Christmastime is (was) Here…..

What a beautiful Christmas we had this year.  I will let the pictures do most of the talking.  On Christmas Eve our neighborhood picked up the tradition of luminaries (white bags with candles inside) that lines all the streets.  So pretty.  As usual the Raab house, in true Griswald fashion shone brightly this holiday season! See the luminaries on the street? And Preston made sure to put out his reindeer food!

Then it was time for a letter to Santa and off to track him on NORAD.  Which to me was pretty darn awesome.  When Preston went to bed he was delivering gifts in Africa. 

Putting out the milk and cookies….plate all set up.  We have the cookie, the two carrots for the reindeer, the letter to Santa and I get the cup of milk.  I could see the expression.  I could see something was pissing off my son.  Are you ready?  “I’m not sure I want Santa to drink out of my cup.”  Really?  Are you five or 80?  When I asked why he explained Santa may take it (Heavens forbid Santa, leaving you a boatload of toys absconds with the Target plastic cup that was a dollar).  Santa left a note back to Preston in the morning, “Dear Preston. Thank you for the cookie and for feeding my reindeer.  Enjoy your presents.  I washed your cup and put it away. Love Santa.”  And sadly, he was happy about this.  As you can see Santa really cut back from last year (*sarcasm).

 

Notice the theme of train Christmas.

We pretty much opened gifts all day.  I even relived my youth playing with Lincoln Logs!

Much to my happiness (*sarcasm again) the snow returned.  Thankfully we did not get the blizzard that hit NYC and Boston, but I do have to say it makes for pretty pictures!

I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas!!!

We Want to Wish You a Merry Christmas

I have to echo Katie Johnson’s sentiments that receiving Christmas cards has been such a treat. To see all the beautiful children and gorgeous families with warm wishes being exchanged added to the joy of the season. I want to share our Christmas card from this year:

It’s been a fun countdown to Christmas this year. Preston has really taken to Santa Claus. He also has been fascinated with the Baby Jesus’ birth. Last night he told us that the wise men brought the Baby Jesus gold. He put his hands out and demanded, “What for? What for? Baby Jesus doesn’t want gold.” Therefore Preston bought the Baby Jesus his own gift this year:

According to Preston a Matchbox car is a much more appropriate gift for a young boy. I mean, really who wants myrrh? That’s even worse than the globe I got for Christmas one year. The other night my mother and I and a group of the ladies went to Christmas dinner and to the live Nativity. It was a great performance running only about fifteen minutes. I figured this would be a great show for Preston. He was very excited and dubbed it, “The Baby Jesus Show.” I think he really enjoyed the camels the most.

I leave you with some gorgeous pictures of my little man!!! Merry Christmas everyone. Our love to you all. XOXO!

All Aboard the Gingerbread Train

I’m not crafty.  People know this.  I walk into Michael’s and I feel like a failure.  Raw wood, pieces of glass, clasps and beads, pom poms, dried flowers, walls of ribbon.  I am usually running into this store for cute cupcake holders or stickers for Preston. That’s about the extent of Michael’s and I.  Speaking of ribbon, my father asked me to pick up ribbon for wreaths to hang outside their house at Michael’s recently.  Both Mel and I went to procure the ribbon.  We failed.  We didn’t buy enough ribbon or strong enough ribbon. And we really took our time too.  We pondered over the THREE aisles dedicated to RIBBON (which is just plain ludicrous) and had to decide between velvet ribbon, piped ribbon, embossed ribbon, red ribbon, maroon ribbon, off red ribbon.  We may have sweat.

I admire people who can take paint, glue, glitter and a few pieces of fabric and create things that I see on the internet sold for $50 dollars and buy.  Like Preston’s paper Mache antique baseball tissue box cover for his new bathroom.  I’m lucky I can color…barely. 

Yet every year for the past three we buy the gingerbread kits.  One year it was a train, last year a house and this year a train again.  Last year I made my brother Chris build the house.  His patience level is even less than mine.  So when he had it all ready and then put the roof on and the sides collapsed there was not a lot of Christmas cheer piping out of the kitchen.  This year I opened the kit only to find a bag of powder.  Looking quick it looked like a bag of cocaine you’d see on a drug raid on Cops.  Apparently that was the powder to MAKE the icing.  And you had to work quick because the icing hardens fast.  This year I feel we have done much better.  I was even impressed I used the icing bag to make a window, write our names and paint a BOW on a peppermint.  Ha!  Try painting a bow on a peppermint!  Preston is very proud and told me that we did a great job!  He spent more time eating icing instead of spreading icing however!

Preston also tackled his first 100 piece puzzle he got from Aunt Melski.  I barely helped him at all!  Notice the little train next to him-the Santa express from Grandma! 

Hope everyone is enjoying their last few days before Christmas!

Preston’s Christmas Spectacular!

