Christmas: Chipmunks & the Gingerbread Family

With four sets of parents living in different locations, holidays are tricky. We have been on a four year rotation. This was our year to stay home. It worked out for the best as the stress of preparing for my Zumba evaluation crippled my immune system and left me defenseless against the seasonal cold. By Christmas Eve, my voice was completely gone, allowing me to experience a truly "silent night." Thanks Rich for making all the holiday calls for us.

The morning of Christmas Eve, we accompanied Uncle Mort, Aunt Lacie and the cousins to the matinee showing of The Chipmunks II: the Squeakquel. Good recommendation Molly! It did not disappoint. It was a blissful moment listening to Rocky's constant giggles and seeing Jack mesmerized by his first big-screen movie. I've never seen him so still, only moving every 10 minutes or so to rotate between Aunt Lacie's lap and mine. We completed the experience with a trip to the theatre arcade to pretend to play the games. How long can we make this last until the kids will actually require quarters to be entertained?

Then we spent a quiet Christmas Eve at home with just the kids, for the first time. Unsure of how to proceed during this precedent event, we were relieved when my friend Jennifer showed up with a family of gingerbread cookies that bore a striking resemblance to us. An hour of playing ensued as we danced and marched our tiny Sorensons around the table, dipped them in milk and utilized every movie quote that could apply such as, "It's just a flesh wound"..."I'll bite your legs off".. and "Not my gumdrop buttons!" David threw in a few of his own and Jack growled and gave a commendable impersonation of the Cookie Monster as he devoured tiny ginger Jack. David, disturbingly, insisted on dismembering and consuming the Momma cookie.... maybe it's just because it had the most frosting... yeah... I'll go with that. Like the family parades we are known for, this will be another Sorenson tradition from now on.

The kids opened their matching Spiderman jammies, pranced and hopped in a spider-like fashion around the living room then were herded to bed... early! Merry Christmas us!

Christmas morning was perfect! Their reactions to Santa's deliveries were priceless! Jack headed straight for the miniature drum-set ($20 at Walmart!), sat and began drumming like a little dilettante. Our family band is on its way! Every gift that Rocky received was followed by exclamations of gratitude and, "This is EXACTLY what I wanted! This is the best Christmas ever!" Jack reacted to his gifts with giant grins, exuberant pointing, unintelligible excited babbling and a chorus of "Ooooh's!" Rich and I couldn't have been more pleased with our kids. They really made Christmas special this year. I wish we could freeze their current ages forever. I love this stage! Jack's favorite gift was his puppy Scout that was programmed to say, "Hi Jack," play music and teach him things. By far the most amazing toy I've seen and only $15 from Amazon! Santa found amazing deals this year. I recommend this for any puppy-loving toddler. Jack immediately embraced it with unparalleled joy, rolling around the floor with him and saying, "Ahhh..." lovingly. He takes his puppy everywhere. Scout sings lullaby's to him every night, and we know when Jack is up in the morning when we hear his puppy barking and laughing with him. What an incredible toy.

We joined Grandma Pam and Grandpa Rick on Christmas morning for their traditional fried mush and bacon. Then we returned that evening for a Sorenson family Christmas dinner. Then I collapsed in illness for the remainder of the weekend grateful that the kids had new toys to keep them occupied. David made sure Froggy was included in the festivities and helped him open the toy bins he had placed under the tree for him. David expressed confusion as to why no one else gave anything to Froggy but was placated by our assurance that his contributions were enough to make Froggy very happy.

Happy New Year everybody!!!

Chico's Newest Zumba Instructor

David took this picture of me last Wednesday, moments before I tossed my early lunch (you all know what I mean by that) from nerves and headed to In-Motion Fitness, my favorite and most frequented place in Chico and the spot where the fate of my dance fitness instructing aspirations would finally be decided. I can't remember when I've ever been so scared in my life, though I can think of a few near contenders... I conspired to hide my lack of confidence behind these bright red snake-skin print sequin pants. Would my evaluator be fooled by the ruse? She sat in the back for the hour-long Zumba class busily taking notes. I planned my competition strategy with the other instructor-hopefuls vying for the open position by bringing something different to the usual Zumba routine repertoire. I added to the latin-based mix a little "So You Think You Can Dance" inspired Bollywood, Beyonce, Michael Jackson and a cool-down to the "Day-O Banana Boat" song resembling the crowd-pleasing table dance scene from Beetlejuice. The risks paid off! By the end, my voice was gone, but the class was exhausted and entertained (which is what you essentially desire from a workout, right?), and I was offered the job!! I will learn more after the new year what classes or sub opportunities my job will entail, but regardless, I get a free membership! Yea!! All the hard work (man, it was a LOT of work) paid off. I'm so glad I've found a way to retain my beloved gym membership... and yet still shocked that I ended up here?! Who would have thought?

