happy holidays...

It's been a nice, vacation-y week. Tonight was my mom's surprise party for her 70th birthday, which I have been planning for a few months, and it went off very nicely. The book I put together for her of photos and memories from siblings, spouse, children & grandchildren was a huge success. Mom was very appreciative, which was the most rewarding of all. I'll post some photos later on.

We watched the movie Waitress tonight. I'd heard/read about it a few times, but didn't know much about it besides that it somewhat chronicled a pregnancy. It was a very good movie. It was gritty (a word overused in movie reviews, methinks, but entirely appropriate here) and real. Even if they make me squirm at times, I have a hard time not liking real movies that reveal the messiness of the human experience. A couple of other movies that I think merit such distinction are As Good as it Gets and Real Women Have Curves. There are others, too.

I gave my mom the boxed set of Stargirl and Love, Stargirl for Christmas, simply because the former is one of my all-time favorite books, and I wanted to share it with her. (I've not yet read the latter.) She told me that she read it and loved it, and that it really makes you think. It was odd how thrilled I was to hear this. I can't quite explain it, but I feel like the story of Stargirl is in some way my own story, or the story I wish I could have written about who I was growing up. I very often felt separate and apart from the group, while simultaneously never doing anything that didn't seem to be what everyone else did. That, of course, is the exact opposite of Stargirl. Perhaps it is better said that I felt my true self was someone like Stargirl. The story really resonates with me for myriad reasons. When she said she liked the book, it felt like some sort of bridge of added understanding between us. I've always had a good relationship with my mom, but in the past couple of years I have felt a stronger bond drawing me to her than ever before.

On a final note of late-night reflection, I have come to realize that I definitely suffer from Seasonal Affective Disorder. I think I don't like to face the fact, because it is one of those "trendy" things that everyone and their dog seems to suffer from, but I am hoping that acknowledging it in my own mind will be motivation to pursue a course of activity to mitigate its effects. This past month it has been a real battle to get out of bed most days, and I think it is the toll of facing gray, cold weather day after day that really saps my energy. I am very grateful that we have passed the Winter Solstice, though, and that shorter nights, longer days and SPRING are in our future. I would definitely have been all for celebrating with the druids the return of more light. "Oh thank you, Sun, for not burning out and abandoning us to a cold, miserable death!" (Hey, Andrea, I guess I have a bit of drama in me, too!)

we wish you a merry Clivemas!

Spud was born 3 years ago tonight (11:14 p.m.)! We had his party today and he had a lot of fun. The dinosaurs (Imaginext by Fisher-Price, which I got on a screamin deal from Amazon -- all those dinos for $30!) are a HUGE hit with both the kids. And their aunts and uncles like them, too. Noodle keeps saying she wants to get her own someday. Fortunately, Spud has been good at sharing. They are really cool.

The pedal car is from David's parents. I think they said they found it at an antique shop. Pretty fun!

o tannenbaum

Here's our happy little tree.

wild child

After their bath the other day the kids were hanging out in my office, wild wet hair and all. I got this picture of Noodle that I just love! She's such a little imp!

the holiday spirit

These are from a couple of weeks ago. While we were out getting the tree from the garage, Spud unwound FIVE spools of ribbon. We think it was about 130 yards worth. As we unpacked the stockings, he was convinced that they were actually supposed to go on your feet, so we gave him a couple to try on. He was quite happy, tripping around the house.

THIS IS MY 300th POST!!!

Cool! I could do something super to commemorate it, but I just want to share an experience from yesterday.

We were driving around and Daisy was peeking out the front passenger window. This kind of rough looking fellow was walking in the cold, smoking a cigarette, and he crossed in the crosswalk in front of our car and saw Daisy peering out at him. He just stared at her, then a big grin broke across his face. When he passed over to my side, he mouthed "That is one cute dog." and he was still grinning so big. He didn't seem like the type of person to appreciate a silly fluffy dog, but I think it really made his morning.

Happy Holidays, from the Family Pets!

"See how we are waiting so patiently for our food? Well, that patience will soon run out!"



"We like to play in this paper. Isn't it great to have a mom who leaves junk around the house for us to play with?"



"This is where I hang out while mom is running her errands. Do I look sufficiently bored?"



"This small hairless one likes to hang out with me. I allow it."



"There seems to be a fat intruder in my house. Huh."



"Look, there's a reason there are no holiday tales about cats. We hate holidays. And this is why."

make your own flake

This is fun

I think the link will let you see my first snowflake (highlighted as "Your Friend" or something like that. It's a fun little thing. Thanks to Katie for sharing it with me.

In other news, I've been "tagged" by my friend Karen, so I'd better get on that. It's been one of those crazy weeks. Not too much of interest has been going on because I've been so busy with various small projects.

okay, so the baby is now a month old...

But I wanted to share a few pics from my friend's "maternity shoot." She is a beautiful person, so it was fun to take pictures for her. Especially in fall, which is really her season.

I've been busy

Trying to get my life a bit more organized (I swear this is a recurring theme) and getting ready for the Holidays and all that jazz. I did a quick photo shoot for my friend Shannon. It was quick because we were all starting to freeze by the end, but I think we got some nice photos. And heck, for a Christmas card or even for the wall, you only need ONE good photo. Mission accomplished!