The Puzzlers

Eole sure didn't get her puzzling genes from me. She was so happy to puzzle with someone who truly understands the craft: her Auntie Melanie. 

Christmas Day

 The stockings...

 which included parachute snowmen that were dropped on a certain unsuspecting sister.

 Christmas Breakfast

 Oh, the joy of Pez!

 We loved playing with our new Little People toys.

Davyn immediately took to Eole's baby. 

Merry Christmas!

Twas the Night Before Christmas...

 And all through the house, wee creatures were stirring as much as a mouse.  For Santa had hid a book for each kid to go look.

Granddad decorated with great care, while Davyn ate it, hardly aware. 

 When what to my wondering eyes should I see, but Santa's little helper making soup just for me.

 The children then nestled all snug in the tub, and covered with bubbles from toe to the head

Then a candy cane sighted, and a kiss good-nighted, they went to bed to rest their head

Dad did a quick gift count and panicked at the lack of amount. So parents hit the store where they bought a few more. Wrapped and in plain sight, it was now late at night, so  

Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night!

The Christmas Party

My good friend, B, has only been a Christian for a few years now and has never been to a Christmas Party. So I just had to throw her one (any excuse to use my mom's eggnog recipe!). It was just what I needed to get me into the Christmas Spirit, which had been severely lacking all month.   

 We kept it simple: just us, Nana and Granddad and two other families. That's all that could fit in our living room with that monstrous tree taking up all the space. 

 We played chimes and sang Christmas songs.

 Nana needed help from both grand kids to play all those songs

The kids performed the Nativity, where you will see the Lamb and the Lion lying down together...and a choo-choo train. And please ignore that Baby Jesus was played by a stuffed Pomeranian puppy this year.

Christmas Preparations

Eole and I decided to make our own Christmas wreath. We took our scissors on a walk through our neighborhood and came back with holly, ivy and evergreen branches. Eole arranged and wove everything into our grapevine wreath.  

Davyn and I were feeling under the weather so we sent Daddy and Eole out to cut down a Christmas tree. Daddy was under explicit instructions from Mommy to find a small and very cheap tree. Eole convinced him otherwise. She walked right up to this massive tree and refused to be persuaded from it. The tree had spoken to her. It took up half of our living room. 

 A perfect Christmas dress for a perfect 70 degree North Carolina Christmas

Making biscotti with our very favorite Italian-Korean friends.

 Making Christmas decorations out of foam cutouts with Nana.

Nana needed her glasses to thread the string through the ornaments. Eole figured she needed her glasses so she could see that tiny hole as well. 

We took advantage of the mild December weather and ventured out to a family farm Christmas Light Show. We rode on tractor-pulled wagons through acres and acres of moving Christmas light displays. The kids loved it: especially Davyn who had to have his fingers pried off the ride and was pulled away with great protestations. 

a few little jewells

Elton John, Jr.

A swing to fit all our friends.

Eole used every block to build a whole city.

A Walk in the Woods

 We love Eno State Park. 

 My children live for the outdoors.

Enjoying a picnic by the river.

Family Pictures at Ayr Mount

 Due to an unrelenting residency schedule, we couldn't make it out for family pictures until late November. By that time, no photographers were available to take our pictures. However, after viewing a friend's perfect family photo shoot taken with a self-timed camera (where her two children, puppy and husband were all looking cheerfully at the camera) I thought, "How hard could this be? We have a camera and a tripod." Dan invited his dad to come last minute to help us out. Thank heavens he did because even with 4 adults, this was one tough photo shoot. 

 Davyn cried most of the time because he just wanted to hang with his Nana and forget this joker family of his. 

 I had to bribed Eole with promises of lollipops if only she would stop making silly faces and SMILE!

Truthfully, it was hard for her to concentrate on looking at the camera and smiling with this freshly cut meadow tempting her to run and play. 

 

Davyn looking up to the heavens from where this little angel fell.

Moses guiding the children of Israel...giving Davyn a big stick was the only way to stop him from crying. 

Do you see what I had to work with here??

Nope. No cute "walking while holding hands" pictures for us. The kids insisted on "1-2-3 WHEE!"

Finally, something workable. Then Dan had concerns that we would look pretentious sitting on this 18th century mansion's front porch, so FULL DISCLOSURE: We are impostures. This is not, no ever will be, our house....unless we win the Power Ball.