Blog a la Cart

Yesterday we drove an hour to the Yankee Candle Flagship store, i.e. compound, to meet The Man in Red. Sunny was super excited about the day’s adventure, until we arrived at the store and she began expressing reservations.

You see, she’s scared of Santa’s hat.

Also, ‘Rational’ is her middle name. Much like her Mama.

Fortunately, this Santa was sans chapeau! Crisis averted! Thank you, Yankee Candle, for predicting my toddler’s Santa Hat phobia and proactively avoiding a meltdown.

There were no tears, and Sunny very enthusiastically shared with Santa that she would like a grocery cart for Christmas, a thank you very much.

She takes her surname very seriously. And now James and I have our work cut out for us to make this dream come true. Chances that our Food Co-op will let us purchase one of their kid’s carts that inspired this gift request in the first place? We shall see. But I’m planning on making a midnight trip to our local golf course, because we totally need one of those “Park Your Carts Here” signs to compliment the gift slash be all sorts of predictably punny.

I jest. James wants to avoid his wife landing in jail mere days before return to work, so he’s already purchased this one.

Courtland, despite her unpredictable, explosion nature, was very intrigued my Santa’s bristly beard and refrained from causing a scene.

All in all, a successful visit!

You can see the 2010 Santa Experience and the 2009 Santa Experience.

Sunny’s totally photobombing Kaki’s moment.

Big sisters, huh? Always hogging the spotlight. Not that I’d know anything about that.

This makes my heart swell with happy.

Bedtime stories and nose-picking with the Fairy Godparents. Life doesn’t get much better than this.

Fortunately, the only one digging for buried treasure was the two-year old. Promise.

I could watch moments like this for days. They have no idea how lucky they are to have one another.

But one day, they will. Kimmy and I can attest to that.

For more pictures of our trip, and general photo-documenting of our life, give me a follow on Instagram. I’m hooked. It’s great nurse session entertainment. I don’t know why I resisted the calling for so long.

Probably because I’m now buried in my phone, editing images on 3-4 photo apps, all day long. This shit is straight up addicting. And all those $0.99 purchases are eventually going to add up.

Curse you, Apple! You’re my tennis ball.

If you know our bat shit crazy retriever Ursa, you’ll understand why that metaphor is so powerful.

Anyway, South Carolina is pretty gorgeous, no?

Just out on a fall walk in The Berks.

We’re off to the Poconos to see James’ family for a couple days. When we return, I have pictures, stories, and video of Sunny meeting her idol. As in Elmo. Complete with Kevin Clash.*

Prior to her rendez-vous with Elmo and in honor of what would be Jim Henson’s 75th birthday, Sunny posed with cupcakes featuring her two favorite Sesame Street characters. Elmo, of course. And “Monster Cookie,” primarily because he’s blue, her favorite color.

*Kevin Clash is the dude man who created Elmo – the voice, the puppeteering, etc. Needless to say, it was a pretty special meeting. To be honest, James and I were more emotional about it than her.

I love this photo. For so very many reasons.

We went to the Vineyard. It was grand, albeit cloudy and breezy.

I am wiped out from island life, so here’s the trip in pictures.