Presents, Presents, PRESENTS!!!

Wow, the boys have such generous family and friends! I wanted to show everyone how much fun they have with their new stuff. So, here goes!

Dave and the boys roll the super awesome Caterpillar trucks Gramps and Grannie Annie bought them down the hall.





All three guys play with one of the super fun toys from Gramma Char. Beep beep!

Nana sent Levi's most favorite thing of all (this week). Hot Wheels! Wahoo!

Not sharing.... no. Not at all.

Great Aunt Phoebe and Unkka Don sent a whole fish themed gift! This is one of those fishies. We're taking it to the aquarium tomorrow.

Milo LOOOOOVES the Yo Gabba Gabba gifts from Auntie E and Uncle Steve. He barely lets anyone else near them.

Milo is hoarding the new "Find It" book that Nana and Grampa Michael gave them.

Gramma sent the coziest pajamas EVER! See for yourself. Milo's has trains and Levi's has dinosaurs.

Fa la la la la la la la Latkes!

I know that we aren't the Christmas type of people. But I am still not a person to pass up a photo opportunity for the boys. Note that though I said "photo opportunity for the boys" and yet there I am in the photo... Well, Levi didn't want anything at all to do with Santa. He was terrified and absolutely refused to sit on Santa's lap. It took the work of two elves, Tamaryn, and Zippy to keep him as happy as he is below. Which isn't very happy. And, naturally, since Levi was miserable Milo was frowning in solidarity.

Even Santa looks grumpy.


After leaving Santa's living room everyone cheered up. They even had fun sitting on the ground outside Santa's house."Come on, Levi. I heard that reindeer can fly. Maybe we'll convince that one over there to take us for a ride."

Snzzzzzzzzzzz............ Sugarplums dancing in their heads?

Christmas Morning For The Lakes

I never really cared for Christmas. I guess I always felt exempt, in a way, from the insanity of it all: shopping, santas, the music, and only one big presents day instead of eight. But now that we have the guys I kind of loved Christmas. Everyone was very sweet and thoughtful with their gifts to them. Gramps made them wooden toys and made donations to their college fund, Grandma Carol got them awesome toys (a baby playtable and a dinosaur ball-pit!), Auntie E got them a box full of great toys (Haba wooden teethers, a pig whose butt rattles when you pull his tail, and other awesome toys), Gramma Ellin sent great books and dinosaur socks, Grampa Len sent a donation to their college fund, and I could go on and on. It is way more fun to get presents for the boys then for ourselves. So thanks everyone. The boys are loving their stuff and I finally enjoyed Christmas!

The guys opening their box from Auntie E.The box that Grandma Carol's presents came in was ALMOST as much fun as the presents themselves.

More fun with the box that the toys came in. Actually, this shot was more fun for me than it was for Levi.

Levi in another box. Why do I keep doing this to him?

Levi, finally having a blast, in the dinosaur ball pit.

Nondenominational St. Nick!

He was the greatest nondenominational St. Nick! His beard is real. We know this because Levi pulled on it nearly the whole time. He is such a cynic.

Fa la la la la la la la... latkes.

It is a strange first Chanukah. We're had an epic snowstorm here in Seattle this week and had something like a foot of snow on our block. People are skiing past our house. Even for this Chicagoan it is a little much. Benny and KJ were supposed to arrive tonight and we were supposed to start our road trip tomorrow. But since the airport is a disaster zone and all the flights are cancelled the trip is postponed until Tuesday. Earliest. Fingers crossed.
In the meanwhile, we only have enough candles for 6 days of Chanukah! Can we make the candles last all 8 days? Will we have a Chanukah miracle? Wait and see.
The boys tear into Gramma Ellin and Grampa Michael's awesome presents. The tissue paper was nearly as much fun as the books!

Fun fact: dinosaurs, made by Gramps, are both tasty and delicious.