Meanderings 80

 

I figured that for the last blog of 2012 I would share a few observations I have made lately....

 

Also, below, are some pictures from the GoldsmithChristmasSeasonCelebrationEven.....

 

1. Why doesnt gravy come in a bottle like ketchup, mustard, or may does? I mean, it comes in a glass jar (like ketchup does...)...but I am talking about ultra-convenient/use anytime style gravy. Gravy is a tottttalllly underestimated and under appreciated condiment, and should be made more convenient for people. Wouldnt I love to make a turkey or roast beef sandwich for lunch, and then squirt some gravy on  it! And you would too!!

 

2. I am going to do research to 'prove' my point, and I will report on it later...but suffice to say that, for now, you KNOW this next point is true: Have you ever noticed the emotional disconnect between breakup songs sung by men and ones sung by women? It just seems to me that men write and perform sad, longing, reflective breakup songs (Ben Folds Five 'Cologne,' Dave Mason 'We Just Disagree,' and 'Can we still be friends,' for example...). Men, who are always deemed as heartless sex maniacs, seem to exhibit a richly despondent state in their lyrics. GIRLS, on the other hand, seem to only write/perform 'breakup' songs with a hopeful/heartless/ARROGANT/almost mean spirited feel ('All the Single Ladies' by Beyonce, 'Stronger' by Kelly Clarkson, everything ever written by Pink, etc for example...). It seems, in popular music, that FEMALES are the ones have no heart and are 'better off' not being in a relationship. Seriously. Think of examples to contradict this. And NOTHING Taylor Swift writes counts. And the reason is because a) she is a disgrace to music b) she has written the same song 16 times....

 

3. "I'm as happy as clam!' Where does this come from? Why? How 'happy' is a clam? How do we know they are happy? Let's consider. First of all, clams have no brains. Therefore no capacity to FEEL emotions. Secondly, they cant really move of their own volition. Third, their entire life consists of constantly trying to bury themselves deeper into sulfur-stenched muck and mud. They never see daylight unless they are going to be eaten. And, oh, I dont know, they are encased in a shell of darkness......just sayin

 

4. Consider the word "engulfed." In what context do you most often hear it? Yes! Fires! You are right. Like "the building was engulfed in flames by the time the firemen arrived..." But this seems totally wrong to me; 85% of the word 'engulf' is the word GULF....and when I see GULF I think, immediately, of water. Where else are their gulfs (well....mountains...but most non-hikers wouldnt know this...) Gulf of Maine, Gulf of Mexico, Persian Gulf, etc. So, by simple semantics, wouldnt the word "engulf" mean that something was consumed by water? How can something be engulfed in flames if is consumed by water? Seriously though....if I had any friends, I wouldnt think of stuff like this....

 

 

 

Maira reading with Grampy on Christmas Eve.....

 

The cookies for Santa, the carrots for the reindeer, and the apple for Rudolph. Also, please notice the note left by Callum : I LOVE YOU RUDOLPH

 Christmas day....(we took a lot of video and not a lot of pics...)

And hanging out a couple of days ago reading Pete The Cat Saves Christmas......groooooovy....

Other things leading up to Christmas and such and such....

Christmas, as many people realize and appreciate, is all about the SEASON that it inspires...not so much about the 'day' itself. For us anyway. In fact, for all the people who get depressed when Christmas day is over, take heart: In our church, the true "Christmas Season" doesnt even 'technically' start UNTIL Christmas day. Fun!!

But, we try to jam pack our schedule full of family, friends, and Goldsmith traditions in order to celebrate the holiday. Above, you can see some of the attendees of the English Department Christmas Toast I hosted at my house before vacation started....folks came over and shared a couple of drinks and some cookies and some laughs--I work with some simply fantastic human beings, and it is always a treat to get together with them OUTSIDE of school! We had Mark, Lacey Jenn, Becky, me, Jen, and Katy (clockwise from the guy in the tie...)

