lesliepear: (Holiday - Alan age 1)
It's 9:35 on Xmas eve. Alan and Mark are asleep (Mark has had a bad cold the past few days, Alan and I never got it that bad). So we had a very quiet weekend. I did manage to get out yesterday and today. Today I managed to go to the grocery store twice, Toys R Us (so Alan could use a gift card someone sent for Chanuka) and Valley Fair (aka Value City) for Xmas ornament hooks. This was the first Xmas in 8 years I put up my tree and somehow I'd lost the extra hooks I had. So it's up and looking it's "Charlie Brown" best. (It's kind of like the tree in the Charlie Brown Xmas special which is little tiny and sparse, but beautifies when they decorate it.!)

Recapping some other stuff:

A week ago Saturday was Mark's uncle's annual Xmas party. Didn't get a new picture of Alan by the tree in my icon, but we did have a good time. Alan joined the kids this year - he's right in between the two youngest grandchildren of Mark's Uncle's. SO. It was nice to see him have fun. There were 2 little baby twins there, very cute - but they didn't make me want to have one (maybe just shop for them...)

The following day was Alan's twin friend's birthday party at Little Gym. Alan enjoyed it, had fun running around - a big change from last year's party @ Chuckie Cheese - he's grown up a lot. Then since it was so warm we went to the local Bergen County zoo, rode the train around the zoo and he played on the playground a bit.

Friday, we went into the city. Alan got to ride free, and when I stopped at Starbucks for coffee, the cashier let me have the organic chocolate milk (which he didn't really drink) for free.

Alan had a good time at my office (I did almost no work, but it was ok). There were a few boys very close in age to him. The boys chased each other, turned balloon animals to weapons and had fun. Meanwhile my coworker's girls colored nicely and adored other littler babies. Alan was so so on the entertainment (magician/clown). He did seem to like the candy in the goody bags we got at the end.

After the party ended at 1, I took Alan around. First we went to the big NYC build a bear - but he had no interest. Then I decided we would walk up to FAO Schwartz since I hadn't been there since I was a child. Alan did well on the walk there (broken up with a stop at the NYC Disney Store). FAO was a lot different than I remembered - there is an Apple Store below (wasn't it a general motors building long ago). Alan got to try carpet skates (plastic that lets you slide on carpet). He liked them. Then we checked out the walking piano from the movie Big. Then we found the train section which did have Thomas trains. He was happy. I did convince him to leave eventually as we had to go home. We took a pedicab to Toys R US which was fun, except it was bouncy when the driver pumped - Alan was getting tired and I didn't think he'd walk back well. When I got there, I couldn't find the 20.00 bill I had.So I had the driver follow us around to a nearby deli so I could get $ from the ATM. I tipped him extra for his incovience though.

Alan loved the well worn train table @ Toys R Us. But eventually I convinced him to go home. We didn't ride the big Ferris wheel, nor did we buy the bad photo of us taken as we came in. (When I go in there at lunch, I always wave them off, I'm not a tourist, I'm just shopping.) I stopped to get some jelly beans on the way home - they were 1/2 price. But since they had no SKU on them, the cashier after looking for the sku gave them to us free. And Alan rode home free. So we got a lot of nice breaks and had fun overall.

Yesterday, I FOUND the Thomas the Tank Engine costume had I'd mislaid in October! But now I have to find the costume bag as I got mad earlier in the week and tossed it somewhere....

All the presents are wrapped. We didn't do a big Xmas. Alan got 2 Thomas trains, one hot wheel, and two games - one is a catch the fish game and the other a pull sticks and keep bees from dropping game. I got Mark some presents - a coat and gloves, and a long sleeve polo from the gap. He'd gotten me my new camera which finally came last week (still waiting on the camera case)

I also did hear back from Gymboree about my complaint about the missing matching items. They are crediting the boots and the umbrella and I don't have to return them. Apparently the raincoat was cancelled for quality control reasons (did it leak?). Still a little annoyed though. But maybe people shouldn't be hacking the stock photos on the site and finding things that aren't available either :( (Gymboree fans have discovered the photos are online a few days before the descriptions and prices, so they find them by using the SKU's of items bought in the special test store in San Francisco.)

I guess tommorrow will be quiet. We may see a movie and/or go for Chinese Food. And Tuesday I'll be bargain hunting. I have a lot of old gift cards to use, so I shouldn't spend much.

Happy holidays to all!

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Leslie Gottlieb

April 2013

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