I remember the first time Suzanne met Santa. It was our first Christmas in Washougal and we took the kids to Meier & Frank (now Macys) to see Santa on the 10th Floor. It was the last year that Santaland was open. Just think "Miracle on 34th Street"--that's what it was like. Suzanne waited patiently in line for nearly 2 hours, smiling and laughing the whole time. The second she got seated on Santa's lap, she busted out crying and wouldn't stop. Kirk's smile was big enough for the both of them, and he refused to let her bad mood spoil his good time. I think we used that picture in our Christmas letter that year--Suzanne yelling and Kirk giddy with joy.
Then there was last year. My sister and I decided to celebrate a little with a Girl's Night at the Melting Pot Restaurant (all fondue, all the time--yum!). Greg is not one to sit at home with the kids, so he got Hilary and took the kids for a ride on the Holiday Express steam train. Suzanne didn't exactly cry when she encountered Santa, but she did look at him with suspicion in her eye.
And then there was last Sunday. The Down Syndrome Network Oregon hosted a Christmas party at the Portland Children's Museum and I would have to say that Suzanne has overcome her distaste for fat bearded men in red suits. She sat on Santa's lap, she danced with elves, she played in all of the exhibits, and she did it while battling a fierce case of plumber's butt. Poor kid could not keep her drawers up no matter how tight I cinched the waistband!
Oh well, Suzanne does not let these little inconveniences distract her from having a good time. Or from meeting new friends. She was quite taken with a little guy named Sam who is 2 1/2. They sat together during the magic show. She stole his snowman, he responded by taking her reindeer. Finally, a man who doesn't let her push him around. Kirk, pay attention!!
It was so nice to have a nice family day considering what happened last Tuesday. Oh gee, did I not mention that we had to repaint the house last week? OK, slight exaggeration. We had to repaint the upstairs from the 3 foot line on down because Suzanne found a magic marker and decided to practice writing her "T's" from Kirk's room clear down to the front door. At approximately 3:30 p.m. last Tuesday I found her sitting in the living room painting between her toes with a blue magic marker. I wasn't too bothered by this because magic marker comes off after about 3 baths. At approximately 3:31, I turned toward the stairs and my eye was drawn upward by the blue marks going up my staircase wall...upward across the computer room door...thence to the master bedroom...thence to Suzanne's door...thence down the wall to Kirk's room. She painted the carpet also. My eye is beginning to twitch just thinking about it.
I hurried to get the marks off the woodwork just in case it decided to soak in and need to be sanded. This took about an hour. Then I started working on the carpet, got ready for a meeting, reminded Kirk to get ready for basketball, released Suzanne from the prison of her room, then discovered that she had done this little number on the living room couch! More squawking ensued as I tried to rescue this piece of furniture and some blue marks on the hardwood floors. We then piled into the car and went to basketball practice, where I was glared at by Greg because I was late. I explained to him that when he saw the walls, perhaps he'd understand. When I got home later that evening, I discovered that he had spent the time repainting. We still have a bit of touchup to do, but most of the blue is gone now.
Kirk is nagging me to put up the tree, which I want to do, but I'm hesitating because....well, you can probably see why I'm hesitating. Sigh! I need to time it so that the tree is up long enough to please Kirk but not so long that Suzanne's tree shenanigans tempt me to flee the country.
Balance, life is all about balance....
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