Merry Christmas

Christmas Day has come and gone.  This year we decided to slow the boys down opening their presents.  Santa left us a letter that came with a list of who opened their presents and in which order.  It was wonderful to see Owen slow down and watch other people opening their gifts, taking pictures, 

and sharing in the fun of giving.

Owen loved his Furby and Griffin loved his Ninja Turtles and sewer. Seeing their smiles made all of the hard work worth it.

Christmas was wonderful, but I have to admit I still like the lead up to the day the most.  I love the shopping for presents, Christmas parties, visiting Santa, Christmas crafts, baking, wrapping, decorating, visiting friends, advent calendars, Elliot the Elf, Christmas cards, Christmas books every night before bed, carols, and everything else associated with the season!

Merry Christmas Everyone!

Christmas Eve

 

Owen leaving treats for Santa on Christmas Eve

Every Christmas Eve we have a tradition of making Magic Reindeer food and sprinkling it on the front lawn for the reindeer to eat when they stop on their route.  The boys know that if the reindeer have time, they will sneak in and leave a treat for them in their bedroom.  This  year the reindeer left both of the boys new pj's, a book, a new musical toothbrush and a treat!

 Griffin and I decorate sugar cookies for Santa!  

They were beautiful!

And of course we left chocolate milk as a special treat!

The boys in their new pajamas just before bed

Family Skating at City Hall

We decided to head to Kingston yesterday to go skating at city hall. Love that they have an outdoor ice rink with Christmas songs playing.

We also stopped for lunch at Five Guys.  If you haven't been, 

its a great little burger joint world famous!

A quick stop to Costco and we were home bound just in time 

for a Holiday party at our neighbours.  A great day!

A Night Out with Friends

 A limo ride, dinner at Earl and Angelos, and a great time with friends!

We got together with Jen and Brad, and Jody and Lorne to celebrate the holidays on Saturday night!  We had a great time! 

The boys

 The Group!

 Famous Head Shot

First Snow Fall

The boys could not wait to get home from school, get their snow pants on and play in the snow!  You can see that they play well into the night and that they were soaked.  Although there was snow, it was wet.  

Take a look at their snow suits, they are  soaked!

 Their mission to build a snowman quickly turned into building a snow fort!

Love, Love, Love the Lights and more

 On Friday night, we took a drive to downtown Napanee to see the light display.  We were nothing short of amazed!  The entire downtown is completely covered in lights! There were horse drawn rights, visits with reindeer, and carolers walking the street.

If this wasn't enough, I just happened to find the best boutique ever.  Starlight is a boutique full of great finds, including jewelry, hair accessories, purses, lug, and more.  Even better the entire store was 25% off with a food donation. Down side, I had the guys with me, so very little time to shop.

If you get the chance, its worth the drive to Napanee.  I believe the lights will be on until the end of January.

Enjoy!

Owen with the reindeer

My Little Goalie

 

It took a lot of convincing, he was the last to volunteer, he completed the practice and that was it.... he was done, not playing the game, not a goalie.

But an excellent defense-man!

So very proud of him for trying.

Christmas Tree Treat!

Christmas Tree Treat for the boys to take to their classrooms!

Spectular Lights!

 Love, Love, Love the momentum taking place in our community and surrounding cities that are creating a little piece of Christmas Magic 

for our children and adults alike!  

Tonight we headed to Trenton, for a horse and carriage ride with Santa to visit their wonderful Christmas light display. Hot chocolate and cookies while we waited for our turn on the carriage ride was a highlight meeting Santa and seeing the lights.

Three light displays down, 2 more to go!

Stay tuned!

I Love A Surprise....

especially from this little guy!

 

Family Christmas Outing

 The boys are 5 and 7, and I am trying to squeeze in every bit of Christmas I possibly can!  We took a drive to Toronto to visit Casa Loma for a day of Christmas fun!  We visited Santa, heard stories, did a scavenger hunt, and made gingerbread houses. 

