Chirstmas Recap in Photos

This year we did a technological Christmas and Skyped with various family members throughout the day on The 24th and 25th. The kid loves screens, so it actually kind of works.

 Simon is too little to get Christmas, but he loves the lights.  And the paper.

  

I loved getting to wake up and have a quiet morning before church to have family time and a few presents.

After church Val and Josh came over for dinner.  I cooked.  Rob helped.  I didn't actually take a single picture of the meal or the table.  But I did use the desert dishes from my china for the first time.  I'm usually too tired by desert time to use them.  All the visitors were a bit of over-stimulation, but Simon did finally take a nap at 4:40.  But he loves his Uncle Josh.

I've been working on learning Photoshop to edit photos. More on that to come.

Good Christmas.

Merry Christmas

God rest ye, little children; let nothing you affright,

For Jesus Christ, your Saviour, was born this happy night;

Along the hills of Galilee the white flockes sleeping lay,

When Christ, the Child of Nazareth, was botn on Christmas Day.

Dinah Maria Mulock Craik

Grinch

I can't believe it's Christmas Eve. I'm so not mentally ready. Physically we've been prepping.  We have a tree.  I made stockings.  Oh, I am glad I made the stockings. I had a little procrastination on Pinterest weekend in mid-November. If it weren't for these things, and the presents family have been mailing in, it would be just like any other weekend.

Mentally I'm spent.  This semester was HARD.  And not really so much because of the baby factor.  That was part of it.  But teaching two classes (instead of my usual one) meant double the students and their issues and grading. I feel like I spent most of my week dealing with teaching and that left very little work for my research and class that I was taking.  I spent four days this week grading.  And trying to finish the last bit of data entry for my thesis, which was due in October, but the final meeting about was yesterday.  I have until January 17 to write the results and discussion.  I'm spent.  But in May I will have my En Route Masters and in August I will hopefully be ABD.  Aren't you proud of me mom?  And because Christmas Eve and Day are on a weekend, it just doesn't seem like I get any time off.  Hence the meeting yesterday, where I only cried twice.  But that's because I'm so dang tired because someone - I won't name names - has decided that eating during the day is not nearly as much fun as having an all night party recently.

But last night I did something I've only done twice before.  I put Simon to bed, I pumped, and I went to sleep with my head buried under a pillow.  And Rob took the night shifts.  Where Simon refused the bottle.  But did figure out that it was the bottle or nothing, and he went back to sleep.  I feel better this morning.  Not like the zombie I was yesterday and the day before. We might try it again tonight.

Last night we went to the local Pub for dinner.  Simon rocked eating the mushy peas.  And I mentioned that I had seen somewhere on Pinterest Christmas Tree Waffles.  And we were planning on waffles this morning anyhow.  And Rob made me these.

green waffles with chocolate and powdered sugar and a bacon tree trunk

Then we Christmas facetimed with my Dad and siblings and opened some presents, and I think I might just be feeling a little Christmassy now.

I'm not checking school or student emails until January 2 for a self-proclaimed vacation. Kicking myself a little for not pulling out the camera this morning.  I will NOT forget for the next round of presenting.

Merry Christmas to one and all!

Riley's Dol

One year ago Riley joined this world a few weeks earlier than planned.  Last week we celebrated his first birthday.

With good friends we celebrate and hope our kids grow up good friends too. Parties for babies have lots of adults, but lots of babies and kids too.

Part of the Korean tradition is for the birthday boy to choose his path in life. At this party he chose academics.

 Simon got to play with his friends.

 

 And then we ate cake.

 The adults did anyhow.

Happy Birthday Riley!

Christmas Card

If you are very good I might to a behind the magic post for the technologically challenged.

Monkeying Around

With matching hats of course we had to get some pictures.  Here we are at Bryant Park.  Don't worry it was a really warm night.

P.S. Simon has outgrown that shirt in the past week...

Santaland

It wouldn't be a first Christmas without a visit to Santa.  So we went to Macy's, because when you want to see Santa you go to Santaland.

The line wasn't as bad as I thought it would be, we waited 30-45 minutes, but there is so much to look at that it really didn't seem that long.

And the Santa was great (we know the guy) and knew all kinds of stuff about us, like telling me we should make sure to put out cookies - if I didn't eat all the dough first (Rob filled him in on this habit prior), so when Simon is bigger - super fun.

 Simon was not in his smileyest mood, but being 6pm and cranky time, not screaming was kind of a miracle.