OK.  Who else is whipped?  I feel like a wrung out sponge.  A spare tear to shed? Not from me.  Done.  And this, only the 3rd day of Christmas.

One deep breath and a good night’s sleep make for the perfect remedy.  A liberal application of lottery winnings would not hurt, either.  Nevertheless…

Christmas morning came.  Eleanor and Saralyn enjoyed three gifts each from Santa.  By far, the Madeline doll stole the favored place in Eleanor’s heart.   Santa tucked the doll inside a princess play tent along with a foot high stack of DVD’s.  Saralyn received an Elmo’s Hot Tomato game, a sit and spin and a simple motor skills flip-switch plaything (you know the kind, you twist a key, push a button or slide a latch and one of 6 little doors on top pops open revealing a plastic endangered species).  These toys of Saralyn’s fell into Elly’s clutches in short order, especially the sit and spin, to a chorus of “I’m doing it!  I’m doing it! (flop). Whaaa!”

When the Family arrived, Eleanor had a very Princess Christmas.  Princess coloring books.  Princess paper dolls.  Princess tea set.  Pretty little girl dresses.  Fluffy toys.  She got so much stuff, I can hardly believe it.  I gave her new sneakers.  Lame old me.  Tony and I also gave her a Fisher Price camera.  Eleanor took many terrible pictures right away, but she caught on to the process quickly (we took the camera to the Aquarium* on Saturday and she took pictures of all the fish.  Tempers flared for a moment when Eleanor saw another child with HER camera.  I fished (haha) Elly’s camera out of my bag to say, “See your camera?  This other child does NOT have your camera.”  She grabbed her camera and ran off to share pictures with her new “friend” by the piranhas.  No kidding.  Toddlers and piranhas.  Coincidence?  I think not.)

Saralyn got what she really wanted: warm food and dry pants.  She also passed a pleasant few hours ripping paper and rattling boxes.   Saralyn, too, got many nice gifts, including her own drum and percussion set, froggie pajamas and Pooh’s Bees light-’em-up bead on a wire set.

My gifts?  Thanks for asking.  I received a nice scarf and some French stuff (my sis visited this year), a few picture frames, a variety of baking pans (including some 6″ tart pans – what to make first???) and a James Avery tree of life pendant from my husband. My sister gave me a gift card that I spent right that very day on pasta roller and cutter attachments for my KitchenAid mixer.  In just two weeks, I can dazzle you all with home made pastas and crackers and so much more.

The family came.  We ate and ate.  All day.   I make Texas Brisket and pulled pork.  The house smelled SO good.  I don’t care to eat another sweet until Spring.  I want FRUIT!  And maybe some high-fiber breakfast cereal.

So, tell me about your Christmas.

*For the next year, I have a pass for the Georgia Aquarium.  I also aquired two guest passes.  If you come to visit, guess where we will go?

I’m not sure how this happened, but Eleanor is ALL about the princesses lately. Princesses! She flits around the house saying, “Ima pwiddy pwincess!!!” and “leds go to dah soccer pardy!” (Don’t ask, it’s from a Super Why episode…). I honestly would be less freaked out if she were into bear baiting or string theory analysis. I mean, who does that anymore???

I look at her and think, “I didn’t raise you this way!” Honestly! Princesses? PRINCESSES!!!

I. Don’t. Understand. Bambi says it’s a phase, but I don’t recall a princess fixation in my own history? I know that I want her to fully explore any area in which she has an interest, but I may have to hold my nose to go through this “rose garden” with her.  It’s so… pink.  Ewejjh!

BUT, that doesn’t mean I won’t use this princess craze to my advantage!

“Princesses use a fork,” I say.

“Princesses don’t fuss when they get their nails clipped,” I say.

“Princesses say ‘please’ and ‘thank you.”‘

And finally, there are the princess panties I bought her today. For each day of the week, there is a different Disney princess to grace my eldest’s bottom. I let her choose from a 40 foot rack of cartoon marketing. She wanted Disney Princesses. After I wrestled them out of her wee clutches at the Target Checkout Line, we brought them home. We sat on the bed for a long time and and looked at each pair: Ariel has red hair, Snow White has black, Jasmine has the purple flowers, Belle has the tea cups, no, I don’t know what movie Aurora is in, etc. We talked about keeping the princess panties dry. “IF you need to pee, TAKE THE PANTIES OFF. If you poo in the panties, I am THROWING THEM AWAY!” And I mean it!

“Princesses use the potty.”

She says she understands. She says she does. But she also says she’s a princess.

At this very moment, she has the Jasmine panties on and is napping. I fully expect to have to wash the sheets after nap-time, but hey, that’s why I got the waterproof mattress pads. Tying and trying again. That’s my theme song!