 Love these cute little gingerbread house ornaments

 On the way home we stopped in Cobourg to see the Christmas magic!

The boys were delighted by the light display!

A wonderful day spent with my favourite people!

Gingerbread Building!

 Nothing better than some gingerbread house building! 

Mental Illness in light of Friday's Tragic Events

I have heard a lot of talk about gun control, people talking about how something needs to to be done this time, but not a lot about mental illness.   It is disturbing that so many people have to be killed before a society decides to take notice on an epidemic that has been with us for years.  It is time to learn about Mental Illness, Autism and any other disorder that is affecting these people that are using guns to reach out.  It is time to stop whispering about Mental Illness like it is bad word and decide that it is affecting thousands of people and they need our help, understanding and support.

Everybody needs to read this article below.  I work in the education field and as aware as I am about how this mother feels, and the battles that parents face when trying to help their children, this article is a wonderful conversation piece I think we all need to be having.

I Am Adam Lanza's Mother': A Mom's Perspective On The Mental Illness Conversation In America 

Friday’s horrific national tragedy -- the murder of 20 children and six adults at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut -- has ignited a new discussion on violence in America. In kitchens and coffee shops across the country, we tearfully debate the many faces of violence in America: gun culture, media violence, lack of mental health services, overt and covert wars abroad, religion, politics and the way we raise our children. Liza Long, a writer based in Boise, says it’s easy to talk about guns. But it’s time to talk about mental illness.

