Butt-Kicking Weekend

Friday afternoon Luis and I started discussing the long list of things we need to get done in the next few weeks, not only for Christmas, but to get ready for our trip as well. There are a lot of things that need to get done. A lot. Really. Inspired by the conversation, we decided to get down to business once the boys went to bed (stop it). Actually, before they even went to bed I went upstairs to the boys' 'new' room and finished the second coat of paint. Check one.

After they went to bed, we pulled out everything we have bought anyone for Christmas. Most of it is going to Peru. We stuffed 8 stockings for our nieces and nephews, sorted jackets and clothes for them and Luis' siblings and put everything into bags for each person. We packed it into 2 suitcases (!) Check two. We then wrapped all the boys presents, including a new kitty:

Check three.


Saturday morning I got to visit Kathy for a little while. I saw these cute fabric Christmas trees and wanted to make some, but needed fabric scraps. Thats when having a friend with an entire craft room comes in handy :o) She gave me a bag full of fabric to use. When I got home it was time to move. Taye and I took a trip to the video store to rent a movie for the boys to watch while Luis and I lugged furniture around. I'll give you one guess which movie he chose. Taye joyfully watched Cars (twice) while we moved, but Darius would not be bought. He wanted to be part of the action, following us up and down the stairs (not a good idea when large, heavy objects are involved.) He settled for a trip to WalMart and Market Basket with Nana instead (yay Nana!) Luis and I kicked butt (thus the title of my post) and moved three rooms worth of furniture around while they were gone. Giving us:


The boys' new room (which we are all still sharing - and yes, those are sleeping babies, I didn't get around to taking pictures until last night):

Our new bedroom, still filled with junk since we aren't using it and the downstairs closet isn't finished:

And the downstairs guest/play/computer room. A new favorite hangout (soon to become even more popular as it will be the home of the new train table).

Oh, and that giant armoire on the right, that used to be for extra sheets and the boys clothes. It was supposed to go up to their room. It was way to heavy, so now it stands empty. Luis has designated it my craft supplies storage area. I like him. :o)

Moving is done. Thats a big check four.

Once we moved, however, there was a big, lonely, empty spot in the livingroom. It will soon have a papasan cushion with tons of pillows piled on top and baskets of books nearby. But not until after Christmas. Oh, what to do? How to fill that space? Why, with a Christmas tree of course!

Sunday afternoon we went to pick out our tree. To those of you who will say its too early, you're wrong. It is the perfect time. Picking out the tree, and a perfect one at that, was easy. The rest of the process became a comedy of errors. Somewhat resembling a nightmare.

We brought it home and screwed in into the stand. Luis tightened the screws with a pair of pliers, but it still seemed a little wobbly. Satisfied we had done the best we could, Taye and Luis watered the 'thirsty' tree. They filled the base. Full. Remember that.

We left the tree for the next few hours to give it some time to settle. Nana made dinner and after we all ate together we started the decorating. Naturally, we put the lights on first. Two strands of multicolored lights. One of which, we discovered after putting it on the tree, was broken. After checking the bulbs and fuses in an attempt to fix them (we got half the strand lit) we decided we needed a plan B. The broken lights came off, and the one remaining strand of colored lights was re-wrapped evenly around the whole tree. We then took a strand of white lights and wrapped that around the tree too. We checked them before putting them on the tree - they worked. Darius thought the lights were very pretty.


Once the lights were done, it was time for the strings of silver beads, always a favorite. We have an extra strand just for playing with, they are so popular. They went on without a hitch, even Mack got in on the fun.

Sometime after the beads went on there was a toy snatch-and-run, resulting in a trip-and-faceplant and a fat lip (which also chased Nana away for the night).



At this point, Luis and I also came to realize why the tree was still so tippy. We had forgotten to smash it down onto the metal spike in the tree stand, so it was balancing on top. A very precarious position. We had no choice but to unscrew it and smash it down. Fortunately the ornaments weren't on yet. Unfortunately the base, as you may remember, was full of water. We made quite a splash (ha.)

At this point, Darius, who had not taken a nap, was done for the day. We took a break while I put him to bed. When I came back down, Luis, Taye, and I finished with the ornaments, and Taye put the angel on top.

It was anything but a serene, joyful event (in fact at one point I felt the need to listen to The 12 Pains of Christmas). But it is done, and the result is very pretty, if I do say so myself:


I also set up our ecclectic Christmas decorations on the entertainment center:

We have our Peruvian nativity set, which I love:


And my newly finished fabric trees, one of which is missing the top since someone was having fun playing with the cones as I finished them. I was thinking of painting the wooden snowmen, but I kind of like them unfinished too, so we'll see.


And Nana got the outside decorated as well.


So the decorating is done. Check five. And after Taye went to bed, I worked on our Christmas cards. I finished and ordered them this morning. Check six.

I'm thinking tonight I may do some knitting. Or pack the boys suitcases for Peru (it will be summer there). Or maybe address a pile of envelopes. The choices are almost infinite.