poor deer

have you noticed how contorted some of the reindeer decorations look? along lake street there are some very unfortunate golden reindeers that look like they're not having any holiday fun whatsoever, what with the arched backs and the tiny hooves. anyway.

this morning our power went out and my car battery died. liv screamed inconsolably for a good 30 minutes {with her little nose pressed to the door frame} after her dad left for work. the rest of the day sort of followed that theme.

i realized, as i was thwarted at every turn, how much ... less frequently i experience these days lately. specifically since i got married to that bim guy. he has a way of smoothing things ahead of me. i've become used to it--so much so that i bark and growl when things aren't so smooth.



in summary, easier life for me = growlier me. could that be right? must correct.

an eggplant came my way this week, so tonight i made eggplant parmesan for the first time ever, a calming activity that was made possible by "Toy Story" and my daughters' insatiable lust for television. i heard lots of triumphant hoots and hollars from that room and felt my mood stabilize.

to further cheer myself up tonight i thought i'd try to record some of the fun things they've been doing lately.

ally and liv are bonkers for presents {pezzens}. they seem to get just as excited about a present for a stranger as they do about one i've said is for them. that's because of the pretty, pretty wrapping paper lauren and i picked out this year. also because they figure any present could somehow turn into a toy for them. liv keeps trying to sneak them open when i'm out of the room, but ally seems content to wait for the surprise.

at ally's behest we went to the "present store" to choose some little gifts for her friends. based on the things she chose i am pretty sure we could give her the christmas of her dreams for about fifteen dollars.

liv picked out a little boat with a handle and a spout, which has become the favorite toy of anyone who comes within 10 feet of it. ally has named it "Mush," and they take it everywhere. this afternoon ally was playing in a cardboard box, also named Mush, which prompted the obvious question from me: "have you or have you not been racing dog sleds?"

mom, this is rid-ick-lious.
mom, you're very curious.

i know the conversation about strangers needs to happen soon, but she's still never out of my sight, so i've delayed it just a little. it's so funny to me the way she introduces our whole family to pretty much anyone who crosses her line of vision. doesn't matter if she has to shout the information {so much information} across the street, or keep the mailman/gardener/neighbor on our doorstep for 5 minutes while she chats 'em up about any and all topics 4-years old.

hey, [friend's] mom, what do you think of my sister?!

liv prefers an entourage of the inanimate kind. early on she became attached to a little pink blanket. after a couple of late-night searches i got a back-up blanky. now she needs both to fall asleep. and a care bear and a doll and sometimes a pair of shoes, an oven mitt, a digital clock, a flashlight, a sheet of wrapping paper and a sippy cup. it's become quite an operation for her to get from her bed to the door in the morning with everything in her arms.

she wants to do everything "self" now and that slows down our day somewhat. she still lets me rock her to sleep, solemnly kisses her babies when they "kye" and greets ally with a big hug whenever they've been apart. the best news of the week is that she won't lose her two front teeth after a hard fall on the face. why do bad things happen to good babies?

i do feel better now. anyway this day doesn't count as a total failure because she fell asleep in my arms after the first song.

but first she pooped in the tub.