While every family's story of mental illness is different, and we may never know the whole of the Lanza's story, tales like this one need to be heard -- and families who live them deserve our help.
Three days before 20 year-old Adam Lanza killed his mother, then opened fire on a classroom full of Connecticut kindergartners, my 13-year old son Michael (name changed) missed his bus because he was wearing the wrong color pants.
“I can wear these pants,” he said, his tone increasingly belligerent, the black-hole pupils of his eyes swallowing the blue irises.
“They are navy blue,” I told him. “Your school’s dress code says black or khaki pants only.”
“They told me I could wear these,” he insisted. “You’re a stupid bitch. I can wear whatever pants I want to. This is America. I have rights!”
“You can’t wear whatever pants you want to,” I said, my tone affable, reasonable. “And you definitely cannot call me a stupid bitch. You’re grounded from electronics for the rest of the day. Now get in the car, and I will take you to school.”
I live with a son who is mentally ill. I love my son. But he terrifies me.
A few weeks ago, Michael pulled a knife and threatened to kill me and then himself after I asked him to return his overdue library books. His 7 and 9 year old siblings knew the safety plan -- they ran to the car and locked the doors before I even asked them to. I managed to get the knife from Michael, then methodically collected all the sharp objects in the house into a single Tupperware container that now travels with me. Through it all, he continued to scream insults at me and threaten to kill or hurt me.
That conflict ended with three burly police officers and a paramedic wrestling my son onto a gurney for an expensive ambulance ride to the local emergency room. The mental hospital didn’t have any beds that day, and Michael calmed down nicely in the ER, so they sent us home with a prescription for Zyprexa and a follow-up visit with a local pediatric psychiatrist.
We still don’t know what’s wrong with Michael. Autism spectrum, ADHD, Oppositional Defiant or Intermittent Explosive Disorder have all been tossed around at various meetings with probation officers and social workers and counselors and teachers and school administrators. He’s been on a slew of antipsychotic and mood altering pharmaceuticals, a Russian novel of behavioral plans. Nothing seems to work.
At the start of seventh grade, Michael was accepted to an accelerated program for highly gifted math and science students. His IQ is off the charts. When he’s in a good mood, he will gladly bend your ear on subjects ranging from Greek mythology to the differences between Einsteinian and Newtonian physics to Doctor Who. He’s in a good mood most of the time. But when he’s not, watch out. And it’s impossible to predict what will set him off.
Several weeks into his new junior high school, Michael began exhibiting increasingly odd and threatening behaviors at school. We decided to transfer him to the district’s most restrictive behavioral program, a contained school environment where children who can’t function in normal classrooms can access their right to free public babysitting from 7:30-1:50 Monday through Friday until they turn 18.
The morning of the pants incident, Michael continued to argue with me on the drive. He would occasionally apologize and seem remorseful. Right before we turned into his school parking lot, he said, “Look, Mom, I’m really sorry. Can I have video games back today?”
“No way,” I told him. “You cannot act the way you acted this morning and think you can get your electronic privileges back that quickly.”
His face turned cold, and his eyes were full of calculated rage. “Then I’m going to kill myself,” he said. “I’m going to jump out of this car right now and kill myself.”
That was it. After the knife incident, I told him that if he ever said those words again, I would take him straight to the mental hospital, no ifs, ands, or buts. I did not respond, except to pull the car into the opposite lane, turning left instead of right.
“Where are you taking me?” he said, suddenly worried. “Where are we going?”
“You know where we are going,” I replied.
“No! You can’t do that to me! You’re sending me to hell! You’re sending me straight to hell!”
I pulled up in front of the hospital, frantically waiving for one of the clinicians who happened to be standing outside. “Call the police,” I said. “Hurry.”
Michael was in a full-blown fit by then, screaming and hitting. I hugged him close so he couldn’t escape from the car. He bit me several times and repeatedly jabbed his elbows into my rib cage. I’m still stronger than he is, but I won’t be for much longer.
The police came quickly and carried my son screaming and kicking into the bowels of the hospital. I started to shake, and tears filled my eyes as I filled out the paperwork -- “Were there any difficulties with… at what age did your child… were there any problems with.. has your child ever experienced.. does your child have…”
At least we have health insurance now. I recently accepted a position with a local college, giving up my freelance career because when you have a kid like this, you need benefits. You’ll do anything for benefits. No individual insurance plan will cover this kind of thing.
For days, my son insisted that I was lying -- that I made the whole thing up so that I could get rid of him. The first day, when I called to check up on him, he said, “I hate you. And I’m going to get my revenge as soon as I get out of here.”
By day three, he was my calm, sweet boy again, all apologies and promises to get better. I’ve heard those promises for years. I don’t believe them anymore.
On the intake form, under the question, “What are your expectations for treatment?” I wrote, “I need help.”
And I do. This problem is too big for me to handle on my own. Sometimes there are no good options. So you just pray for grace and trust that in hindsight, it will all make sense.
I am sharing this story because I am Adam Lanza’s mother. I am Dylan Klebold’s and Eric Harris’s mother. I am James Holmes’s mother. I am Jared Loughner’s mother. I am Seung-Hui Cho’s mother. And these boys—and their mothers—need help. In the wake of another horrific national tragedy, it’s easy to talk about guns. But it’s time to talk about mental illness.
According to Mother Jones, since 1982, 61 mass murders involving firearms have occurred throughout the country. Of these, 43 of the killers were white males, and only one was a woman. Mother Jones focused on whether the killers obtained their guns legally (most did). But this highly visible sign of mental illness should lead us to consider how many people in the U.S. live in fear, like I do.
When I asked my son’s social worker about my options, he said that the only thing I could do was to get Michael charged with a crime. “If he’s back in the system, they’ll create a paper trail,” he said. “That’s the only way you’re ever going to get anything done. No one will pay attention to you unless you’ve got charges.”
I don’t believe my son belongs in jail. The chaotic environment exacerbates Michael’s sensitivity to sensory stimuli and doesn’t deal with the underlying pathology. But it seems like the United States is using prison as the solution of choice for mentally ill people. According to Human Rights Watch, the number of mentally ill inmates in U.S. prisons quadrupled from 2000 to 2006, and it continues to rise -- in fact, the rate of inmate mental illness is five times greater (56 percent) than in the non-incarcerated population.
With state-run treatment centers and hospitals shuttered, prison is now the last resort for the mentally ill -- Rikers Island, the LA County Jail and Cook County Jail in Illinois housed the nation’s largest treatment centers in 2011.
No one wants to send a 13-year old genius who loves Harry Potter and his snuggle animal collection to jail. But our society, with its stigma on mental illness and its broken healthcare system, does not provide us with other options. Then another tortured soul shoots up a fast food restaurant. A mall. A kindergarten classroom. And we wring our hands and say, “Something must be done.”
I agree that something must be done. It’s time for a meaningful, nation-wide conversation about mental health. That’s the only way our nation can ever truly heal.
God help me. God help Michael. God help us all.
(Originally published at The Anarchist Soccer Mom.)

