A Tradition Begins

"How come we never make Christmas cookies?" "Um, because it's two days before Christmas and I have tons of other stuff to do."

Of course that's what I was thinking, but not what I said. And I'm a happier and better mom for it. So we gathered our supplies from the grocery store . . . or . . .

. . . from the baking cabinet (and secret chocolate hiding place).

We made ourselves some cocktails - pomegranate orange fizz for Kathryn, Pinot Noir for me. Hey - we're on vacation!

And we began. First up: the sugar cookies. I cheated and bought the pre-cut frozen ones. Just bake . . .

. . . and decorate!

Peanut Butter Blossoms - unwrap twice as many Kisses as you need, eat half as many as you unwrap.

That way all the math works out just fine.

Everyone has a different name for these: Russian Tea Cakes, Mexican Wedding Cakes, Swedish something or others.

The perfect little hands of a future baker.

They get a little boring after the third roll through the sugar - but they are SO worth it.

The ghost of Christmas cookies yet to come. We had a such a great time. I hope she remembers to ask me next year. And I hope I remember to say "Yea - let's make some cookies again."

Outtakes

Unlike the treks, we here at the Wound Too Tight household have no shame when it comes to posting pictures of ourselves on the interwebs. Our recent Christmas card experience provides just such an opportunity. Mister fancies himself quite the photographer. We have lights and umbrellas and timers and - well, stuff I can't even name. This self photo really proves just how good he is doesn't it?

Dude - is that another chin?? Finally! I thought you'd be perfect forever.

C'mon honey - FOCUS! We have to get this done tonight!

Time for the stand-in. She looks so thrilled doesn't she? Jon - the lighting is too light!

Too dark. Plus - will she be cleaning up at all or is that the look you're going for in the Christmas card photo? Early PJs and pony tail?

OK - I see we've cleaned up and dressed for the picture. Or at least I think we have. Hello - flash??

This picture says "Not everyone will be receiving cards this year because we spent all the extra money on braces"!

"Well then I just won't smile at all - how about that!"

"I am not adjusting my bra strap!"

No - you still can't be in the card Jon - but your eyes look really good in this picture and I do like the scruff!

"Do my eyes match my sweater?" Why haven't we fixed the lighting yet?

Guess who just found out that there is nothing - absolutely nothing - behind any one of the doors in that advent calendar! Yep - just a prop!

Finally, somewhere in the mix of funny, goofy, too light, too dark, wardrobe malfuntion and what have you, this gem stood out. That's my daughter!

It should be noted that from start to finish, I have nothing to with the Christmas card. From conception to mailing, and everything in between, this is and always has been Jon's baby! I do no stamps or envelope licking or anything. I know - I'm lucky!

How Many Days??

Jon and Kathryn take Holli to Petco every year so she can participate in the Christmas frenzy. Holli loves shopping for her own presents. She tolerates participating in shopping for presents for her feline brother and sister. Once home, the presents are hidden in a secret place, only to magically re-appear on Christmas morning. You know dogs - "out of sight, out of mind".

Sort of. Much like the bell on her "go outside" door, Holli has been ringing this "not bell" since the presents went in to the secret hiding place on Saturday.

"Open dammit"

"Maybe I can just get my nose under there and open it up from the inside."

" Oh, I'm sittin' right here until the jolly fat man comes and opens up the closet and gives me those

damn presents. I don't care how many days it is until Christmas!"

Dogs! Just to mess with her, today I think I'll move the presents and see just how long it takes her to figure out she's guarding a bunch of coats and the silver chest!

Cativersary

Hi! It's Sammy. Mom says she's having trouble finding her blog voice lately. Something about nothing to blog about, being boring, nothing much going on - blah, blah, blah. But I have lots to say. Something BIG is happening here. I've been living here for one whole year now and we have been celebrating for a week already. And it doesn't look like it's going to end any time soon!
I LOVE these guys! They don't talk to much but they are loads of fun. You can knock them over and then Mom puts them right back up on the step and you can knock them over again. Mom doesn't seem to like this game all that much but Tig and I have a blast. Plus - those antlers and Santa headband on the dog - you can just bat at those for a while. It's kind of fun and it doesn't seem to get Mom all that mad.

Dad brought this in from outside just for me. Serious fun. Dudes. One night, I climbed up it and then it fell over and then Dad came down in the middle of the night to play with me. He even got the vacuum cleaner out, which is so cool because I love to chase the cord on the vacuum cleaner. Dad was kind of cranky and used a lot of different words. I went up to snuggle with Mom - under the covers. The next night there was a string holding up the tree. Not so much fun.

I've decided to make "under the tree" my new lair. I put all my special things under there - my sponge, my blanket (which I dragged from the Kitty Condo in the basement), my favorite green Sharpie, and a pencil. In honor of my love for my new family I think I will give them each one of these precious things. Except Tig because he's a brat. Mom should get the sponge because she's the one that yells every time it's missing (tee hee hee!), Sissy should get the pencil because she has LOTS of homework now, Dad should get the blanket because ... no wait, Holli can't have the Sharpie because it won't match her fur ....
But for now, I must protect them against anyone who comes near!