's Club on Saturday and asked me what size I am.  

We met Greg's mom and Uncle Bill at the Ethel M Chocolate Factory and Botanical Gardens last night.  We both showed up wearing the jackets Greg got us last year for Christmas.

I told her, "Geez, I wonder what we'll be getting this year?  I hope we like it."

Uncle Bill is here!  He drove all the way out from Texas.  He told us this is the last year he's going to make the drive.

I sure hope he'll make it out again.  He's the closest thing to a grandfather my kids have, so they really look forward to him being here every year.

I overheard the kids telling a stranger last night, "Our mom made us wear these coats."

Dad let Sarah ditch hers, since he was wearing shorts.

So the countdown is on.  Gregory is sitting next to me, tracking Santa on NORAD.

"I can't wait until tomorrow!!!!!!!!!!!", he just said.

SQUEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!