Elizabeth, a former student who will soon be a fantastic English teacher, came by last Saturday to help Amanda bake cookies...the kids really really love seeing Elizabeth (and Conner) and, when she gets here, go into their 'turbo-let-me-show-you-everything-in-the-world' mood! Havent mentioned too much of this on the blog yet, but Callum got his bunk beds a week ago or so, and here is Elizabeth, on Callum's mandate, sitting up on Callum's bed. Elizabeth is no stranger to bunk beds, since she shared with one HER sister all her life....

And then....settling down...watching Harry Connick Jr's THE HAPPY ELF....

This might be one of the strangest pictures of Callum ever taken:

Besides the fact that he looks like a homeless person, I should mention that, in his mind, he was dressed up as "Santa" and he was having people come over to sit on his lap and tell them what they wanted for Christmas. I will most definitely spare you the pictures of me sitting on his lap. Because they take weirdness to a new level. But what the heck is the kid wearing?? Well....a series of blankets AND his BRAND NEW snow boots he just got (which we finally need since we got a 'storm' yesterday!).

And this one is just weird as well. It was taken on Christmas Eve, and even I dont know the context of it...all I know is that there needs to be a caption contest for it, even.....

Gonna go try to finish my book I have been reading...it really really sucks and I just want to be done with it. Amanda is out with her girlfriends for dinner. It must be nice to have friends in Maine.....

The day after Christmas...

Here is a video of Maira, wearing her brother's cowboy hat, dancing to some Christmas songs...

Today is the day after Christmas, and it is very much a recovery day for the Goldsmiths. Both kids are sick--well, Callum was on Christmas Eve and most of yesterday, and then Maira picked it up yesterday afternoon....this sort of coughy-glassyeyed-fatigued thing...in fact, we didnt even go downstairs yesterday to open presents until about 10 or so...Callum preferred to just lie in bed, and Maira just wanted to watch Max and Ruby Christmas in bed with us.....

Right now I am making applesauce with the last of our fall apples from The Apple Farm....it smells pretty good in here....

And Callum is playing with his trains--in particular, the new Thomas "engine shed" Santa brought him this year....to list all the gifts the kids got would take the rest of this month....but I can tell you some of the things the kids have been playing with today: Their pole/horsehead horses...baby stroller...light bright...Fancy Nancy books....puppet theater (bat puppet, in particular....and babydoll high chairs/carseats/pack and plays. THis, though, only scratches the surface...there is a LOT of stuff with which to play in the next few days.

PLUS, we will get to play with a lot of it tomorrow, since there is supposed to be a big storm (with actual SNOW, ,not rain!!!!). Let's see....

Here are a few more pics of our time leading up to Christmas...

One of the richest traditions in our family is the Christmas Cookie Baking day Amanda has. I will post pictures from the "official" day later...but this was a couple of weeks ago, when Callum...woops....I mean RUDOLPH used the handmixer for the first time and made some sugar cookie dough!! He then helped roll it out and cut out angels, reindeer, stars, and trees to bake!!

And Maira, using a little desk Papa got her for Christmas, having a little tea party with her Nutcracker "babies" and such and such....

Christmas Eve; hanging out......

 Well....actually....none of these pictures are from Christmas Eve today....these are from last week when we got home from Mass and the kids started playing with their toys....they were having a tea-party together.....dressed to the nines, as Jay Ponticelli would say, in their culinary garb, even....

Today is a great day at the Goldsmith house...just hanging out, baking cookies, smoking hams, puttering around, and, soon, opening theeeeeeeeeeeeeeee most coveted Storyteller Dopplebock from Oak Pond Brewery....As I write this, Jon and Kelsey are here, and we're just hanging around....Callum is eating a donut (he just woke up from sleeping....he is sick today with a fever!).

