So the concern in the house lately was whether the elf (on the shelf) and the tooth fairy might run into each other in the middle of the night. Yes, Evelyn lost her very first tooth, and it was very much in Evelyn fashion.
She discovered the less than secure tooth one day and since then, was fixated on it’s movement. The thought of it falling out was upsetting to her, but we reassured her that it was a natural process and a sign of growing up. Well, weeks went by and she stopped talking about her loose tooth. I figured it wasn’t as loose as we thought and that it still had some time before making it’s exit.
However….one night from the bathroom, I heard a blood curdling scream. Evie ran out of the bathroom, blood dripping down her face and a little space in the front of her mouth. Levi came running after her, screaming in absolute terror as well. “I had the washcloth in my mouth and Levi came and yanked on it...and my tooth fell out!!!!!!!!"
Evie was screaming because her tooth fell out.
And there was blood.
Levi was screaming because Evie’s tooth fell out.
And there was blood.
And they both really didn't know what to make of it.
But to me this was just another marked milestone for the eldest Patton child. The reminder that a lost tooth meant a visit from the tooth fairy seemed to make everything right again, and Evie decided that this was a good solution to her tragedy.
John and I debated awhile about how much is appropriate for a tooth fairy visit. When I was little, I got $1.00; I also got paid $2.00/hour for babysitting. I held firm on my position of $3.00. But John thought we should pay her more. We had to consider inflation he said.
So we settled on $5.00.
SO I started doing the math on how much this whole loosing teeth thing is going to end up costing us.
If each child looses 20 teeth, we are paying them each $100 for a new set of chompers. Times that by four, and we will be out $400.00 at least by the end of this all... That is if by the time they are done loosing teeth there isn't anymore inflation.
Furthermore, if we consider braces and all that orthodontic work that is deemed a necessity for most children these days, we are talking big bucks for those pearly whites!
Well, then while our dear daughter slept peacefully, we doled out our first installment in this process, $5.00.
Christmas vacation happened and every year it makes me consider and stress about summer vacation because I realize what a luxury it is to have some sort of semblance of schedule and activity for my kids. But alas, we are all home, and against my better judgment, I broke down and took my kids one day to one of those germ infested jump houses.
Thirty hours later, James was up half the night vomiting in the toilet.
Luckily, the virus stopped at James, but I got a horrible respiratory infection which even now as I type burns my chest.
My parents arrived from Chicago at the end of the week for Christmas.
I always have these beautiful ideas of how exactly our family Christmas will unfold. Don't get me wrong, Christmas was great, but there are always things (ie. illness, exhaustion, moods, unforeseen obstacles..) that cause us to recalibrate occasionally.
For example, the night before Christmas Eve I had the brilliant idea to pack out our mini van and drive all the way to Portland International Raceway to look at the light display. I didn't consider just how packed the mini van would feel after the 25 min drive there, the 45 min wait in a car line to get in, the snails pace drive around the track, and the accident on 1-5 on the way home that completely shut down the road and created a complete stand still for about an hour. All things considered, the kids were really good, but in the stand still traffic jam, Levi suddenly cried out that he had to go potty. After several minutes of debating what to do and realizing that we were going no were quickly, John tossed back his stainless steel coffee canister and my mom and I guided Levi in how he may empty his full bladder into the mug. The mission was a success, but the mug went promptly into the trash when we got home.
Christmas magic was in its full glory this year. All four kids fully believed, embraced and anticipated Santa Claus. I savored all the moments of Santa sightings in the sky, reindeer noises on the roof and elf mischief around the house. With every year that goes by the veil is striped away a little bit more and this year was so so magical for us.
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| Cookies, Carrots and milk for Santa and crew |
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| Right to bed. They didn't want to miss Santa.... |
The boys got new bikes from my parents, remote control cars from Santa, and Evie received her first chapter books.
Then at the very end, we sat everyone down on the couch and John played a PowerPoint on the TV, revealing the final surprise from us, to them: Legoland! This Spring we will enjoy our first family vacation together and I couldn't be more excited.
I got so animated telling them about it , Evie started crying, "Mom's shouting too loud!"
We had Christmas dinner (perfectly seared steaks from John), Christmas pie, and then Caleb asked to go to sleep. All the kids were in their beds, sleeping soundly by 7:30, dreaming of their magical day of reindeer hooves and Santa cookie crumbs.
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