 

What to do with your Christmas Cards?

I have always kept my Christmas cards, but what a cute way to keep them organized!

Simply make a cover, punch two holes and attach them with a circular clasp.  Love it!

I am sharing this idea again because it is so dang cute!  Snap a pic of the Family Picture Christmas cards that come in and use them as your contact photos on your cell phone!

Christmas Tags

I just love these!!  These will be on my list of gifts to make.

You can see more about them at:  www.eighteen25.blogspot.com

here's what you'll need:

• paper mache round box (4x4x2 - found ours at joann's)

• ribbons and/or ric rac

• twine and mini clothespins

• white acrylic craft paint

• pencil with a new eraser

• coordinating sheet of cardstock

• 3" circle punch

• silhouette or scallop punch

• 8x10 tag sheet (two colors to choose from)

for the tags:

• print out your sheet of tags and punch them out with the 3" circle punch

• cut out 3.5" scallop circles with the silhouette or a scallop punch and adhere to the back of the tags

  Download the tags here:

Snowman tags

Christmas tree tags

for the box:

• dip your pencil eraser into the paint and add polka dots all over your box and lid

• once the paint has dried, glue your ribbons around the outside of the lid

Gingerbread House Making

Griffin and I spent a wonderful afternoon together putting together his gingerbread house. We especially loved the shredded wheat roof and the jube jube laneway.  But I think Griffin's favourite part was sampling the treats along the way!

Peppermint Bark Cheesecake

We were hosting a gingerbread house competition on Saturday night so I decided to try making a cheesecake.  I have never made one before, but it wasn't actually too hard until I read the instructions for baking. I needed to bake it for two hours and then turn the oven off for an hour while the cheesecake stays inside and then it needs to refrigerated for 12-24 hours...... I should have definitely read this before baking!

I threw it in the freezer for 3 hours and it was good to go!  And tasty!!

Here is the recipe:

Peppermint Bark Cheesecake

Crust:

• 2 – 3 cups finely ground chocolate graham crackers*
• 6 – 8 tbsp. of butter
• 1/3 cup of sugar
• 1/8 tsp. salt

*Note: 2 cups is fine if you only want crust on the bottom, but no sides. Use 2 1/2 – 3 cups if you want sides.

Cheesecake:

• 5 (8 oz.) packages cream cheese, softened
• 5 eggs
• 2 egg yolks
• 2 tsp. vanilla
• 1 3/4 cups sugar
• 1/8 cup flour
• 1/4 cup heavy cream
• 10 oz. white chocolate
• 1/4 – 1/2 tsp. (to taste) peppermint extract
• Red food coloring

Chocolate Ganache

• 6 oz. bittersweet chocolate, chopped
• 2 tbsp. powdered sugar, sifted
• 4 tbsp. cold (important!), unsalted butter, cut into small cubes
• 1/8 – 1/4 tsp. (to taste) peppermint extract
• Crushedpeppermints

