366:366 - NYE and a year of posts

Thanks to our friends the Chapins, we had NYE plans...at 3 PM! What a great afternoon for glow bowling complete with hats, noise makers, disco balls and a countdown to "midnight". I can't believe I was actually able to complete my 366 year of images. Some days it was hard to pick a single image (and so I didn't). Other days, it was a struggle to come up with a single image at all. I am looking forward to continuing the project into 2013!

365:366 - Sunday morning run

Since I have been training for the Gazelle Girl Half Marathon, I have been running on Sunday mornings, in the cold and dark, with a great group of women. We have varying running experience, ages, and distance goals but we are enjoying the bond of knowing there are others holding us accountable to getting up while the house is still quiet, lacing up our running shoes and getting moving while most of the world is still asleep.

364:366 - Coffee cup??

Leave it to my mom to find the coolest coffee travel mug disguised as a lens (Canon, of course!) However, as Rodger reminded me, I will not be leaving this mug in the car due to the $800 price tag the "real deal" carries!

363:366 - Crokinole

So Mark wins the award for bringing the coolest toy to the Christmas festivities! Crokinole quickly became an obsession played by all! We had to switch players off and on in order for everyone to get play time. Zoe inadvertently practiced her math skills by being score keeper when she was playing. Awesome game! We are all hoping he brings it to the Lake House this summer (hint, hint!)

362:366 - Winter Weather

Leave it to the strange winter weather! How odd is it that we had to drive to Ohio to get snow?? Beckett played in the backyard overlooking the river and spent his time making a snow chair and "planting" a tree. I took the kids sledding with their cousins in the afternoon and caught Zoe, in a silent moment, soaking up the winter sun.

361:366 - Ohio

We made the trip to Ohio today to visit my parents and see all three of my brothers.  Nothing says "holidays" at my parent's like the smokers lining the mantle and the wreathing on the banisters. It is always beautifully decorated and magical. All three "boys" were there: Mark and dad laughing over a gift, Matt carrying Raegan around the house and Beckett getting some quality Lite Brite time with Uncle Todd (aka Chicken Nugget).

360:366 - Joy. Surprise. Delight.

It would be hard to pick a favorite moment from Christmas this year. Was it watching Beckett "show" every present he got to his sister monkey? Was it the absolute glee on Zoe's face when she unwrapped something she really really REALLY wanted? Was it the giggles at the breakfast table over the cinnamon rolls, fruit and grandma's eggs fantastic? Was it the "Fun House" box that Zoe decorated for her brother and that he sat in while opening his gifts? Was it Rodger pretending to be a spaceman in his new motorcycle helmet? Or Zoe acting like a cat in her hat from Grandma & Grandpa? It wasn't really any of that for me. It was really the patience they showed and the excitement for each other and the bittersweet knowledge that the magic of childhood is a fleeting moment.  And, I just soaked up every moment.

359:366 - Tradition

Christmas Eve: homemade stockings hung. Cookies for Santa painstakingly chosen. This year's ornament placed on the tree (a very cool hand painted quail egg). Car ride around the town, listening to Christmas music, singing and checking out all the Christmas lights. Hors d'oeuvre's dinner. Pajamas and reading the pop-up book version of "The Night Before Christmas". Tradition. 

358:366 - Moments of reality

No holiday season is complete without moments of reality. This season's "reality" moment came in the form of Zoe's chapstick going through the dryer with all of the kids jackets and snow pants.  Which are now stained. All over. With oily chapstick-y marks. That do NOT come out. And, in the comedic category, Rodger has turned him mini-motorcycle rider for his RC bike into a mini-me. Not sure how to comment on that!

357:366 - Visiting Santa

We took the kids downtown to see Santa tonight. Beckett was in awe and not quite sure how to approach him. Zoe was quizzical and is getting to that age where she is beginning to have questions. She knows this is not the "real" Santa but she held that knowledge in and let her brother believe. I loved the stack of notes and wish lists on the arm of his chair brought by other children.  After our visit, we walked 8th Street where I caught a sweet moment watching Beckett check out all the goodies in the window at the Peanut Store.

356:366 - Role Model

When I picked Beckett up at school today he was grinning ear to ear.  They have instituted a new behavior chart for his preschool class. All kids start on green ("ready to learn") and, depending on behavior, move up or down the chart. There have been quite a few days that Beckett has been on blue but today was the first day he - or anyone in his class - has ever been a "role model".  He was ecstatic!! And, I am so proud of him. He was complementing his friend's art work and helping to clean up after others. So sweet! Also, he drew a picture of our Christmas tree which was not to be missed.  And, Wink plays a prominent part of his piece.

355:366 - Better late than never

Spent some time today working on Christmas cards and indulging in my new favorite yogurt. It's a miracle that I actually got cards in the mail this year! It's not like I didn't have a LARGE number of images to choose from for our pictures!

354:366 - Rudolph the red-nosed reindeer

Beckett made Rudolph hand print antlers and red noses today at school. So cute!

353:366 - Wink's tricks and a lunch date with dad

Kids woke this morning to another practical joke courtesy of Wink, our elf. This morning he had taken the toothpaste and written his name on the mirror. Later on, with Zoe in school and Rodger off until after New Year's, the dude got to have a lunch date with his dad.

352:366 - Christmas Cookies

Tonight the kids cut out Christmas cookies. They each have their favorite shape but after a few cut outs, it got more fun if they made their own adaptations. Gingerbread men became Santas and snowflakes became connected in a row. Stars were placed atop small trees and scraps were turned into all kinds of abstract Christmas-ness.

351:366 - Creative with candy

What a fun day! Imagine 6 kids all excited with massive amounts of icing, candy and treats and a completely clean palette. The ideas were amazing and so fun to see what their minds could create. Beckett's house looked a lot like the headpiece he had devised for himself from pipe cleaners and glow bracelets. After some house decorating, the adults decorated the kids with Rudolph noses from mini m&m's. the giggles were contagious!

Beckett's house looked like a Gaudi

350:366 - Little houses all in a row

Great friends of ours are bringing their 9 year old and their 4 year old triplets over tomorrow for gingerbread house decorating.  In preparation, I made all the pseudo-gingerbread houses tonight to leave tomorrow open for all the fun!

349:366 - Not what she expected

Last night, after her shower, Zoe asked me to put her hair in many braids This morning when she woke up, she got something a bit unexpected. What does she think? Well, her face says it all.

348:366 - Cars, cars, cars

Wink chose to ride (and hide) in style. 

347:366 - Homework

Beckett is quite pleased to be bringing home "homework" from pre-school.  The look of concentration on his face as he focuses on his work sheets gives me a momentary glimpse of homework in years to come. 

346:366 - The Dum-Dum package arrives!

Over the past year, the kids have been collecting Dum-Dum wrappers with the hopes of sending away for one of the items depicted on the side of the wrappers.  A few months ago, they counted up their wrappers (a crazy number, in my estimation), chose their items and we sent off a fat envelope of wrappers to the Spangler Company. Today, the package came! The kids were plenty happy with the t-shirt and binoculars!