O' Christmas Tree

Continuing with Turner family tradition, we decorated our tree on Monday night for Family Home Evening. Bing Crosby played in the background and we sipped delicious eggnog (not the low-fat kind) for refreshment.

Every year while I was growing up, I got a new ornament - sometimes two. One from mom & dad, and one from Grandma. As a result, when we got married, we already had a box full of ornaments to decorate our tree.

But because of this, our tree has no theme. You know how some people have those beautiful trees with a theme? You know, matching bows, matching ornaments, and only certain colors allowed? Well, that's not our tree. Instead, it's colorful collection of childhood memories.

It's awesome.

The routine went something like this: Kyle unwrapped every single ornament and placed it front and center on the tree. When he wasn't looking, mom discretely moved them to a better location.

He examined each and every one (they have a name and date on the bottoms). If the ornament wasn't his, he would ask, "But can I have it? PLEASE?"

And there she is, in all her beauty. No theme, no matching color scheme. Just bright and happy and slightly mis-matched. Just the way we like it. I think she's pretty.

I think Kyle does, too.

Bad news

You know it's bad news when the coyotes that roam the park across
the street start running around in packs...

The Way It Is

Kyle's had a cough for over 3 weeks now. It's not too bad, but my, it is persistent. He has these coughing spells that I can't do anything about. No amount of patting-on-the-back does any good. But he seems to have a good attitude about it. Just take our conversation yesterday:

Kyle: (coughing, and coughing, and coughing...)
Mom: "Are you okay, buddy?"
Kyle: "Yeah, I'm okay, mom. That's just what I do to get all of the guts out of my throat."

Baby, it's cold outside

I think we've become acclimated to the desert lifestyle fairly quickly. Today, the high was in the mid-50's and I swear, it felt like we were in the North Pole! For the first time since moving here, we had to wear long-sleeve shirts.

But perhaps it's the kick-off to the holiday season. After a wonderful Thanksgiving with family, cold weather was just what we needed to feel like the holidays are really approaching. Maybe it really will feel like Christmas, even in the desert.

World Famous Santa Monica Pier

Kevin had Monday off, so we headed down to the World Famous Santa Monica Pier.

It had everything you could think of, even an amusement park!

We partook of sightseeing...

and ice cream. Kyle's favorite: "Soft vanilla. The good kind."

We rode the carousel. Hold yourselves back, ladies!

We dug our toes in the sand...

and splashed in the water - mid 70's year-round, baby!

And enjoyed some good old family fun.

Addictions of a Tiny Drama King

It's time that I face facts:

1. I have a son that is a video-game addict.
2. I'm not nearly the mom I should be. I let him play them way too often.

Now, I admit, there are times when this addiction comes in handy - ie: long car rides, long waits in the doctor's office, and times when I just want a little peace and quiet. And I'm sure he'll learn something useful from it. After all, some of the games are educational. What's a little Attention Deficit Disorder when you've got great hand-eye coordination?

But today I decided enough was enough. I laid down the law. No longer will Mario and his friends rule our house.

Well, Kyle wasn't too happy about it. After asking and asking and asking, then resorting to a "pretty, pretty, pretty PLEASE???" he just lost it:

"But if you don't let me play Gameboy, I will just DIE!!!"

Writer's Block

Okay, I guess it's become quite apparent that I haven't been in the mood to blog. Day in and day out, it seems to be the last thing on my "To Do" list and by the end of the day, when all of those other things are checked off, I'm simply too lazy to sit down and document our lives. Oh, and the other problem? I really do not have anything to write about. Contrary to what everybody believes, we are not off to one adventure after another. Life at the Turner household is, indeed, pretty boring.

BUT, I hereby promise to turn over a new leaf. I promise I'll write on a more regular basis. I'd like to say I'll post everyday, but I wouldn't want to be held accountable for that. So I'll start racking my brain, and starting tomorrow ( I know, always the procrastinator), the wisdom will come pouring out.

Oh, and if there's something you'd like to hear about, please pass it on. Because I definitely have a case of writer's block.

James and the Giant Peach

Kyle and I started our first chapter book today. Kyle absolutely loves to read and frankly, I'm getting a little tired of reading the same old books over and over again. I remember my mom reading chapters of "Heidi" to me before bed every night when I was little and not being able to fall asleep in anticipation of what we'd read the next night. I'm sure I was a little older than Kyle, but I figured we'd give it a try.

And so, "James and the Giant Peach" became our experiment. I chose it for a couple of reasons: 1) I'd never actually read it before, and 2) It has a picture every 6-8 pages in case of boredom.

Well, I don't think I have to worry about that. We started this afternoon and made it to Chapter 11 before Kyle would let me take a break. He's hooked. It has eloquent language and big words my little guy doesn't know, but that doesn't bother him. And just when I notice him staring at the ceiling and think he's losing interest, he asks some profound question that proves me wrong.

I think this could become a habit.

Generations

Kyle spent a lot of quality time with my dad this summer. While the gals were out shopping or playing, the boys would go on hikes, go to McDonalds, and go get ice cream. Kyle couldn't have asked for anything more and my dad was a good sport.

It was during one such outing that my dad taught Kyle a new song. I'd forgotten all about it until the other night. In an effort to postpone bedtime, Kyle sang it for us over and over and even offered to teach Kevin the lyrics. It goes something like this:

"I went to the animal fair.
The birds and the beasts were there.
The big baboon, by the light of the moon,
Was combing his auburn hair."

"The monkey, he got drunk.
And sat on the elephant's trunk.
The elephant sneezed and fell to his knees,
And what became of the monk, the monk, the monk?"

I know there are several different versions of this song, but this was the one my dad taught Kyle. And apparently it's the same one that my great-granddaddy Hanks taught my dad years ago. My dad was extremely close to his grandfather and I'm grateful that my son has the same close relationship with his.

I had no idea there was tradition involved with this song, but I'm glad my dad is passing it on.