Callie's on the Go (with a little help)

Callie and her 96 year old Great Grandmother now have something in common...





Callie Gettin Down...

Merry Christmas 2008 part 2

The girls had a very fun Christmas at home.

Callie loved playing with the wrapping paper...

and her new rocking duck.

Nyla loved her Skut bike...

and Callie's duck.

And, we had more snow. So, Gabe and Nyla made an igloo.



And, we had 19 inches of snow. So, Nyla came up with a fun game with her new Skut bike and the rocking duck.

Arctic Blast 2008

Most snow in December since 1950 - 19 inches over about 10 days. Lots of fun if it only happens once every few years!

Merry Christmas 2008

This year we made a point of trying to demonstrate what the spirit of Christmas was all about. We went about packing up bags of toys and clothes and donated them to Goodwill and homeless shelters. If we had two of something or if we had something that wasn't used very much anymore, off it went. We read the Barenstein Bears Too Much Stuff book. Nyla and Gabe made a trip to the store and filled the cart full with canned goods which we donated to a food bank. We were all feeling the giving spirit this month. So, I guess it should not have been too much of a surprise when Nyla started giving away her good toys to her friends (I had to ask the mother for them back) or when she suggested we get rid of one of the cats (we do have two, afterall). One night at dinner Nyla was complaining that she didn't want to eat the (healthy and delicious) meal I had prepared. I told her she needed to eat because this was all we had [for dinner]. She looked thoughtful for a minute then asked, "Mom, are we poor?"

Winter

Nyla is always dressing up or pretending to do something or be something. Lately the game is "vacation" where she packs her suitcase full with every random piece of anything she can find. She is also fond of "doctor" and we commonly have baby dolls lying all over our house covered in band-aids or hiding under every blanket. Here the fairy is working quietly at her desk.

Winter Craft Fair - A visit with Old Mr. Winter. Each child sprinkles magic dust into the bowl then pulls out a wishing stone.

Candle Making

The Callie Crawl

Little Callie is mobile. Demonstrating her brilliance already, she has adapted her crawl to better fit mobility on the hardwood floors. Because, after all, when crawling on hardwood with pants on one tends to get slowed down with all the slipping of the knees. Hence, the knee-foot crawl...