Selfies

I'm often amused when I take my phone back from Zeke and flip through the photos he's taken. A few of them are definitely keepers.

Christmas Boys

We love it when Robb gets to spend the day at home. Especially in the middle of the week! Zeke took the opportunity to get all of his new books read to him. Lincoln couldn't wait for Zeke's nap time so he could eat popcorn and watch movies with daddy. Love these guys.

Merry Christmas!

Zeke ponders his good fortune.


Christmas was so exciting this year. It has been such a joy to rediscover all of the magic of the season through a child's eyes. And this year Zeke has been having fun explaining everything to little brother. We woke up early this morning and all cuddled for awhile together before venturing out to see what was suddenly under the tree. There was a vast mayhem of present opening, and then a giant play time. But for sure, the best part was being together as a family.


The stockings are hung on the, um, birch branch with care.

Christmas Eve

We felt blessed to spend Christmas eve this year with some of the best people we know. There was ever so much good food and fun.

Baby Balu!

We are LOVING the abundance of babies right now. And tonight we got to meet another special little one. Pepper was gracious enough to share her new little brother with us. Balu has the cutest, scrunchy little face and is so sweet. Zeke actually asked to hold him. I'm not sure what is up with that, because he usually shows no interest in the tiny ones. But he cuddled Balu and kept kissing him.

I'm a Slimy Dinosaur

Zeke requested finger paints this morning. And he did some lovely artwork. But what her really seemed to want to do was paint his hands and forearms. He would have kept going, too. I guess he felt like a slimy dinosaur, cause that is what he kept calling himself.

Lincoln Photo of the Day

What an imp.

Meeting Baby Ellis

Ellis. Perfection. We finally get to meet this little darling! Robb would barely give her up for a second. He is such a baby thief. In fact, the Crawfords shouldn't leave the carseat near the front door, or he'll get ideas.  

Home Again

Riding in carseats isn't the most fun, but are kids are pretty good about it. Up to a certain point. That point is generally about 45 minutes from home. So today was a sweet treat when Lincoln decided that holding my hand was a reasonable alternative to crying the rest of the way home.

But the best part is when we actually get home after a few days away. The little ones always act like home is just about the best thing they've ever experienced. It is very gratifying, I wish it lasted past bedtime.

Sleepy Bear

Little man had a long day.

The Polar Express

So, trains are pretty much the coolest. If you ask Zeke, this was not his first train ride. He counts the airport tram as a train. Anyhoo.

The views were pretty good, although we had to divert around a herd of caribou, and mysteriously did not spot any. They did serve hot cocoa (to Zeke's delight, it was tepid). And cookies. And Santa came on board and sat down next to each kiddo to have a wee chat. Zeke got shy and had a hard time telling Santa that he wanted a new book for Christmas. Lincoln didn't care. He was only along for the cookies and the attacking mama and dada.

One of the best parts is that we stole Gabby along for the ride, so Zeke was pretty much surrounded by everything he loves best. The most embarrassing part was that they made us all sing The Twelve Days of Christmas on the ride home and somehow our table got stuck with Five Gold Rings. So there you have it.

Ticket to Ride

And finally, the reason for our December trip to Portland: The Polar Express! Zeke has been watching this movie for a couple of years now. And Robb always makes sure we have hot cocoa on hand for the "Hot, Hot, Hot...Hot Cocoa!" song. Although Zeke prefers tepid cocoa. He was all nerves and excitement as we checked in at a genuine train station and the boys were issued their golden tickets.

Lets Go to the Mall

Since we were going to be near a major metropolitan area, Robb took the opportunity to schedule an appointment at the iPad Store. You may know it as the Apple Store, but Zeke would argue with you. And of course, since we were in a mall at Christmas time, we had to take a look around. Gabby and Lincoln tried on headbands, Zeke thought the mannequins were hilarious. We checked out a shaving shop and dropped by a few shoe departments and it didn't take long before we were ready to be out of there. Malls are exhausting!

Gingerbread House Mayhem

We got together with the Smiths for dinner and a little gingerbread house decorating. It was awesome. There was candy. I ate some. Who are we kidding, I ate lots. The dads and the big boys did most of the work while the little rascals ran around keeping each other busy.


Grantham shows us what happens if you don't eat the Andes Mints quickly enough.

Oral Hygiene

This kid will brush his teeth all day long if you let him. But if you don't pay attention he'll also brush the sink drain and the baseboard and the doorknob...

A Sabbath Ride

That's right, folks. Sometimes we are actually all dressed and in the car and on our way to church ON TIME! Sometimes.