The Birthday Girl

OK, so I did not remember until this morning that today is Keely's 3rd birthday. Luckily we had some turkey sausage left over from breakfast, which she gladly scarfed with her usual reckless abandon. We've learned a lot from Keely, mostly that you never know what's going to happen and, more importantly, always keep a roll of paper towels and stain remover handy. She adds a lot to our life, aside from our complaints about her "quirks," she's always nearby to comfort you when you need it and she's pretty gracefully handled the addition of Gavin to our lives. Can't ask for much more than that.

Christmas -- The Home Version

We had our Christmas morning at home on Thursday, the day after we returned from Colorado (it's not easy to swing, but if you know the right people you can arrange for a delayed visit from Santa). Gavin received his first train set, a stuffed horse and a couple books about horses (horses are a big deal around our house right now, just ask Gavin to give you a "Na-aaaa-ay").

Despite the appearance of more new toys -- the rocket ship still reigned supreme and Keely is also very interested in some of the plastic pieces involved. She is always willing to "hang onto" them for Gavin in case he decides to leave them laying around.

Christmas 2007

We hit the road for Colorado to celebrate Christmas with Don's parents and siblings. Gavin had a great time getting to know his Mimi, Grandad, Aunt Kate, Uncle Chris and Aunt Kathy better and we think they enjoyed his antics -- though maybe not at 4 in the morning (kids don't seem to know anything about time zone changes)!

Enjoying Mimi's piano -- though had to be reminded not to hit the keys so hard all the time...

Playing "Santa" on Christmas morning -- Gavin enjoyed this almost as much, or more, than opening his own presents...

Trying to stay cool for the journey home...

One last pic in the airport with Uncle Chris, Daddy and Aunt Kathy before heading home...

Once home, we opened presents with Jenny's family and Gavin loved the rocket ship from his cousins Anna and Caroline...

Caroline received a ton of art supplies this year -- drawing helps pass the time during those cold Minneapolis winters!

Gavin checks out his new scooter from Grandma and Granpa Price...

Gavin and Anna snuggle up for the camera

The face of holiday travel... when you're 22 months old

Snapped this in the Denver airport today ... made it home safely from Christmas trip to Colorado this afternoon. Will post more when we get a chance -- Santa is coming to our house tonight so we need to get to bed early!

Elf

Check out our little elf

Proof that toys aren't always a necessity...

Mmmm ... pancakes

Did I happen to mention that our new stove rocks? The 5th burner in the middle with the optional cooktop griddle is something Don had his eye on trying for awhile and finally had a chance to give it a whirl on Saturday morning. The results were delicious!

Thanksgiving Weekend Redux

We headed downtown on the Sunday of Thanksgiving weekend for lunch at Brocach Pub on the Square and then over to the Children's Museum. It was a nice end to a four-day weekend together and a good way to make Gavin less bored with us while he was missing his friends at day care ; )

Oh Christmas Tree...

We didn't want a repeat of the pumpkin patch fiasco so we went out the day after Thanksgiving to get our pick of the trees...

The perfect tree could be out here somewhere, but in truth we bought one that was already cut!

Gavin consents to sharing the back seat with the tree

Ta-da! It really looks great in that corner and makes me realize we might need a plant or something there when the holidays are over...

UPDATE: Yahoo up and running

I have e-mail again! Yeah!

Gavin and Madeleine

Madeleine (Sarah and Matt's beautiful daughter) paid us a visit today and we were thrilled to get a chance to catch up with her parents and force the kids to pose for these photos. As you can see, Gavin is still working on the "gentle touches" he learned in day care. Madeleine (6 months) tolerated this pretty well and we feel lucky to have these great shots of the two of them together as a memory of a fun afternoon!

FYI...

...still can't access my Yahoo account. We're getting closer. I hope!

Out of service...

..that would be my Yahoo e-mail account. For an unexplained reason, my password no longer works and I can't access it. I have taken my request to access my own e-mail account to Customer Care and they have passed "the case" on to their crack team at Yahoo Account Security. So, please don't think I have chosen not to e-mail you back. I CAN'T. One thing I have discovered is that e-mail is a bit of an addiction and without it I am jonesing ; )

Before and After

Paint is an amazing thing -- I love how the color is looking in our kitchen/living dining area. Here's a before and after to remind you of the big improvement! HUGE credit goes to Jenny's mom and dad who came over while we were at work to get more of this done this week. Please don't mind the mess -- we're still unpacking ; )

The cow says...

More house pics...

We're Home!

It's been a busy and tiring couple of days at the new house -- we made it, though, and are thrilled to be here. Our news neighbors (and good friends) Sara and Jim made us dinner last night and Gavin had a great time playing with their two sons ... meanwhile, thanks to Jenny's mom and dad we are enjoying some beautiful paint on our new walls. The painting is a work in progress, but here's our new, sunny hallway -- remember the institutional "before" picture? It's awesome now! Promise to post more pics later -- too tired to do anything more now ...

)

Happy Halloween (Late)

Gavin looks for his pumpkin

As reported in the previous post, pickings were slim at the pumpkin patch today -- but it was still a lovely day nonetheless... let's ask Gavin how it went from his perspective...

"I've got my own ideas about the safest way to ride in a wagon -- I like the body-surfing approach... "

"Hey Mommy, this is how it's done..."

"Come on! This way to the pumpkins..."

"But first, a quick check to see how fast I'm growing..."

"Hmmm, where are all the pumpkins? I'm about ready to give up... "

"Here's one! Wait, this is too big. I think it's time to look elsewhere..."

Where the over picked pumpkin patch fails, our local Brennan's Market comes through (plus it was a great place to pick up some supplies for our last meal at home -- some yummy salmon -- before we packed up the kitchen tonight). We'll post a picture of Gavin's pumpkin on our new front porch later this week : )

In Search of the Great Pumpkin

Who knew that if you hit your neighborhood pumpkin patch the weekend before Halloween that it would be -- ahem -- a little picked over? Lesson learned. However, we had a great time out in the "country" today with Gavin as we took a break from packing. Some more photos of this beautiful fall day to come...

Last Days at the Old Place...

We figure someday Gavin will want to know where he used to live, so we attempted to snap this family portrait this afternoon in between packing and patching and painting up the walls. We're getting close ...

Who is this man?

Why it's William Shakesfoot -- Don's role in today's elaborate Halloween festivities at his place of work. Nice beard, huh? The Bard would be proud, I think.

Gavin the Matador

Sildeshow thumbnail...

This one is my favorite of the bunch...

Our House-Take 13

"The Terrace" is complete ... and it rocks! (at least in our opinion)

Gavin is almost 20 months!

Haven't posted for awhile on the G-Man, so here is your fix!

Our House-Take 12

Moving day is fast approaching and despite the rain this week, the patio is on its way to completion! Oh, and we have our red door, too, which I understand is good luck in some cultures! We'll take what we can get : )

We've jokingly been calling our new house "The Terrace," (because the street has that word in it), but here's the real "Terrace." Can't wait to enjoy it with all of you!