Is This Normal?
The chaos that is the KerbersArchive for Santa
Santa!
Today was Santa day, and it pretty much went exactly as I thought it would. About three days ago, Ben started saying that he didn’t want to talk to Santa. You could hear in his voice that he was not going to be talked into this. He did not. want. to talk. to Santa. So Dave and I thought we would have him write a note, and maybe when we got there he’d change his mind. Wishful thinking, but one can always hope.
Just before we were ready to go, I asked Ben to come help me with a note
for Santa. He was way more into the Christmas show we had on, and really didn’t even want to do it, but I insisted, and he finally half-heartedly dictated to me. He even signed his own name, although I’ve seen him write it so much better before. Like I said, he was very distracted by his show. I got Emma all dressed up in her Christmas outfit and she loved it. In direct contrast to Ben, she was dancing all over the kitchen and was so excited to go. We were all set. Ryan ended up coming with us, because we were going to a family Christmas party afterwards and he was riding with us. So off we went to State Farm to see the big guy himself.
When we got there Ben started in right away insisting that he didn’t want to talk to Santa. 
I tried to get a few pictures of the kids at all of the photo spots while Dave was in line, but as usual both of them were pretty wild running to each one like maniacs. At least I got one very cute shot at the fireplace, though, so I was relatively happy with that. That atrium is a crazy place on Santa Day, so I can’t really expect them to be calm when they’re so excited and around lots and lots of other wild kids.
Finally we were next in line. Ben was behind me and didn’t even want to hand his letter to Santa, so I finally convinced him to hand it to the elf who was helping. After that, he hid behind me the entire time…most of it with his head buried beneath my sweater. Meanwhile, Emma walked right up, sat on Santa’s lap
, told him she wanted “a toy” and then posed for her picture beautifully. She loved it! Santa did read Ben’s note while we were still standing there, so at least Ben was pleased to know that Santa knew where to leave his gifts.
I shouldn’t say that I knew exactly what would happen with Santa, because Emma actually surprised me. I figured as soon as she actually got close to Santa she would chicken out, too. I should have known she would talk to him, though. She told me she would do it, and when that little girl makes her mind up about something, not much changes it!
The Henrikson Christmas
Yes, we had another get-together today…this time the Henrikson family, my mom’s side…in Leland at my cousin Debbi’s house. The cousins on this side basically grew up together as brothers and sisters, and it’s always great to get together. Tonight there were 32 of us there, and we had a blast.
The “little” kids (11 of them ranging from 20 months – 14 years) had a gift exchange and the “adults” (aged 17 – 70) had a grab bag. We did what is known as a “chili dump” meaning that we each made a small batch of chili, brought it, and we dumped them all together into one big pot. It sounds kind of gross, but it was really great!
One of the highlights of the afternoon and evening was seeing Deb’s youngest son Brady’s new puppy, Holly. Santa brought her for Brady even though this was the first year he didn’t ask for a puppy. She’s a 6 week old miniature shitzu, and she is adorable! Emma was absolutely in love with her, and so was I. I would so love to get a puppy if it didn’t mean sooooo much work and commitment. Dave just kept saying things like, “where would we put her when we go to your folks?” or “who would take it out when it’s 1° at 5:30 in the morning?” I know we’re not at all ready for a puppy, but Ems just adores puppies, so it’s tempting. Plus, Ben would really benefit from getting one, too. He’s very interested, but half scared, of almost every dog we see. If we do take the puppy plunge, it won’t be for a long time.
Anyway, back to our holiday celebration. Even though we were all having a great time at the party, it was a tad bit bittersweet, because it was the last time we’ll see my parents until the end of March at the earliest. They’re leaving tomorrow for Florida. I think that Ben kind of understood it better this year, and he was very sad to say good-bye to them. I’m really hoping that we’ll get down there for Spring Break.
We still have one more Christmas party to go, and it will be another big one. It’s kind of nice to have Christmas last all the way until New Year’s Eve!
It’s Christmas!
Wow what a day! I can only try to tell you about the wonderful day we all had. Last night, we left milk and cookies out for Santa, and went to bed in great anticipation for Christmas Day. When we woke up this morning, we rushed downstairs to see if Santa came and he did! Ben was very sad that he didn’t get to see Santa’s reindeer last night, but he was very excited to see that Santa ate our cookies and drank the milk. And then we saw all the things that he left for us, we were all very excited!
