Freddie Bear's Pajama Day

For his last day of the semester, Freddie had Pajama / Polar Express Day!

As luck would have it, his new, red robe showed up in the mail last nite. He was VERY excited to pair it with his snowman jammies and even told me that he'd look more like Santa if he wore his black belt with the robe instead of the red one that came with it (he also wore the Santa hat that he bought with his own money at Dollar General; he was very generous and bought Jones one, as well, which made me so proud of his kindness).

I agreed, so off he went for what he tells me was a great day in Pre-K!

"Santa! I KNOW HIM!"

Today, we went to see Santa Claus ... not just ANY Santa Claus, "OUR Santa Claus," as Freddie refers to the Smokey Mountain Santa. We showed up at the Lowe's in Waynesville about 10 a.m., and Santa saw the boys walking up, so he walked up to them first. "Look at how you've grown," he told them.

When they sat down for their visit, the boys made the requests they've been planning to make for a while now. Jones asked for a Captain America alarm clock, and Freddie asked for a Nike jogging suit. Santa said he'd do what he could, and the boys walked away convinced they were on the Nice List, as opposed to the Naughty List (which, they say, Greenville Pop is on).

I guess time will tell!
_____

Side note: for posterity's sake, I also want to record what their Christmas wishes have been for each of the years they've been cognizant of actually asking for something, which started the year Jones turned four.

2016: Jones - Stinky the Garbage Truck / Freddie - puzzles
2017: Jones - a trolley / Freddie - a Batman watch
2018: Jones - a Captain America alarm clock / Freddie - a Nike jogging suit

a very Pressley Christmas

Tonite, we celebrated Christmas with the good people of the Pressley Group. One of Jeremy co-worker's, Denise, suggested a spot in downtown Waynesville, and it was just perfect with its private dining room and its delicious dinner.

For their part, the boys did really well. Their behavior wasn't perfect, by any stretch of the imagination, but it was definitely as good or better as any other kids their ages would've been. For that, I was really, really thankful - and very, very proud!

Also, Jones's jacket may be my favorite thing he's ever worn. I bought it for Freddie, because Brother Bear loves a blazer (and pretending to be Topham Hatt when he wears them), but it came in and was closer to Jones's size than Freddie. No matter which son is wearing it, I think it is so sensational.

Waynesville Christmas Parade

There's not too much to say about the Waynesville Christmas Parade, except that we went and that we had a swell parking place in the lot of the pawn shop across the street from Bogart's.

It ended up being a good thing the car was close by when Freddie "shared" his Ginger Ale with Jones by pouring it down the front of Jones's outfit. A perfectly-timed "push" of the can when it was Jones's turn to drink was all it took to send Big Brother, freezing, into the warmth of our van.

Side note: if I ever run away, it'll be stuff like that that has pushed me out the door. It's not necessarily malicious; it's just mischievous and, when you have to deal with it 947 times in the course of a single day, it's enough to make a person lose her ever-loving mind.

Or maybe it's just enough to make ME lose my mind.

Regardless, my mind is currently so lost that I was thankful Nature called before the parade started. It gave me an excuse to walk the two blocks to Jeremy's office and kill the next fifteen minutes in the sweetest solitude I've ever tasted.

I had to force myself to rejoin the pack, getting back just before the Ginger Ale "incident." I then spent the rest of the evening trying to keep Freddie warm and trying to decide if he was just faking it when he said he had to go potty.

Jones, on the other hand, was in the catbird seat. According to Jeremy, who joined him in the car a little while after Jones first climbed in, Jones narrated the parade, giving a play by play of every float, which, if you know Jones at all, isn't even one itty bit surprising.

Thursday nite is the Christmas Parade here in Canton. Of course, we're planning to be there. I am NOT, however, planning to pack a Ginger Ale.

Freddie's First Show!

This time last year, I took Jones to his first-ever mainstage play. He and I saw "A Charlie Brown Christmas," presented by my beloved former employer, the South Carolina Children's Theatre.

Freddie definitely wasn't ready then, and when I bought the tickets, I wasn't sure if he were ready this year - Jones can watch cartoons all day, every day. Freddie ... can't, so it was a big risk buying for four, but I figured we'd never know if we didn't go, so off we went.

