Little Miss Bossypants

Apparently, I tell Claire to sit down on her bottom a lot. 

I know this because yesterday we were at Target with some friends. We made big plans to meet up with my fellow mom friend and her two kids in the snack area (concession area? refreshments? what do we call that?) for the popcorn. Our idea of a good time does not require much these days.

Side story: we got free popcorn! Claire and I got there before the popcorn was popped, and she waited so patiently that the concessions gal gave her a free bag. Good girl, Bear!

Everyone sat so nicely and ate their popcorn so sweetly. Passersby were stopping to admire the kids and their good behavior. When they finished eating, we let them get up and walk around/play as little kids do. We moms kept an eye on them and kept on talking...until next thing I know, my friend's son was standing in his chair, and Claire was yelling (and pointing and shaking her finger), "Wichie (her version of his name)! Down! Bottom! Down! Bottom! Keh-Foo (careful)!" 

I got her to stop yelling and explained that she was not his mommy and didn't need to keep shouting. *I don't shout at her, by the way, when telling her to sit down on her bottom.

His mommy: "She is right, though. Down. On your bottom."

If Claire is going to insist on repeating things I say, why couldn't it be something nice? I say those things all the time! Although...these days, I sure do say "Down. On you bottom." an AWFUL lot.

Last Christmas post...

...because we're already over halfway through January, and it's time to be done with the Christmas posts. :)

I just thought I'd share what Brad and I got Claire for Christmas. We knew for a while that we wanted to get her a play kitchen. The first time that she really played with a kitchen was when we visited Bull City Burgers back in August. It was love at first sight for her. She didn't even want to stop to eat. Following that introduction, she played with a few other play kitchens at a few church nurseries and was equally as excited. 

So, we started the hunt. We quickly found ourselves in a sea of choices, which was a little overwhelming. We don't have a dedicated playroom, and Claire and I spend most of our time in the living room/kitchen area, so I knew I wanted something that wasn't a neon plastic eyesore. We also had a very specific amount of floor space that we could work with, so the dimensions needed to be just right. We also didn't want to spend just a ton. 

With those things in mind, we trolled around for some inspiration and found a few options that we both liked the look of. Then, we did what any reasonable grad school couple would, and we set up a search on Craigslist. We are Craigslist people. We utilized it quite a bit in Boston and loved the results. We've used it a couple of times here in Durham, too, so we have a system of sorts for finding things we want. 

We started having things pop up, most of which we knew we didn't want for some reason or another. And, having done our internet research, we knew what were good prices and when folks might be trying to take us to the cleaners. For a couple of months, nothing that we wanted really appeared. We had decided that if we couldn't find something just right on Craigslist, we would go with a play kitchen that I'd found at Ikea (incidentally, the Ikea kitchen popped up once on Craigslist but wasn't a good enough deal for us for a used kitchen). 

And then one day, a Melissa and Doug kitchen came up and caught Brad's attention. I have to admit, I wasn't crazy about it at first. It looked big and bulky. It had all kinds of decorative "kitchen-y" art that I didn't like. It just wasn't what I had pictured. Brad pointed out, though, that we would be getting an awesome deal. And, we could tweak a few of the things I didn't like with some paint and "wall paper" (i.e. craft paper/scrapbook paper). I thought on it and decided to go for it. 

We got it home, threw it under a big blanket in an area of the house that Claire isn't allowed to go into it, put in some elbow grease to clean it up, and got to work covering up the things I didn't like. Like the fake backsplash. And the scuffs and dings that didn't come off with a good cleaning. It really started taking shape...and we decided we loved it.

I was like the kid on Christmas morning the Saturday that we decided to celebrate Christmas here (since we did so much traveling over Christmas, we had our own little family Christmas on the 15th). I couldn't wait for Claire to wake up so we could show her her kitchen.

She wasn't just overcome with crazy excitement, I'll confess, but she immediately knew what to do with the kitchen and played with it all day. We didn't have any play food or anything because we knew that grandparents and other relatives would be getting her some; I just put out some plastic containers and utensils, and she went to town. 

Right after the elves finished up

The "after" of the backsplash. I just wasn't a fan of the decorative "tiles"...so I covered it up with cardstock squares.

"Oh boy! A cotch-y"

Getting down to business. Didn't even notice her stocking.

Doing some plumbing?

