Daylight challenged

The days are about as short as they can get, and it appears that we have been packing them so full that I have had little time for updating. We have been sneaking in late season brussel sprout harvests and prepping for the upcoming Christmas holiday. We are spending time with several indoor activities, such as hockey and soccer for Merrick and Girl Scout bake offs, bowling and Gymnastics for Sophia. We have spent some time outdoors although the activities are a little more limited as we wait for snow and ice to go along with the temperatures. We did get the Christmas tree put up and decorated right after the Thanksgiving day holiday. Merrick only broke a single ball, but made sure to secure all the others. We also made it back to EC several times including once for a wedding dance in which the kids danced all night long and Sophia even had a solid hand in starting a conga line. To challenge mother nature we do don the head lamps in the evenings and head out for night hikes around the neighborhood. The kids play shadow tag and run around in general which is of course the idea to burn some energy all over the neighbor's lawns rather than the living room. This night games are not without consequence, as Merrick's forehead and nose show some 'curb marks." Sophia and I, however have convinced him that his horn is coming in and the blood is really just from the horn tip, like a unicorn. We told him most 5 year old boys start getting their horns, but they fall off when they are teenagers, and being that he is the biggest in his class he is likely to get his before the other boys. I figured he had a pretty good sense of our jest when he just looked at me and said that he can't wait for Mitch to get his wings, like a big dragon.
A couple of other funny kid moments: We are reading Dragon's Tooth in the evening and with Merrick already asleep on my lab and Sophia close behind, the second armed character entered the story with a four-barrelled pistol. To which Sophia raised her head and with the voice of a 28 year old asked me "What is with men and their guns." Earlier in the month, Merrick and I were about finished making supper and Sophia was playing upstairs. I asked Merrick to go get Sophia for supper. With me still at the stove, I hear him hollering at the bottom of the stairs, "No Sophia, no more sex!" then he said it again, "No, I said no more sex!" I was obviously completely confused as to what was taking place and when I went into the living room he hollered it yet again. I asked what is going on? and he replied, "I told her no more sex" still bewildered I improvised with "Huh?" Merrick then said "I told her to come down and eat, but she said just a sec, so I told her no more secs!, right dad there are no more secs, right?" Laughing all to myself and the complete and fortunate bewilderment of both children we had a wonderful taco supper.