Christmas Card

Merry Christmas friends and family!! We really wanted to send you all Christmas cards... really. Unfortunately we've been crazy busy lately (my fault mostly). We did make an attempt at a Christmas card but not a single picture turned out card-worthy. How do you parents take pictures of your kids? What are your magical methods? You can see the progression of our picture attempts above. We wish you all a happy holidays!!!

Our new addition to the family....

Presenting... Froggy Pumpernicker Sorenson (named by David). When David and Froggy's eyes first met at the discount grocery store, they knew they were brothers from another mother. When they embraced and the chorus of "ahhhh's" from the fellow shoppers arose, I knew something special had happened. With Christmas money from his Grandma, we were able to take him home, with David insisting that we buckle him in the cart, so he wouldn't hop out due to sheer excitement. Since then, David has taken on the role of Froggy caretaker, dressing him by himself, getting him ready for bed, tucking him in, making sure he is fed equal portions at mealtime. David carries him everywhere on his shoulders. Last night, while driving around looking at Christmas lights, he "shhhh'ed" Jack because Froggy was sleeping peacefully in his lap. He takes Froggy's needs very seriously. I can't help but be impressed.

Don't worry Grandparents.... additional Christmas gifts for Froggy will not be necessary. David has assured that he will not be left out. He added bows to several of his toy bins and placed them under the tree for Froggy.

Jack is unsure of this new development, since the new brother is bigger than him and has already joined the family at the dinner table, while he remains confined to his high chair. There may be some sibling rivalry developing as David seems to have no problem playing with and sharing his toys with the new brother. We may need to adopt another furry buddy for Jack to play with.

Decorating the Tree

It was all very confusing for Jack at first, but soon he and David were meticulously hanging the ornaments with impressive care for such tiny hands. Of course, all of the bows and soft ornaments were chucked at the tree, but that is sort of a family tradition.

Who's Your Mommy?

Confusing times... When Nyla's mom came to pick her up from preschool, she turned to me and said, "Mommy, can I have some milk?" I'm sure her real mommy didn't appreciate this, especially since 2 year old Nyla calls her mom Jeni. She shouldn't feel bad though because Jack insists on calling me "Jodi." His dad is "Daddy" but with me, it is always Jodi. He only says about 5 words total and one of those is Jodi. Why?! I think he knows what he is doing because when I'm not around, Rich claims he calls for mom, but he continues to tease me, repeating it continuously with a clever smirk. He says it so clearly that other people always ask in shock, "Did he just call you Jodi?" Ha ha. He is so independent and disturbingly smart that I often wonder if he is mine at all. He seems like a completely separate little adult trapped in a tiny body and deriving simple pleasure out of life by getting into mischief you're not sure if he's old enough to comprehend and be disciplined for and relentlessly teasing his mother. So my preschool kids calls me mommy and my kid calls me Jodi... go figure.

Don't worry... he actually loves this. He was giggling and yelling "Weeeee...!"

Oh, and in other news, I passed the state exam for my real estate license! Boo yeah! Who's your mommy!

Thanksgiving Food and Giving Food Thanks

Nice play on words, eh? I mean, it IS all about the food isn't it? Thanksgiving is a day to thank those you love by giving them what they love... food. And this year, for the first time, WE were dishing the "food thanks" instead of just receiving it. It was a daunting task to host the holiday but would have proved impossible had it not been for my mom, who swooped in by train (from Utah) to rescue us from culinary disaster. Rich and I didn't know the first thing about turkey cooking (the first thing being it must be bought and thawed in advance... also that there is a goody bag of organs and entrails hidden within the turkey which must be removed and that Stovetop stuffing does not get cooked inside the turkey... among other things). Of all things this Thanksgiving, I was most thankful for my mom, who took the reins as head chef and guided us through the process resulting in a most delectable blend of home-cooked holiday dishes that even the kids were willing to sample. Our guest list grew from 6 to 13 in the final hours (most likely after they discovered the mastermind behind the meal was my experienced mama). We somehow found room for all, though no more than two chairs were alike but the meal was a success! Now I would like to give thanks to the following foods for being so delicious:

1. Our $4 turkey from WINCO that fed us all for a week
2. My mom's candied yam's with pineapple and marshmallows... pure genious.
3. Our mashed potatoes made without the help of a mixer (which we don't own... and you wonder why I don't bake?) which only brother Rob was strong enough to mash.
4. Mixed vegetables with so much butter and cheese they were tastier than cheese fries.
5. Stovetop stuffing and Road's rolls... why make your own when these are SO good?
6. Strawberry spinach salad that makes you feel like you're eating something healthy but with such a sugary dressing that you are definitely not.
7. Deviled eggs
8. Giant home-made apple and pumpkin pies made by our friend Jeni... what a difference home-made makes.

(Unfortunately, this is the only picture we took of the event... too busy I guess).

We had such a great week with Momma K. When I told Rocky she was coming to visit, he said, "Mom... Guess what it makes me feel when you tell me Grandma K is coming? .... Happy!" When Jack spotted her at the train station, he happy-skipped all the way to her, and I thought he would never let go of her.