Process

1. Get out your cream cheese, eggs and cream and let sit while making the crust so that they are at or close to room temp by the time you need them.
2. Grind up crackers in a blender or food processor if necessary. Mix crumbs, sugar, salt and butter in a bowl until combined and press into the bottom and if you want, about an inch or two up the sides of a 10″ springform pan. Place in a preheated 350 degree (F) oven and bake for 10 minutes. Take out to cool. Turn off the oven.
3. In a large bowl, combine cream cheese, eggs, egg yolks and vanilla; mix until smooth.
4. Add in the sugar, flour and heavy cream and blend until smooth. Do not over-mix as this will create more air bubbles which can contribute to your cake cracking.
5. Melt white chocolate on the stove over low heat or in the microwave. Mix into cheesecake batter.
6. Transfer 1/3 cheesecake batter into another bowl. Stir in peppermint extract and a few drops of food coloring.
7. Pour 1/3 of the original batter into the prepared crust. Drop in spoonfuls of the peppermint mixture on top. Pour in the rest of the original batter over that. Finally, drop in spoonfuls of the rest of peppermint mixture and swirl it all around with a knife, but don’t overmix.
8. Place in the oven and then turn it on to 400 degrees (F). Bake for 10 minutes. Turn the oven down to 200 degrees (F).
   Full size: Bake for 3 hours. Then turn the over off, prop open the door slightly and let cool for 1 hour. Finally, place in your refrigerator and chill for a full 24 hours.
   Small size: Bake for 2 hours. Then turn the over off, prop open the door slightly and let cool for 1 hour. Finally, place in your refrigerator and chill 12-24 hours. Remove springform pan.
9. To make topping, melt chocolate on the stove over low heat or in the microwave. Remove from heat and let stand for 3 minutes.
10. Using a small whisk, stir in powdered sugar, followed by the pieces of butter. Stir in peppermint extract. If the mixture is too thin to spread, place the bowl over ice water and stir for a few seconds or until it thickens.
11. Quickly spread a thin layer of chocolate on top of the cheesecake (if it gets too firm, put it back on the stove over low heat for a minute or so). Sprinkle with crushed peppermints and gently press them into the chocolate. Let set at room temperature for at least 10 minutes before serving.

 

Christmas Pinterest Party

I hosted a Christmas Pinterest Party last week.  

All of the invited guests were asked to bring along a favourite Holiday treat that they found on Pinterest for everyone to enjoy.  I thought this would be a great way to actually stopping pinning and actually making.

We had a great selection of treats and no duplicates.  I also had a Christmas ornament craft prepared for the girls to make.  

We had a great time sharing our pins, recipes and company!  This may just become a tradition!

 

The Return of Elliot and My Christmas Tree

 If you remember, last year I got my very own Christmas tree.  Yes, my very own.  This means I get to pick the ornaments, I get to decorate and lastly I get to admire my beautiful tree from the front window!  But don't worry the boys still have their tree as well, that they just adore and I did let them hand a few ornaments on my tree as well!

As promised Elliot our Elf returned on December 1st.  The boys had been anticipating his return for quite some time.  His arrival did not disappoint the boys.  He came with a letter and present for each of the boys and the anticipation that Christmas was right around the corner.

If you haven't heard of Elf of a Shelf, it is a book that comes with an elf that your family gets to name.  Every night the elf flies home to Santa to report how the boys and girls in his home have been behaving during the day and returns early the next morning to be found in a new place for the boys to find.

Each morning the boys say good bye to Elliot before leaving for school and every evening they say goodnight!

A Visit with Santa at the Safety Village

 It has become a tradition to visit the Safety Village each year to visit Mrs. & Mr. Claus.  The kids get to visit each of the little buildings in the village, stopping for hot chocolate at one, chilli at another, and so on and so on.  Of course the highlight is meeting Santa, and this year didn't disappoint.  Unfortunately Mrs. Claus was under the weather and we didn't get to visit.

Owen was able to have a great chat with the big guy and he made sure to share his wish list with him!
Love traditions!

Santa even had time for a squeeze with us!  
P.S.  I left him my list too :)