Even though Christmas is so awesome with Callum and Maira, I think it is natural to reminisce to when I was a kid and CHristmas was a different kind of magic; Kristin and I had a pretty good "Christmas Life" growing up....one memory that stands out was always Nana Courtney's Christmas party....particularly the stocking. Nana would always give kids UNDER 13 a killer gift...and kids OVER 13 a check for fifty dollars. But EVERYONE got the stocking. I have always said that the stocking stuffers are the best part of Christmas presents. I love them. They represent of a symbiotic #shadesofscience relationship, as they are just as much fun to BUY as they are to RECEIVE. A typical Nana stocking would contain things like this (and, Kris, help me out if I am missing anything...): A glue stick. Tube socks with red and orange stripes. A Life Savers storybook pack. A doodle pad. Mittens. Thermal socks. Fruit flavored chap stick. Pens. Candy Canes. An eighth of heroin. Scotch tape. pencils. Magnets. And Christmas M&Ms.....

Hey...look....it is a dinosaur tea-party....

 

 

I am hoping this winter gets off its butt and gets in gear....today it is really really cold....but there is no snow...we DID get snow last Monday...but then we got 3 inches of rain and it all went away...hopefully we will get a storm this Wednesday (we are supposed to anyway....). The kids had a great great time....Callum pulled his sister in the snow and they just had a blast. I was at school; I was actually surprised we didnt have a snow day..... 

 A smile that just brightens up my day....no matter what.....

 And again....Maira just smiles all the time...Merry Christmas everyone....I hope everyone has a great day.....tonight we will head to church at 7 for lessons and carols....then come back and get ready for Santa....

Hungry Hungry Hippos is the PERFECT game for anyone wanting to learn how to be an American: Take as much as you possibly can. Keep everyone else from having what you want. Do it in the most reckless and careless and arbitrary way as possible. And, at the end, if you have the 'most,' then you win. And the icing on the cake is that the stuff you had to beat the other people to get, you find out, is both meaningless and useless to you. What can you do with white marbles?

Buttttt..............................it is wicked fun. .And Callum and Jackson had a blast......

Massachusetts Christmas!

Ooooh....look at my shirt! We had a great time in Mass last weekend; we all met at Cheng Du for Chinese food, and then we went back to Nannie and Upbob's for presents and desserts (I made cookies and Anthony made....like....a bakery!)

Papa and his offspring, above....and Papa and his grandson, below.....three generations of GoldsmithGreatness all in one place!!! Also, this is one of the first times in months we have gotten Callum to pose for a picture. Kid hates the camera.....

What else did  we do? Well, Nannie has a clinical obsession with collecting 'novelty holiday hats' (for Halloween...Christmas...Groundhog day...etc...). She had this great idea of getting everyone present to wear one of her novelty hats for a 'family picture.' This is a great tradition that I think we should continue Nannie!! I might bring a version of this to Maine Christmas (George, dig out your ugly sweaters!!). I was looking for the actual picture of everyone, and I think only Anthony took it with his camera. Anthony, could you send this pic to me??

And, of course, Maira and Uncle Anthony got to share their passion for vacuuming #alliance. This Minnie Mouse vacuum was one of the gifts the Favry family got Maira. It was funny: What's old is new is new again, as the saying goes. At one point, there were three gifts being simultaneously opened by the kids, and I made the comment to my sister that she and I received these gifts too.....back in 1987! Callum was opening a Snoopy Snow Cone maker and Hungry Hungry Hippos....and Jackson was opening up a Light Bright. Retro gifts, even!!!

And, of course, Maira got her time in with Auntie KK, feeding her a bottle. The baby Maira is holding, by the way, is not hers. This is a doll that lives at Nannie's house. And Maira HATED leaving her when we left on Sunday.....it was very cute....

And on Sunday, we went over to Papa and Grammy Goldsmith's house to....yup...you guessed it: Open more presents. I should have attached the ATV trailer to bring him all the things the kids got this past weekend!! Some hilights include: Spiderman and Dora power toothbrushes....batman bandaids....snowtube sleds....RockEmSockEm Robots....Batman stuff...tea party stuff....doll clothes...Barbie Cars.....etc etc etc.....The children made out VERY WELL, and they still have...well....Christmas morning with gifts from us, Santa, Uncle Jon and Aunt Kelsey, and MeeMee and Grampy. #weneedabiggerhouse.