"Something is definitely up with the pipes, Mom."

Vanna-ing her kitchen before church.

Reeeeeeeeach!

It's been a big hit, and we are really glad that we pulled the trigger when we did. If you come visit, I can guarantee that you will be roped in as sous chef before your visit is over. :)

Christmas 2014! Alabama Edition

A few days after Christmas, we headed down to Alabama for a week with the Brassart clan. It was another week of non-stopping and lots of fun! Our first night in town, we did Christmas with my mom, dad, and Amiee. The next day, we Christmas-ed with my mom's side of the family...and the next day, we Christmas-ed with my dad's side. Let me tell you- Claire had no idea what to do with herself. She slept really extremely well at night. 

We shared presents, watched football (day of disappointments for all of us...), ate at some of our favorite restaurants, played games, drove through the botanical gardens "Galaxy of Lights," visited with friends (and their horses and bunnies), and played with Amiee's puppy a LOT. It was definitely a successful trip.

Hanging with Nana

Helping Poppy give treats to Winnie, Amiee's puppy (for those interested: Winnie is a Mini Teddy Bear Goldendoodle). Also, Claire calls Winnie "Weenie." Bless.

I tried one million times to get a good shot...and I did of everyone but Claire. Sigh. But how teddy bear does Winnie look here? Also, that is Baby Jesus in the manger under the tree. It's a Brassart tradition.

Doesn't it look like Amiee is wearing a crown?

Claire and Winnie are both interested in the same thing; I just don't know what it is.

Another decent shot of Brad and me. Yay!

Mhmm. We tried to get a family shot in front of the tree about 23,486 times. CLAIRE! Why??

For Christmas, my mom and dad got Claire her very first baby doll. She is smitten. I've been taking pictures of all of Baby's adventures over the last few weeks. I'll share them with you soon.

In addition to her first baby doll, she got to lick the batter off the spatula for the first time. Oi. There's no turning back now.

Then there was the time that Rosemary climbed into Winnie's crate and Claire shut her in...

...and then Amiee put Winnie in Claire's new buggy. It was Opposite day, I guess: kids in cages, puppies in buggies.

After our three back-to-back Christmas celebrations, we skipped approximately a day before we were partying again (for New Year)! By the way, glitter hats leave glitter everywhere. For example, your child's (who has very little hair) scalp. Or her tongue...you know, when she licks the hat, which, apparently, she WILL do.

Still loves the boxes.

Goodbyes are no fun...but hugs and kisses are!

HUG!

And again...CLAIRE! Look at the camera!

We are so thankful for a flexible schedule that allows us to spend such good quality time with our families. Yay for academia, right? We had a very merry Christmas and a fun New Year...and really long car rides in between (thank goodness for the Christmas presents that kept Claire entertained while traveling). We love you, family!

Christmas 2014! Tennessee Boswell Edition

I sure do hope that all of y'all had a wonderful Christmas this year. We Christmas-ed for a few weeks (three), and Claire really got into it. Like many families, we alternate major holidays with my family and Brad's. This year, we did Thanksgiving in Alabama and did (most of) Christmas in Tennessee. Because Brad is on a semester schedule, we have the really unique opportunity to take a large-ish chunk of time over break and, consequently, started our Christmas celebrating in mid-December. This was simultaneously awesome and not awesome. The not awesome aspect is entirely related to Claire and her behavior. She 100% loved being with extended family and 100% did not want to do anything that she doesn't like (i.e. anything I tell her to do). It kind of wore me out.

Claire's distaste for all things structured or discipline-related aside, we had a fantastic time. We began our visit by going to my father-in-law's community orchestra's Christmas concert, which was lovely. Claire had a few play dates with new friends, Brad and I got to head out for about 24 hours of child-free time (we lived it up by eating out, watching the Survivor  finale, and going to bed early), we watched movies, played games, and worked puzzles while eating a lot of fudge and puppy chow by the fire. Claire enjoyed discovering Grandpa's tractor and the creek (KEEK!) in the back yard (she also enjoyed doing basically whatever she wanted).

