christmas day

the magic of christmas was...
the look on willy's face when he first saw the goodies left by santa
the look on my face right after i stepped in dog puke on mt way to the tree

teamworkmaggie dancing around in circles with minnie and mickey snuggled close
opening gift after gift and hearing "yes" and "sweeeeeet"
oma the christmas elf
dad in his usual humor
light up sneakers
the love of the dogs
and hours of self-directed play.

christmas eve

a little reindeer nose fun

cute, cute, cute.



could you love these little noses any more?

in negative 5 temperatures

we just had to get outside and play... but in -5 temperatures, we lasted approximately 5 minutes.
it was wonderful to have a white christmas and a chance to get outside in the magical snow.

a pretty great uncle

Let's get 'em good and giddy.



feeling so lucky to be together---

just wishing the whole family was here
for some holiday tickles.

Willy's Carol

Willy brings us a little nervous Christmas spirit.

a glittery day

a perfect day at work involves a whole lot of glitter and the joy that it brings.

we made cards to send to the troops in iraq, and after writing letters,
that included messages like:
you are pure awesomeness
you are army strong
shoot the people in iraq with your tanks
i want to be in the air force one day and maybe i will meet you
and
i'm sure your family misses you but hopefully you have friend who will stand up for you.

we created our snow scenes,
and added a full dose of glitter.

add holiday music and a boy who intentionally filled his head of hair with glitter
and you have pure magic.

My New Favorite Song

We heard Catie Curtis sing this song by Don White, and while I don't yet have any kids, I can already picture these growing nieces and nephews of mine taking on adolescence... this song should be an anthem for all you parents out there (you brave and fiercely loving souls).

Watch the video here.

the perfect meal

when you are under the weather, this is the perfect meal.
fresh squeezed orange juice with an umbrella, for good measure.
vietnamese pho.
vegetarian spring rolls with peanut sauce.
and hot tea, to boot.
share with the love of your life
and you will start to feel better, almost immediately... even if you do miss school the next day.

fall fun

fall has brought new adventures and day trips with my hubby, as well as party nights with friends.

we explored great falls and watched the boaters go at it before finding a cozy dinner with our gps. we walked through history and beautiful surroundings, with a whole lot of other people- ah, metropolitan parks, what a delight. it was worth fighting the crowd for the fall day that we had, though.


our friend L&L (not pictured) hosted a murder mystery set in 1895. it was a blast, though i could hardly stay in character with this crowd. we had a lot of fun and i wasn't the murderer, so that was a bonus. i was a female archeologist, though, and todd... well, he was a major general.


for halloween, i became a tree or a leaf pile (depending on my position,) and hosted a whole lot of crazy kids. we even had a spelling test right after out party. we had two darth vaders and two indiana jones, among our other cast of characters.


and what could make a better fireside treat than s'more cookies. as i sipped my apple-tini, i couldn't help but take a picture of the chocolate bar smothered in marshmallow. can you believe the gluttony?

cool weather friends

what could be finer than a walk with freinds on a cool autumn day?

fall fun

so many reasons to celebrate.
so may ways to celebrate.


C's birthday.
Cake.


Friendship.
Bobbing for apples.


Happy dogs.
Lots of food.


Harvest plenty.
Clear buckets so you can watch your friends' underwater faces.


Pumpkins.
Carving.


Togetherness.
Roasted seeds.


(Have you ever seen a pumpkin spouting on the inside???)


Autumn weather.
Bringing us closer. Bringing us indoors.


Watching wii boxing.
Expelling energy.


"Ocama" pumpkins.
Pumpkins of many moods.


Families.
Candy Corn.


Martinis carved in pumpkins, complete with olive.
Watching your friend wield sharp objects.



Getting in there and getting dirty.
Joy. Laughter. Smiles.
Full Bellies.