Also, one of the coolest parts about the visit to papa's house was the HONEY DEW donuts and the Back Bay Bagels!! As I have written before, bagels (like pizza) SUCK in maine.

It was a great visit.

Lastly, I want to send a big thank you to everyone who has read and responded to my blog from yesterday: Amanda, unknown to me, shared my post on FB, and the way it was received was truly both humbling and flattering. Your kind words are more touching than you may know, and I am glad so many folks enjoyed this.

A Season of Helplessness

(Editor's note: We just got back from having a fantastic weekend with everyone in Mass, and I want to post pictures and write about our time....but this has been weighing heavily on me, and I wanted to present this first. I will post some pictures later tonight or tomorrow....thanks.)


Each night during the season of Advent, Callum and Maira open doors of our "Advent Calendar" which counts down the days until Christmas Eve. Inside every door, there is a magnet designed as some type of component of the Nativity scene in Bethlehem so many many years ago. Tonight, for example, Maira unwrapped Joseph, last night Callum unwrapped a camel, and so on and so forth...

The point that I am getting at is this: Each night, that empty, desolate manger becomes more decorated and more full and and more emblazoned with color and people and animals and stars until, on the last night before Christmas, the precious babe is placed in the cradle of the manger.

Over the past several days I have truly been wrestling with myself in terms of how to react to the tragedy that occurred in that doomed elementary school in Newtown, CT. In my prayers, for once, I was truly speechless; how does one talk to God about something so deeply abysmal? Even asking to comfort those affected seemed just...well....so out of place; the tragedy cut so deep that I didnt even know where to start. As a parent (and as a teacher) I was (and still am) at a loss of what to even say. And then, the other night, while my four year old son placed a humble magnetic sheep onto the manger scene, it dawned on me that Christmas is a season of helplessness. And, therein, there is true beauty.

The most difficult part of this Newtown disaster, for me, is reconciling with the virtual helplessness these children faced--how in the world could they even stand a chance....how could they even do ANYTHING when faced with a deranged psychopathic killer? Their fragile, undeveloped minds must have been horrified at what they were facing. They needed their moms and their dads, and their moms and their dads were nowhere to be found. Complete and utter loneliness.

But, then, is this not unlike the story of Christmas? As Christians believe, Christmas Eve was the night when a completely and utterly helpless child was born in the most humble of all places--the odds were completely against him--and his parents--as they negotiated treacherous travel and murderous people, all so they could finally be turned away from help when they needed it most. What a helpless and hopeless scene it must have been for a mother in labor with her beautiful child...with Joseph, who wasnt even the father, trying his best to fill the fatherly role and take care of his family. Complete and total helplessness.

And then, as the story goes, what happened was miraculous. And still is.

We learn in the story of Christmas that the Angel of the Lord came upon the shepherds and told them not to be afraid. Why should these shepherds have believed this? The times in which they lived were nerve-wracking and treacherous and dishonest and scary. Much like today. And we learn that the wise men followed the Christmas star as a 'beacon' to lead them to the baby Jesus. In our darkest hours as a nation and as individual families do we not follow the same star? Do we need not gravitate toward hope of some type--wherever and however it can be found--when it seems that there could BE no hope? Are we not conditioned, innately, as humans to 'just believe' that something good will happen?