But first, we had lunch with Lila. She turned 11 on Thursday, so we celebrated today at Trio (Freddie INSISTED on cutting his own chicken fingers, inspired, I think, by seeing Fred Flintstone cut his own steak, and no. That's not a joke. BOTH of my boys are perpetually reenacting cartoons).

Then, Jeremy, the boys, and I walked the four or so blocks down Main Street to the Peace Center. It was a beautiful day - perfect weather with lots of folks milling about, as they do in downtown Greenville.

Jones recognized the Peace Center as "where Mama works," and he and Freddie loved running around the plaza, while I went to the box office to collect our tickets. They even got to play in the fake snow created by a machine near the Concert Hall entrance.

Because I had lots of loose change, they also got to make a wish in one of the fountains, as we went into the theatre. They wished for the same things they asked Santa for - Jones wants a trolley with a key to make it go, and Freddie wants a Batman watch.

At least, they're consistent.

Also, notice how Freddie throws his coin and then blows their air as if to blow out candles. Apparently, all he knows about wishes comes from birthday cakes.



We got settled into our seats about ten minutes before showtime. Because of my Board involvement, Jeremy and I gave a (very small) donation to the theatre. I asked that they list it "in honor of Jones & Freddie Pressley," and Jones was 1000% enamored with seeing his name in the playbill. He kept opening it up and saying, "Mama, I wonder if my name is in here?" and then he'd make a big to-do about seeing it.

The show was awesome. I remain amazed at the incredible caliber for performances SCCT continues to do, and I am so, so proud of my affiliation with the theatre - both past and present.

Both boys did really well. There were a handful of times that Freddie'd say, "Is it over yet?" and he got restless for a minute, but for the most part, he behaved perfectly. I definitely won't hesitate to take him back, which is a good thing, because we've already got tickets for both "Flat Stanley" and "Madagascar the Musical."

In what may have been the highlight of the whole day, Jones got included in the musical! At one point in the story, they're trying to decide who's on the naughty or nice list. Several elves come down into the audience and ask kids their names. When they yell the name to Santa on stage, Santa tells them whether they're on the naughty or nice list.  When the elf Tenchie asked Jones his name, he wouldn't speak to her, but I did. "It's Jones," I said. She yelled, "Jones!" to Santa, and he said, "NICE!!!!!" Jones said, "I'm on the Nice list! How 'bout that?" All afternoon, he gloated about that, which was adorable. 

I am so excited that now both of my boys are old enough to be my theatre buddies. I hope it's a habit we keep for many years to come!

I love this picture of Jones with the cousin
he calls his girlfriend. 

The house lighting in the Gunter
makes for HORRIBLE pictures. The color is
AWFUL and, in my feeble, iPhoto attempts,
unfixable, but still. At least, he'll have a few
photo memories of his first show.

Because of their excellent behavior
(and because I had some extra change),
they also made wishes on the way OUT of the theatre. 

Batman watch & Cat Boy shoes.
Something tells me BOTH of these wishes will
come true this Christmas season.

"Deck the Halls" to make Jones jolly ...

Jones Pressley is a Kevin McAlister-kind of kid. By that, I mean that nothing on this planet makes him happier than holiday decorations. I know ALL kids love decorations, but Jones seems to love them more than what is normal - or maybe he's just better at expressing his delight.

Regardless, it is for his pleasure ALONE that I hang hearts on his door in February, put scarecrows on the porch in October, and do the myriad other holiday-specific things that I do, because trust me: those things are not done for ME or even Freddie. He could care less, or so it seems.

Because of Jones's great love, though, I've kind of begged Jeremy to let us do some "exterior illumination" here at the house. He's okay with greenery and white lights, but Jones's appetite is for the tacky, the tasteless, the totally off-the-wall. Give us your inflatable Santa peeking out of a plastic outhouse. Then my baby boy's Christmas cheer will be complete.

Thus far, Jones's hunger for outdoor holiday decor has gone unfed. This year, however, I found a loophole. "Jeremy said inflatables weren't allowed in OUR yard, but what about the BOYS' yard," I wondered as I saw a "very tasteful," 4-foot-tall Santa on sale for $17.99 at the Waynesville Lowe's.

Without much hesitation, Jeremy agreed, and a few weeks ago, the boys and I got the clubhouse all dolled up. We added lights and the wooden Rudolph that used to bedeck the Pressleys' halls, and the result is a display to make Mama's Little Griswold catch his breath every time he steps outside.

There aren't many things that could make my Christmas merrier than that.