"May All Your Christmases Be White..."

Wow! When people said that the holidays can be crazy, they were not lying, and I loved every minute of it! At this point, Christmas Eve, New Year's Eve, and all of the events in between seem like a distant but fabulous dream, and I must admit that I am completely overwhelmed by the task of catching up on the blog, so some portions will be brief, others may not make sense at all, and there are probably some glaring mistakes, but I'll give it a go...

Before I jump right into the holiday discourse, I must mention the awesome playdate that I had with Lucas a few days before Christmas. Mrs. Allison had to go visit Aunt Mal at Pearle Vision; therefore, Mom and I got to entertain Lucas. I am starting to realize that there is truth to boys and girls being very different; even though, I still consider myself a complete tomboy. Those differences became quite evident as Lucas was throwing toys across the room while I put on a tutu and started spinning in circles saying, "I a princess, I a princess..." - to each his/her own. Lucas and I did find some common interests: shutting ourselves in the closet over and over again and rolling suitcases all over the upstairs. I kept saying that I was going to Taco Mac while Lucas insisted that he was going to the beach; I have a strange feeling that I need to start getting out of town more. With only a few fights and a couple of timeouts, Lucas and I made it to lunch with very little drama and a lot of laughter. Don't worry; although we are starting to act a bit like siblings, we still have our very sweet moments - kiss, kiss, hug, hug.

December Playdate with Lucas - slideshows

*Note: There are a few videos throughout this post that were taped with Mom's phone and do not have sound due to transfer problems.

Kisses from Luke, a Little Nose-picking, and Crazy Opie:

As the big holiday drew near, I found myself more and more attached to my silly little Elf. He was a crazy little guy who liked to hang from the chandelier, take bites out of my gingerbread house, and even ride on Elvis' pink Cadillac. I must say, now that he is gone, I am going to miss that little guy until next year. The Christmas cards that kept coming in the mail were just about as exciting as my crazy Elf, and they started to roll in by the dozens. Some cards were just for me, as it should be, including a card from Uncle Doug that allowed me to make and decorate my own little paper Christmas tree; thanks, Uncle Doug! I must say that I enjoyed sticking the stickers to floor better than onto the tree, so Mom thanks you as well. Oh, Christmas is a time for giving, and the floor needed some stickers too.

Dad and Mom got to attend SoloHealth's 4th annual Christmas Party a couple of weeks before Christmas. Apparently, things have changed quite a bit in the last 4 years since the 1st Christmas party consisted of just Mr. Bart, Mrs. Aly, Dad, and Mom at a Japanese restaurant. The company is much bigger now and is going to double in size this year. I may only be 2, but Mr. Bart and Daddy should be really proud of themselves!

Daddy continued his awesome streak by bringing Mommy flowers a week later and bringing me my first rose. I was so proud of my first flower until the darn thing stuck my finger. How rude!? Roses may be beautiful, and they may smell lovely, but they are also kind of mean. I got to put my rose in a little vase on top of my dresser for all to see. However, every time I mentioned my rose, I also mentioned my rose-related injury. Poison was very wise when they said, "Every rose has its thorn"; I may be young, but Mom is already on top of my music education. By the way, I was just as excited about the cookies Dad brought home that same day; roses and cookies, who needs anything more?

We are finally getting to the good stuff! I got to have a little pre-Christmas, present exchange with Cameron and Haley a few days before Christmas since they were leaving us to celebrate in California. Great Aunt Marsha outdid herself, and Cameron even helped wrap my presents. I was so excited about the blender that I kept my finger on the blend button for what seemed like hours. I blended the eggs and the butter, and if I had been able to get a piece of toast from my new toaster into that blender, you better believe I would have blended that too. I definitely missed them on Christmas, but the blender was a good distraction to dull my disappointment. Thank you so much, Buice family, for coming to see me and for my awesome kitchen accessories! I hope your roast was not burnt by the time you made it home. Oh, and just to explain one of the following pictures, I am totally obsessed with my feet nowadays. I am constantly pulling off my socks and examining in between my toes. Did you know that you can find some interesting things between your toes? Just a little tip in case you are ever bored.