Pres’ class had their Christmas sing a long tonight.  Last Christmas Pres did not perform but over the course of the year Pres has become a lot more like mommy and not having stage fright at all. I know I have said before, I am not one of those mothers who cannot admit their children’s shortcomings.  My kid is adorable.  His singing is cute.  But he can’t sing well.  Seriously.  Cannot. Hold. A. Tune.  Just like his mom-because I am pretty awful, unless alone…and then I am a superstar.  So it’s pretty awesome when we are both belting out the tunes in the car.

I had to tape at least two songs (on request from Aunt Melski).  Here is “Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer” (notice that because they all had to touch their noses so often this gave Pres a perfect excuse to steal a pick or two) and “We Wish You a Merry Christmas.”  At the end of the performance, it was my son who raised his hand and said, “OK, can we decorate the cookies now?”  That’s my boy. Enjoy!

And then he got his cookies!

It’s Beginning to Look A Lot Like Christmas

This week as I posted on Facebook-the towel has been thrown in! I am finished with all gifts Preston.  I literally spent Thursday after my firm Christmas party in Toys R Us and Target walking aimlessly up and down aisles.  There is nothing this child needs.  At all.  He has clothes to clothes a small nation.  He has the Tonka collection.  He also just had a birthday and a birthday party.  After coming home with the last of the bags I realized there were four bags up in the attic already.  So much for cutting back.  My parents’ gift is still causing issues.  Seriously.  I have NO idea what to get either of them.  It’s actually quite annoying.  They have EVERYTHING.  Think of what Preston has then multiply it by 100…and then multiply by two since there are two of them.  I still have time.  I am hoping a miracle idea comes to life.

This weekend we had two birthday parties-one which I turned down because we had company over today.  We started yesterday with the neighborhood Christmas party.  Each child brought an ornament to hang on the tree, the decorated cookies and the best part-Santa.  (*read, free Santa.  No trekking to the mall, standing on line and paying $35 dollars for three 3x5 semi-decent pictures with a mall Santa).  And no mall pictures means no crazy mommy saying, “Yeah…that picture is awful.  Let’s take it again since I’m paying $25 bucks for blurry 3x5 pictures and have to play paper, rock scissors to see which family member gets a picture.  Oh I can buy more?  For $45? For 2 extra?  Wow.  A real deal you have going on.”  I’ll stop, but you can imagine right?

Then it was off to Kelly’s house so Preston could see their tree and the train set around same.  He would have stayed all day.  Then it was time to put up our tree.  As you know from past years, my parents’ tree is a tad ridic.  It’s huge, it requires three ladders and two people to get the angel atop the thing, but the end result is stunning.  This year Preston was over the moon to decorate and sang his Christmas carols while doing his trimming!

The ornament that he is holding here was bought by my mother a few weeks before he was born.  I was given a lethal diagnosis but she refused to give up hope.  I remember telling her that I had wished she did not buy the ornament because what if it never hung on the tree?  Preston’s star.  It was an awesome feeling to watch him hang it up…take it down…try a different spot (and we are still doing this today).  And here is the finished result:

After that was his friend’s birthday party at the new bounce house place.  I think the parents have more fun than the kids.  Today we had company over (not for the Giant game unfortunately).  Here is Pres totally enthused about getting the first piece of Christmas cake! 

How Time Flies…My Baby is FIVE!

Preston is five.  FIVE!  I am stunned at how quickly time has gone.  I must admit I love this age.  Talking to Preston is like talking to an adult anyway.  Except then you look down at this slightly over three foot child and just cannot believe the stuff that comes out of his mouth! Aunt Melski and Aunt Tinka also came down to spend the weekend!

As we left the house Saturday night to head to dinner, I was less than amused by the precipitation that was white in color falling from the sky.

Sunday we had Preston’s birthday party at All Fired Up, a pottery painting place.  All his friends came to spend the afternoon in his honor.  It was truly adorable to watch the kids take painting their pieces so seriously!

This morning Preston got to open his gifts from the family.  I decided this year to get Preston a digital camera.  He always wants to take pictures on my camera and does a great job.  I’m just more comfortable with Preston having his own camera…when he’s outside…wanting to take pictures on the patio…that is concrete. 

Our neighbors, the Capparelli’s left a balloon tied to my car this morning for Preston.  He was extremely excited to find that there.  He also had a party in school today.  We picked out plates, napkins and cups and then bought cupcakes and cookies (I would have loved to bake but the school doesn’t allow homemade goods). 

Well baby, you are now five.  You told me tonight you want to be five forever.  I’d like that because then I would be 32 forever.  Although I’m assuming at some point you’ll want to move out of the house.  Preston, I love you with all my heart.  You are my heart.  You are my reason for living.  Happy Birthday my sweet, smart, handsome man!!! Mommy loves you!