Glowing

 It was a happy Christmas Eve and Christmas.  We loved our dinner by candlelight

and our Elf Olympics.

Everybody liked their glowing finger-lights.

Junie happily ate this superglue package

Daisy placed her new post-it notes carefully all over the house

The boys built the first few of what will be many, many marble tracks with their blocks.

Clearing Out

She eats!  She has a great appetite and is our cleanest eater yet (waves her arms elegantly to the sides as she eats rather than grabbing the spoon)

Abe Dances, Seb Sings

Christmas lights at Riverwoods---so pretty!  I like this lower picture: Sebby gazes enthralled at the fire, Daisy warms her hands, and Sam tells everyone (unsuccessfully) to "Look at Mommy!"

Cold and Rosy-cheeked (and Sorry, Sam)

Do these people go here?

Do these people go here?

Much Excitement and Running To and Fro over the insulation truck which came to blow more insulation into our attic

Sebby loves the pipe organ

Daisy puts Junie in the doll stroller

J'adore Four

Mr. Malachi turned four last week, to universal acclaim.  He is the funniest, sweetest, cutest, smartest little four-year-old you'll ever meet!  He requested butternut squash soup and wheat bread for his Birthday Dinner, with Sebby Cake for dessert. Here are some (slightly blurry---he moves fast) pictures of him on his Happy Day. 

(explaining something)

Festive

 We got our Christmas decorations (mostly) up and have been enjoying the festive atmosphere they lend.

Juniper loves the Little People Nativity, as every baby has and does.  This is one of the best presents we've ever gotten (thank you, Sheila!).

She was really playing with it, putting the animals in the stable and so forth.

She was slightly put out, but resigned, when the inevitable happened (i.e. Daisy came and took over)

The kids got some new pajamas, which I decided they should wear all month instead of 

waiting till Christmas Eve.

Matching gingerbread babies

Our rainbow Christmas tree

Late-November Garden

We have been enjoying several weeks of sunny-but-cold weather, interspersed with sunny-and-even-almost--warm.  One day we went to Red Butte Garden to enjoy the sunshine and let everyone run around for a few hours---expecting to find everything pretty much brown and dead---but we were pleasantly surprised by how lovely everything still was.  Many of the leaves were still bright on the trees, and we saw lots of interesting textures we might not have noticed in more verdant company.  There is something so uplifting about being outside in the sun and the air after many days of indoors, even if it's a little chilly!    

Fly, birdie, fly!

This birdie is always hunkering down and hoping someone will pet him.  I love his expectant "birdie" look (he gets this particular expression on his face only when he is being a Birdie)

The evening light was unbelieveably pretty---so golden and slanted.  It always takes me by surprise when this light comes on at about 4 p.m.; I guess I'm not used to winter hours yet.  But it is so gorgeous for the brief time it lasts.

The pond was iced over in places (very interesting to our little explorers)

Last rays of sun