Prior to the big Christmas Eve celebration, which Mom hosted for the first year since Grandma is technically homeless right now, a lot of baking, cooking, and prepping had to be done. Thankfully, Grandma came to help, and while Mom prepared a few of the main dishes, I helped Grandma bake the truly important stuff, the cookies. I must admit that while Mom's back was turned, Grandma fed me enough cookie dough to hype up a small army, and my overindulgence might have gone unnoticed had I not burped straight cookie dough with the cookie dough still all over my face. I blame it all on Grandma! I did stage quite a protest when Mom wouldn't let me have more. I mean, geesh, what is so bad about eating raw eggs by the carton? Yum! Thank you for coming, helping, and letting me eat all the cookie dough I want, Grandma. These are the great moments in life.

Now, for Mom's favorite day of the year, Christmas Eve had finally arrived. It was really crazy this year since everyone - Grandma, Mr. Denny, Aunt Mal, Chris, Aunt Stephanie, Uncle Ian, Baby Harper, Mr. Carl, Mrs. Sharon, Great Aunt Robin, Hannah, Mr. Brian, and The Wolfs - headed to our house in the 'burbs for the Christmas Eve craziness. There was tons of food, but even better, there were tons of presents. I, apparently having inherited a bit of Mom's OCD, rearranged all of the gifts in the living room so as to entertain the masses, which worked perfectly. Boy, these people are easy. I was super excited to help Harper celebrate her very first Christmas; although, I am not quite sure she was as excited. Here is your quick summary: Grandma, Aunt Steph, and Uncle Ian got me a pink, retro kitchen, which I adore! Mom and Dad learned a good lesson about not giving me my big gift first since I refused to open any other gifts after the kitchen unveiling. Present opening was pure chaos, like always, but this time, Mom got to see it from a whole new perspective of being the host in charge of doling out said presents. We still don't know if everyone went home with their intended gifts. Harper and I got to join the long-standing tradition of matching pajamas with our matching penguin pj's. Grandma, Aunt Steph, Aunt Mal, and Mom continued the tradition with not one but two sets of matching pajamas this year, and of course, they modeled both; they kept it classy, kind of. Then Daddy and Mommy celebrated late into the evening with Aunt Mal, Chris, and Grandma, who all stayed the night. I know someone had to have caught a glimpse of the big man, but no one is giving up the goods. I think that Christmas Eve is sure to become one of my favorite days of the year as well. Thank you to everyone who made it so special.

Christmas Eve 2010 - free slideshow maker with music

Present Rearranging:

Christmas Eve - Guests:

Harper's First Christmas Eve:

Christmas morning was just as magical; although, I am pretty sure the rest of the gang was wishing they had gotten a little more shuteye. Santa, along with Mom and Dad; Gramma Eileen; Granddad Kendig and Grandma Trish were all way too good to me, and I think I made out just as well, if not better - if you can believe it - than last year. We spent the morning opening gifts and lounging around while I destroyed the living room with all of my new toys; no matter what toy I opened, I kept going back to my Thomas trains, especially Spencer. I thought he had gone home for good a few weeks ago, but he came back! I look super cute in my froggy hat from Grandad Kendig and Grandma Trish; the gloves make great monsters, with which to chase Opie around the house. Gramma Eileen got me lots of fun stuff, but my favorites are definitely my train and train track, puzzle cars, and Etch-A-Sketch. The remainder of the day was spent watching the snow and eating. Daddy made an incredible meal! Another successful and overindulgent Christmas is in the bag. I may actually sit on Santa's lap next year without crying now that I know what that crazy man is capable of. I hope all had as wonderful a Christmas, filled with as much love as I.

Christmas Day 2010 - free slideshow maker with music

Coming Downstairs Christmas Morning:

Presents!

Helping Finish Santa's Cookies:

Kitchen Accessories:

A Little Entertainment...and Spencer:

Reindeer Food:

To top it all off, we had our first white Christmas since the 1800s! I am starting to think that I am a snow charm.

