Trying to feed a four-year-old and one-year-old at the same time by yourself in a house with no heat is what I imagine it was like for General George Washington coordinating and attempting to feed hungry soldiers at Valley Forge.
… at least I haven’t had to cross the Delaware… yet.
……… send reinforcements fast… and a space heater.
There was something about this house that stood out the first time I walked inside… it wasn’t the normal things that people might notice like a kitchen, bathroom or storage space… it was The Cupboard Under the Stairs that stood out for me. Immediately I knew I would have some pretty big plans to carry out. As an elementary school principal and former teacher I know how important it is for children to have a space of their own to read and do school work, and a space where they feel comfortable. Clearly I took my inspiration from the famous cupboard where Harry Potter spent most of his childhood.
The project took about two weeks total to complete (as I was doing a little bit of work each night after Jackson and Oliver went to bed). The first and most difficult part was the actual planning of the project. With so many amazing Harry Potter related ideas floating around in my head it was hard to narrow it down to a few so that the boys could actually fit in there. The before was a blank canvas… just a bare, cold storage space that was not very inviting:
I wanted to give the room a warm feeling, especially since these cold winter months here in CT are a great time to get comfortable and read your favorite book. I chose to go with Harry’s school colors: Gryffindor maroon and gold. The Harry Potter series provided us with so many amazing quotes, so I wanted to have some of my favorite visible each time you walk into the cupboard. They are a good reminder for the boys… “have fun, work hard, and stay true and honest.”
The walls had a few scribbles from the previous owners, but were otherwise bare and white. What better way to get to know some of the most beloved characters in the series than to have them represented collage style? The Daily Prophet front pages provided a perfect way to feel the ups and downs of the seven books… from Harry Potter winning the Tri-Wizard Tournament to The Dark Lord Returning… these front page newspaper headlines did just that! (I used Mod Podge to seal the walls in case sticky little toddler fingers sneak in a snack at some point!)
Completing the walls and with the Daily Prophet headlines, brought us to a big decsion… did Jackson (as the oldest he had final decision making powers) want a window in his newly created Cupboard Under the Stairs???? Of course the answer was a resounding, “YES!” and why not… its not like his dad lacks any type of real wood working skills… (just kidding, I had no idea what I was doing!) But, honestly it wasn’t that hard… I found a really cool looking picture frame that utilized a window shutter design and just installed that on the existing wall and presto (magical pun intended!):
… add in some faux brick to give it a, “your about to enter Diagon Alley look” and the cupboard was complete with a working window:
The ceiling was full of nails and staples from the hard wood above… and if my sons inherited any of the “clumsy gene” from their father, it would not be long before we were bandaging children’s heads… so with some work from a hammer and a great second hand find, (Harry Potter Quidditch sheets), the ceiling seemed safe enough while also providing a great view of the Golden Snitch about to be caught! (I covered the header beams with parts of the Marauder’s Map in case the boys needed to see what was going on at Hogwarts as well.)
Of course no reading room can have a hard wood floor… you need a plush carpet to curl up and read on… if you take out the face that the guy at Home Depot needed three hours to figure out how to work the carpet cutter… this part was pretty easy to do.
Lastly, no Harry Potter themed room is complete without its very own Hedwig, and as Prof. Lockhart would say, a troublesome Cornish Pixie. Add in a few pillows and a Marauders’ Map blanket and Jackson and Oliver will be off reading about Harry Potter and friends in no time!!!
Now we could just get the kids to dress like this all the time we’d be all set! LOL
PS: why does the Harry Potter series resinate with me so much… read about that here:
What a great way to ring in the new year… with this little meatball hitting the eleven month marker. He’s happy as can be and is already a hit with the ladies. Go get ’em little guy!
Every toy has been unwrapped, opened, put together, had batteries installed and played with. Now to shove them in a corner so the boys can play with the toys Jackson got for his first birthday three years ago. Matching outfits are packed away never to be seen again until the above picture comes out at some holiday get together 20 years from now.
Elfie has returned to the North Pole… (thank god)!!! Santa has come and gone and in his wake is enough cardboard and wrapping paper to pollute the Mississippi River (I still can’t spell without that little tune we learned in third grade). Only one wine glass was broken yet somehow 30 more boxes of decorations than we owned last year seem to have made their way into the attic.
I’ve written about this before, but I still contend that the day after Christmas (especially for someone with OCD) is the worst “day after holiday” of the year. Yea, I know what I’m saying… I was up all night and celebrated a Packers Super Bowl win just a few years ago and had to get up early the next day for work, but that was a joyous wake up… my team won the Super Bowl, so who cares about that day after… I get it… but for me the day after XMAS has always been a disaster.
However, this year… I tried to let it go as best as I could. I let stuff stay out, I didn’t pack up ornaments or the garland on the mantle. the leftovers weren’t nearly packed in separate Tupperware (yup… that’s right, I just covered them with tinfoil). I allows my children to play with their toys and didn’t even make them put one away before playing with another. I sat comfortably while a fire burned warmly in the fireplace, and enjoyed watching my two little boys play together with all the new toys Santa left them the day before.