Christmas is, indeed, a season of helplessness. It is a story rooted in it, for it could not be as strong and as beautiful and as everlasting if it were not. To me, there is nothing in the world so helpless as a child--whether this child be the newest baby at Thayer hospital or a 5th grader in Newtown CT or the infant Christ child himself. All are helpless. All are in need. And, for many who arent babies or children, this is a season of loneliness and despair--the forced 'happiness' we are told to experience (whether through our movies or carols or songs or greeting card images, etc) puts a lot of pressure on us. And, I would suggest, that this pressure might be too great for some to endure


But just as Christmas a season of helplessness, Christmas is, ultimately, a season of joy--true, unspeakable, unfathomable joy. But how? And how, in the wake of what has happened in our nation this week, can there be joy? There simply is no coming to terms with this. There is nothing any poet or songwriter or counselor can say to 'make this better.' Not even a bit. But think back to the story of Christmas--true Christmas--when the shepherds and the animals and the wisemen and all the people found joy in the most unexpected of all places: The Savior of the world born in a disheveled and humble and mere barn. Today it is no different: On Christmas morning we look, of all places, underneath a living tree we have cut down and brought into our house...we find joy, wrapped up with a bow, exactly where we would least think it would be....

So unexpected

So perfectly right and beautiful.

May we continue to find joy and peace and salvation in all of those unexpected places; in the midst of the personal, spiritual, and national tragedies we face, may we be completely and totally surprised with  joy and  peace. May we realize that, just as God gave his own son as a gift to all the children of the world that we, the children, are in turn a perpetual gift right back to God. And, lastly, may our own 'mangers' be resplendent and full of those things we truly need in order to be warmed and nourished and provided for on even those most helpless and hopeless of nights.

Meanderings 79

1. Did you know that Japanese scientists have figured out how to send certain "smells" over "email?" I use quotes for email because WOULD that really be an email?? Naturally, this new technology will be used ONLY for good. Dont get me wrong--this is nothing short of amazing. But I seriously cannot think of one valid situation where this would ever need to be done. Seriously. And it opens up a whole Pandora's Box of questions. Will certain 'smells' be banned from sending? Will schools allow it? Is this a type of "cyberwarfare" we never imagined? You know some hacker somewhere is gonna figure out how to send fart smells to Kohl's online customers, et al. I look forward to seeing how this develops....

2. Trash bags live perhaps the loneliest lives of any item on the face of the earth....they are made, in factories,  brand new, and exist ONLY to be packed with stuff no one wants and then thrown out. Forever. Buried in dirt.  What a sad and lonely existence. Perhaps a new children's book idea my friend CartoonBrad and I can create will involve a trash bag that has real dreams and aspirations and wants to overcome the caste systematic type of life that exists for trash bags. I HAVE DREAMS YOU KNOW!!!

3.  Also, toilet paper shares the same fate as trash bags. But I feel like toilet paper gets to see more of the world. Does that make sense? And, all fecal matter aside, they DO get to go on a more interesting journey (a waterslide!!!) than a trash bag.

4. Can you imagine if the story of the Little Drummer Boy were true? What an AWFUL GIFT to give to a king--nevermind ANY baby!! "Here....I am a poor boy too....but I really want to give you something....so I think what I will do is come over to where your exhausted parents are trying to get five minutes of sleep, in a barn, and I will drum and drum and drum and drum and drum. And you will love it." I mean, with the cute song on the radio, there are OTHER instruments involved: singing, strings, etc. But what, in the world, is enjoyable about hearing just a drum. Unless it was a mad phunky beat....like if the Little Drummer Boy was one of those inner city kids who sit with a five gallon bucket on the sidewalk and play for cash....I could be wrong....

5. In the irony department: LL Bean is an outdoor clothing and gear store, and part of their mission is getting people outside to enjoy, respect, and take care of nature. Their merchandise is dependent on "the woods" in that most of the stuff they sell necessitates the woods being there in order to USE that stuff (snowshoes, canoes, skis, hiking boots, etc). Isnt it ironic then that LL Bean must be the largest consumer of PAPER in the MILKY WAY?? The Goldsmiths have received no less than 7 catalogs in the past three weeks....most of them with the same 'stuff' in them.....what the heck is this? How much paper do they go through??#Liberalhypocrites....haha

6. I am annoyed by stories people tell that start with "The other day I woke up" (as in THE OTHER DAY I WOKE UP AND OPENED THE FRIDGE AND THERE WAS NO MILK!!!). I hate these stories because people are not economizing their language, and are therefore wasting my time. You dont need to tell me that you woke up, because the fact that a) the story happened b) you witnessed it c) you are telling me now means that you, in fact, woke up. Omit your needless words or else get the hell away from me.

