Oh Tannenbaum Oh Tannenbaum,

Mini Monster would like everyone to be very clear on the fact that WE HAVE A TREE. It's an Artificial Tree, but it's a pretty nice one, though we did spend some time 'fluffing' the posable parts of the branches to fill it all out. It's not 100% decorated, we need to put the tree skirt down and also put on some more ornaments, but it's most of the way there.

 MiniMonster was extremely excited by this, though he was a little edgy when it first went up because everyone was a little stressed. When it was up and lit (It's not lit in the picture) however, he did a circuit of the tree and delicately poked the lights he could reached, and jingled the bells that we hung down low.

 I still need to finish fixing the toe of his Christmas stocking, but it's a pretty good Christmas Season so far.

MiniMonster Furnature Moving Service and Popcorn Addicts Anonymous

 I'm currently watching Mini Monster play on the floor, he's shoved our two 'guest chairs' away from the wall and is sitting behind/underneath them, banging a purple bath octopus on the floor, a shape sorting blue and green elephant, and a rubber bath tiger in scuba gear. ((It's a very interesting plastic safari behind that chair, especially if you include the toys hung between the legs of one of the chairs.))

 It's kinda funny watching him shove the chairs around, I think he likes doing it because it makes him feel big and strong, and also I guess it's his version of building a fort, and moving everything to places he wants.

 I was going to try and see if I could find "Legends of the Guardians", but apparently red-box doesn't have it, (yet). I'll ask tonight if we can check and see if it's on the PlayStation Store. I haven't read the book, though I heard good things about it, and the trailers are absolutely beautiful.

 Owl City also did one of the songs (yeah you can laugh now) which I heard on the radio yesterday, and it was really nice. Even if I don't end up liking the show I want to listen to that song again.

 Aditionally, we've discovered Popcorn Indiana's Caramel Popcorn. The popcorn I mentioned yesterday? That's the one. Their white cheddar isn't very good I don't think, but the caramel... oh that's some good caramel popcorn. They also have a bacon ranch one I really want to try, but they don't seem to have that one in the immediate area. ((I'm seriously disappointed here.))

 I was kind of hoping to find a snack that would replace chips in my snack pantheon, but so far I don't think it's going to quite cut it, unless another flavor is better than the cheddar. Darn.
 MiniMonster LOVES the caramel popcorn at least as much as I do though, which is kind of fun....and has sneaky potential as a last ditch 'get out of that and come here' lure/

Inside every Responsible Adult

 Is a little kid who's pretty convinced that they're making up everything as they go along. I'm having one of those days where I feel kinda like that at random intervals. I dunno exactly what triggers these things, maybe it was playing around on the floor with Owen and giving him a horsie ride on my leg. ((Great work out by the way.)), or maybe it was after I put him down and he made a loving attempt to scalp me. ((He grabbed a big hank of my hair and yanked. Man... remind me again why I'm growing my hair back out?))

 Of course then again it could be that I'm curled up on my couch with a fantasy book, a bottle of fizzy white grape juice, and a big bag of caramel popcorn. There's just something about caramel popcorn I guess that makes me feel like a kid... though admittedly then I was picking it out of Cracker Jack because I thought it was the only part of Cracker Jack worth having. ((I know, sacrilegious.))

 The MiniMonster is napping, and I just had a brief flash where my brain clicked into action and went... y'know... this is OUR house. OUR living room. OUR son. ... How messed up and amazing is this? We're like a responsible adult or something like that.

 I wonder if all adults go through this from time to time.

 On a completely unrelated note:
 I'm going to dust off "Holding pattern for Wild Dreams", a blog I started and did absolutely nothing with before this one, and may use it as a dumping ground for random stories about the RP world(s) I am intermittently involved with.
 The Link is available in the Followed Blogs list. 

MiniMonster has Leveled Up

 So the Mini Monster continues to grow at an alarming rate. He's now taking an occasional bold venture and letting go of everything he's holding onto when standing or cruising. He's even taken forays of one or two steps without holding things, but mostly he'll just let go, stand for a minute, and then either drop to his butt or grab on again. Most of these forays include having his father or I close at hand, but they're really awesome and fun, and we've been telling him how incredible he is. ((He eats it up, and I don't blame him)).

 He's also apparently Cute-leveled. We had to make a emergency run to WallyWorld this morning because the Diaper Pail liner decided to completely run out, and in spite of my certainty that I had purchased refills, either the laundry gremlins took them ((And our new Toothbrush holder... and the brackets for the shelf we're trying to hang in the bedroom...)), I couldn't find a single one. So after that discovery, ((and one extra diaper change I had to stuff in a ziplock to seal and pitch)), We packed up and fled to get stuff.

 We made a quick stop at the dump ((Wow it's so NICE if you get there literally right when they open. No crazy people trying to attack you for your position in the cue.)), and then jumped on the road and went shopping. It took me about 15 minutes to find the refills, since for no discernible or logical reason they'd reorganized things since two days ago, and had stashed them in a totally different location, but I managed to grab four and trot out the door again.

 After he charmed the cashiers within inches of their sanity, he turned his cranked up Cute-powers on a totally random woman in the parking lot, who not only gushed at him (He smiled lots), but called her friend over to gush (He smiled some more), and then gave him a dollar.

 He has apparently leveled his cute powers to the point where strangers will now give him money for being cute. This is truly an amazing power. Now if we can keep this up until college.. *grin*
 But you never know: it might have been the hat.

He's also enjoyed the first snowfalls of the season:

 

And then settled in for a snooze with his new blanket. I think it has a sleep spell on it or something. He dozes off fast curled up with it! <3 ((That's Tilmani by the way.))

I had my own silly little joys on the way back from today's trip. I stopped and treated myself to a hot Mocha and an breakfast meal from McDonalds. The McGriddle was... well great when you're starving but after 10 bites the appeal wears down to middling. I was however, ridiculously excited when we got into the driveway, I started to put the remnants into the bag, and discovered that I had -entirely forgotten- about the Hash Brown. I have a crippling weakness for McDonalds Hash Browns. It was cold, but I popped it in the toaster oven and enjoyed it while MiniMonster devoured some Cheerios and Baby Goldfish.

 Good times!