December 6th

Aleks returned to waking me up with the envelopes this morning. It was a bumpy night with a lot of tossing and turning in the bed, thanks to Bastian, so I was quite sleepy when Aleks bounded back in the envelope in hand. I managed to lift my heavy lids and read it though. I seem to think every single day is going to be the make homemade marshmallows day - probably because I still have to gather the supplies for it. Today, however, was another no marshmallow day. Instead it was to involve writing letters to Santa. A simple task, thank goodness, as Jon and I have a date tonight to celebrate a friend's birthday.
I had bought some holiday stickers just for the occasion. I got out all the fancy calligraphy markers and paper for the task and had the letters dictated to me. They both asked for these $130 robotic dinosaurs they saw on television at my mother's house which I don't believe they will actually be receiving (which I feel bad about). Their lists have changed so frequently and really they keep asking for so much that there is no way to get it all and this thing is so not in-line with our values.

Aleks and I talked about stuff yesterday and where stuff goes and how it pollutes the air and water and land. It's a tough situation. I want to indulge the holidays and also I don't. We don't do many gifts at all really and we keep cutting back on the extended family exchanges, but it's still too much. We also emphasize natural and handmade items, but are simultaneously utilizing the time to get the kids some very much wanted items through aunts and grandparents. It feels way too complicated. We're going to try, I think, to continue paring down each year. This year, however, we seem to have done the opposite!
Aleksander drew a picture of the robotic T-Rex, added stickers to the letter, and wrote his name.
It took him awhile to get the address written, mainly because he detoured to draw a person with "cherries" as he called them, which I believe are his interpretation of holly, a wreath, and a reindeer, which he then impersonated.
For a final touch, we added a fleur-de-lis wax seal to the back, just to make it super special. I melted and added the wax and Aleks and I together positioned the seal and pressed. Then he removed it.
We got it perfect on the first try.
Bastian and I had to do his envelope twice to get a complete image, but it still worked quite nicely.
Ready to go, now we just have to get in gear to get out of the house and to the mailbox! We also have to make a stop at two grocery stores for essentials as well as the extra ingredients for the marshmallows, lest they appear in tomorrow's envelope. We're running out of time before the sitter gets here!