White Christmas - free slideshow maker with music

Mom and Dad decided to give themselves a little Christmas present with a newly redesigned bedroom. Okay, we can all admit it now; the green was a terrible color choice from the beginning. In Mom's defense, it was the only color choice in the house that went completely awry. The rents painted the room a much nicer light blue, as well as got new bedding and new artwork. I kindly helped Dad hang the new artwork, and I even enthusiastically let them know that I thought the room looked "beautiful" upon first seeing the new blue color. During these crazy, cold winter days, Opie and I have found ourselves quite comfortable lounging in their revamped bedroom; the bed is even more comfy than before. Merry Christmas, Mom and Dad, and nice job.

New Year's Eve rounded out the holiday season with a bang, quite literally. Mom and I headed to Whole Foods that afternoon to get a nice dinner to cook; I proceeded to try all of the freebies and talked Mom into buying me several little chocolates. The lady at the chocolate counter even gave me a free chocolate for an in-the-moment splurge because she thought it was cute that I kept saying, "I love chocolate!" You people really are too easy. I also got lots of compliments of my awesome sunglasses; those things never fail to attract attention, and yes, they are kids' sunglasses. Dad, mom, and I stayed in that night and had a really nice dinner followed by some fireworks. Like with everything, I was a little unsure at first, but then I found myself cheering with a look of amazement. Fireworks are quite pretty; although, they were still unable to keep my interest for any more than a few minutes at a time. Apparently, I got the short end of the stick, so to speak, for after I went to bed, the party at the clubhouse included a huge fireworks display, which Mom and Dad were able to watch from our couch through the living room windows. Dad said that it was better than most firework shows that he had driven to or paid to see. You guys could have woken me up - how rude! My New Year's resolution is to make it to Sodor, home of Thomas and friends, and to figure out how to use all of the buttons on the remote control, instead of just the fast forward, pause, and rewind buttons. Mom and Dad's New Year's resolution for me is to get me out of diapers, for good. Geesh! There is so much pressure on this whole potty concept. Happy 2011 to all of you: my friends, family, and friends who are more like family. May your year be the best yet.

Firework Faces and New Year's Eve - flash slideshow maker

Due to Mrs. Alisha and Tyler's car accident, from which everyone thankfully walked away just fine, and all the crazy illness that has been going around, our playgroup Christmas party had to wait until after Christmas. Mommy and I made our sinful chocolate pie to take to the festivities; I, of course, had to lick the spoon after each step to make sure that everything was just right. I was super excited to see all of my bfs after far too long of a break from one another. We chased each other around and got out every last one of Tyler's toys; we enjoyed the food provided by each mommy and even indulged their incessant need for pictures. Oh, and we can't forget the awesome trampoline. Sometimes, a gal has got to take matters into her own hands, and when some of my buddies insisted on laying on the trampoline, I nicely, and then not so nicely, reminded them to "get up and jump, guys". Bossy, who me? No way! The only downside to our post-Christmas bash was that Lucas got sick and threw up halfway through, which is why he got relegated to the arm of the couch during the group picture taken right before he headed home. It was crazy, and I stood at the bathroom door with a desperate look of concern on my face. Here we are, a couple weeks later, and I am still talking about how "Lucas threw up, & Opie threw up"; although, Opie always throws up. I insisted the whole way home from the party that "Lucas no go doctor, just need nap"; I was very concerned that my best friend was going to get poked and prodded. All in all, the Christmas party was a blast, and I must thank Mrs. Alisha for that. It will never be a complete Christmas without my best buddies, and as a quick side note, Boris, Grayson, and Parker were very much missed.

As a tribute to my main men, I did make up a new song at dinner the night of the Christmas party. It came out of nowhere, as all of my songs do, and went something like this, "Lucas and Tyler, Lucas and Tyler, I love you..." with the Tyler and you parts being very exaggerated and drawn out. I am a lyrical genius. Unfortunately, Mom videotaped my awesome song on her phone, and the sound did not transfer. I know you are crying on the inside.

Christmas has now been erased from the house, and the removing of my little tree from my room was devastating. I was fine when Mom and I took it down, but the next day, I awoke from nap in hysterics, and when Mom came to get me, I just kept repeating, "Livie's tree, Livie's tree" followed by the most pitiful sobs. I have been promised a plant for my room, and I will see to it that there is follow-through on this promise. I think a moment of silence for my fallen tree is in order...okay, I'm over it now.