A Princess Turns Two...

Maira,

Tomorrow is an unprecedented birthday for you! You are 2 on 12/12/12. This will NEVER happen again. Like, EVER. And it couldnt be more appropriate because you, fancy little girl, are a one in a million chance youself....

On the day you were born, two years ago, I was teaching Sunday school when the church phone rang. I just KNEW it was mommy, who was at home, and I knew she called to tell me that her water broke! I was right!! I rushed home and the three of us rushed over to the hospital.

Callum settled RIGHT IN with daddy's Macbook and began watching Frosty the Snowman on repeat in the hospital room while Mommy started doing her breathing exercises. Soon, MeeMee, Grampy, Uncle Jon, and Aunt Kelsey came over to wait in the waiting room.

I kept laughing because everyone thought I dressed up for your birthday, since I was still wearing my shirt and tie that I had worn to church.

On the Sunday that you were born, the Patriots played the Chicago Bears, and beat them 36-7. It was a snowy, miserable day at Gillette stadium and you will find, as you get older, and you learn from me, that there are few things better than December football. With the Patriots. In the snow. When they win. And, because of YOU, I didnt get to watch any of the game. How dare you! haha. A lot of people dont know that this is secretly why I love the Chicago Bears: They were the team playing the Pats on the day you were born!

The past two years have really flown by. You are, now, one of the happiest and well adjusted little people I know. You will go to anyone, and you seem to fear absolutely nothing. I can make you laugh by simply poking your chest. And I ALWAYS know how to make you stop crying (offer you a yogurt...hint hint...). It wasnt always this way. Maira, you were the WORST sleeper in the history of time. When you are twelve, you will begin to serve 'groundings' for this. Also, when you were a baby, you were SO SERIOUS and I could never ever seem to get you to smile. How things have changed.

Today, you are quite the motherly little girl--you seem to have mommy rub off on you a little bit! You love to "discipline" Callum, telling him to SIT DOWN at dinner. Also, you love to micromanage the cat, setting off a virtual verbal alarm whenever Lupine jumps up on our table (MOMMY!!! Lupine a-da- tabullllll!!). And you love to take care of your "baby Ashley," as well as the nutcrackers, who are also your babies. You love to take out your babies, lay them down by the wood stove, get the 'wipes' out of the diaper bag, and clean them off (from head to toe) and then try to negotiate a diaper onto their lower portion....

Your daily protocol lately seems to be to wake up, ask me for a granola bar, follow me downstairs, open the door to let the cat out onto the breezeway, take out a bowl out of the cabinet, put your granola bar INTO the bowl, carry it into the living room, and casually slip an Elmo's World DVD into the player....

You love watching Raymond Briggs' THE SNOWMAN lately, which surprises me because there are no words in this film, yet you are MESMERIZED by it. You cannot take your eyes off the TV when it is on.

And you make your mom, brother, and me so, so very happy. Callum has told me many times that you are his best friend. I hope this continues. Mommy and Daddy want you two to love each other all your lives.

Happy Birthday Maira Elizabeth!!!!!!

Can you believe

We had Maira's second birthday party yesterday, and I have like 2 pictures to show for it? Mostly, I took video, since, for REAL special occasions, we like to see all the moments "live" again. Hopefully (hint hint) people who took pictures at Maira's party will send them along to us!!

We had a very special day with Nannie, Upbob, Aunti KK, Uncle Anthony, Jackson, MeeMee, Grampy, Aunt Kelsey, Uncle Jon, and BaBa visiting for the day.....AND, Callum and Maira's special friend Abby came by to join in the phun.

