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Candy Cane Down!

Not being organized this holiday season is stressing me out just a bit. Last night I looked at Scott and freaked out just a little that there weren't going to be any cookies to leave for Santa on Friday night.  Well, thank goodness he's level-headed.  With a patient look on his face, he reminded me that we do have access to a grocery store.  So, little Ava and I will be baking some pre-made snowman cookies later this week.  Check that off the list!

Last night, we debated going to the Hollidazzle parade in Minneapolis.  It's so much fun and Ava would absolutely love it!  However, it was a little chilly, and neither of us were keen on standing outside with a shivering toddler for an hour.  So, instead, we decided to drive around and look at Christmas lights in the area.  I'll be honest - people aren't doing up the decor like they used to.  We drove for 2.5 hours, went to 5 different cities, and saw only a few displays that were worth mentioning.  Ava managed to sleep for 2 hours of it, and when she woke up, she asked when we were going to the parade.  Guess we know what will be happening next year!

The good news is that the Christmas cards have been sent, 95% of the gifts have been purchased, I now have egg nog in the house, and I'm not quite as stressed out as I was last week.  We (I) have a ton of wrapping to do, and just a few presents to ship out to family members that aren't here in the area...and THEN we can celebrate the season!

And maybe sleep for a little bit.

With everything we've done this week, there wasn't much time to take pictures.  However, Ava discovered all of the candy canes on the tree (my mom and I had a tradition of buying new candy canes every year - which means there are some 30 year old canes on the tree.)  With this discovery, it also means that we have lost some of them due to breakage...which is too bad, since they were part of a tradition. 

We've also managed to break a few ornaments this year - Scott broke 3, and Ava has now broken one.  Just the glass balls, so nothing irreplaceable.  Yesterday, she put Scooter in time out for THREE hours because "Scoots broke the tree!"  Hm. Apparently, we have now learned how to shift the blame. Not sure this is a good thing!  Scooter also went in time out this morning, for being naughty and hitting Mommy. Scooter shouldn't feel so bad - Princess Ariel often goes in time out during Ava's bath for hitting Daddy.  To be clear, neither Scott nor I have any recollection of being hit by a purple cat, or a mermaid princess...!

Collecting candy canes from the tree



This is one angry look...not sure if Mommy threatened to take away the candy canes?


Scooter in time out...just starting his three-hour stint.  Poor kitty!


Sorry for the short post...lots to do today.  I'm really doing everything I can to avoid wrapping those gifts...ish!

Happy week!

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