Here are lots of quick, little things, events, etc. worthy of a mention, mostly because there is a picture to accompany:

The new restaurant booster seat allowance is working to my advantage. I can actually get myself out of it, which drives Mom and Dad insane but allows me to pull off some fun little no-no's, like sitting on the table and playing with things that otherwise were beyond my reach.

Worth more than just an honorable mention, I got to spend the day with Baby Mo and Mrs. Lisa a couple of Fridays ago. I think Baby Mo thoroughly enjoyed all of my new toys, with which I bombarded him, and I was thoroughly impressed with his crawling and pulling up skills. We'll be chasing each other around in no time. We played a little peek-a-boo, and Baby Mo tried to stick an entire fake egg into his mouth before we headed out to lunch and did a little shopping. I entertained Baby Mo on the floor of American Eagle while the Moms chatted and perused; this big sis stuff doesn't seem like it would be too hard. Love you, Baby Mo, and thanks for coming up to see me and giving me a little big sis practice!

Baby Mo Day - slideshow with music

I found out that Fudrucker's makes some excellent milkshakes, and the lady in the booth behind us just had to stop and point out my impressive intelligence, which she derived from my knowledge of what a clock looks like. Wow, people's standards for intelligence are getting lower and lower, but I didn't tell her that; I just smiled and thanked her.

Not surprisingly, my good friends at Publix are still taking good care of me and spoiling me rotten; even though, I have decided to give them a little of my attitude lately. Ms. Suzana made me a traditional Russian goody bag for Christmas, and despite my refusal to hug her and be nice to her lately, she is still loving on me and providing me with my, usually yellow, balloon. The attitude follows me everywhere nowadays; good luck in about 10 years, Mom and Dad.

Although I got lots of nice toys for Christmas, Piggy has retained his place as my bestie. Mom has made me a promise that, in my own words, if "I nice to Piggy, someday, I have other Piggy" referring to Mom's favorite pig that stays perched on top of her bed. I remind mom of this promise on an almost daily basis before hugging Piggy to show my dedication.

So, I woke up from nap a couple of weeks ago and decided that the time had come; I was ready for big girl underwear. It was glorious! I made it the rest of the day with no accidents; I was super excited about the potty; Tinkerbell looked awesome on me... Then tragedy struck. I had an accident the next morning and adamantly refused to put big girl underwear back on my tush. Instead, I kept begging, "just diaper, just diaper". After listening to about 500 people give her advice, Mom has decided to just go with the flow on this one until I decide I really want to stick with it or until I have to head to college. My butt does look so cute in big girl underwear though, so I think that the final transition is in the near future. It's all about vanity, people.

I have developed a new headband obsession now that I have hair to accentuate. I just don't know which looks better on me; I think they all look great!

I have also developed a new desire to try my hand at nudism. Clothes are for those who have something to hide; I mean have you seen this adorable body!? I fight getting dressed every morning and make Mom chase me around the house until she looks like she is going to lose it. My main goal in life is to send her to the funny farm, but don't tell her that. I've even been practicing my classic, everyday, 'make Mom lose it' face in the mirror so as to perfect my craft. The other morning, I went the extra mile and put a little icing on the nude-escapist cake by doing a Broadway-worthy song and dance number while using a hanger as my prop and Mom's shoes as my costume. Someday, these pictures are going to come in handy for my E! True Hollywood Story segment. I'm so darn cute though; I can pretty much get away with anything, and I know it.

Lucas and I did our own little Christmas present exchange after the holidays and after all of the sickness was at bay. Lucas, Mrs. Allison, and Mr. Ben, whom I ask about constantly, - "Where's Mr. Ben? Where's Mr. Ben?" - got me an awesome matching baby doll necessities set with a stroller, a swing, a carrier, and a pack 'n play. I love it! My baby dolls, and Elmo, are livin' the life now. While at Lucas', I got to test out his new toys, which included a train table with trains and cranes and cars, as well as a race track for his cars. Lucas took me for a ride on his new John Deere tractor, but he was not happy when I wanted to drive it. I preferred riding his motorcycle down the hill anyways. I got to play a little tee-ball and prove that my coordination skills are not my greatest strength before the cold, wet ground forced us indoors. Boy toys are way cooler! It looks like Lucas made out just as well as I.

