Merry Christmas!

I commented to my sister (who is also an active blogger) that, because of the blogs, this is the first Christmas we wouldn't have to feel guilty about not scrapbooking! I love blogging! Here is a re-cap of our Christmas adventures.

Christmas Eve

I don't think you could pay me to do this in freezing weather, but Ben thought it was a perfect day for a swing.

We spent some time at Grandma and Grandpa McDavitt's where Ben and I presented the Nativity story with everyone gathered around the refrigerator (the nativity pieces were magnetic). Then we hurried home to get ready for Santa. Cheezits and applejuice for Santa (since he's sick of cookies by now), and sparkly magic oats and carrots for the reindeer while they wait outside. (I had been playing with my camera settings, so a few of these pictures are blurry, ugh!)

Christmas Morning

Santa brought Sam a new art desk with lots of fun art supplies, Ben got a new big boy bike with hand brakes and five gears. Santa also brought a hot wheels race track similar to a pinewood derby track. The boys love it.

Christmas at Grandma's

Presents, dinner, sledding, naps...what a great day! The "Hulk Smash" gloves were a huge hit with the boy cousins.

Here was the scene after the big Hulk Smash knock down brawl on the extra mattress downstairs. Though he looks like the might just be the unfortunate loser of the brawl, he's sleeping, not unconscious (though Grandma was a little worried). We noticed Sam didn't come back upstairs when the other boys did, went to check on him, and found him snoozing, still with gloves on.

We had a little hot wheels derby at Grandma's. All the men and boys chose a car, and I think the winner was uncle Danny.

After dinner, the kids bundled up and went sledding on Grandma's hill. I love these pictures! A neighbor boy came over with a snowboard, and guess who seems to be a natural at that...yep, Ben. He loved it and now wants a snowboard.

The Day After

Sixty degrees! We spent some time outside enjoying the moist air as all the snow melted. It was a little muddy, but we didn't care! Ben got to try out his new bike, which looked like it would be a little too tall, but he was very brave and figured out how to pop up on the seat as he pushes the first pedal down. He's a natural with the handle bar brakes. I barely even gave him instructions and he figured that out. He also shifted the gears a couple of times while riding. The wheels on this bike are much bigger than his Rocket bike, and he can go really fast. I'll have to pick up the pace when I "jog" him to school.

Shape Sorter

We received this shape sorter as a gift when Ben was born. I have always liked it because it's a classic toy, it can go in the tub, and it reminds me of Ben when he was little.

Remove the lid and the shapes, and it also makes a great puke bowl! Talk about a versatile toy. Perfect size and shape (I'll leave the reasons to your imagination). Yes, we are puking today (just Sam so far). It just wouldn't be Christmas if someone didn't get sick, right? Look at my poor baby. What's a mom to do but cuddle and watch movies all day?

Humidifier Stew

When our furnace was installed a few years ago, the furnace guys said it had a built in humidifier. Every year about this time, my skin gets so dry I wonder if they were pulling my leg. I've never gone down there for the purpose of verifying this. I don't know what I would look for. Instead, I make Humidifier Stew: One big pan of water, peelings from one or two oranges, clementines, or grapefruit, 2 cinnamon sticks. Combine and bring to a simmer on the stove. Add water as needed. (Do not eat.)

(Incidentally, our furnace guys are very trustworthy.)

Sam's Preschool Christmas Party

The Early Childhood Center had a "Create with Me" holiday bash complete with Santa (who Sam considered talking to, then came to his senses after we were in line a few minutes). We did very little "creating" at the party because Sam just wanted to keep going through the obstacle course! Mrs. Nancy, his OT was there helping him through.

Snake Primer...by Ben

Today we learned about snakes. Some snakes are harmless, which means they don't DO anything (emphasis on "do"). Like, they don't have any venom, and they don't have any biting ability.

(This information was shared with me in the car the other day. Why was it so funny to me? Probably because I've never heard him use the words "harmless" and "ability" in context before. He sounded like a science teacher!)

Catch Up Post

Some things I've thought about blogging in the past couple of weeks, but haven't found the time...