Once we started opening all the presents that Santa left, the excitement built even more. He brought Ben some new Lightning McQueens (which is what Ben asked him for) and a Batman scooter. He can already ride the scooter around the house, and we can all hardly wait to ride it on the sidewalk when it gets nice outside. Emma got a Moxy Uglydoll and a baby with a stroller, bottles, silverware, and a comb & brush. She was thrilled and wanted to get it out of the box instantly while saying, “baby…baby…baby…” over and over. He also brought some very appropriate stocking stuffers like McQueen underpants for Ben and new silverware for Ems. Both are things we need as we’re just mastering the skills to use these items. And of course, Santa brought us some new books. Always. 
After we opened everything up, we had some really good play time while we waited for family to get here. First to arrive were Grandma, Grandpa, Curtis and Brett. They loved all of our stuff from Santa, too. A little bit later Aunt Nanny, Uncle Rod, and Ryan arrived, and we had some turkey dinner. Dave had roasted the turkey in the rotisserie, and it was awesome, if I do say so myself. It’s really great to have a small group for dinner. It’s still the festive atmosphere without the total chaos. Don’t get me wrong…there was plenty of chaos when presents started, but dinner was relatively calm.
Once Emma woke up from her nap it was time to open presents. Ben the elf 
helped pass everything out and then we tried to open orderly from youngest to oldest. One problem was the youngest wasn’t too interested in her wrapped presents. Ems mainly just wanted to push her baby around in her stroller. Once we did get her attention enough to open her first gift, though, that changed. Dave & I got her a Little People doll house, and she loved it! After that, it was even tougher to get her to focus on a new present. Maybe that should tell us something…like we got her too much?? She also really loved pushing around the grocery cart that Grandma & Grandpa got her. It even had a baby in it just where she rides with Mommy!
Ben had a lot of favorite gifts. Dave and I got him his third Cars case with even more characters from the movie. He loved them, of course, as he loves most anything Cars related. He loved a space guy who rides a motorcycle that Grandma & Grandpa got him, and he was also pretty excited about getting Don’t Break the Ice. But really he loved everything he opened, and played with it all at some point during the day.
It was surprising, yet pleasing for me to see how much the kids played together. There were lots of things that they both loved and it was a glimpse into our future, when they can actually entertain themselves and play with each other. I could see it…that day is coming! All kidding aside, it was really cool to see their bond growing right in front of our eyes.
By far, though, the greatest thing about today was having all of the family together. Well, not all of the family. Of course the Florida Athertons weren’t here, and of course we wish they would have been. But as much as they hate the cold, I don’t really see that happening anytime soon. I can’t even describe how awesome it was to have everyone come to us this year. Sure, it meant a little bit of extra work for us getting ready, but it was nothing compared to driving the 2 hours up and back and spending the night in Sycamore. Sure, we love doing that, but on Christmas, it was soooooo nice to let my kids stay home and just play. I really owe my whole family a great big thank-you for making the drive this time. We got a couple of great family shots. Well, ours is not great, but it’s decent. I’m hoping that Grandma or Aunt Nancy got a better one for me to post, but for now this will have to do.
Overall, we had a wonderful Christmas Day. I hope I always feel this appreciative for everything that I have, because I truly am very happy and extremely blessed.
The most surreal shopping experience ever
Yesterday Dave and I dropped the kids off at Aunt Theresa’s so we could completely finish our shopping. We just had a few things to get, but most of those things were at different places and we knew that we’d be running around most of the afternoon. Although it was a little bit of a madhouse at most stores, the shopping went great. You know those days when things just fall into place and you’re finding everything you want even cheaper than you expected? Well, it was one of those days. Then we went to Toys ‘R Us.
We just needed one more thing for each of the kids from Grandma and Grandpa Kerber. They give us an amount to spend, and we do their shopping, too. We actually had several ideas for Ben, and at one point we even had two different things in the cart while we were still deciding. We finally made a decision and were really excited about what we picked. I think he’ll love it. So then we were looking at things for Emma, when I looked down and there it was sitting on the shelf…the Bounce Back Racer. Now, let me first give you some background on this thing…I had first seen it on Jon & Kate Plus Eight earlier in the fall. Their kids were playing with them (in a shameless product promotion) and I thought Ben would love it. Well, apparently every other parent of a toddler thought the same thing, because they became impossible to find. No stores have them, even though they’ve been in the ads a lot. Amazon has them…for sixty bucks! Ebay has them…but most of them are going for at least that, too…often times more. I’m not sure that they have reached the status of the Cabbage Patch Kids from the 80’s, but they are obviously in high demand.
