A Very Portland Christmas

Last night we went downtown to see the big tree in Pioneer Courthouse Square and the
window displays at Macy's and Santaland and just all the glittering lights. It has been pouring rain in ways reminiscent of certain Bible stories these last few weeks, and last night was no exception. We got soaked, but the Christmas spirit kept us warm.

Writing a letter to Santa.

Petting Rudolph.

Pretending to be cold.

This tram used to actually carry kids around the store! Ah, the  50s!

Christmas in Portland is rainy.

Today, Christmas Eve, we went to a playdate at the Echo Theater and the kids (and adults) played on trapeze and fabric and rolled around on the mats. Pretty awesome.

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Christmas Break

This morning when I got out of the shower, Suzanne was cuddling with Charlie on the couch, Barb was in bed reading, and Elizabeth was in the arm chair reading.

Today is my last day of work before Christmas Break. Can't wait!

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Bear Blanket Stuffy Turn Into

(Guest author, Suzanne Hovey.)

It is a blanket that has paws and a hood. And if you stuff the blanket into the hood, it will turn into a stuffy that I can use as a pillow.

Jasper gave it to me. Chumbo chimbo poke my nose.

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A Brave (?) New World

A few weeks back, Elizabeth mentioned that a lot of her classmates play a game called Animal Jam. I checked it out, because I like computer games. It's got the National Geographic brand, is ostensibly educational, and is played in the browser, meaning you don't need to install software to your PC.

Now both girls are playing it in lieu of watching TV shows on the weekend. They both really like it, and the coolest part is that they can coexist in the same virtual world.



Elizabeth was SO excited about this that she declared with unprecedented glee, "I'm best friends with Suzanne in Animal Jam!!"

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Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving we woke to cold weather, ice on the puddles, and frost on the car. Elizabeth and Suzanne had been hoping for snow, going so far as to perform a snow dance the night before. Undaunted by its failure, Elizabeth used her library card to scrape frost off the car. She collected it in a bowl and we had the world's tiniest snowball fight.

Barb did an amazing job preparing the house and the meal. Patrick, Karen, and Grandma came over. It was a jolly time.

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Two Portraits of Me

Last night while she was listening to an audiobook (Wildwood, by Colin Meloy), Elizabeth did these portraits of me. The larger one she worked on quite seriously. The second was "more of a quick sketch, kind of cartoony," according to the artist.

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