Afternoon Visit in Chicago

Afternoon Visit in Chicago
Originally uploaded by Chris & Kelly.

On our way home from Boston we had the all too familiar experience of an oversold flight for the second leg of the trip. Given that we got an early start, we decided to take the $1200 in travel vouchers and spend the day visiting our friends Randall & Chris and their girls Hannah and Olivia. What a great way to end our holiday.

Vermont Country Road with Aunt Kath

Vermont Country Road with Aunt Kath
Originally uploaded by Chris & Kelly.

We went on a day trip to visit Aunt Kath's country house outside of Putney, Vermont. (White house on the left, barn on the right.) The last time we visited was during Christmas 14 years ago. We hope to be back again as a family and see the girls enjoy this paradise -- as so many Ayers kids have over the years.

The Lights at La Salette

The Lights at La Salette
Originally uploaded by Chris & Kelly.

Tante Tanja took us to see the lights at La Salette -- a beautiful winter wonderland. Although the snow gods have been laughing at us, it was a chilly enough to allow Helen to try out her new snow suit from Grandma and Grandpa.

Bench Buddies

Bench Buddies
Originally uploaded by Chris & Kelly.

Izzy and Helen have been having a blast together -- they are such good playmates. They both slept at Oma's house last night while Mama & Baba hooked up with some of Baba's old friends. They are almost exactly the same height and weight, and developmentally are at the same place too. Zalira is pure joy, truly enjoying the activity surrounding her, and delighting in smiles and cuddles.

Next Train to Boston

Family Portrait December 2006
Originally uploaded by Chris & Kelly.

On Tuesday we took the commuter rail into Boston (all 14 of us!) and spent the afternoon in the Museum of Science. There was something for everyone to enjoy, and we took in a show in the planetarium. Some of us learned about stars, and some of us took a much needed nap!

Santa Hat 2006

Santa Hat 2006
Originally uploaded by Chris & Kelly.

And Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night!

Santa Hat

Santa Hat
Originally uploaded by Chris & Kelly.

Yep, she has sure grown from last year.

Band in a Box

Band in a Box
Originally uploaded by Chris & Kelly.

It was definitely a little girl Christmas. Here are Izzy, Zalira and Helen in their matching dresses.

Hail to the Cooks

Hail to the Cooks
Originally uploaded by Chris & Kelly.

We had quite a feast.

Hail to the cooks!

Trampoline Together

Trampoline Together
Originally uploaded by Chris & Kelly.

Time out for play on Christmas day.

Zalira and Zoe

Zalira and Zoe
Originally uploaded by Chris & Kelly.

Our fearless Zalira.

Colin, Ditton, Lucy and Opa

Colin, Ditton, Lucy and Opa
Originally uploaded by Chris & Kelly.

Calendar Kids

Calendar Kids
Originally uploaded by Chris & Kelly.

Helen and Izzy checking out Oma's new calendar.

Christmas Seranade

Christmas Seranade
Originally uploaded by Chris & Kelly.

Ian turnrd 15 on Christmas.

Witnesses to the Great Unwrapping

Witnesses to the Great Unwrapping
Originally uploaded by Chris & Kelly.

Christmas Mayhem!

Little Drummer Girl

Little Drummer Girl
Originally uploaded by Chris & Kelly.

Everyone was interested in Luke's new drum set.

Especially Helen

Carmello Jr.

Carmello Jr.
Originally uploaded by Chris & Kelly.

Luke was more interested in his amazing array of new jerseys!

Throw me a Pass!

Throw me a Pass!
Originally uploaded by Chris & Kelly.

Helen tries to abscond with another of Luke's presents.

Colin and Ditton

Colin and Ditton
Originally uploaded by Chris & Kelly.

Engulfed by Gifts

Engulfed by Gifts
Originally uploaded by Chris & Kelly.

Surely we'll get through this!

Oma with 4 Grandkids

Oma with 4 Grandkids
Originally uploaded by Chris & Kelly.

Christmas morning -- waking up and enjoying being with family.

Scattering Reindeer Food

Scattering Reindeer Food
Originally uploaded by Chris & Kelly.

Oh to be almost three. The age when reindeer scamper and sugar plums dance in your head.

We scattered some reindeer food in hopes that Santa would visit our house.

Santa Arrived....

Santa Arrived....
Originally uploaded by Chris & Kelly.

And sure enough he did.

Such abundance.

But, the best gift was having each other.

Chrismas Eve Fun

Chrismas Eve Fun
Originally uploaded by Chris & Kelly.

Getting ready for the big day.

Kelly with Luke, Helen & Izzy.

Christmas Eve at St. Mark's

Christmas Eve at St. Mark's
Originally uploaded by Chris & Kelly.

In Foxborough for Christmas Eve Children's service. Helen participated in the children's message, but couldn't be persuaded to show her face in this photo (she is hiding behind Elise).

From Left to Right starting from the back row:
Lucy, Ditton, Ian, Izzy, Charlene, Kelly
Luke, Elise, Chris, Tanja, and Zalira in front facing back!

Zalira in the Blue Chair

Zalira in the Blue Chair
Originally uploaded by Chris & Kelly.

Helen meets her newest cousin, Zalira who just turned one. They are sitting in "the blue chair" -- a family tradition.

