More Christmas Stuff...

Another day, another 10,000 Christmas pictures and home-made books created by the kids.  In fact, the kids were EXTRA productive yesterday, seeing as I had gone out to the Walgreens expressly to buy new printer paper.  Due to a combination of music photocopying on the part of Ethan and I and Christmas books on the part of the kids, we had completely run out of paper, and since I needed to photocopy more music for yesterday's piano lessons, I zipped out to buy a fresh pack of blank white paper.  The kids were SO excited.  They have been surviving on small squares of blank note paper for the past week, which obviously is just not nearly as fun as a full 8X11 sheet of paper.

Madeleine was so delighted by the brand new paper that she filled up about three sheets just writing names of people she knows:

She then moved onto other words, asking me every few minutes things like, "Mom?  How do you spell COMPUTER?  Mom?  How do you spell SANTA?" 

It wasn't long, however, before the paper was being used for new holiday books.  Madeleine created the following scene of people gathered around a Christmas tree (or what she says is a Christmas tree, but looks a lot more like a Christmas cactus.  What is UP with my kids and their penis art??):

In case you're wondering, the pink stuff surrounding the tree is, according to Madeleine, water for the tree.



On the back of her picture, Madeleine drew a bedtime scene, as all the happy people on the front of the page were set to go to bed and await Santa's delivery:

These are supposedly pillows and blankets, but it's a little hard for me to tell what's what.

Julia created yet another Christmas masterpiece, entitled:

"Christmas Eve and Christmas Day."  By Julia Rowe

"O Can It be Christmas?"
I have no idea what is going on in this picture.  I can't even wager a guess.

"Hang your wreath and your stawking to."
Either the kids in this book have a ginormous stawking, or a tiny wreath, because, at least in our household, our stockings and wreaths are nowhere near the same size.

"My Christmas Tree My Christmas Tree!"
I think she's ripping off "O Christmas Tree" a little bit here...

"Christmas Cookies Now."
Yeah.  NOW! 
Maybe that demanding girl should hold off a bit, though.  With her big side belly and her giant greedy claw-hands, she looks as if she could slow down on the cookie consumption.

Ohhhhh boy!!  The suspense is KILLING me!

 "O Its Christmas Eve Today."
I'm particularly fond of this picture of the girl in her cozy pink bed.

 "Christmas Day Yay Yay Yay."
According to the author, the stuff to the right of the tree is the wrapping paper, and the object to the left of the tree is a set of monkey bars (one of the Christmas presents the girl received.)  I hope Julia isn't expecting a pair of monkey bars on Christmas morning.  She hasn't put it on her wish list yet, so hopefully she can live vicariously through this blonde-haired, pink-dressed little girl above.

Speaking of wish lists, Madeleine recently recited hers to me, which some of you may have seen on facebook.  ""Mommy, for my wish list, I want a HORSE that I can ride on that has LEGS and can gallop me around outside. And...I want a newborn baby in my tummy." (puffing out her belly) "My tummy is GINOOOOORMOUS!"

She even helped her own wish to come true, stuffing a baby doll underneath her shirt as we were heading out the door to go to the Walgreens yesterday:

(She gave birth in the car, btw.)

Julia decided to commemorate this moment by drawing a picture of Madeleine and her newborn:

Those are tiles on the ground, in case you're wondering.  I thought they were dollar bills, but Julia set me straight.  "Mom, she's in a HOSPITAL!"  Duh!

Finally, as the kids continue their phase of Christmas-on-the-brain, Madeleine decided to pull out Joanna Cole's "My Big Girl Potty" and "read" it to me yesterday.  At least, I always thought it was called "My Big Girl Potty."  Madeleine informed me otherwise.  So here she is, reading "It Was The Night Before Christmas":



I guess, during the Christmas season, even books about peeing on the potty can be made to feel festive!