Jump!

These are just a bunch of pictures from the last few days. Mike got us seats in the Boeing box at the last hockey game. It was really nice because the kids had more room to move around and we had a better angle to watch the game. Connor and Laura got out the potato heads this afternoon and had a great time playing with them. Laura enjoyed building "crazy ones" and Connor had a blast trying to wear the pieces himself.

Puddle Jumping

There was a break in the rain so we all got bundled up and went out to jump in puddles. It is had to be all couped up in the house when it rains for days on end.

Icicle!

Our Tree

Perhaps a more appropriate title for this would be "SOPHIE and our tree" or, "Attack of the Persistent Tree Eater!" We got our tree on Thursday evening and from the moment Patrick brought it in the house, Sophie has been after it. She scoots her way over to the tree, rolls over and reaches for the nearest bough or ornament. Nothing within a foot and a half of the floor is safe! While I was wrapping present the other day, Sophie got a hold of one of the empty wrapping paper rolls and was using it to try and get at the higher ornaments! Connor and Laura have been much better this year and they have not rearranged many of the ornaments since the first day.

St . Nicholas Day

The 6th of December is the feast of St. Nicholas. He was the bishop of Myra,in Asia Minor, early in the fourth century. He is well known for his generosity. As legend goes, he wanted to anonymously help a very poor man who had three daughters. Nicholas went during the night to the house of the poor family and tossed a bag of money through the window. The man used the money as the dowry for his eldest daughter. Nicholas returned again and left money for the next daughter. The father was determined to find out who was leaving the generous gifts and so resolved to stay awake and see if the late night visitor returned. After Nicholas threw a third bag of gold through the window, the poor father chased after him and thanked him for saving him from turning to evil means of acquiring money and so saving him from ruin. As centuries went by, devotion to this Saint spread and the tradition of leaving a shoe or stocking out on the eve of his feast day (the anniversary of his death) in hopes that one would find it filled with goodies and treats, became widespread in Asia Minor and throughout all of Europe.
To carry on this tradition, we put out our stockings before going to bed on Dec. 5th. Connor and Laura had SO much fun finding the gifts in the morning. They tried to get Sophie excited but she just wanted to smile at the camera.

More Cookies!

Connor and Laura helped me decorate the gingerbread men. I think Laura ate every other m&m. As a result, she ended up quite BLUE!

Sleeping Beauty

Laura had fallen asleep in the car on the way home from the grocery store the other day. When we got home she woke up enough to walk, with help, into the house but then went promptly back to sleep in this awkward position.

Snow!

I know it doesn't look like much, but it had just started falling and I decided we HAD to go for a walk. The kids loved it. Connor and Laura kept trying to eat the snow. We walked down the street just fine but on the way back we were walking into the wind and it got a bit cold for Laura and Sophie. Right now we have between 2 and 3 inches of fluffy, white, snowball-material snow.