Monday, December 22, 2014

There Always Comes a Moment...

...when I wonder what in the world we were thinking.

Each year during Christmas vacation we bring out a new "Christmas Break" puzzle.  It has been a tradition for quite some time now (hence the word "tradition"), and one that we all love immensely.

Well, 3 of the 4 of us love it.  

The other 1 of us sits at the table now and then until he gets frustrated that he can't find any pieces.  That usually takes about 3-5 minutes.  

Last year my son chose this puzzle.


We were in the midst of getting a bedroom ready downstairs that would someday be his, and he was already collecting KU paraphernalia for it.  He had visions of completing the puzzle, gluing it, and framing it to hang in his room.  

Two of the three have occurred...and it is currently sitting in the basement collecting dust. Apparently 13x39 is not a frame size that the average Walmart, Target, Kohls, or any department store in the midwest carries. It is so convenient, however, that there is a website listed on the puzzle box where one can buy the perfect size frame.  That's a handy little business arrangement.

I digress.

This year, in honor of our family's first Chiefs game in October, we chose this puzzle.  Same theory, smaller people. Waaayyyyy smaller people. 


You see, last year, if one looked at the picture on the box closely enough, you could basically tell what the vast majority of the KU fans were wearing.  This was hugely helpful in putting the puzzle together. 

This year, all we can tell is that there is a lot of red.  Lots and lots of red. 

And a green field.

Here they are, getting started.  To the credit of the little guy, he did actually help sort edge pieces for a really long time.

 

He did not, however, help put them together.

  

I had to capture this rare moment as well.  Two boys working on a puzzle and not fighting.  It's a happy mom moment...even if it only lasted for a moment.


Everyone needs a weapon made out of hot wheels race car tracks and duct tape to help them put together a puzzle.


See all that progress? We decided to start with the field -- because it's not red.  See the hundreds of pieces left? All red.  Lots and lots of little red people.

Stay tuned for the finished product, sometime in the year 2015.

We are excited to get it completed and glued together.

So it can sit in the basement and collect dust too.

Saturday, December 20, 2014

Where Did We Go Wrong?

I walked out of the bedroom today, to hear my son singing this rendition of the Twelve Days of Christmas.

On the 9th day of Christmas, my mommy gave to me...9 brand new X-Boxes,

8 iPad Airs,

7 iTunes cards,

6 hundred dollars,

5 diamond rings (which I would sell for lots of money)....


We have obviously done something drastically wrong somewhere along the way.

And, we are going to have some seriously disappointed children in about 5 days.