An Early Christmas Present

Duncan and I (okay, mostly Duncan) bought ourselves a new toy this week. I know, I know, who buys themselves Christmas gifts before Christmas, right?? But there was a good sale and Duncan's been wanting one for a long time so he pulled the trigger on a GPS. After using it today, I want one too! It's so easy to use and very handy. Calleigh and I went to some yard sales today and it was great because last night I just programmed in the addresses (so simple) and then today I just pressed the button and off we went with step by step instructions. Duncan has already programmed it with all the spots we're going to when we're up north (in two weeks!!) such as the Boston Pops, Old Mill Restaurant, Edaville Railroad, the Emerald Square Mall, etc. In most cases, we already know how to get to these places but still....It is amazing how much stuff it contains. We checked and even the South Shore SDA School was listed there - - on 250 Washington St. just like it is.

On Wednesday morning, Calleigh and I went down to visit my friend Wanda and her 6-week old baby, Hailey. Calleigh was so excited about the baby. Fortunately Wanda was a good sport and let Calleigh hold Hailey on her lap (with my support, of course). Calleigh kissed Hailey and kept trying to hug her and called her a "nice baby." I'm not sure if she realizes it's a real baby compared to her pretend baby. I know this is weird because obviously I had a newborn not THAT long ago, but I could not believe how tiny Hailey was. It's amazing how quickly you forget how small they are when they're first born. Anyway, Wanda has been having some challenges with breastfeeding and I've been able to offer her support since I went through so many challenges at the beginning too. I just tell her to stick with it because it WILL get better even if it doesn't seem like it.




Wednesday evening we went over Ron & Elaine's for dinner so that Calleigh could see their tree and all their Christmas decorations. They have an awesome train underneath their (real) tree and Calleigh wasn't sure quite what to make of it. I had brought the GPS box (per Duncan's instructions)that had arrived earlier in the day and when Duncan met us there from work we were joking about what he would go for first: his new GPS or Calleigh. You know how some guys love their electronics! I'm sure I don't have to tell you that he only had eyes for Calleigh.

Thursday wasn't too exciting of a day. I did a lot of house cleaning while Calleigh played with the Amazon box - - sometimes it's the simple things that really keep them occupied. We did another run to Walmart to get some more groceries which Calleigh has down pat now. I told her we were going to Walmart and she said "Groceries?" It was also last night that we had another Christmas decoration fatality. We have a wooden Rudolph that Calleigh likes to look at and hold on occasion. She brought it to me last night and was saying something to the affect of "Uh oh" as she held the head in one hand and the body in the other. I said "What happened?" And she replied, "Head broke." Yes, it certainly did! She was a little upset but I told her Daddy could glue it back on and that seemed to make her feel better.

Speaking of Christmas decorations, she's been having a great time with our musical dancing snowman and also a set of 4 characters that sing Jingle Bells when you press the button. She can entertain herself for a a good few minutes by just sitting on the floor and pressing the buttons over and over again. And today, she's started to sing Jingle Bells along with the singing characters. My hours (literally) of singing to her are really starting to pay off! But honestly, it's a shame that I"m not a good singer or that I don't love to sign. Oh, I love to sing because it makes her happy but I can only imagine how much more fun it would be if I was good at it. The problem is that she can get really, really upset if you don't start singing when she says "Song." It's crazy. When we were going to Wanda's, I had taken a wrong turn and was trying to get turned around and figure out the right way and Calleigh was going completely bonkers in the back seat shouting "Song, song!" because I had stopped midway through Rudolph - - probably the 18th song of the trip, no less. I do pray that her love of singing will continue and that she won't inherit either of her parent's singing voices.

As I mentioned, Calleigh and I went to a few yards sales this morning and scored a nice new set of blocks, a giant box of crayons (for $0.50), two sweaters, and a pair of chords. All for Calleigh, of course! We did got through a few little minor tantrums when we had to leave a few of the places that had toys out for sale that Calleigh took a liking too. Fortunately I was able to quickly distract her.

This afternoon I went and picked Toni and Shannon up at the airport while Elaine babysat a napping Calleigh. They have returned from Thanksgiving vacation. Must be nice! Anyway, Terry came to pick Toni up and then Megan came over, and so we had a nice meal together. We invited David but he and Yully (I hereby apologize for spelling her name incorrectly in previous blogs. It's pronounced Julie but spelled Yully) had plans for a sacred Christmas concert.

Oh, I almost forget to mention the camera. Things didn't go as I had hoped. They said they had to give the manufacturer another chance to fix it and if that didn't work, they would give me a refund. So off the camera goes for another two to three weeks. I said I was leaving for Christmas on the 19th and they said they would rush it but there were no guarantees. So until then, it's back to the junky camera which, as you can see, I'm not very motivated to use.

Have a Happy Sabbath!