Things to remember for next year's trip to see Santa:
#1. Don't go on Christmas Eve day. In fact, avoid the Burbank Mall entirely on December 24th. T'was madness. Like being trapped in a Hieronymus Bosch painting, but with cheesy holiday decor.
#2. Have back up. We waited in line for over 90 minutes. It was just me and Cooper and as I scanned the long, long, long (one more) long line, I saw that it was mostly parent "A" holding a spot while parent "B" was off occupying their child. Good plan. Wish I'd thought of it.
#3. Have toys on hand. All I had for Cooper to play with during that painfully slow-going hour and a half was some spare change. He got 17 minutes of joyous play out of five quarters, three dimes and 2 nickles.
He did the best he could, but Cooper became agitated and cranky and grouchy, all at the same time! I nearly gave up at mid-line. I thought, "Next year is fine. He won't even remember this."
But then Santa stood up and waved to all of us in line. I heard Coop say with such clarity, "SANTA?!" He tried to get Santa's attention by yelling lines from the classic stop-motion animated version of 'Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer,' which had quickly become his fave holiday film.
Picture my kid yelling these lines at the top of his lungs at Santa's throne while other children are sitting on his lap and making memories:
"You have a SHINY NOSE?"
"You a MISFIT?"
"You a SNOWMAN!"
"You can't fire me, I QUIT!"
The last one made me laugh. The little dentist elf sings it with gusto and my child captures the feeling behind the line perfectly. Cooper deserved a chance to meet the big man in the red suit, so we hung in there. 
We finally got to the front of the line and Mr. Cooper could hardly speak. He didn't say a word to Santa. He became shy and quiet. Look at the little hands and the closed mouth. After all the freaking out and the screaming, I was shocked that he became so docile.
But then again, it is Santa. He is magic.
Meeting Mr. Claus
Pure Imagination
When I was a kid, I had a vivid imagination. Some folks even thought that I had an overactive imagination. Some folks think I still do. (BTW--That's fine by me.)
Whenever I pretended to be She-Ra, I'd fashion a tube top out of aluminum foil, wrap it around my torso and I was The Princess of Power.
And when I pretended to be Jem (the same costume as She-ra, just with matching foil skirt!) I was truly, truly, truly outrageous.
I would get lost in play and everything seemed colorful and fun. 
Now I watch my son act out Shakespearean tragedies with Gonzo and Zoe.
Better than any play I saw in college. This kid fully commits.
CHRISTMAS 2009...The Holly & The Jolly Of It All!
Holy Pop Tarts! I'm so far behind on the Coop Bloggy Blog.
After enduring the nuttiest November EVAH, I was looking forward to a Feliz Navidad. For those of you who don't know, Cooper was kicked out of daycare for unruly and aggressive behavior. (BABY'S FIRST EXPULSION!) 
Fortunate for Coop, Santa knew the whole debacle was bullspit.
Cooper loved the Christmas tree. He was very into the star. "Star on top of da TREEEEEE!" he'd sing.
I attached some paper snowflakes to the ceiling fan so that when it turned all the snowflake's shadows swirled around on the walls of my dining nook. Sure it was just a goofy paper craft, but it was a tad magical. The shadows slowly circled around and I heard a Danny Elfman score play in my brain. 
We had a pre-Christmas dinner with Uncle Sean since he was journeying east to spend the holidays with his main squeeze, Kate.
(I really wanted to use the term "main squeeze," just then.)
Kate got me the pricey shampoo that helps me wash away my low self-esteem. Sean got Coop an electronic drum kit and he's been playing it quite a bit. He's a wee Ringo...or maybe a wee John Bonham, or perhaps, god help us, Lars Ulrich.
We decorated cookies and set them out for Santa. Cooper actually met Santa this year at the mall. (More on that insanity in a future post. I just don't presently have the energy.)
Christmas morning started in front of the computer. Thanks to our new web cam, we were able to have Cooper open a few gifts as Mimi, Grampy and Uncle Jordan looked on from New Hampshire. Thanks computers! You're tops!
Coop loves puzzles and he got several for Christmas. He also got some percussion instruments, books, Fraggle Rock, Yo Gabba Gabba, a Spider Man clock, a keyboard and a NEW set of tools. (Mommy left the old tools on the road by the car and they were stolen. None of that matters now. Mommy can shed her guilt.)
Memere and Pepere joined us for holiday feasting and boy did we feast. Scallops and bacon, ham, pineapple stuffing, braciole, butternut squash soup, cheesy potatoes...I ate so much I felt like a big, bloated tick. 
Cooper refused to nap and since it was Christmas, I refused to make him. I drank nog and watched "It's a Wonderful Life." 
Christmas 2009 = success.