Amanda made these really cute Elmo cupcakes, and I smoked a Boston Butt roast for some pulled pork sandwiches. We had mashed potatoes, salad,, and calzones my mom brought from this place in Mass that makes the best calzones in life.

It was a rainy crappy day (it doesnt snow in Maine anymore) and some of the "young" people hung out in the garage enjoying beers and catching up....

Maira got some great gifts like a Disney princess dressup assortment from Papa (she is constantly dressing up now!). She got some beautifully monogrammed sweater stuff from Nannie. She (alone with Jackson and Callum ) could not stop playing with the dollhouse MeeMee and Grampy got her.

Today, after church and the annual voters meeting, we went and did two cool things: We bought our Christmas tree at B&F vegetables (this year, I think, we got the best tree we have ever had!). Then, we went over to Winslow Mattress and Futon (where they make handmade furniture) and bought Callum (and Maira) bunkbeds! While the two share a room, we thought this would be the best solution. Callum is wayyyy too small for his toddler bed, and Maira will be in a bed soon too. The bunk beds are WICKED safe and highly rated, and I just might have to have a sleepover with Callum. AND THEN, on DWs, when I kick Amanda and the kids out, Jay, John, and Tim can sleep in bunkbeds, even!!!!!!


The kids watching the Raymond Briggs classic THE SNOWMAN (absolutely mesmerized.....and there are no words in this film)

Brittany from next door (and her friend Angel) stopped over to play with Maira and 'Rudolph' for a bit....always a good time

Callum and Abby enjoying snyacks....

bringing the tree home.....

and starting the decorations....

So this is what we do....

We spend all our time obsessing about/talking about/singing about/reading about/watching reindeer. Our little man has a clinical obsession, I think, with all things deer. The SHores, next door, have this light up deer that flashes green and then red....each afternoon, when I pick the kids up from daycare and drive home, the first thing Callum does is RUN to the reindeer....he loves it. Callum loves Rudolph better than Santa....he wants nothing to do with Santa.....at all.....AT.ALL.

But he DOES want EVERYTHING to do with all things train lately....he has really been getting into his trains. And, at Osh Kosh outlet in Freeport a couple of weeks ago, while picking out his Christmas outfit, I came across this gem, and I "sold" him on it....in about an eighth of a second. Once he saw it there was no turning back....

Now it is his favorite outfit.....(he bought the hat as well....and I really wish they made these for dudes like me....)

And this is Maira does: She LOVES Santa! On Saturday last, we made our way into downtown Waterville to check out the author of Llama Llama Red Pajama do a reading and book signing....then, we meandered over to "Kringleville" in Castonguay square, where Santa's house is, etc. Callum refused to go NEAR the house....but Maira was all about getting up into Santa's sleigh, waiting in line, and seeing the big man in red... ALTHOUGH she did NOT sit on his lap. That is where she drew the line.....

but look at that smile! And you cant really tell....but it is SNOWING!!! (and today it was 50.....)

And this is what I do.....I sit around. My body is failing me. Still doing PT twice a week for my shoulder, I now have a brand new injury, which I call MOAAR (mother of all ankle rolls....). I have rolled and sprained A LOT of ankles in my day....but last Friday, when running across a field that had previously been muddy (hence lots of big footprints and divots) and suddenly FLASH FROZE, I rolled my ankle so badly that I a. heard a snap and b. lost my ability to stand....I fell right down. So I have been taking it easy. Easier than I want. I am going crazy. It is pretty difficult to find any exercises that dont involve your feet or your arms.....

But my buddy kept me company while I iced....and in this photo we were watching A Christmas Story....

Eating applesauce with great aplomb....

And, tonight, while Mommy hobnobbed with our senators and legislators, the kids sat, transfixed, watching Raymond Briggs' THE SNOWMAN.....see how they lined up all the Nutcrackers so THEY could watch too??