So, back to the story. I look down and there is one on the shelf. I grab it and say, “Oh my goodness, Honey, LOOK!” I really couldn’t believe it was in my hands. Brand new…$34.99. At that same time, a Toys R Us employee and a man walk up behind us and I hear the clerk say, “Oh, they just got it. Well, maybe they’ll decide against it.” Dave and I are kind of looking at it and at each other not really knowing what to do. The clerk askes me if he can scan the shelf marker and says, “Yep, that is our only one. That’s actually probably the only one in Bloomington/Normal.” He gives me a little smile and leaves, but the man who wants it kind of hovers around us, not pressuring, but definitely waiting to see what we’ll do. We talk about it a little bit, trying to figure out which gift we’d already gotten for Ben we’d replace with this. I knew I didn’t want to add another gift. Not only did we have plenty bought already, but then it would mean we’d have to get another for Emma, as well. It just wasn’t neccessary.
I himmed and hawed a bit more, and Dave said, “You have to decide. You were more excited about this thing than I was in the first place.”
So, I turned around to the man and said, “Sir, you can have this…we’ve decided against it.”
“Really?” He said, Are you sure?”
“Yes”, I said. “We are supposed to be done, so we’re going to stick that.”
“Thank you!” He exclaimed. “Happy holidays to you!!” And he walked away with a big smile on his face.
That’s when I thought, “I have made a big mistake!”
It was the Bounce Back Racer…the one thing I had been looking for all season! How could I just give it to this man who had no more right to it than we did! I ultimately do know it was the right thing to do. We had something in our cart that we know Ben will love. We were done shopping for him. There is certainly no reason we needed one more gift. But man. It was just one of those snap decisions that I think I will always question. I know I made that man’s night…if not his holiday season! I mean, who knows…that could have been the one toy that his son has asked Santa for. I guess I’ll just keep telling myself that some family here in town will be very grateful to me for a long time to come.
Seeing Santa, take 2
Ben had a Christmas party at preschool today, and the most amazing thing happened…he talked to Santa! When Santa first came into the room, Ben seemed to be kind of excited, but I saw him turn to his teacher, Mrs. Thomas, and say adamently, “I don’t want to talk to him!!” She assured him that he wouln’t have to. But then, after about 3 or 4 kids had sat on his lap, Ben turned again and said, “I want to be next.” I couldn’t believe my ears! So, up he went to Santa to have a chat. He wouldn’t sit on his lap, but Santa (who moonlights as our IMC assistant) suggested that he turn and wave to me, and he did!
I especially love how cool he was standing there with his hands in his pockets. It was like he was never scared of him in the first place. I feel so lucky to have Ben attend preschool at my school so I can go visit whenever I want. I think I may have had as much fun at the party as the kids did!
This has to be my favorite picture from the party today. Even though it may not look like Ben and his friend Ali (who also goes to Danielle’s) were having fun, it’s really sweet. They were the first ones to sit on the letter carpet and were waiting for everyone else to join them after cleaning up. Apparently, they always sit right next to each other, are often seen hugging, and one of the high school girls told me that last week Ali was rubbing Ben’s back comfortingly while they sat there. It’s too sweet.
Overall, this was a pretty great day. I was so excited for Ben that he found the courage to tell Santa he wanted a new Lightning McQueen.
Seeing Santa
Today was the annual trek to State Farm Corporate to visit Santa. We talked about it with Ben a lot for the last few days, and although he said from the start that he didn’t want to sit on his lap but he’d stand next to him, he was very excited to go. He was excited, that is, until we walked in and saw the big guy in the distance. As we got closer, he started in with, “I don’t want to talk to him…I don’t want any presents…I’m not a good boy…” and other such things. Once it was our turn, he basically froze in terror. Meanwhile, as we were trying to coax Ben into simply talking to Santa, we handed Emma over to the attendant and she plopped 
Ems on Santa’s lap. You can see that didn’t go so well, either. Poor Santa and Mrs. Claus…good thing they tend not to hold a grudge!!
The good news is that Emma was fine as soon as she was off the Big Guy’s lap, and Ben was much happier running around to all the photo spots. At least we were able to get a few decent pictures.
I guess plan B will be to write a letter to Santa. We just have to let him know that Ben wants a new Lightning McQueen!
