Intsy Bintsy

Carribean Getaway

Just kidding.  But who would believe this beach is here on Washington Island?  Unfortunately it requires a half mile or more hike in.  Makes it kinda hard to schlepp all the usual beach items: the kid, the cooler, the sand toys, the beach blanket and the beach bag.  I'll have to downsize. 

Yankee Doodle Dandy

Summer may have started late but it came out swinging.  We've been busybusybusy.  The good kind of busy though...family, friends and fun.

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On one of our infrequent days "off", puttering around the yard and garden, I took this video, capturing an unselfconscious moment.  This is the real Max, folks.

Spring

Is there anything more hopeful than a pallet of flowers?  First fling with annuals.  Wish me luck.  Pictures to follow but only if they look good. 

Blocks are the great toddler equalizer. 

The bright side of this little habit is never again having to hold him down screaming while trying to cut his toenails.

First time fishing in Jackson Harbor.  He was convinced he'd caught a "big one"...even if it was the lure.

Homemade raspberry sourdough waffles.  Worth the mess.  (Thank you Grandma Gloria for the waffle maker)

Frosty the Snowman

Post-Christmas Wrap

I emerged unscathed from the holidays.  Its a Christmas miracle. 

But really, for a decade or so Christmastime was not such a big deal.  There were quite a few holidays during my twenties I didn't spend with my family.  When I lived in Denver it was expensive and hard to fly home during the busiest salon season of the year.  Everyone should spend Christmas Eve in a nightclub at least once in their life.  (If nothing else, to appreciate NOT ever having to spend Christmas Eve in a nightclub again.)  One memorable year was spent with a friend's family from Albuquerque eating the best green chile I've ever had.  Another in Australia, eating seafood and drinking champagne on the beach.  There were a few (okay, more than a few) Christmas celebrations with my family that I experienced through the dense, queasy fog of an epic hangover. Not like when I was a child and Christmas was hotly-anticipated and filled with excitement that went on for what felt like months.

Once you have a child of your own however...everybody wants a piece.  And of course one feels compelled to create magical Christmas family traditions and experience the wonder of the season through said child's eyes, all while trying to accomplish twice the amount of normal things one tries to accomplish in a given day and not gain 500 lbs over the course of what is essentially a nonstop month-long buffet and open bar.  Oh, and travel.  Oh, and family. 

Its a lot to put oneself through and in the end, no matter how much fun it was and how much I really enjoy seeing even the craziest of my relatives and how many joyful moments there are and how many blessings I count, I'm happy to be back to "normal".  To settle into the next few months of curling up and cozying down and slowing the pace waaaaaay down.

So here's to the holidays, may the stress and spare tire fade away and the memories of love and laughter stay forever.