Oma with 3 Grandkids

Oma with 3 Grandkids
Originally uploaded by Chris & Kelly.

Oma couldn't be happier when all the grandkids began to assemble on Christmas Eve.

Luke -- 10, Izzy & Helen -- almost 3

Cousins Three on December 23

Cousins Three
Originally uploaded by Chris & Kelly.

Wonderful to be here in Massachusetts. Helen has had a great time reacquainting herself with her cousins Luke and Ian, and more cousins arrive tomorrow. Our flight was blissfully uneventful. We neglected to tell Helen that it would take two planes to get to our destination, so when we touched down in Dallas she asked, "Is this Boston?" Oh no sweetheart! The highlight of today was Gingerbread S'mores, a new family tradition for sure. Sending virtual birthday wishes to Dad/Grandpa and Auntie Edith!

Candy Canes at the Nutcracker

Candy Canes at the Nutcracker
Originally uploaded by Chris & Kelly.

Auntie Beth accompanied us to the Nutcracker this afternoon -- it was a version with the first-act only which ended up matching Helen's attention span. The questions are flying fast and furious these days and so watching that first act inspired about a thousand queries, not to mention ongoing commentary. After the scene where the children are fighting over the nutcracker and it breaks in two -- Helen declared, "He needs his head back!" Don't we all...

Dreaming of a White Christmas

New Shaggy Fleece!
Originally uploaded by Chris & Kelly.

Helen got a new shaggy fleece for Christmas from Cameron -- just in time for our trip to Boston. Right now the weather report for Christmas day is: "Partly cloudy with a chance of rain or snow early in the morning." White Christmas here we come!

And speaking of White Christmas -- this 1954 classic will go down as Helen's first feature film which we saw Saturday night in the historic California Theater.

Ho Ho Ho... Holy Santa!

Ho Ho Ho... Holy Santa!
Originally uploaded by Chris & Kelly.

Sitting on Santa's lap seemed like a good idea. It was downright exciting when we discovered him in the park in Los Gatos. It still felt right during the half hour we waited in line. But when the moment of truth arrived... Helen would have been very happy to send Santa straight back to the North Pole. Perhaps her third Christmas will be the charm.

Family Flower Power

Family Flower Power
Originally uploaded by Chris & Kelly.

A flashback photo from August when we went berry picking with the Mau's. I brought our camera without a battery, so these photos just came to us in the mail. (We figured out later that we could use the disk from Chris' Treo phone in our camera -- good to know!)

Poinsettia Portrait

Coming to a Mailbox Near You
Originally uploaded by Chris & Kelly.

With a bona fide photographer in the house you would think we would have taken a real portrait of Helen before now... But alas, with a bona fide photographer in the house you can't actually go to the mall and pay good money to someone else to do that! Last week we finally broke out the seamless and did the honors ourselves.

This was probably one of Chris' most challenging shoots ever. The dogs would wander into the frame, the model was only occasionally cooperative, and the lovely assistant kept getting distracted. But at the end of the day, and 200 shots later, we've got at least a couple that are Christmas card worthy. Check your mailbox!

2006 Holiday Parade

2006 Holiday Parade
Originally uploaded by Chris & Kelly.

Helen & Claire hold down their sidewalk seats at the 2006 Holiday Parade. Being so close to the action has its hazards -- those horns and drums are loud! Helen tried her own version of noise mitigation. Not a person was left sitting however, when the "inflatable" pictured below made its way down Santa Clara Street.

Curious George Stalks San Jose

Curious George Stalks San Jose
Originally uploaded by Chris & Kelly.

In a scene that mimicked the movie, Curious George did his King Kong take off in San Jose.

How do we know this scene so well? Chris tivo-ed this movie and it has been wildly popular with our little monkey. Thankfully, it is also popular with us adult monkeys who like the music and Will Ferrell humor.

Merry

Merry
Originally uploaded by Chris & Kelly.

Make that very merry. Our merry Miss Helen is just 30 days (x2) away from being three years old today. She is absolutely the perfect age to be absorbing all of these holiday traditions. We are doing an advent calendar... we cut down our own tree... we are planning a trip to the Nutcracker... and Helen is starting to ask about Santa. Mostly she wants to know where he is. All this talk about chimneys has her concerned that he might appear without proper notice, and to her it sounds suspiciously like breaking and entering. She has been clear that she doesn't actually want to meet Santa, but she is keen on writing him a letter. She wants him to know that she wants candy for Christmas. (Sigh.)

Last year at this time Helen was perfecting her negotiating skills by learning to say "One more". This year she is picking up on all of our phrase-ology and using it as needed. For example, tonight, in negotiating for one more marshmallow, she asked so innocently, "One for the road?"

The Chosen Tree Ready for Cutting

The Chosen Tree Ready for Cutting
Originally uploaded by Chris & Kelly.

I think our days of picking out a tree from the school parking lot are officially over. We trekked up the hill to the Santa Cruz mountains to pick out our very own tree this year. It was lovely. And it smelled good. Really good. Next year we are going to bring a picnic lunch so that we can extend that experience even longer! Of course once we got the tree home we noticed that it had a big chunk missing from one side, but hey, it's fresh. It was fun. And apparently each acre of Christmas Trees on this farm will produce enough Oxygen to meet the daily requirements of 18 people.