Post-Christmas at the Wheelers' - slideshows

My first Library Wee Read of the year was a lonely one since all of my friends were busy getting back into the swing of things. I enjoyed counting the monkeys on the bed; however, the loneliness got the best of me, and Mom made me leave before the last book was read for failure to follow directions. I had no one with which to follow directions, so what's the point?


My playroom went through a major reorganization to make room for all of my big girl toys from Christmas - no more baby toys for me. All of my baby toys made their way to the attic or to Harper's house. I was a little distraught to see the exersaucer go, but I guess growing up is hard to do. I did find the hidden moose while we were reorganizing, so that totally makes up for losing the exersaucer. "Mommy, I ride moose to store." To show my appreciation for all of my cool toys, I make sure and help Mom keep everything clean. I'm just good like that.

My new, pink, retro kitchen is probably my favorite gift from the holidays. I love it and insist on throwing every piece of food, every pot, every pan, and every dish out onto the floor everyday; it's fun for Mom too. I have whipped up some pretty tasty meals in my little kitchen. I even served all of my animal buddies "cookies and pancakes" yesterday, and this morning, I made Mom her coffee. Maybe, I should be a chef. Thank you, Grandma, Aunt Steph, Aunt Mal, and Santa for my kitchen and all of my kitchen accessories!

Like any take-charge, independent female, I am getting a little bossy in my old age. Mom caught me reprimanding Goofy in the swing the other day by sternly reminding him that "Goofy, say, 'Yes, ma'am'", and I also let Daddy know that his dirty shoes do not go in the bathtub: "Daddy, shoes in bathtub, disgusting!" However, my favorite one to boss is definitely Opie - "Opie, play now!" "Opie, lay down!" "Opie, eat!" "Opie, no!" "Opie, that Livie's!" "Opie, go outside!" It is all out of love, for I am very concerned about Opie too. When he accidentally got locked out of the house and chased by some strange man the other day, I heard him barking and let Mommy know. Now, I can't stop talking about "Opie scared outside." See, I do love him.

Even with the crazy hair length and attitude of annoyance towards most, I still capture the attention of strangers everywhere we go. Just the other day, I suckered the Lavender clerk into playing with me while Mommy shopped, and I amazed her with my name spelling abilities. Apparently, her 5-year-old grandson can't spell his name; now, let it state for the record that I want to go up against that kid in the next spelling bee.

Happy 3oth Birthday, Mrs. Lisa! According to Mom and Dad, your dancing skills never cease to amaze. We love you!

Who is ready for a little Chuggington dance? Unfortunately, you get the rendition without sound and my very loud "Clackety-Clack" at the end.

With all of that, I still had time to...

visit Mom's old co-workers at RHS and have lunch with Aunt Mal, Mr. Chris, and Mrs. Steph Moletta - watch out, Aunt Mal; you've got competition, for Mr. Chris will be mine;

pencil in a mid-week lunch with Daddy, before which we got Mom's new phone that allows her to not only take but also upload pictures and videos, so now, my every move really will be documented;

get in a little park time with Mom and Dad before the snow hit, after which I spit my water on the ground all the way home and then got in trouble for spitting on the hardwood floors;

model Dad's shoes and socks, and only Dad's shoes and socks, around the house;

enjoy some, and by some I mean regular, bath time with my new bath crayons and, of course, bubbles;

quite literally drink some Miso soup: I am obsessed with Sushi restaurants and their food - miso soup, shrimp tempura roll, calamari, and edamame - oh, yeah;

come up with some great car antics, like the piggy dance and hair mess up;

and find next year's Christmas wish list item.

Now, I am exhausted; I believe it is time for a refreshing, fake snooze in Mom and Dad's comfy bed.

Booyah! This may be a rough blog, people, but it is done nonetheless. Now that the holidays are over and this blog is finally written, I just want to relax with a cup of joe, or orange juice in a coffee mug, and a 100th encore of Toy Story 3. Good day to you and you and you...