Ben's Winter Festival Concert: I was SO impressed with the way the Kindergarteners sang. I'd never seen Ben do anything like this before, and I was near tears by the final number of the concert. They have an excellent music teacher, Dr. Wrolstan. Here is a sample. (Ben is in the middle row right in the center of the frame wearing a blue shirt):

Ben's Monkey Puppet: Ben saw this craft on "Lambchops Playalong" and within five minutes had gathered the supplies and made one of his own (this is rare, Ben is not into crafts). It's a walking monkey puppet made from a leftover glove. When he said he wanted to make one, I told him we didn't have any gloves without mates. I was wrong. He found one! He drew and cut out the face, tail and feet himself, then attached them using a glue stick.

The Proper Care and Feeding of...Dinosaurs! The boys and I went to T-Rex Restaurant yesterday, and also did "Build-a-Dino" which is located inside the restaurant. The boys are in love with their dinosaurs, and spent the evening caring for them. They wanted them wrapped in blankets. They pushed them in the stroller. When they started fighting over the stroller, we got out the baby swing. They did this for about an hour. I also got a great deal on some cute green jammies to match their dinosaurs.

Ward Christmas Party: I survived!! Yes, I am the Activities Committee Chair, and Wednesday was one of the most stressful days of my life! Our ward party went very well. I ended up taking the kids out in the snowy weather at 7 pm the night before to pick up the last minute things I'd forgotten, and stayed up until 2:30 am making baby Jesus ornaments for each family in the ward to take home and give away (with a pass along card). The ornament is below. I think they turned out well. I cut the clothespins myself, in the cold, in the garage, on the band saw. The swaddling clothes are made of first aid tape.

Mundy Dance Off

Inspired by our cousins, JJ and Caleb Morgan, Ben and Sam wanted to have their own "Dance Off". Enjoy!

Play Date!

Yesterday, we had our neighbor Reagan over to play. He is 21 months old and sweet as can be. The whole morning went like this:

Walk, walk, walk, touch something. Walk, walk walk, pick something up. Walk, walk, walk, put it down. Stop and dance for a few seconds (we had Christmas music playing). Walk, walk, walk push some buttons. Walk, walk, walk, crouch down to look at something. Walk, walk, walk, stop for a second to watch TV. Walk, walk, walk...

How far do you think an almost two-year-old walks in a day?? It would be fun to attach a pedometer!

More Artwork

I LOVE Ben's pictures. This was from a book they read. The last page had a place for them to describe what their hair is like. You can see that Ben's hair is "short". He explained that this is a picture of our great friend Jennifer cutting his hair. Ben is on the left, Jennifer is on the right, and the thing below his head is the cape she put on him.

Mundy Family Secrets Revealed

Here is a book Ben produced at school which reveals some surprising things about our family. I wonder what Mrs. Petet thinks of us! Can you decipher Ben's creative spelling and guess what we take on our hikes (page 2)? The answer is at the end of the post.Psookus = Bazookas (as in big guns). Did I spell that right?

Welcome Baby Halle!

Here is my beautiful new neice, Halle Reese Raab. She was born Saturday morning, December 6th, 6:30 am. 6 poinds 14.5 ounces, 18 inches long. (Did I get those stats right?)

I told Sam about his new cousin Halle. He said "Halle?....Wall-E!" That's his two cents as to what her name should be. I showed him pictures. He's still calling her Wall-E.

Congratulations Rachel, Matt, and Madden!!!

Metal Mouth

Surprise! I have braces. They're a little hard to see because they're porcelain in front.

What is that thing? REVEALED!

Ben says it's time to reveal the identity of the brown creature he made at school. First, here are the guesses:
Aunt Tamara: A Squid.
G+G Mundy: Bearded Dragon
Aunt Rachel: A magical dragon
Daddy: Killer Rabbit from Monty Python
Cousin Emily: bearded dragon

All great guesses, but the winner is AUNT TAMARA! It is a Squid. Honorable mention goes to Daddy. Ben liked your answer a lot.

