I've got your number...

The file name for this picture is 'Serious Lyra'. Even at one year old (as of Monday) this baby can do a mean stare.  

Kitchen Progress!

At times, it has seemed like it was taking eons to make progress on our new kitchen, but right now things are moving along well. Our new cabinets are being installed in the kitchen, and the trim is being installed in the dining room. This is picky work, and we have great craftsmen doing the job. The progress day to day is visible and it makes us salivate for the day we can finally work in the new kitchen. Our two cats (Noelle in this picture) are carefully supervising the project. 

Christmas Day!

Look at all this LOOT!

Santa brought Will a digital camera, SchoolHouse Rock and several books. He dug into Calvin & Hobbes right away.

Eva gave Will a James Bond book for Christmas and he was SO HAPPY! I think his interest in spies is starting to transcend his interest in Star Wars. I couldn't get the kids to hold the book up and look halfway presentable for the camera at the same time. This is the best I could do! 

Will loves little Lyra too!

Eva had two important requests from Santa. One was an American Girl doll and the other was an Eva-safe chocolate bar. Many of you know that Eva has a nut allergy and because of that, chocolate is a very high-risk food. But she loves it soooooooo much! So, Eva-safe chocolate is a very special treat.

Eva recently discovered jewelry and has been pining for a grown up pearl necklace. Our special gift to her was a freshwater pearl necklace and bracelet set and she adores it!

All yesterday, Lyra was climbing on and digging into all the presents. This morning, she wasn't so interested. Eva's gummy bears did catch her her eye and she played with them until Will and Eva calmed down enough to let Lyra open her presents. Ultimately, I think Lyra was rather overwhelmed. That and sleep-deprived (aren't we all?) due to an up and coming tooth.

Eva did some Christmas art with materials sent by Aunt Edie and Auntie Jo. You can see our teeny weeny Christmas tree in the background. Because of the renovation, we only had space for a tabletop rosemary plant. Lyra is at a difficult age for having a tree so it wasn't such a bad thing.

Christmas Eve Day

For years, we've heard about the waterskiing Santa but have never gone out to see him. So, we made special plans to see him this year. Lots of people turned out on this sunny but very windy day. Will and Eva aren't in this photo because they climbed a tree to get a better view. Hope Santa comes out soon because we are cold!

Santa's elf is chasing the Grinch. That is the National Cathedral in the background there. Where is Santa? 

Finally! There's Santa, taking a break from toy making! We hear this is Santa's last year waterskiing as age is finally taking its toll and he would rather relax in front of a warm fire with a hot toddy. It was very windy today and I'm sure the water was freezing, so Santa's plan sounds sensible to me.

Here is Eva in her special Christmas outfit. This came from Norway. Last year, Eva's class studied Norway for Global Studies and she was taken with the country and its clothes. She should get two years or so out of this beautiful embroidered wool pinafore. Wearing this dress around town is prompting Eva to practice social graces because everyone asks her about it and tells her she is pretty. 

Friday Dinner

Camera phones are always with us, but they are just not very good. Cath shot this photo with her lousy Motorola phone at Harry's Tap Room in Arlington. Here is Bill with Eva (happy) and Lyra (oblivious).

A Christmas Carol

I took Will and Eva and Eva's friend, Susannah, to Ford's Theatre tonight to see A Christmas Carol. We went with Ross and his family. What a show it was! I think this was Eva's first real grown up play. I have not seen or read that story since working backstage on our junior high production of the play, and I had forgotten how scary it is. I hope no one has any bad dreams. Bill, I am sorry you missed it!

Lyra did not come on this outing but had a nice time at Auntie Cheryl's and Uncle Todd's. She woke up as soon as I brought her home. It was fun to have an evening out with the big kids but I kept feeling like I had forgotten something very important. I am pleased that I remembered to pick her up on the way home. I was a little worried about that!

Risks of Parenting

Even though last night's recital was short and sweet, Will and Eva's piano instructor required the children to conform to her performance dress code. I asked Will and Eva to get themselves dressed appropriately, figuring they knew what that meant having performed in recitals before.

Eva did fine but, as you can see, Will followed the Letter of the law but not the Spirit of the law. He looks like a drunk. If I'd framed this shot better, you'd see his shirttail hanging out in front. The natural consequences of his decision are that I am posting this photo for all the world to see and that I will be supervising his choice of clothing more carefully in the future.

Eva is playing Christmas carols with piano teacher and performer, Julie Zupan. I liked the chamber music format of this recital. I don't have a good picture of Will playing piano because he played at the end and Lyra had lost all sense of decorum by then. 

More Progress!

The barrier between the front of the house and the construction zone is temporarily down, so you can kind of see where this renovation is going. I wish I'd taken a picture of the floor before all the thermaply was put back down but I missed my chance.

There is dust EVERYWHERE. It has even migrated up to the attic. It will get worse during the drywall work. I think we will be putting our cleaning lady's children through college trying to clean up after this is all done. 

This is from the kitchen looking towards the front of the house. 

The windows are finally in. There used to be a window on the lefthand wall and another to the right of the door. Now we have a larger window to the left of the door and the door is further to the right than it was. The old radiator is gone and we are looking forward to having heat in the back of the house! 

Can you do this?

I can't. 

Yummy!

Fireflies is our new kid friendly place to go eat. Eva loves the lemonade and live bluegrass on Sundays. Lyra loves her avocado though I brought that from home. I can't believe she ate the whole thing! 

News! News!

The biggest news is that Lyra took her first step yesterday! It was just one and then she fell down but we were all so excited. She did it a couple more times so Will and Eva could see. I expect she'll take off over the next month.

I do have more renovation pictures coming but the wireless access in the attic (where the computer with all the pictures is) has stopped working. As result, it is a bit of a hassle to select pictures and bring them downstairs. I can't even email them to myself. But the new floor is in, the electrical work is done and we have insulation now. It is starting to look like a real house! They will turn on the heat in the back of the house and start the drywall work next week!

Christmas Chapel

Every year, Will and Eva's school does a Christmas Chapel service on the last day before winter break begins. This children in first grade reenact the Christmas story. There are angels, shepherds, wise men, animals and Jesus' family. They practice for weeks learning their songs and special parts. One of the songs is Silent Night which they sing both in American Sign Language and the regular way. It is just beautiful!

Eva is a sweet little angel, isn't she? 

We sat right behind Will's class during the Christmas Chapel. Lyra provided lots of entertainment for the children. I had to take her out towards the end because her babbles and giggles were echoing through the Cathedral a bit too loudly.