thanks, aidan!!

aidan made these snowmen to stand on little feet thingies. i put magnets on the back and added his cheerful face to the front of the fridge.

all over but the cryin'

we did have a memorable christmas. it's always a treat to see the kids and we were thankful that everyone made it safely through the snow and cold. this will be remembered as the year iva overnighted in the hospital with a TIA. the year of first tier relatives - i mean cordials and other pleasures to numerous to catalog.

aidan did well, made a haul and was ever hopeful that someone else maight need a hand opening their package. he was polite and excited and a fierce competitor when it comes to crazy 8s and uno.

james carried this back from china for me and i am looking for way to hang it in my office area. naphtali was very creative/generous and did justice to her handmade pledge.

jacob and kate supplied my day
dreaming fix. this book on monet has all sorts of enclosures chronicling (i did run that through spell check) his baptism, art shows, preliminary sketches etc. i'm thoroughly enjoying it.
tim takes the prize for the most unexpected gift - i have a lovely new laptop -many thanks - and of course a new project beyond the use of it. i have to organize and arrange my 'office space' ooh la la!!
so these next few days will be spent undecorating, storing, cleaning, daydeaming, writing thank you notes....

change of plans

i had been psyched for a last, relaxed day of preparation and packing on tuesday but it looks as though we will leave for fort dodge that morning so as to help iva around the house. she broke her arm. packages are wrapped and ready to go.
it meant moving a few details forward but we're essentially ready to go. i need to figure out what clothes to pack and make sure that last load of laundry gets done tomorrow night - nothing too major. i might even get in on some of the holiday hustle and bustle with a grocery run in fd beings we'll be there for such a long time. hope you have a merry christmas.

merry christmas

i obviously missed a trend this year, noticing that the majority of cards we received shared a turquoise and/or green palette.
this is my favorite. it says:
to you and those you love.
from tim and me to you and yours - merry christmas

photo ops

this is for those among us who like to see pictures included in a post.

i delivered my plates of goodies to the neighbors on tuesday and afterword realized that i had missed yet another photo op. the counter looked so festive laden with colorful plates. did i think to take a picture??







when i had my basket loaded ready to play red riding hood on her way out the door did i think to take a picture??




time doesn't permit much more for this morning's post but i will have more ....