Tiny tots with their eyes all aglow...

Merry Christmas! Hope you've all enjoyed the holiday as much as Ben & Zach!

The Christmas Pickle

I wasn't familiar with the Christmas Pickle tradition until Joy told me about it. Any wacky tradition involving the hanging of a pickle on a tree is good in my book. I had some leftover salt dough that I used to make ornaments for the boys to color, so I used it to make a pickle.

I found a tricky spot to hide the pickle on the tree, and had fun watching Dad, Mom, Connie and Joy try to find it. Joy was the lucky winner and landed herself the lovely pickle ornament and another little gift.

We let Ben and Zach open a gift before bedtime. Last year for Christmas I made them both animal blankets. They loved them so much, that I made different animals for them this year. Ben was too busy with the Swiffer Sweeper to care much, but Zach seemed to have enough enthusiasm for both of them.

Darius and I kept busy the rest of the night by putting together a table and train for the boys. It was a big project, but I enjoyed doing it. I think the adults had a lot of fun playing with the trains after it was all put together.

Happy Holidays!

Make a Smilebox greeting

(yeah it's supposed to be Happy Holidays from Alaska, not Alas!)

Santa Abuse

Over the weekend, Darius and I attended his work holiday party. There was a gift exchange and we wound up with a Ben & Zach-sized-Santa. Zach thought Santa was funny and had a lot to say to him at their first meeting. Ben kept his distance and if anyone would nudge Santa closer to him, he'd back up several feet.

It only took a couple of days before they were dragging Santa around and roughing him up. I was in the kitchen doing dishes when I heard loud thuds coming from the living room. The boys had pulled the cushions off the couch and Zach was throwing Santa over the side...repeatedly! He must of tossed him over a dozen or more times.

The high-pitch screeching is not a bird...it's just Ben.

Okay, maybe snow won't kill me....

Yes, I'm anti winter and very anti snow. I'm ashamed to admit that I'm terribly selfish this time of year. I dislike being out in the snow and cold so much, that I'm perfectly willing to stay cooped up for several days at a time without leaving the house. This of course is unfair to my boys. Maybe by openly admitting my selfish ways to everyone, I'll be forced to make amends for my behavior.

I knew after looking outside at the beautiful weather, time was quickly ticking by on an unfortunately short day. It's only a little after 3:oo as I'm writing this and the daylight is almost gone. The time had come to try another attempt at taking my boys outside in the snow.

The task of getting all three of us ready to go outside is usually enough of a reason for me to quickly change my mind. It makes me tired just thinking about it. I won't go into details...any of you that have bundled up yourself and small children, know where I'm coming from.

The three of us made it outside with hardly any whining and I started to feel optimistic. Once Zach and Ben were down from the porch they were pretty content to walk around "the yard", and take a few rides in the sled. Of course they both hate wearing their hats and mittens, so they were quick to come off. I wish I was somehow able to reason with them, so that they understood that by wearing mittens, their hands would stay warm AND dry! They really didn't like touching the snow, which I completely understand.

Our time passed by very quickly, and I was amazed that we spent almost an hour outside. I almost hate to admit it, but it wasn't that awful being outside in the snow and cold. Imagine that!

This eagle's cry was so loud that I thought it right behind me. Turns out it was in a tree behind me...close enough eh?

Jolly Old Saint Nick

Last night while Joy, Mom, Dad and I were playing a game, Dad got a phone call from someone looking for a Santa Claus. Dad was in the process of saying no to the gig, but then the rest of us got the gist of what he was turning down and we talked him into doing it. Within the hour he had a full Santa suit. We dressed him up and he fit the part so well!

We thought since Grandpa was playing the part of Santa, Ben and Zach would be down to sit on his lap for a photo. We even broke out early gifts and candy canes to sweeten the deal. They weren't having it, but we managed to get one decent photo.

December in Review

It's mid December already....really!? I can only speak for myself, but it seems like one of the unique things about living in Cordova is the way that time passes here - very s...l...o...w...l....y! I'm sure part of it has to do with being cooped up most days with two energetic little guys, and trying to think of new ways to pass the time - but it's also just a slower pace of life here. You may laugh, but one of the most exciting events of my day (if I get out) is picking up the mail from the post office.

Well, despite the slower pace of things, I've had a recent taste of time sped up. The past couple of weeks strangely passed by very quickly.

My parents had been out of town over the Thanksgiving holiday, and Joy had been gone since we left for Louisiana in October. They all arrived back on the same day during the first week of the month. It was nice to have everyone home.

A few days later we celebrated Darius' birthday on the 4th. It was a quiet day with the exception of Zach running a fever. During dinner we thought we were going to have a repeat of his birthday from the year before. Long story short, most of the house got sick with a stomach virus, and Zach's bug peaked during Darius' birthday dinner. Poor little guy started projectile vomiting...all over me of course. Unfortunately later on Darius got sick and then it was like a domino effect. Lucky for us this year, Zach's burps didn't produce anything but air.

Hanging out with Daddy on his birthday

Zach's fever lasted a few days and after the fever passed, a rash broke out on his face, chest, and back. I ended up taking him in to see a doctor. Turns out that he had a case of Roseola. Darius and I had made plans for a quick trip to Anchorage, and were almost ready to cancel, but Zach was through the worst of his sickness and Joy was okay with watching him while we were away. Thanks again - Joy, Mom and Dad for taking care of the boys for us!

Being in Anchorage, or pretty much any town outside of Cordova, is a little strange. It's nice to have the shopping and eating options that we don't have here in Cordova, but it only took a day of shopping and eating out before we were ready to come home. On the flight home we sat next to each other and watched a beautiful sunset, just as we did on our wedding day in Key West. It was a nice break for us to get away together. Love you Darius! Two years down and a lifetime still to come.