The Princess and the Potty.

This girl.  I love her to pieces, but she's gonna be the death of me.

She's two.  And a half.  But she thinks she's sixteen. 

And she hates the potty.  I know it doesn't seem that way in the picture above, but that's only because Ben is unbelievably great and unbelievably patient and unbelievably loving and maybe just as stubborn as she is. :)

Ben and Ginnell, our sitter, have actually paired up to make a really great team.  They have, miraculously, gotten Hadley to the point where she will at least sit on the potty for a few minutes each day without screaming as if her right arm is being sawed off...no exaggeration.

Up until about a week or so ago, BeBe would scream, cry, and fight as if her life depended on it to stay off of any potty...the big one, the little one, the potty seat...you name it, she hated it.  I'm quite certain, however, that she's not scared of the potty at all.  And I know she knows how to control herself...she'll ask to be taken out of the bathtub if she has to poop or pee, and that child will hold whatever she's got until there's a diaper secured on that little bootie of hers.  And then, my friend, she lets it all out.  She'll keep her big girl panties dry, though.  While she hasn't actually worn them for an entire day yet, she'll sport them quite often in the evening and can keep them dry for extended periods of time. 

She's just stubborn.  And she likes to be in control.  And there's a slight chance she gets that from me.

Promises of candy, stickers, new toys, special priveleges...she could care less.  In fact, a common conversation around our house used to go something like this: 

Babe:  "I want some M&M's."

Us:  "Cool, Babe.  You want some M&M's?  Let's sit on the potty and you can have a lot!"

Babe:  "Um, I not want any M&M's."

But not anymore.  These days, we're averaging a potty sitting at least once an evening.  And while we're still not getting any poop or pee in the potty, she's got the face to make it happen down pretty well.  Sound effects included.

I figure she'll get the hang of it before she's ten.  But it sure would be nice to stop buying diapers in the next month or so!

I Thought He Had a Lot of Clothes...

...but what he really has is a lot of Christmas decorations.

I know, because I'm the one who had to pull all of the boxes out of the attic.  Ben volunteered to cut the grass and mulch leaves (in order to get the yard ready for outdoor lights) if I would bring the decorations down and get everything ready to put out.  He's a sneaky snake, that Ben...how was I to know he had 20+ boxes stored away up there?!?!?!?

I mean, seriously...the man has a clock that plays a Christmas carol every hour on the hour.

Oh, I love him.

Harris and Hadley had a blast checking everything out.  Harry, in particular, was a great little helper. 



They both found ornaments they absolutely love.  Harris' favorite is a Lightning McQueen car Auntie gave him last year, and BeBe is all about my 1983 Snoopy ornament.  It's a miracle I was able to get this picture of Harris actually hanging something on the tree, because neither child was really into putting anything on the branches.



Two trees, some garland,  a few special pillows, the Christmas clock, some holiday books and stuffed animals, a manger scene, four countdown calendars, the outdoor lights and additional indoor lights in the foyer, playroom, and on the banister, new embroidered stockings, and a nap later, we were just about finished.

Except for this:



It is most definitely the most wonderful time of the year.



Especially if your Christmas train makes authentic noises as it chugs around the track.

Merry, Merry Christmas, y'all.

Thanksgiving, Larryville Style.

I like turkey.  I like pecan pie.  I like ham and macaroni and cheese and squash casserole and green beans and pound cake and lemon curd and mashed potatoes and everything else that makes up a Thanksgiving dinner.  But my favorite thing about the holiday, by far, is singing along with whatever band happens to be playing when the Christmas tree lights up for the first time in downtown L'ville.

I also really dig watching Santa ride in on a fire truck or trolley or carriage or whatever it is that happens to be carrying he and Mrs. Claus through the square, and I love experiencing the entire evening with my family, even if Jay and Cassidy ended up arguing just a little bit this year.

Mom and Ben spent some time in the antique stores, and the kids' favorite light displays included the train and Rudolph, as always.



One of the best parts of the evening, though, was getting to use "The Situation" (Cassidy's laptop) to iChat with TyTy.  We miss us some Brother.



And, as a special holiday treat, Ben let the kiddos end the day by sleeping together in Harris' bed.  We tried to give Babe her own pillow, but she wasn't too crazy about the idea.



She's pretty crazy about her brother, though, and he loves her right back.  He told me a few days ago that he did not want to grow up and get  married and have his own children because he "wanted to stay with BeBe for always." 

I'll make sure to remind him of that ten years from now.

From Auntie.

Auntie invited Harris over for a slumber party a couple of weeks ago.  You can check out all the fun they had right here on Cassidy's blog.  Which, by the way, you should totally add to your reader.

Thanksgiving, Decatur Style.

Turkey, squash casserole, macaroni and cheese (that Mom paid me $20 to make for her), pound cake, lemon curd, Italian wine (?), caesar salad, broccoli, fudge, cigars, Marge Simpson, reserved seating, and these crazies:





That pretty much sums up Wednesday night's Thanksgiving meal.





Christmas, Stone Mountain Style.

We headed out to Stone Mountain earlier this week.  In case you can't tell, Mom was super stoked about the trip.  Actually, I think she had a pretty decent time, minus the rain.  It's hard to complain about a little drizzle, though, because it kept the crowd unbelievably light, which is almost unheard of during the Christmas season.

And thank goodness there weren't a ton of people around, because Harris was beside himself with excitement.  Running, jumping, leaping, spinning...you name it, he was doing it.  Ben and I had to ask him to "act human" more than once.



Christmas is soooooo much fun through the eyes of a four-year-old.

We were able to see The Polar Express 4D movie, play in The Great Barn, hop on the Christmas Train Ride, take in the two million lights (or whatever it is they advertise), browse through a couple of shops, and visit with Santa all in less than two hours.

Harris asked Santa for a remote control Buzz Lightyear and a green bicycle.  He then informed me that Santa's response was, "okay."



Babe would have preferred to not see Santa.  Had she not been hyperventilating, she would have asked for a "Rosie train."



Sweet Sam simply had no clue.

One of the new discoveries this year has been mistletoe.  I'm thinking I might need to carry some with me at all times, seeing as how even Ben can't resist its power...Harris isn't the only one who managed to score a kiss at Stone Mountain!



Other than the small amount of PDA I was able to drag out of my husband, I think my favorite part of the evening was singing Christmas carols with the kids while riding the train.  We LOVE to sing, and it's even more fun now that Harris and Hadley know the words to quite a few songs.  "Rudolph," "Jingle Bells," and "The Twelve Days of Christmas" are some of our faves, along with "All I Want for Christmas is My Two Front Teeth."

We're getting quite a bit of use out of the iTouch and Pandora these days.

And to think, this is only the beginning...



Grow Your Own Rudolph.

You know you want to.