Desmond taking his new “Desi-sized” shovel for a spin
Sister excels at “picking at stuff,” including the dinosaur decals on Des’ wall. When it unfortunately necessitated wall repair in one spot, Des lended a hand with the painting (aka, dad gambling)
After that, we wanted to “paint” all the things
Picking up the kids after mom and dad’s date night, the cousins are engrossed in a full-contact round of Hungry Hippos
Some primo lego action going on
Eleanor getting in on activity time with her new crayons, though mom assisting with the mechanics of coloring
Day after Christmas- let the lego builds begin!
Walking downstairs Christmas morning to see that Santa had arrived
…and ate the pretzel left out for him the night before. And the reindeer somehow ate most of each petite carrot, but left just enough crumbs behind to remind the faithful of the plate’s original content. Christmas magic.
Eleanor, either happy about the orange in her stocking, or just excited to be awake
“Mom, can you open both of these like right now?”
R2-D2 and Stormtrooper plushies for the win (in hand going to sleep most nights since)
Desmond presses forward, Eleanor pit stops with a pouch
TWO oranges? Woah!
Pretzel break.
Desmond opening his first gift from Santa, a barn puzzle!
Sister opening her very own set of crayons
Beyond excited to tug at bows and rip paper
Sometimes you just need take a breather
Brother and sister opening Chutes and Ladders together. These two <3
Des modeling his new Cars robe
This time, the injustice was her inability to get her new forks out of their packaging instantly
Trial run with the new spoon- it works.
Desmond surveying the pair of new LEGO Junior sets (brilliant product, by the way)
Des and his new big boy camera
Christmas lunch with great-grandma Kathy
Cousin Viv supervising the first lego build, Des happily the assistant builder
Viv carefully studying the build instructions
…though occasionally pausing for a photo shoot as Liam puts Des’ new camera through the paces
Upon returning home for nap time, Desmond felt his new Lightning McQueen lego car need to be tucked in for a nap as well
Desmond and Cal continuing the Christmas cheer
Eleanor walking over to mom, and judging from the look on grandma’s face, the first time she saw Eleanor take more than three steps. At 13 months, Ella is practicing more persistently than her brother, who after initially discovering his walking ability, shelved it until a few months later
Squeaker/shaker toys… for babies!
Grandma and Des, reading his new book Here We Are
Aunt Kellie, grandma Anne and dad’s first Christmas together in seven years!
Grandma offering structural engineering advice
Snoopy Bob Cratchit watching after the house, it was so fulfilling to enjoy the first Christmas together as a foursome. Complete.
Up early for one of our favorite traditions, pretzels in the making
Who doesn’t love to smash a good egg yoke?
Sugar bae
“Hi mom!”
Des holding his prize possession in the cart seat, as you do
Pa enticing Eleanor to play her favorite game- adult hopping! Doesn’t look like great-uncle Pat is having it
Happy, mere moments before pulling on that towel in the background and nearly braining herself with the pull-down cabinet door. A few tears, but barely a mark. 1960’s safety technology at work.
Des staring down a bowl of ma’s transcendent cream of artichoke soup
Pictured: a rare glimpse of what has come to be known as the “Shriek of Justice!” (an homage to The Princess Bride): a high-pitched warning horn Ella sounds at the faint smell of unfairness. This will all get easier when she acquires language skills, right?
Desmond in his fancy argyle sweater, playing with great-grandma Jan’s toys that have stood the test of time
Cousin hugs/patience
Mom just kinda put it on her finger and walked away. It took a few minutes…
Eleanor witnessing the gift exchange shenanigans first-hand
O Tannenbaum…
Eleanor more than happy to rip into the wrapping paper, with the help of Buddy and Callie
Ella is ready to mash buttons, though this one won’t dial 9-1-1
Pa helping Desmond figure out his fancy new water bottle
The Christmas ornament from ma just happened to have Darth Vader’s voice at the press of a button- his new favorite, clearly
“Talking” on her new phone is fun, but just not enough to let go of that empty lens filter box
Cousins and ma figuring out the new game. It’s like a horizontal, spring-loaded jenga?
The first year of a new family tradition to drive around and look at Christmas lights. Early dinner, PJs, a R2-D2 thermos with hot chocolate, and these two were ready to go.
132nd & Larimar is where it’s at
Getting a haircut from aunt Megan to look nice for the holidays
Father and son adventure to the mall for a last gift. Maybe it was the fresh snow beginning to accumulate outside, but there weren’t that many people at the mall four days before Christmas. Fortunately.
