Apparell'd in Celestial Light....


                           The glory and the freshness of a dream...



                                                     Ye Blessed Creatures...


                  I see the Heavens laugh with you in your jubilee

Camping Spring 2013: A Night to Remember

We decided to stay local for our maiden voyage camp trip this past spring. We’ve owned all the supplies for years, but finally decided it was time to put the ol’ tent to use. Falls Lake is a gorgeous state park with lots of short hike-in camp sites. We fell in love with a little peninsula  doted with dozens of well groomed camp spots. We hiked in the week before to find the perfect  spot with a view of the lake, a little shade, a little sun, and some privacy. We reserved on line, and Friday after work, we took off.

                                                           Eole helped Dad make the fire.

 

She and Mom especially enjoyed the s’mores.

 

 

 

We watched the sun set over the water. We got out some last minute wiggles, and set up the tent.

Then it was time to settle in the for the night. Eole fell right to sleep snuggled between Mom and Dad…Davyn less so….much less so. He was unnerved by so much space, and much like a wild dog, howled for most of the night and crawled in circles around the inside of the tent. Being that our lovely campsite is really only a few miles from the seedy part of Durham, the parking lot was gated and lock and we were as trapped as any hapless soul in the ninth circle of Dante’s Inferno! To top it all off, we went camping off season to avoid bothering other campers, but as fate would have it, a young couple reserved the site right next to ours. I’m sure the experience will delay their desire for children in the immediate future.  

Asheville Trip...last March

Last March a bout of Cabin Fever swept through our family, so we packed our bags and headed west...to Asheville! Some highlights of this mini-family vacation included:

Visiting an adorable animal preserve where we found this adorable hawk girl...

...and this cute baby boy fox 

We saw the bears come out of hibernation, and our own little bear so wanted to join them. 

We kept the cleaning lady busily employed at the Hampton Inn

 

We made new "friends" walking the funky streets of Asheville

 

 

We took a nature walk at Chimney Rock Park

 

And climbed many, many stairs to get to the top of Chimney Rock

                                              Dad ended up getting a triple-duty work out

              The view at the top made it all worth-while though; and then we took the elevator down

This winter we...

...rode the train at the Museum of Life and Science. You can actually take a
 "private" train ride if you are willing to ride when it is 28 degrees outside.

....got sick. But Eole found my hidden stash of
mei-meis (pacifiers) so she and Davyn had some comfort.

...discovered CREAM, and learned how to feed ourself

 ...grew some teeth, even if we did look a little funny when our
two front teeth did not grow in together.

...tasted snow. Eole wanted to build a snowman; 
she's going to have to wait until we move somewhere colder.

 ...discovered secret places to play and hide.

 ...went "fishing" at Ayr Mount.

...SMILED!

....continued to learn and grow at the Little Gym

Christmas Celebrating

On Christmas Eve morning, Santa left books for Eole and Davyn to read.

We decorated the Yule Log to burn while reading our Christmas Stories.

We had a wonderful dinner at Nana and Granddad's house.

Christmas Morning, Santa brought Eole a large color-yourself-playhouse.

One of Mommy's favorite presents.

Eating breakfast!

What we did in December

We cut down our own Christmas Tree at a local farm. Mom's critera was that the tree be cheap ($20!) and wouldn't hurt baby Davyn when he pulls it on top of himself.

At the tree farm...

Decorating the tree...

Making gingerbread cookies with friends

Acting out the Nativity with our friends, the Souter and Best families. Eole insisted on being Joseph.

Davyn was a wiggly Baby Jesus

The Greatest Thanksgiving Ever....

Our first Thanksgiving as a married couple was pretty hard to beat. We didn’t have money to fly from New Hampshire to Utah to be with family, so we made the best of it in our tiny old apartment. Our oven and stove were half-size so we could only cook a turkey breast. While the rolls were rising, we played croquet on the lawn in the cold, New England rain. We watched The Sound of Music and ate pumpkin pie.

We were thinking this year would finally topple our first year’s Thanksgiving as “the greatest ever.” It sure had a promising start with cousins Christy, Gentry, Mark and Laura, along with Uncles Kevin and Mike, Aunts Justina and Melanie and friend Wyatt in attendance. Nana and Granddad would be hosting a fabulous-as-always meal at their place.

The day started out very nicely with Eole and Christy making the rolls.

And Christy teaching Julia how to braid Eole's hair...and then Eole threw-up. Daniel was sure this was just because she had been coughing a lot. So we got in the car to head over to Nana and Granddad's...and she threw-up again, and again.

While everyone else gathered for what I'm sure was a fantastic meal...

Julia, Eole and Davyn sequested themselves in Nana and Granddad's back bedroom with a throw-up bowl and a movie.

We made an appearance for a family photo where Eole was able to hold it together until "the serving of pies" was announced and she threw-up everywhere. Oh, well, maybe next year will be the Greatest Thanksgiving ever.