Owen's 3rd Christmas...

We woke up around our usual 7ish on this cold and snow covered Christmas morning...I came downstairs and waited for you and you dad to come downstairs...You knew something was up, because you stayed in the hallway for what seemed an eternity!!! I was videotaping the whole thing, and I have 4 minutes of a door way! Ha! Eventually you CRAWLED in...and hid behind the couch!

Then acted completely goofy!



Then...over the next few hours, we slowly opened each present..taking some time to appreciate and play with them...Here are a couple of videos and pics!



Beautiful tree...with an abundance of presents...
With dad and a new tie...

Reading a Dr. Seuss book...(one of the 30 Aunt Julie and Uncle Michael sent him!!!Ha! Thanks so much!)
Beading a necklace...(Thanks Aunt Gigi and Uncle Victor!)Building a marble maze...(Thanks Grandma Mary!)Building a Carnival Fort with dad!!! (Thanks Aunt Lupe, Uncle Greg and Santi!!!)

Videos from the 24th...

Christmas Eve...

As we get ready to spend our second Christmas, (just the 3 of us) in Spokane, tonight, we continued with the tradition that we started last year. Going caroling at Cannon Park...around a bonfire. This is a neighborhood tradition that I found out about last year by total accident, and even though we don't live in the Cannon Park neighborhood, we crashed it. Twice.

Last year we were on time...this year, we caught the last 10 minutes of it...I had written the time in my Outlook calendar, so I would know the time this year...but, when my computer crashed this year, all of my important notes and dates in my calendar vanished into thin air...So, just in case (KNOCK ON WOOD)...that this computer suffers a similar fate, let me mention that the caroling starts at 5:30! :-)

Owen was not interested in caroling...so I left O and J with the sled, and joined my far away neighbors in the last two songs...the crowd was much smaller than last year...and there was 3 times the snow and wind...so there you have it. As soon as the singing stopped, the place was emptied in a matter of minutes...so we had the park to ourselves. O did a bit of sledding and fire management, (I'll add a couple of videos in the next day or two) and I photographed and just took it all in...the beauty, my lovely family that fills my heart with joy...I love you O...Merry Christmas little buddy...you are truly the best.

Owen In The Bath!

Aquarium...

Owen and Penny

Park With Connor and Justin!

Lunch In The Forest...

We headed out to Lily's house on Sunday afternoon...Tanya had packed a lunch for all of us, and we drove just a short way to the Small Spokane River, (I think!)...It was a really great place. Lily and Owen took off and explored...they climbed trees, rocks and each other!

Piper decided we should climb up the side of the mountain, (OK...I exaggerate just a LITTLE)...and for the first time in my life, I ate lunch on a 45 degree incline...(or would it be a 145 degree incline)...it was all quite thrilling!

Then we walked some more and eventually made our way home!

Dirt Piles...

After the going to the Japanese Garden, (see previous post for pics), the 5 of us headed to Upper Manito to play. Patty and Jacob and Henry stopped by as well, so we all hung out. Henry and Owen hung out mostly IN the dirt pile...They were in heaven!

Owen was so, so dirty and muddy...his clothes were still wet from the Koi Pond, so getting his boots off at home was quite an adventure! It was like cement in there...I think he grew an inch or two after we managed to take them off!!!

Anyway...it was a really fun day!

Don't Be Koi!

Nipples and Breasts and Cement Mixers!

This morning, as O and I lay in bed together waking up, this is the conversation that occurred.

O: Is this your nipple?

Me: No, that is my breast. This is my nipple.

O: This? (Squeezes said nipple).

Me: Ouch! Yes, that is my nipple. Be gentle please.

O: What does it do?

Me: Well, not much at the moment. Once, it fed you.

O: Chocolate milk?

Me: No, just milk. When you were little, I breastfed you. My breasts made milk and you drank it from my nipple.

O: Is there milk in there now? (Pats my left breast).

Me: No...it's pretty much all gone. When I carried you in my belly, no, uterus, my body began making milk, so when you were born, I could feed you.

O: (Looks at my tummy)...I was in there?

Me: Yup.

O: Was your belly really big?

Me: Yes...and you were even upside down.

O: Gasp! (Smile)

Me: Then you were born, and you drank milk from my breast.

O: NO MOM! The milk came in a cement mixer!!!!

Me: Oh...

Then, of course I ate him.

Music Class...(A.K.A. Wearing Out Dad!)

O loves his music class...he dances, laughs and sings with gusto! It is really great to see him enjoy it so much.

Joe mentioned the other day buying a piano...we have three guitars around the house, (well, 4 if I count O's guitar!)...I am contemplating getting a couple of drums for O to play with...

When I was in my early teens, I took piano lessons. I remember enjoying them a lot, and I think I played pretty well for someone that only took them a year, at most two. Of course, looking back, I wish I had stuck with it...but I think boys and hanging out at the mall took precedence. Ah, the priorities of a teenager. I hope O is smarter than I was...

I think as long as we make music fun, and expose him to all sorts of sounds from around the world, he will enjoy it and maybe even want to pursue learning an instrument. One can hope.

Working....

Joe and O worked hard to put my studio together...I of course, had to document this momentous occasion!