I love Christmas. Let's be honest though, most Christmas music isn't very good. I love the religious songs, but 95% of the contemporary songs are absolutely horrible. FM100 should be prosecuted for crimes against humanity for most of the songs they play. I have my own Christmas playlist that I listen to in the car though, so somehow I manage.
This has already been an extremely fun Christmas. Priya is so amazed by everything we do. She met Santa Clause for the first time. We were at a family party, and Mirinda was supposed to go up first, but she is terrified of Santa Clause, so Priya immediately ran up and sat on his lap with no problem. Then she got a present and I think that solidified her relationship with Santa Clause. Mirinda eventually went up, and sat next to him on her Aunt Cami's lap, and gave him a high five. Compared to other years, it's the equivalent of cuddling with him.
Priya also experienced her first snow fall. I was out snowblowing the driveway, and she ran out on the porch in bare feet. It didn't take her long to realize she'd made a huge mistake. She did like looking at the snow though.
I've always been one that's an advocate for toys at Christmas. There's something magical about getting that toy you really wanted. The Christmas of 92 I got a Super Nintendo. I still own that Super Nintendo, and I can still remember how amazing it was, and how that Christmas break was spent playing it. That said, I realized the other day that I haven't done enough to teach my children about the real reason for the season, and about charity and giving. We started to focus on that over the last week. The issue is, how do you do service with a 3 and a 5 year old. I recommend justserve.org. There are a ton of ideas on there. One organization collects diapers for refugees. You can buy them, and drop them off at this woman's house. I look at that and realize that's a service I can do with my young children, and they can understand what it means.
It is fun to do all of these traditions with these two little weirdos. We watched Mickey's Christmas Carol the other day, and I teared up like I do every time. It's Tiny Tim. He always gets me. We watched the Jim Carrey Grinch, which isn't a great movie but I love Jim Carrey in it. I would have them watch Rudolph, but the song Silver and Gold takes 25 minutes to sing, and I don't have that kind of time.
Priya's going to have a ton of tests done this month. We've hit our out of pocket max with her, so whatever we can do we will. The tests aren't too invasive, or we wouldn't do it. When we met with the geneticist he thinks she has two different syndromes, but we're going to test. One syndrome is basically that she couldn't move in the womb very much. This could be due to her mother trying to hide the pregnancy, or malnutrition. I'm inclined to believe the latter. The second one he thinks she has is vacterl something. That one can be a little more serious, and can effect the heart. He wants to do a full body scan on her, and well as an EKG. The good news according to him is there are times when 2 different syndromes are involved that they wipe some of the symptoms out. Based on everything she's had done so far, we've had no indication that anything is wrong with her heart. I honestly think she's OK as far as that goes. We'll continue to get her treatment. Right now we're trying to fix her index finger. She hates it because she has to wear a brace, but she deals with it.
I love watching Mirinda and Priya together. Mirinda is an amazing big sister, and takes really good care of her, and Priya likes to do whatever Mirinda is doing. Their new favorite activity is going to one end of the room, running as fast as they can, and jumping on me while I'm laying down. They find it absolutely hilarious, but I'm pretty sure one of my kidneys ruptured.
Here's my recommendation for the week: Fleming's Steak House. I really do believe it's better than Ruth Chris, and way cheaper. Right now they're having a deal that you get $25 off if you spend $100, but you have to book a reservation online. Then, you can go to Costco and buy $100 gift card for $80, so if you spend $100, you save $45. You're actually losing money on this deal if you don't go. Their filet is amazing. If you're looking for a nice place to eat this Christmas, I highly recommend it.
Thanks for reading! Enjoy the few good Christmas songs that are out there.