Flowers from my far away hubby

These were on my doorstep this afternoon. I mentioned to Mike yesterday that I thought I was coming down with something, so he sent me "get well soon" flowers. Thanks, sweetie!

Hodge Podge Post

I've gotten behind...here goes:

Sam's new shoes.

I thought they were very cute. We don't find shoes that fit over his braces very often. I told him they were basketball shoes and he loved them instantly.

What is that thing?

Ben often brings home creations he makes at the "art center" in his kindergarten classroom. With Ben's imagination, they are always one of a kind. Okay, so submit your guesses as to what this creature is, and the first correct guess gets bragging rights. Ben and I will reveal the answer in a future post. (Note the outfit...yes he went out in public that way).
Work Points
Ben earns "work points" for helping me with small tasks. Here he is earning one point for each grocery bag he carried in for me. He did all the work (except for two really heavy ones). Ten work points earns him a dollar.

"No-Wax Floors"

A phrase you don't hear much anymore because nearly all floors are "no wax" these days. However, I'm now the caretaker of a "yes-wax" floor. Our new linoleum floor requires applying a polish in two coats that has to dry in between. I stayed up last night detail cleaning and waxing the floor, and the result is really beautiful. It wasn't that hard, but definitely something to do after the kids go to bed. Linoleum was popular 50 years or so ago, but people stopped installing it when "no-wax" floors (or vinyl) became the trend. But now it's back. I love it because it comes in great colors, it's super durable (they say it should last 50 years), it's cheap, is made from natural materials (wood pulp, ground limestone and linseed oil among other things), and it's not vinyl! The picture doesn't do it justice, but the floor is really even and shiny. I love it!

Goodbye Liberty Female College!!

Here is a short video of what's happening up the street this morning.

Demolition was approved by the City Council (4-3 vote) Monday night. Demolition permit was issued this morning, and the bohemoth started falling at about 10:30. Sam and I stood on the street with a group of happy neighbors watching for a while. Sam said, "It's awesome, mommy!". Totally awesome.

Beardie

Cousin Madden requested long ago that we post a picture of our bearded dragon. Here he is along with some "fun facts". Isn't he COOL??

1. He eats vegetables, some fruit, crickets, and worms (sometimes).

2. Too many worms give him a tummy ache (he was sick for a week once).

3. He changes color when he's asleep (He's darker during the day to soak up the dessert sun.)

4. He likes to run and jump.

5. He doesn't poop very often, but it really stinks when he does.

6. He closes his eyes when you pet him (like a cat).

7. He doesn't make any noises at all.

8. Sometimes we let him run around Ben's room.

9. He never drinks. He gets all his liquids from the crickets and veggies.

The jacket battle

It's 38 degrees this morning in Liberty.

Mom: Put on your jacket so we can go.
Ben: I don't need a jacket. I have long sleeves.
Mom: You have to wear a jacket or they won't let you go out for recess. How about gloves.
Ben: Okay, I'll wear gloves.
(outside the door)
Ben: I don't need these gloves. (takes them off)
Mom: Bike or scooter?
Ben: Bike.
(one block)
Mom: Are you cold? I have your jacket and gloves here.
Ben: I'm not cold. I don't want to wear a jacket. (3 second pause) But I DO need the gloves. (stops to put on gloves)
(3 blocks)
Mom: Are you excited about indoor recess today?
Ben: What?
Mom: It's the rule. They won't let you out without your jacket.
(waiting at the crosswalk by the school)
Ben: I'm COLD! I want to put my jacket on!

This is just one episode in a "mini-series". We do this almost everyday!

Misc...

There's not much new going on here at the Mundy house, but here's a picture of Ben throwing paper airplanes out of a tree. How many times did he say: "Can you bring that back to me...just one more time!" I finally just had to go inside.

Also, here a sneak peek at something Santa dropped off early for Ben (it's carefully hidden away, and he doesn't read the blog!). He is getting so good at riding his 1-speed bike, but he has to work so hard to get up the hills. This has five speeds and a Shimano derailleur. (Pretty cool thrift store find...$19.99!) His legs are getting longer...hopefully they'll be long enough by Christmas!