We're Here

I guess it's pretty bad when my own husband asks me if I've abandoned the blog. No, I haven't abandoned it. We've just been busy doing our thing, with nothing much to report.

We've been catching up on sleep,










doing lots of reading,














and generally enjoying some quiet days together. Don't worry, we're here. We're well. And we'll try to do better about blogging in the near future.

With the Fishes

One of the highlights of our trip to was our visit to the Monterey Bay Aquarium. Ev, Daniel and I biked from the house down to Cannery Row, most of which is a gorgeous ride along the ocean. That's the first time I've ever biked to a museum, and it was great- especially since a change of clothes greeted me at the museum, and I didn't have to bike back home. We spent the rest of the day observing the fishes (yes, finally learned when to say fish, and when to say fishes). Uncle Daniel made fish faces; Grandma touched a Sea Star for the first time; Braden and Trevor found the Octopuses and the Sea Horses; we all touched the densest fur in the world (the sea otter); and Vi slept. Yes, it's true. As fun as the Monterey Aquarium is, Vi managed to sleep through most of it. I guess when you have yearly passes you get a little jaded. As for the rest of us, we were in an underwater wonderland.

The New Girl

Introducing my adorable little niece. As was proper for her first Christmas, she was showered with attention and thoroughly cuddled and held by every visiting relative. Her cousins also seemed to think she was okay. She didn't try to take any of their toys, and there was still enough love to go around. Isn't it amazing how love multiplies like that?





What a cutie, huh? Vi, we loved meeting you and can't wait to see you again!

Old Groove, New Pastimes

We've been having a little trouble getting back in the groove after all our travels. I think we have vacation-itis. It's not that our regular activities are so unpleasant, they're just not as exciting as vacation. Alas, we can no longer pretend to be on vacation. I've been slowly working through all the pictures from Christmas, and they'll be up very soon ( I hope). The kids have been enjoying all their new Christmas toys and patiently awaiting the arrival of some very special boxes from VA. It's not so much what came in the boxes as what came on them. Trevor spent a very special evening in VAwith Grandpa looking at stamps and has been bitten by the bug. He chose some stamps from Grandpa's stash, and those, along with some other hand-selected stamps by a very excited Grandpa were beautifully arranged to cover the postage on two boxes. We always know boxes from Grandpa because they are covered with stamps. This time, Grandpa picked out the most interesting-looking stamps for two budding philatelists. Now they're patiently awaiting Grandpa's visit so he can help them soak the stamps off the cardboard to put in a special album. In the meantime, though, it's time to get back in our groove.