This is the latest I’ve stayed up for a new year in a while. Being a parent has tamed any wild celebratory urges, besides being inclined toward sleep. Tonight we has a Cousin Xmas celebration with finger foods and more deserts than you shake a stick at. There was rowdy gender only gift exchange. Wayne discovered he’s smarter than a 5th grader. We watched a record breaking motor bike jumper on espn with my motorcross crazy 16 yo nephews/ cuzs. Lots of goodnatured Wooten clan fun.
December 31, 2008
December 25, 2008
Fun, fun, fun
You can tell the Amy, David, Justin, and Skylar rev up the later it gets. It’s late and I’m feeling the effect of my cold. I’m getting more post nasal drip and it’s causing me to get a catch in my throat. I’m more tired than I normally am at this time and I have a slight headache. Laura has gone to bed.
Christmas morning was nice. It was just me and my parents. Laura has figured out presents. She didn’t stop to play with her toy. She wanted to quickly move onto the next present. We were able to block that trend by giving an adult a gift. Laura and Sara would each open a gift at the same time. They got several beautiful dresses from Mom. At one point we stopped the unwrapping to put on new dresses and twirl about. Everyone got fun little gadgets from a variety store called Richard’s. I got a bell for Skylar, a fighting robot figure for Wayne, and a music windup box for Dad. I got a fun new Nikon lens. Wayne got a box of Theo truffles. I want to eat some of his chocolates. We ate pannetone toasted for breakfast.
We were all getting antsy so we voted to go out. Laura was a little close to her nap. The ground was wet from a deluge the night before. The kids ran around Atlantic Station while adults photographed.
After nap, my bro’s fam came over. Laura went into fit mode. She was unhappy there were presents being opened that weren’t hers. Laura got twin baby dolls her Aunt Mimi bought. Skylar rounded out her Playmobile zoo collection. Justin got two Lego sets. One is already set up on the dining room table. One was an Indian Jones figure that fell into my jello when he was showing it off at the dinner table. Dad gave Amy et al a nice photo book of Justin and Skylar. I compared it to the book I gave Mom using Publisher from Costco. I think the Mac book is a bit nicer. We compared it to past books I’d made, one a Mac and one from shutterbug.
Dinner was lovely. It echoed Thanksgiving of 2003. Mom embraced the Cooking Light menu that year and she and I have been cooking dishes from that menu since. She made the brussel sprouts with pecans and the brain mold (without the brain mold). We had honey baked ham. Amy and I competed to eat the crusty sugar bits that fell from the sides of the ham. Osley, Dad’s graduate student, joined us for dinner. We watched Dad’s slide show from this fall when they followed the fall foliage. Dad takes amazing photos. The second feature of the night was the DVD Wayne edited. It was well received. It gets better each year.
The coup de grace of the evening was playing Clue with Justin. It was fun to have him ask to play it since it was my favorite game as a child. I’ve had little success in getting people to play it. Settlers of Catton and other German fare seem more popular. I guessed the first set of clues by luck, but Wayne actually claimed the victory being in the same room with me. I won the next game by trumping Justin’s guess.
I’m glad there are 12 more days of this!
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Xmas morning
I got to sleep in this morning. Mom’s cooking a lovely meal. Laura enjoyed pannetone with blueberry jam. Dad and Wayne are playing with flashes. Sara is reading Horton Hears a Who. It’s a Powers Xmas. I’m happy to be here. I feel at home and it feels joyful. Familiarity is a wonderful thing. The stockings are full. The tree isn’t piled hight with presents, but a modest amount. With the economy unhappy, we decided not to exchange adult gifts with either family. It’s funny to see that no one really obeyed that rule. Sara took me aside to recite her daycare Xmas chant: “Presents from Santa, thank you, but no. The birth of Jesus is what Xmas is about. Yes!”
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December 12, 2008
Where I’m at
I’m starting where I’m at. The day has been long and crazy. People ask me how life is. I hesitate. Does that mean it’s bad? No. It’s exhausting and hard at times. So I’m starting where I’m at.
Someone called Laura feisty this week. That’s a good description. I often label her passionate. She’s turned a corner the past few weeks. Her tantrums and wailing have more ferocity to them. She’s using her 35 pounds and throwing it around.
Tonight she threw her 35 pounds on her tired Dad. She crashed into his ankle and his wrist on two different occasions tonight. Sara showed some wonderful kindness and got him ice for his ankle. She was crazed with sugar and hunger and tiredness. Wayne had to carry her screaming to the car 2 blocks.
I guess we kind of set up the kids. I gave up attending Terry’s annual Xmas party with the residents. There was a chance of snow and I didn’t want to drive to Issaquah through Friday evening traffic by myself. So instead, I woke my girls up at 2pm to get them dressed and out the door for Wayne’s office party. I went because I was invited. We don’t get to see Wayne’s work often. The girls had wanted to go back (last time was this summer with Poppa and Nana). Dana, Wayne’s boss, had specifically invited kids. The day was blustery and cold and rainy. It was a day that made me want to shrink back inside, not venture out. Wayne said there would be vodka and Salumi meats. I was skeptical, but stopped by Starbucks for hot chocolate and juice for the girls.
They had a blast at the party. Eventually, there were 7 kids total. Quite a nice collection of kids. Wayne bought this awesome rocket toy from Barnes and Nobles for Laura’s birthday. The toy and other books arrived this week. So the kids had something other than all the adult toys on desks to play with.
I got to talk to adults. Mi, Per, Dana, Daria, Amber…folks I don’t see very often. I got some protein, but couldn’t convince the kids to eat anything but cookies. So they got high on sugar.
Then we rushed to get to their school Xmas program. No dinner in between. So hungry, sugar high kids join other kids without dinner for a program. It turned out better than expected. Until Laura got done with her part and had to sit quietly in a pew for the next 40 minutes. She wrestled in my lap, around my feet, etc. Then we took her downstairs with lots of kids and cookies and sprite at the reception. More sugar. That’s where Wayne had to carry her.
So we’re tired.
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December 7, 2008
December 6, 2008
Holiday Magic
Wayne was tired. I was ready to go out. I had had a relaxing morning. Wayne had wrangled the girls through a Costco outing on a Saturday. So I took two girls out into the cold to experience a bit of Xmas in Seattle.
Holiday Magic is a Queen Anne neighborhood tradition. We arrived just at the lighting of the tree outside our church. We stampeded in with everyone else. It was warm and inviting inside. By myself with the girls, in a big crowd, I made us all hold hands and stay together. Sara got some play time with Johanna as long as Laura would hang out. I was surprised we didn’t run to decorate cookies first.
When we did get over to the cookie table, I was impressed with Sara. She decorated 2 cookies first to give to the homeless. She didn’t eat a cookie till she had finished that task. Laura just wanted to eat the frosting.
We eventually wandered over to Flame, a burger place, to have dinner. I was tired. It was starting to rain icy shards.
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