raised up in the way she should go

Ally has taken to narrating her life aloud when she thinks no one is listening. i thought maybe i could attribute this to book learning, until...

today when i was helping her tidy up after using the little girls' room, she said (in a courteous, digital voice):

'click on me to pull up my pants.'

dear diary

i have been absent. i've actually been here, but i haven't wanted to blog about it. ahem. i still don't--not really. still waiting for that impulse to strike. meanwhile, the story happens, and it's a simple but epic story, and i just feel that an account must be made. you understand, diary.

still waiting.

nudey yule again

nativity, Christmas Eve.

morning's here!

elves & fairies

waiting for snow.

ally to me: *SIGH* "it takes a long time to snow in pasadena."

reindeer.

santa's cookies.

polishing dad's shoes for Christmas.

danish christmas carols sound a little sassy. in my opinion. bim sings one in particular that suggests the danes are very fun indeed. while i don't speak danish, the ancestral dane in me makes me uniquely able to extract lines from songs pretty accurately.

nudey yule again, nudey yule again, something something something pasta...

this christmas past is to be remembered as the one of the very best in all of rememberance. 1: because it happened at my house. 2: because we didn't have to travel. 3: because my dad came. 4: because my sister and her family live near. 5: because of toys.

ally's wish for a snowglobe came true and, after a brief pause to throw up, christmas morning happened.

most played with that morning were two musical jewelry boxes that i found at estate sales and filled with plastic mardi gras beads. one plays "Stardust" and one, "Lara's Theme" from Doctor Zhivago. the former has already been broken by a curious friend, but the music still plays and it will do. it will do.

i hung two new swings from the tree in the front yard and both have become an important part of our morning (and afternoon, and evening) rituals. also worth mention is an idea i got from a friend: a pully system--with a basket, some rope and a wheel-thingy nailed to the ceiling--that delivers toys from the bottom bunk to the top bunk of the girls' bed.

for the first time in many years i didn't feel oppressed by "stuff." i think because instead of shopping in crowds, i ordered gifts online. any different? i think we bought less and enjoyed more. but i still overdid it with toys. i love toys so much. some of them never made it to Christmas morning: i either sent them back or stowed them in the closet for another day.

if i could have one thing different it would be more time with Bim, who toiled away at the office while i was home wrapping gifts and listening to music. could that possibly be right? he was the sacrifice we made to the holiday gods this year and it was not a fair exchange.

wanted: job that does not grab at one's body and soul as one attempts to finish work and get the hell home. here's hoping.

happy new year!