So, last week I put up Christmas -and allllmost practically that, last week meaning it almost took me the whole week. And because now that I know what I know, next year I’ll be doing it all in two nights and not even trying to lift one box when she is awake. Okay, maybe she will want to help decorate the tree? I’ve always dreamed of decorating the house for Christmas with my kids, and so I guess there is just a liiiittle bit of me that really wants Hazel to be as excited and gung-ho as I am. I mean, she was sure excited, but it was a little bit of a different kind of excitement. More of a oh my goodness those shiny orbs, I need to pull them off the tree. Or, what seems to be her favorite yessss the gold necklace. I love my curious girl.
Anyways, last week I was putting up Christmas during Hazel’s morning nap but because it lasted about fifteen minutes I learned my lesson in the matter. And that is to never, maybe ever, put your Christmas decorations up when you have a curious, walking, exuberant ten month old who wants to be right were mom is. She was so interested about what was in each box, all the glitter and sparkle, I loved watching her reach her little arms into each box to pick up something she was interested in. Usually she would look at it and then just throw it to the ground, but she’s learning.
I think my favorite part was here when she sat for about five minutes shaking that gold garland. I think she loved the sound, the clinking noise they made, that it was the longest necklace she had ever seen. And I was actually letting her play with it. I loved watching her little eyes look at it in curiosity, wondering what it was all about, She’s a smart girl.
In the morning when we wake up her usual request is to see this Christmas doll. It’s an older doll and the top half of its body pivots and chimes two Christmas songs. I’ll put it on the couch and Hazel will stand there -at the foot of the couch, point at it, say “sat” and look at me and dance. She’ll smile with her pacifier half way out of her mouth as she turns her head back at me with an almost a flirty like look as she is bouncing. She’s got me wrapped around her finger that girl. She’ll dance till the doll stops, recently she has started singing too, it’s more of a hum really. Maybe she does it because that’s what I do, it’s really cute though.
Then she’ll move on to the nativity sets that I have -kid friendly of course. She prefers to hold baby Jesus, she’ll walk about with him, put him in her mouth, and when she has moved on to the next nativity I’ll find him on the ground right where she dropped him because something more interesting caught her eye.
We walk to the front room and look at the Rudolf, she’ll laugh at him -maybe she thinks he is a dog. She’ll shake him, like she’s trying to figure it all out, but then she moves on. We walk back to the kitchen and head to the ceder chest, right for that gold garland, she loves it. She’ll shake it and move on because been-there-done-that. We continue these rounds for a while with a few detours here and there -especially to that one kitchen cupboard.
Although I get tired, and sometimes my back aches, I wouldn’t have it any other way, and seriously though I’ll decorate for Christmas any night if I get to spend my days with this little person, she’s my favorite.
