Full of light

This little guy is one of my all time favorite ornaments.   The kids have learned that it is important to find just the right spot, and angle a light into the room, so you can see Santa at work.  Jack his is stride as a tree decorator this year, placing ornaments with great consideration...

Officially in the holiday spirit around here.  This weekend did the trick.  We had no choice!  We were waylaid by light.

This guy, it turns out, really loves Christmas.  Most mornings, and evenings, you can find him in this pose.  Or, tucked under the tree.  Or, nestled in among the tiny village houses.  I kid you not.

Friday Night:  Snowball dance!  Leave it to my daughter to get to me to one of these!  Jack had 3 opportunities before this year and never showed the slightest bit of interest.  (Didn't this time either-- he and dad stayed home to play video games...)  But Ivy?  She was ready to rock.

Some of our favorite Boulevard girls, all princessed up for the night!

I'm afraid the dance wasn't quite what Ivy expected-- she told me at one point that she thought it would be a performance -- but eventually she came around to the idea and we had some fun dancing to a song or two.  I have to admit, it WAS pretty crazy in there. SO many elementary schoolers.  SO much running.  And loud music, and lights...

We spent quite a while hiding out under a stairwell with these nice kiddos.  Ivy (go figure) has quite a following among the little boys in her class.  This cutie was one of several who kept seeking her out.  That's my girl. ;)

And here's my girl ready for a birthday party the next day! Why not wear your Christmas best?  We tried hard to pretend it was winter even as we headed out in shirtsleeves and bare legs.  The boys played outside for the better part of 2 hours at Ellie's party.  Crazy weather...

Crazy partiers!

Ivy's been my little companion this weekend, happily accompanying me back out, moments after arriving home, to go to caroling on Coventry.

We had the best time.  Her little enthusiastic voice!  Her bright eyes!  Her excited clapping after each song we sang... Her hand in mind as we wandered down the street in a surprisingly big, surprisingly off-key group of singers.  We also had a delightful surprise of running into some old friends.  Ivy and Ella rekindled a friendship within seconds and even had an impromptu playdate back at our house to close the day...

Sunday: A morning trip to church with Gram...

... and a visit to a balmy, calm lake.  Springlike weather, down to the humid grey air, and even a few trees (sadly) trying to bud...   So strange.  

Yet, lovely.

In the afternoon-- off to Glow! 

It was a bit of a madhouse at the gardens, with the day crowd still clearing out even as 1,000 people crowded in for Member's Night.  We'll need to go back to take in the decorated trees and gingerbread with more care.  But our visit this weekend was worth it for the fact that the kids were running around in the woodland gardens.  On December 14th.

The outdoor lights were pretty magical.

Inside wasn't bad either...

Ivy's wish on the Wishing Tree...

We seem, recently, to be in the habit of arriving late to our own parties...  once again we were rushing home directly to Sunday Soup, and once again our (awesome) friends had made themselves at home to wait for us.  I am so grateful for our friends...

and cookies.  I am grateful for cookies...

We had plenty on Sunday.

And baby snuggles!

And conversation and crazy children who decimated the upstairs bedrooms, and even caroling around the piano and out on the porch to close the night.  Caroling, requested by someone OTHER than me! With people singing parts! Miraculous! And, our carols even included the Dreidel song, as our friends brought their menorah and some latkes to share. The lights of the last night of Hanukkah mingled with the lights on our tree and we ate delicious chicken soup and reveled in being together.

And no matter the busyness of it all and the breathtaking, countdown rush.  Christmas was there in the room with us.  It was with us all weekend, whenever we took the time to look.

So much light.

Holiday Spirit

December is here, and I am SO  not ready for it.

But, no time like the present!  After a week of birthday celebration, we've jumped into the holiday season with both feet.  Tonight, at the tail end of a lovely, busy weekend, our decorated tree glowing and stockings hung by the chimney with care, I am starting to feel some holiday spirit creeping in...

Last weekend:  Larchmere Holiday Stroll.  Visited our friends' new blacksmith and glassblowing shop, took a horsedrawn wagon ride,and had a surprisingly good time in antique shops with our kids (Jack has now added an antique typewriter to his Christmas list... raisin' him right!)

Then, downtown for Winterfest!

We opted out of the craziness of the lighting ceremony, instead getting our favorite wings and heading home for dinner-- but it is always exciting to see downtown bustling and full of life...

Sunday-- Lake Day!  We celebrated my birthday on Sunday so of course I asked to go to the lake.  I was also spoiled with an amazing breakfast, dinner with friends, and a new first floor laundry room.  You know, the usual.

Here's Nat with his big drill.  We now have two 5 inch holes in our walls...

 ... but you can't see them cause I have a this swanky new laundry room!  It is awesome.

 Celebrating my birthday at my mom's house...

Unrelated photos of the bunny.

 Oh.  We have a new chicken.   Our second (!) thought-it-was-a-hen-but-it-turned-out-to-be-a-rooster was rehomed last week and this week we brought home a new Lyonaisse.  Apparently there's only about 500 of them in the US, so that that's cool.

Our animal lover had a great time at the Chicken farm.

Here's our new girl.

Friends for dinner!  Love these kids.

The weather this week has been extraordinary. Really.  Here's the lake on Tuesday.  We had a great time exploring the Solstice steps with the kids.

Lots of time on the West side this week.  I had my West Shore concert this weekend and in between rehearsal and performance we went back out for Light Up Lakewood.  What a cute, fun festival. Face painting, petting huskies, booths-of-crap, free hot cocoa, the world's busiest Burger King for dinner, and this adorable parade.  

 Crowds of people waiting for the Lighting and the fireworks.  Super festive and made even more enjoyable by the not-too-cold-at-all temperatures.

This morning, we decided to just go for it and decorate the house.  

The kids are getting pretty good at decorating the tree.

The Christmas Village is always a winner...

A large portion of the morning was spent with the children pretending to sleep to the music of the snow globe, or pretending to be presents under the tree...  Funny little ducks.

We fit in a bit more holiday fun this afternoon with a trip to the Dunham Tavern Museum open house.   

 It was the cutest.

 Craft table, cookie decorating, yummy treats, historic house tour.  I was smitten.

And, pretty happy to come home to this.

Time to start soaking up some December around here.  Ready or not.