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going out with some style...

Only A Day Left To Listen

I am inundated with a flood of music I have yet to hear from this year. I won't tell you how many, but it's in the triple digits. In other words, it will never happen. But I will do my damnedest. The first few weeks of the year are always slow anyhow. I may just be late delivering my best of list, which, do you really care?

on with it

song of the day

what you got?

Another Lens To Tend To

Yuula got a camera for Christmas. She got right to it. Got about 100 shots already. About half are black or mostly of her index finger. It takes time. I still do that on occasion. Here are some choice shots from her first collection entitled"First Collection". 

Remember The Name Slee Tweedles

On Christmas Eve we also received a mysterious package at our door. Mysteriously large. Mysteriously unexpected. Mysteriously from New Hampshire. Opened up to find...

My mind raced thru a shortlist of who in the hell would send us such a treasure and thought back to a text exchange I had with good ol' Tom who queried what kind of sled Yuula was rocking these days. 

After a short exchange followed by a holiday phone conversation, it was confirmed, and I was full of Christmas cheer. Oh Tom, why are you so good to us?

And Yuula didn't want to wait for the snow.

When we explained to her the fate of one Charles Foster Kane she thought long and hard about a name to utter on her deathbed and thought the best fit would be, are you ready?...

Slee Tweedles.

Your Neck Will Never Be The Same

Yuula was pretty excited to be able to wear a nice warm scarf like Mommy & Daddy. Add the Hello Kitty shirt and there hasn't been this much excitement over an ensemble since the diapers came off.

U-Nee-Korn The Unicorn

Front-runner for favorite gift

D'ya Hear The One About The Camels And Doggies?

already regretting some gifts...

how soon til she starts making millions?

Santa Had Us All

Not quite to the age where she'll brave the North Pole on her own, somehow we three ended up in the Santa photo this year. And at NYC Macy's to boot.

It's like a jolly competition.

Christkindlmasfamylinsnokrieg 2013

I did not take many photos this year on Christmas. Or video for that matter. I mostly just sat back and enjoyed the day. Mostly.

Can't wait to do it again

Basically Back To The Basics

Yeah. Christmas is over, and after I spent the 26th in a depressive whirlwind I bucked up and realized we got another little package just over the horizon that I got a shit-ton of work to do to prepare for. His bedroom is the least of our worries right now, but that is probably also the biggest project that 2014 holds in the early going. His room doubled as a gift-wrapping/gift-hiding hub for the last few weeks and right now it looks like Christmas threw up and was left to stew in its own juices. That on top of the random other items that would fall more into the temporary storage category, I have a feeling I'm gonna be doing a lot of packing in the coming weeks. 

That and I have to finish the crib I gifted to Laura half-done. We need to re-work all the baby bottles/diaper supplies back into the homestead, which is not as easy as it sounds. Part of that challenge will be just finding everything again. 

This morning Laura's belly looked low. We're taking bets...

Christmas Rooted In Myths And Fruit

the scene on Christmas morning

Lookie here, a sparkly one (still not sure how this happens)

Yuula dug right in to some stockings

things were weird early on

but Judee got a nice little surprise

licorice was a bigger hit than expected, considering we always have a bag or two lying around the house

Yuula actually got excited about clothes for once

and her new camera will be a relief for everyone

yeah, more strange fruits

I think Laura was surprised by her bedside crib and more so by my initiative

the ribbon dancer wins biggest bang for least buck

she asked for mermaids, we doubled down

and tho the unicorn was smaller in scale than the one she asked, it hasn't left her side since Christmas morning

and this guy, who she immediately named Clover, will enjoy this winter indoors and this winter alone

showing Grandpa a thing or two about modern technology

Laura was weary and claimed the couch for the better part of the afternoon

cookies made themselves available

who doesn't love a good vat of pasta

cousins closing out the gifting ceremonies

plaid was a requirement

once the center piece of their packages, bows were tossed aside and summarily squished

she could live up there

drinking and cards of course

Yuula took her mother's place at the table

and so goes another Christmas, getting better by the year

Traditions For The Ageless

Our Christmas Eve traditions went off without a hitch. Yuula loved her Santa pjs, as did Laura and I, who bought each other almost identical sleep pants. Great minds...

Yuula seemed smitten with her ballerina shoes to hang on the tree. She doesn't understand the tradition yet but I'm thinking it does not matter at this point. Sparkly pink things are exciting enough without deeper meaning.

A platter full of carefully chosen cookies (those we had ample to spare) a glass of milk, a carrot for the reindeer and a highly anticipated letter to the man himself. The stage was set and all was left to do was pass the hell out. 

For Yuula, anyhow...

Trouble At The Advent

A Thing For Bing

At dusk on Christmas Eve it began to snow. Hard. After the warm weather and unseasonable melt, we were worried we wouldn't have a white Christmas of any sort. Worries abolished.

I also didn't think we were going to get around to the rosemary lemon polenta cookies II'd been begging for. Once again, worry not oh holiday celebrationist. 

The tree was lit and producing a fine Christmas Eve aura ...

Perfect to eat beef wellington to

And to devour this plate of cookies while we watch White Christmas, which Yuula loved, much to our surprise. I think she's got a thing for Bing.

Sweetie Pie And The Entire Universe

she had to make her final act a big one