Christmas 2019
Merry Christmas to all!
Xavier's sixth Christmas (seventh if you count his time in the womb). How time flies. He has excitedly waited for today since Thanksgiving. He has led the charge in decorating, baking cookies and turning on the Christmas tree and lights. When we put up the tree this year, we had to find and wear our Santa hats. He even wore his Santa hat to school twice.
With so much excitement brewing (Xavier went to bed late and had some trouble falling asleep as one might expect), he awoke later than he has these last several days. His face lit up when he did get up and round the corner to see the tree lit up (without his help), his stockings filled, his treat for Santa nothing but an empty milk glass, cookie crumbs on a plate, the apple Santa asked him to remember (for his reindeer) missing and a note from Santa.
Xavier excitedly read Santa's note thanking him for both the snack and the apple. Together we sat in the dark and looked at the lights, discussing the presents under the tree.
No longer able to sit still, Xavier hopped off the couch and inspected all the gifts under the tree. He found two new ones not there last night. He read the tags and they read "From: Santa"
"Hey, Dad. This wrapping paper is the same as ours," Xavier noted. He immediately noticed what I had hoped he would not: our parental error in not checking what wrapping paper had already been used. Oops!
Like the Grinch, I had to think up something and think it up quick. This year has been difficult in keeping the Santa story going. A number of classmates have chipped away at it. "Well, maybe Santa used our wrapping paper," I answered. "Maybe Santa sent one of his elves to get the paper to wrap the gifts."
He bought it. "Yeah!" he exclaimed. Then, his patience at its end, he ran to find Mama still sleeping in bed. "Mama!" he cried, "Santa sent an elf to use our wrapping paper!"
With Rebecca now up (and after she grabbed her first mug of morning coffee), Xavier tore into Santa's gifts, likely forgetting about the parental faux pas of the wrapping paper. However, that paper mistake will rattle around in his brain in the years to come, eventually bringing a reckoning.
After Santa's gifts, Xavier opened his presents from Mom and Dad. He did not so much as ask as he pulled them out from under the tree, stopping just short of tearing into the paper. With a nod from us both, he ripped into these as well.
Xavier was sure to bring the presents for Mom and Dad to us. He wanted us to open ours as well, and to enter into the present-opening joy of the day.
Once the immediate family gifts lay unwrapped, and their identities kept secret by the decorative paper exposed, it was time to call the extended family and open the gifted they had shipped. In all of this, Xavier's enthusiasm never waned.
What was his favorite present this year? Hard to say at this point. We thought it was the marble maze (he's wanted one for years). Aunt Kathy's camera gift blew the marble maze out of the water; that camera released a tiny paparazzi. Of course, Xavier had not yet discovered the upgrade to Minecraft I installed on his computer.
Camera or Minecraft upgrade. The jury is still out.
Xavier spent the rest of the day playing Minecraft or stalking family and guests in the house with his camera. He got some descent pictures of squirrels in the yard also. We did have to discuss with him when it was inappropriate to take pictures after he burst into the bathroom where Mom made ready for the day.
We had several guests over today. With a later than planned dinner, we watched a movie and snacked (Xavier spent the time figuring out the new "toys" in Minecraft).
After a fine dinner, Xavier finished the day playing with a Hot Wheels track one of our guests brought for him, then took a bath. After another movie, Xavier hit the sheets an hour past his bed time and fell to sleep.
Christ is Born!
Visit to Santa
Greetings to everyone.
Today was a busy day for everyone. It began two weeks ago when Rebecca asked what holiday activities did we want to do this year as a family. She had already lined several up, including a trip to Colorado Springs to hear Handel's Messiah and an overnight on the grounds of Glen Eyrie Castle, where we listened to the concert.
Of course, we had to get a Santa visit in. The malls have moved Santa from a fun family affair to a monetized machine. This year, Rebecca discovered Union Station in Denver was having a free visit with Santa from 10:00 through 14:00. Pictures available if the parents took them. She even went so far as to go downtown and check out the setting to determine if it was worth going.
It was decided. We all got out of bed early and had a simple breakfast. Then, to the early service at church so we could make the 10 to 2 window.
Last year, we took Xavier on the Santa Train down in Canyon City. This year, we took Xavier on the light rail into Denver to see Santa. It would be his first time on the light rail.
Xavier enjoyed the train into Denver. After getting off the train, we walked to the station and put our name on the waiting list. Only a few minutes, we thought, no more than thirty. Three hours we were told.
Xavier spent some time making friends with other boys waiting to see Santa, playing shuffleboard.
As it was nearing lunch (we had an early breakfast), and Santa was totally up on modern technology, apps and texting, we three left the station in search of food.
After walking in the cold (it was a little frigid today), we boarded the 16th Street Mall bus. We targeted a pizzeria (it sounded good to us all, not just Xavier), got off the bus and walked several blocks (did I mention the cold?) only to discover Google was wrong about the pizzeria's open time. No way were we waiting another hour or so exposed to the elements.
We walked our way back to 16th Street and found another pizzeria we had spotted from the bus. It was open, and warm and had tasty pizza by the slice.
After lunch, we walked down the street and visited the Christmas Market. Once we exhausted what could be seen there, we hopped back on the bus and returned to Union Station.
After warming ourselves with hot chocolate, we explored the station a little. We were on the second floor when Santa's savvy app texted us to come get in line. We had been tracking our place in line by the app, which let us know what place in line we had, and how fast the line was moving.
We got in line, which moved us to the front in about fifteen minutes. Xavier jumped up on Santa's lap, posed for photos, then laid out his wish list: a train.
Santa said he'd "see what he could do." He instructed Xavier to leave an apple out for his reindeer.
We walked back to the W line and returned home on the light rail.
It was a fun day for us all.
Roller Skating
Hello to all.
Xavier's school held a fund raiser at a local rollerskating rink last night. The school uses the skating rink several times a year for such purposes; it even gives discounted rates over the summer to students interested in skating during off-school months.
Last year Xavier was not interested in skating at all until the very end of the night, after the skate rental closed.
This year, he wanted to skate and he did not want to wait to the end of the night to start. He wanted to skate as soon as we got there.
The skates they had for first-timers his size fit over his shoes (just barely). We got him fitted up, strapped in, then found a walker for him to use.
Well, there was a complication. Xavier did not want to skate alone (even though many of his classmates were zipping by). He wanted Daddy to skate with him.
Daddy has not been on roller skates since the early seventies. That did not matter to Xavier, so off to the rental window we went.
Unfortunately for Daddy, they did not have an adult sized walker, so the three foot "crash wall" was my walker.
Xavier, however, skated around the rink quite well, only falling two or three times. He made several rounds then wanted to play some arcade games. He remembered playing the games last year (instead of skating), and the selection of games did not change in twelve months.
We ended the night shooting dinosaurs running amok in some Jurassic Park setting.