Winter 2010 - 11, Week 1

Candlelight has been a theme this week...

And gluten, lots of it.

And family chase.

Piano shopping took us downtown at dusk.


A puppet, a puppeteer and a puppet show.

Preparing to celebrate the Winter Solstice, the longest night.

Cookie decorating, for hours and hours, using chocolate chips, currants and leftover Halloween candy.

At his mom's request, Rob produced a mince pie (minus the meat) for Christmas Eve.

Christmas day - Mackenzie, Rob's brother and his partner, Gunlis made pizza for Christmas dinner. Yum!

Singing!

Lucy's Christmas Northwest Girlchoir concert blew us away this year. Lucy was so poised throughout and the music was magical. Here are a couple pictures of boys/boy first. In the close-up shot of Lucy's choir, Lucy is in the front row third from the left.

Jasper at Five

Jasper provides such a different parenting experience for us than Lucy has; his temperament, proclivities and interests differ profoundly. And yet, the two are constantly drawing each other into their worlds - Lucy sitting with him to make Lego vehicles, him hanging out with her to draw. Without Jasper around Lucy might not have heard the Nutcracker music ten thousand times through. Without Lucy around Jasper may not have played with silks.

At five, Jasper is now fully coming into his own, master of his world, tantrums seeming far behind us. When he's not dressed like a police man or a fire fighter, he likes to wear a button up shirt and tie (with his pajamas underneath and a too-small jacket on top). It would be so cute to see him in kindergarten, but when I described kindergarten to him one day, he gave me a pointed look in the eye and said, "Mom, don't sign me up for that." Not that that decision is completely up to him but how can he already have such a strong opinion about school?

One day just before another child came over to play, Jasper dressed in his camo jammies and painted his face black. It ended up going terribly, the children never found their playing groove and the playdate ended with the other child yelling fighting words at Jasper. Jasper actually stayed calm and collected, as if he knew this was where things were headed and had prepared accordingly. When he tells me things, I certainly listen and take it to heart. He may very well know more than I do.

Snow and Thanksgiving

Part of the fun of cold and snow is all the cuddling we get to do to get warmed up...

At the farm for Thanksgiving - Arlene teaches Jasper this marble game.
Farmer Megan prepares the turkey she and Keith raised themselves.
The farm...

One of several of the kids visits to the yurt...

The ladies on Thanksgiving - just before we sat down to eat... Lucy, Susan (winemaking neighbor), Betsy May, Arlene, Farmer Megan, and me.

Aw... Richard and Arlene snuggled up.
Farmers Thanksgiving serenade:

Betsy May and Jasper read (well "read" in Jasper's case) The Adventures of Tin Tin.




Heading home.