Gran, Aunt Soup, and the stockings hung by the fireplace with care

The tractor

Fun with Ray-Ray

Studying The Grinch for Christmas Eve

Sweeping with Grandpa

We started Christmas partying on Christmas Eve Eve. Brad's dad and 2 aunts host a party for their first cousins and their families every year (for the past 3 or 4 years, anyway) where we all eat a lot and hang out. It was great, as always. We also got a picture for my in-laws to send out as a Christmas card:

We also had a lot of outtakes that looked kind of like this:

Got this once-in-a-blue-moon good shot of Brad and me:

With Brad's Mamaw and Papaw before the party

With Taco (Uncle Tim) and Way-Way (Aunt Ray-Ray)

Boswell siblings

Christmas Eve in the Boswell clan is a really fun event. Several years ago, the Powers that Be cooked up the idea of doing a themed party, rather than drawing names or something along those lines. Here's how it works: we choose a Christmas movie for the year, study it like it's our job, design costumes, eat themed food, and bring themed gifts for a rollicking round of Dirty Santa. It is high-energy, intense, and fun. This year's movie was The Grinch (the one with Jim Carrey). Now, I wasn't terribly enthused about the movie choice, but I did have a really fun time at the party.

Our menu included Roast Beast sandwiches, Who Hash (Chex Mix), Grinch punch, Grinch kabobs, Roast Beast roll-up sandwiches, Who cookies, and Banana Pudding. LOTS of good food. I ate too much. 

Brad, Claire, and I dressed up...but we were WAY not as enthusiastic as almost everyone else, apparently. Here are some examples of the really good costumes (if you haven't seen the movie, please know that some of these are incredibly authentic and awesome):

Brad's Uncle J.D. dressed up as the Grinch (Ginch! according to Claire), and Claire was REALLY excited. She kept running around him yelling "Ginch!"...thus, this is the only kind of shot I could get of them together.

Cindy Lou Who (Aunt Jenny), Grinch (Papaw), a Who lady (Mamaw), and generic Who child (Claire)

Two Maxes. On first glance, it may look like Chris's costume is a whole lot cooler than mine, but I'd like to point out that I cut an antler off of my $1 headband to be authentic (Max only has one horn) AND I tied red yarn around my head (the Grinch affixed Max's horn with red string). So take that.

You would have had to have seen the movie (and paid very close attention) to get Tim's outfit. If you haven't, just know that this is really clever.

Brad is a variation of the Grinch (note the tiny heart sticker- two sizes too small- graciously provided by our generic Who daughter)...and so is Rachael. Also a very clever costume.

Barbara's was maybe my favorite. She really went all out with the detail and cleverness.

Group shot of the Bill Boswell clan: Tim (version of Grinch), Bill (version of Grinch), Rachael (version of Grinch), Alexis (Cindy Lou), Erin (Max), Brad (version of Grinch), Claire (generic Who child), and Barbara (Betty Lou Who). Nice spectrum of Who/Grinch creativity, y'all.

Two Whos: Aunt Donna and Claire

First pigtails. She REALLY loved the party. SO MUCH.

Post-pigtail hair

Game board #1 (we take our games seriously- Andy and Ashlen cut out that Grinch hand and ornament. Good job, guys.)

Game board #2

The game is what we study and prepare for all year long, folks. It is the centerpiece of our celebration, and we take it quite seriously. When I say "game," you should understand that I'm talking about questions like, "What did the Grinch's hat say in the scene where he coaches Max how to be a reindeer?" and "What time did the invitation say that the Whobilation would start?" and "Who is the first Who in the phone book that the Grinch hates?" We all watch the movie many times over prior to Christmas, take notes, and quiz ourselves. We are pre.pared. My team won, by the way. 

The gift part of the evening involves gifts that tie into the movie somehow. For example, because the Whos eat Roast Beast, one of the gifts Brad and I contributed was an Arby's gift card (roast beast = roast beef). Clever, right? We thought so.

Christmas morning brought a huge breakfast with all of the extended family, followed by presents back at the house. Claire could not have been happier, as evidenced by this picture with Rachael:

And this one by the tree:

Alexis and Bill at breakfast

Brad and Tim

With Aunt Soup (I promise Claire's happy...she is going through a phase where she resists smiling for pictures. It is very annoying.)

Addy during presents. She was a little humiliated by her headwear.

Tim's excited face

One of Claire's gifts. She turned it into a maze of sorts somehow.

We had an incredible time being with our family and sharing lots of fun moments. Barbara made fantastic food, Bill built the best fires, and the dogs were sources of endless entertainment for all. Such a Christmas-y success. :)