Class Photo
Is it just me, or does Coop look GIGANTIC? 
I've avoided writing about daycare thus far. After all, this blog is public and I want to be sensitive to everyone, most of all to Cooper.
Coop loves school. He adores his teachers. He lights up around the other children.
However, he has had some trouble adjusting. There have been reports of aggressive behavior, pushing, hitting and biting.
I always thought that two-year old boys were supposed to be tiny maniacs. First of all, they are TWO. Secondly, they are BOYS.
I never imagined that I would be in parent/teacher meetings that included words like "attention deficit" and "autism" and "Asperger's syndrome." Not so early in his little life, anyways.
No, I didn't arrange regular playdates for Cooper prior to entering school. Yes, we read together every night. Yes, I let him watch television--an hour of Sesame Street in the morning and 30-minutes of Muppet Show or Fraggle Rock before bed. No, he doesn't eat his vegetables.
And, no, I don't think there's anything wrong with him.
I've been told that I'm wearing love goggles.
I've been told that I'm too close to step back and see.
They do have more experience with children that I do.
My gut and my heart says he does not have a developmental disorder. I think I need to listen to my senses first and go with my instincts.
Isn't that parenting?
Halloweenie Treats
"Ladies and gentlemen...
Mr. FOZZY BEAR!!!!"
Cooper officially loves Halloween. He was such a good boy at pre-school this morning. (More on that in another post.)
Here's an Insane Clown Pumpkin from the pumpkin patch trip.
JAKOB ZOMBIE from our Day of the Dead shoot.
ONE-EYED GANTZ ZOMBIE!
Most of you know about the famed Detroit Street Party. Every year these crazy wackos we went to school with convert a charming home into a scary movie explosion! This year's theme was 'Ghostbusters'.
ECTO1 car
Spooky librarian..."Shhhhhhhhh!"
And, finally, my Goblin Gourd that I carved at 1:00am:
Happy Halloween, kids!
Pumpkin Patch - Year 2!
Cooper had so much fun at the pumpkin patch last year that we just had to return.
I knew he wouldn't sit long in that cart. 3 minutes and 10 seconds went by and then he had his leg up over the rail ready to jump wagon. 
He touched every gourd in the place. He also liked throwing the hay.
When he started throwing the pumpkins, I became concerned. I didn't want to pay for a bunch of busted squash. More importantly, there were infants and wee babies at the lot that day and I certainly didn't want my kid to commit assault with a deadly pepo.
Check out that Super Mario Bro! They spared no expense.
We ended up getting a HUGE pumpkin that I have yet to carve. I want to get some better tools. I want it to be impressive. I have not decided on the design, but I have two days and I work best under pressure, right :)
My boys. My Halloween. My oh my.
Music News!
Here's singer/songwriter, Cooper Kingsley White with his latest single, "Wave Bye, Baby."
This is the original acoustic version.
Rumor has it that a remix is in the works and may be released sometime early next week--depending on how much mommy can get done. There is, afterall, a Halloween costume to be made.
31
The best presents are not found at the mall
in the glass cabinet at Macy's.
Nor can they be found at the Melrose flea market,
Or the specialty food shoppes of Brentwood,
Or the fancy liquor stores in the North Hills...
The best birthday gift is someone you love letting you know that they love you, too.
Welcome Baby Gantz!
DEVO RYAN GANTZ
Born October 8th, 2008.
21" long, 9lbs, 5 oz.
Congrats Ryan and Jenny!
And welcome to the world, little Devo!
Click here for more pix.
Pimp My Ride
Coop's carriage was looking dull and dingy. It was time for a makeover.
A MONSTER MAKEOVER!
Art Therapy & Ear Medicine
I really should have rested yesterday, but I painted instead. 
Something in my head kept yelling, "Get up and paint, Snarky! Sleep only cures fatigue...drink a real soda and let your loud, stinky art out."
BTW - My inner dialogue sounds much like the Scullery Maid from Disney's Sword in the Stone. 
Cooper was up all night. He had a slight fever. He was saying that his ear hurts. Every couple of hours, "My eeeur hoits...my eeeur hoits." He slept in our bed for most of the night and then we were off to the doctor's in the morning.
Here's a word that Cooper now knows and hates with every lil' fiber of his being:
"MEDICINE"
He's not a fan. Nope. Not at all.
This particular antibiotic (Azithromycin) can be taken with food. I tried to get him to swallow using the fave drinks and desserts, but he wasn't falling for it. I offered a cookie ice cream banana sundae. He still scrunched his face and whined as if to say, "If I have to deal with that "medicine" stuff, then keep your sugary goods, Lady."
But he seems like he's on the mend.
And he's been asking for school.
I know he misses it.