This Christmas was about them… not me… not anyone… just them… and I enjoyed that much more than a day of OCD controlled cleaning and organizing like I usually do on December 26th… (at least for today).
“Just one Christmas tree bite…” Let’s do this Santa! Enjoy the cookies. Jax really enjoyed making/eating them!!!
PS: When you try to get at least one good picture of all three cousins on their first XMAS Eve together:
I think it’s safe to say Jax is going to pretty high maintenance like his dad… but this Oliver kid? Not him… he’s a keep it simple and get straight to the point kind of kid.
Case in point: Oliver’s first letter to Santa (circa Dec. 2017):
Brothers:
When your son’s first love is an electronic intelligent personal assistant. #Alexa #FirstLove #Echo #Amazon #LoveAtFirstListen ❤️😘
Thanks @amazon. As if he’s not growing up fast enough, now he’s already found true love… and the worst part is she very well might feel the same way about him… he is a pretty cool kid.
So today I heard someone complain about how it is “ridiculous” that anyone takes their kid to visit Santa Claus. Why would you “lie to your child?” Again it was in passing and I’m not completely sure I know exactly what they were talking about… but I’ll assume from context clues that she was referring to the absurd rumors that Santa Claus is not real. And by absurd rumors I mean, of course Santa Clause in real.
I don’t mean in cute ending in all of the typical Christmas movie way in which we say of course Santa is real… in our hearts if we all just believe. No, I mean, I don’t have enough patience to fight a herd of people willing to trample another human on Black Friday to save $8 on a Westinghouse LED TV. I do not have enough money to pay $175 for a $13 Fingerling Monkey because someone bought the last three cases of them and is now jacking up the price on the nearest Facebook Tag Sale Site. Listen I love my kids… I love them immeasurably, but I don’t love them enough to hide a stupid elf all over my house everyday. I have enough butts to clean up after around here… I don’t need to be responsible for anymore.
Nope… not me… not now… not never. I am not Santa… and the reason I am not Santa is because the only person who is Santa is the real Santa. Now listen I’m not 100% sold on the “Elves make all the toys in their workshop” stuff… even Santa is smart enough to know Indonesia trades for pennies on the dollar snd he can get way more for his buck by outsourcing at least some of his toy making. It doesn’t take Wall Street Journal reporter to know you don’t keep a small mom and pop company thriving for thousands of years by making poor business decisions.
I very much enjoy watching my older son interact with Santa now, talk about him… call me out when I threaten to email Santa because he isn’t listen, “Yea, call him.” But there is something about watching a child meet Santa for the first time. The raw emotions are just so authentic. You either get the screaming and crying or the child that says “I’m going to pull off your beard you imposter… you’re not the real Santa… you smell of beef and cheese!”
Then there is Oliver… little ole Ollie-burger… just sat there and sized him up… “sure Santa you want to hold me for a picture? No problem, but just know I’m the one who knows if you’ve been naughty or nice…” and I guess, in the end, just give the magic of Christmas a chance before deciding if Santa is real or not… and in this case… I know Oliver knows he’s real… besides would anyone else stand outside in 25degree weather handing out candy canes if he wasn’t the real Santa? I think not.
PS: Slick move by Jax trying to bribe Jolly Old Saint Nick with his special Taggie. Listen buddy… at this point it’s going to take a lot more than a taggie to change his mind… but nice effort.
I guess it’s time this Elf on a Shelf thing happens. He’s here… And I can’t say anything to change that. Santa has a lot going on. I know that. You know that… we all know that. So of course he has little helpers everywhere and this house is no different.
Elfie is here to check things out. He’s just going to be a silent observer of sorts as Santa described. Bottom line… when Santa asks you for a favor… well, he’s not the type of person you can deny.
12.1.17
When your kid won’t eat breakfast… but your elf will. #Christmas2017 #Elfie
12.2.17
12.4.17
This has been the most elaborate Elfie appearance so far and will probably be the most elaborate one of the season…
PS: Is this a Flour Angel or crime scene body outline?
12.6.17
I’ve resorted to this. #Elfie #Christmas2017
12.20.17
And this effectively ended Elfie’s life… you don’t sit near, let alone in, Buster and Max’s food bowl and expect to live to tell the story. Thanks for a fun run Elfie… sorry your hat and leg were gnawed off.
I’m not sure how or why Elfie makes such a difference in some households… maybe it’s because here we don’t spend six hours suspending him and props from the ceiling with elaborate decorations… but our kid could care less about this thing, who he reports to and what the repercussions may be from misbehaving.
Case in point… RULE NUMBER ONE of fight club… don’t talk about fight club… RULE NUMBER ONE of Elf on a Shelf… don’t touch the Elf on a Shelf. To Jax this means… literally not only touch the Elf, but take him and body slam him repeatedly and then launch him into orbit. We’re screwed with this kid… Santa I hope you packed enough coal.
Sorry Sons: Chronicles of a New Dad 