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Wednesday, December 14, 2011

Attack Of The Santas! and Snowmen! and Elves!


It was a dark and chilly night like any other night in this small country town. I was sitting at a teensy-tiney table at a cozy little bar on the east side of town, watching my hubby play acoustic guitar. Suddenly a large band of ruffians entered the room hooting and hollering. They were pushing forward and filling the small bar in all directions including the outside porch. Dressed in red Santa suits, Santa dresses, Santa mini-skirts. elf gear, Santa hats, and glowing lights, the space filled fast. There was even a giant abominable snowman!


Accompanied by a pair of polite Marines carrying a donation bucket, this sudden invasion was the 3rd annual Santa Pub crawl organized to raise money for the 'Toys For Tots' program in our area.


Ben continued to play classic rock tunes rallying the crowd into sing-a-longs! They gladly participated, singing and dancing with their merry little selves...or elves. Song requests were made and played. The donation bucket was passed around in the ensuing frenzy.
"Santa Is In The Building!" a large Elvis Santa exclaimed! And so he was, and quite a jolly ole' fellow. Since I only had my teensy-tiny phone camera with me this past weekend, I did my best to capture the magnitude of the massive Santa attack on this venue. The Santa people just kept streaming into the bar. It was red Chaos! So how often do you see "Frosty" drinking a beer? Or Santa? Or a gaggle of Santa's drinking for that matter?


Unfortunately the Queen had to quickly vacate her teensy-tiny table due to a flock of young chickies who started to fill the Queens table with their drinks as if the Queen was not present. They were so busy squawking, texting, and taking photos of each other, they were obviously unaware of their rudeness. The Queen's Guardian Angels whispered to "get out now!" "Something is going to happen!" I quickly scooped up my belongings from the table and shoved them into my precious fairy bag. As I stood and turned to leave the area, the foreign drinks on my table began falling over and spilling in all directions. I was thankful I heeded the message to vacate the area, other wise my notepad, me, and my bag would be a sticky wet mess. 

Then the rude girls who caused this minor incident, turned their backs, and ignored my requests to pass, so that I could go sit by my hubby up front. Since I have encountered this behavior in other venues with young women before, I wonder if parents teach their children kindness and consideration anymore. Not the first time my dining table in a club has been used as a trash bin for young adults drinks. I say get your nose out of your phone, come down from your "me, me, me cloud" and notice what's actually happening around you, in the now, little teensy-tiny girls! I also notice they will often ignore each other, to text someone else, that they are having a wonderful time...doing what?....texting?


Eventually the Queen was able to take refuge from the claustrophobic red velvet crowd on a bench near the hubby. Safe from the invasion at last! No it is not the first time I had to save myself from over zealous young people. Once a girl decided to do a cheer-leading flip onto some guy and kicked me in the side. Never a dull moment on the road! Even on a teensy-tiny one!

The crowd was having a great time singing with Ben and that was fun to watch. Even the owner was dancing with the Santa girls. He then thanked Ben for doing a great job of uplifting the crowd, and making great music for everyone to enjoy. The long line of Santa's trailed out and into their yellow school bus, a bit happier than when they came to this bar...and the Queen let out a teeny-tiny sigh of relief. Ho! Ho! Ho!

Saturday, December 10, 2011

A New Baby To Love!


Welcome Liam Patrick! It's been a whirlwind of a week! This little guy came a few days earlier than my daughter expected and everyone was scrambling to take care of baby biz.  Liam weighed 9 pounds, just like his big sister Aowyn! He is officially the family's Christmas present this year! How cool is that!!!???!!!


When Aowyn first saw her little brother Liam she exclaimed "Baby!"  The following day when Aowyn saw him she said, "Another Baby!"  Of course Grandpa is thrilled to be experiencing a little boy too.



Aowyn was so gentle and just wanted to constantly pet Liam's little head. She spontaneously and gently kissed his forehead too. At two and a half Aowyn still has to learn not to lean her weight on him, and to be calm and careful. Tapping on Liam's clear bassinet in the hospital and calling out to him was a fun game for our girl!


When Liam would make any crying sounds Aowyn would say, "You okay Baby?" "It's alright baby." Then she would look around and make sure the adults were noticing the baby needed something.


Our little guy Liam is so alert and constantly looking around, even though we know his vision is limited to up close faces. Which is why I just love this photo of him concentrating on Grandpa Ben!


While my daughter and Aowyn's daddy stayed at the hospital with their new baby. Aowyn stayed with us. Grandpa and Grandmum got full days and nights of Aowynisms and her non-stop energy. Watching Grandpa read her bedtime stories was so precious! Took me back to when I read books every-night to my two babies. Good times.


I hope your holidays are filled with good surprises and awesome presents! We are feeling thankful and blessed that everyone is doing so well. Life is good at the Castle. It's easy to see why Grandmum and Grandpa will be having more years of adventures in toddler land!

Frames and some backgrounds: Coffee Shop Blog, Textures: Shadowhouse Creations, Other Backgrounds: Eledhwen, Manu Designs, Bottle caps: Paula Kesselring