For Steve

Matchy-Matchy

I love buying Christmas jammies for the boys each year. I'm sure in the not-too-distant future, I won't be able to get away with holiday-themed jammies anymore, so I'm enjoying it while I can! I just love the children's Nick & Nora jammies that Target carries. I wasn't able to get matching sets in the right sizes this year, but they are cute, just the same.

I like a good set of pajamas myself, so my mom and I bought each other these cute Croft & Barrow flannel pajamas at Kohl's this year. I just love them!

Camden and Griffin's pajamas are wrapped and under the tree, for opening on Christmas Eve, but Mum and I had to try ours out the other night, before my parents headed back to Maine.

A Great Gift for Giving

I love to buy children's books for gifts for the children in my life, and recently I found a new one that is just lovely. Of Thee I Sing: A Letter to My Daughters by Barack Obama is a beautifully illustrated book with a great message.

The book begins, "Have I told you lately how wonderful you are? How the sound of your feet running from afar brings dancing rhythms to my day? How you laugh and sunshine spills into the room?" It then goes on to ask, "Have I told you that you are creative/smart/brave/strong, etc.?" and then tells about Georgia O'Keeffe, and on through many notable people through history. The message of the book as a whole is the potential that all people have, to do great things, no matter where they come from. The illustrations by Loren Long are amazing!

Now, I love this book because it is truly a lovely book - - nothing to do with whether or not I like President Obama (I do, by the way). I'm curious to know - - do you teach your children to respect the President, regardless of your political views, or whether or not you think any particular president is doing a good job or not? I ask this because I have gotten some bizarre reactions from grown adults, mind you, when I've brought up this book in conversation and recommended it as a potential Christmas gift. Sad, my friends, but true. Anyway, enough about that...if you have a little person in your life that loves books, then this book is a gem. FYI, the best price I've found so far is at Costco.

Major Bummer

My parents left this morning to head back to Maine, and boy do we miss them already. The arrived in early September, and we have so enjoyed having them here. It was great to have their support while the boys and I adjusted to having Steve away. All of that aside, my folks are just really great people who we love and enjoy being around. I can't even put into words what it has meant to me, having them be a part of the boys' every-day life. Probably something a lot of people who live near their parents take for granted from time to time, I would imagine. Both my mom and my dad are really wonderful grandparents - - loving, gentle, attentive, but able to keep the boys in line when needed. It was really nice to have their companionship. Many times today already, I've had to stop myself from "popping in" next door, to see what they were up to. So, while it is going to take us a few days to adjust to not having them here, we are also going to look forward to their next visit. We miss you, Nana and Papa!

Saturday Pictures

The boys, posing with the gingerbread house they made with Nana. A more accurate description might be 'the boys posing with the gingerbread house their Nana made while they supervised'



Random shot by Griffin. Right after he took this photo, he wandered off with my camera and "misplaced" it. I'm happy to report that it turned up after a massive search effort was executed. Little stinker.

I think the boys were playing "Titanic" in this shot. I like the clip-on neckties with their t-shirts. Fancy.

And finally, a super-creepy shot of Riley, playing dress-ups with the boys. He yawned right as I snapped the picture.

Festival of Lights

Tonight was our local Festival of Lights, and so I decided to whip up some homemade pizza, bake a few goodies, and have a little party. We had some friends join us, along with Nana and Papa, before heading over to the city park.

Here I am with my mother and my good friend Jeanie. I met Jeanie at Camden's school - - she has a great little boy who is Camden's age. My mom got to know Jeanie too, this fall at soccer practice, when Jeanie's son and Camden were on the same team. It is impossible not to like Jeanie because she is so bubbly, fun, and friendly. I am so glad to know her!

There was entertainment at the band shell, food, cocoa, and a gingerbread house contest. We wondered around but mostly watched the boys play in the snow and throw snowballs.

Of course, Santa and Mrs. Clause were there. This picture of Griffin, getting squashed by Santa cracks me up. My ears perked up when I overheard Griffin telling Santa that he wants an electric guitar for Christmas. That's a new addition - - hadn't heard that one before. Unfortunately for Griff, the gifts have been purchased already, and he's definitely not getting an electric guitar!

It was a fun night, even though I think it took everyone a little while to thaw out after we got home!

Snow Day #2

As I mentioned yesterday, snow days are rare around here, but somehow we ended up with another one today! Camden was so, so happy when he woke up and I told him that school had been cancelled for the second day in a row. The conditions weren't as good today though...lots of rain mixed in with the snow, and cold that goes right to the bone. I snuck out of town for a few hours to do some Christmas shopping, and the boys did some themselves, with Nana. They also totally lucked out when she took them on a date to McDonald's, for lunch. When I returned from my shopping adventure, Camden and Papa were out in the back yard, building a snowman. I'm pretty sure that there will be school tomorrow, but Camden's hoping for another miracle.

Snow Day

We had a snow day today - - that doesn't happen very often in these parts! Only once in a great while do we get snow that actually "sticks" for more than a few hours. So, what a great surprise to wake up this morning and find all kinds of snow. It was made even better when we got our automated call from the superintendent of schools, telling us we had a snow day. The boys were thrilled, and I have to say, I sure was too! My mother and I braved the elements to hit up the local department store for some snow block makers, and then my dad made snow forts with the boys. It was a great day!