My neice, Avery, had a sleep-over at our place last night and no school today, so she is hanging out with me. Morgan had her preschool, so Avery and I got some girl time to ourselves. Since Avery is a loyal "Holloway Happenings" follower and is always asking if the photo or video I just took will be on my blog she is contributing today. So here are some photos from today and a brief narrative by Avery herself!
Hi, I'm Avery and I am in first grade. My best friends are Gretchen and Cambria. My favorite project we did in first grade was fudgecicles in math. Today I was with my aunt and uncle and cousin. We got to go to Starbucks coffee and go see Uncle Sam in his office. Then we got to go pick up Morgan in her preschool. 
I was in the hospital on Thursday night for bumping my chin. I almost needed stitches, but I just had to get glue and chinstraps and some medicine on my chin. It happened when I was at my day care. That's why I have a band-aid on my chin.
Here is my bunny, Nike, and dog, Oliver. They are drinking coffee and looking at the newspaper with Aunt Robin.
I did some art today. And I made a handprint and it was painted blue, with a green outside. It had polka dots. The border was purple and red and made out of wood.
We were dancing to some music called "Under the Sea" and Morgan was sitting on the potty.
It's here...almost. It's that smell that has been absent during the cold, rainy months of winter. Yes, I realize we are still in one of those months, but I can smell things starting to come alive and grow. I also smell a lot of mud, but I think the plant world is trying to rise from its winter sleep. I have also seen bulb sprouts pushing up through the ground and, my absolute favorite, daphne buds forming on shrubs. (I have already began scouting neighbors' yards where I can snip a few branches when they bloom - at night of course.)
I'm not quite sure what has been going on the past few weeks, as this is my first blog of the new year. I don't even think I wrote much about Christmas. In a nutshell, it was really, really nice, full of traditions, fun with family, and the joy of seeing it through my daughter's eyes. Then came New Year's, the de-Christmasing process, friends visiting, trips to the beach, family stuff.....and a huge let down. I had such a wonderful Christmas and was excited for 2010, but now that it's here, all I can think about is spring and sunshine (rather, lack thereof).
Hanging out in Pioneer Square with the umbrella man statue.
The first of many trips to the Children's Museum - Clifford was a real treat!
Learning how to build sand castles on the beach.
But this week, we were blessed with some sunshine, AND (most importantly), I was able to get out of the house with my independent-minded toddler and enjoy it! Our house is very quiet, nestled into the west hills, but also devoid of much direct sunlight, especially at this time of year. Most days I don't know what the weather is doing, and by the time I do (because the weather forecasts seem wrong most of the time), Morgan is napping, eating, or just plain impossible to get dressed and out the door. Add the fact that we are potty training (another whole story), and I am getting a bit of cabin fever!
One way to get Mo out outside is on her "big girl" bike, that was handed down from Noah and Avery. She loves "riding it," and I love seeing her explore yet another part of growing up. So the past couple days we have spent time at the park riding her bike, sliding, swinging, soaking up some vitamin D, watching kids, and chasing after her persistent shadow. If the days are getting longer, we can get outside more, signs of spring are slowly appearing, and I get some yoga in a couple times a week, I think I can hang in there.
Yesterday, as I was washing dishes I noticed some white things falling from the sky. "Is that snow?" I said to Sam. So without all the local weatherman's hype and media blitz, we had a surprise snowstorm that amounted to about three inches. Of course because it started falling around 2:00 in the afternoon, it created a complete nightmare for people trying to get home. (I was watching the news at 10:00 last night and the highways were still bumper to bumper!) But fortunately Sam was already home from work and I was home with Morgan, so it was a nice treat, not a disaster.
Morgan woke up from a long nap and was very curious about the snow ("It's even in my backyard too!"), so we headed outside. The snow was falling hard and Morgan seemed a little uncomfortable with all the 
snowflakes on her eyelashes, but when we tried to go inside and warm up, she wanted to keep walking around. Sam built a cute Morgan-size snowman and Morgan helped put some mittens and gloves on it.
I am goofy when it comes to snow because I love it so much. We rarely get it in this part of Oregon, so it is a nice, brief treat (except for last year's huge snowstorm). After Morgan went to bed, I went for a short walk in the park by our house. Everything was covered with a pretty layer of white and the neighborhood looked especially beautiful and peaceful. And since we live in Oregon, today is warmer and the snow is melting so life can get back to normal, but it was a fun way to end 2009. Happy New Year!
Here's a little song for Aunt Kimmy, who is in India this Christmas. Hope you are having a wonderful trip and a very Merry Christmas! We love and miss you!
PS: Morgan told me this morning when she got up that she wanted to go to Aunt Kimmy's house and play "Peekaboo Barn" (the game you have on your iPhone). Then she said, "I don't have Peekaboo Barn on my Barbie phone." Next year, she'll probably be asking Santa for a real cell phone!
I love Christmas, I always have, and it comes from having so many wonderful Christmases with my family growing up. One of my favorite days of the year is probably going out and choosing a tree from a Christmas tree farm, coming home and decorating it, and having the house smell like a fir tree - the absolute best smell of Christmas to me. As a kid, my mom had this huge nursery box with all the family Christmas ornaments and decorations. I can still picture my dad carrying it down the stairs (in his classic one-handed, waiter style way) and that feeling of giddy anticipation that would overcome me. The older I got, the more I helped out. My sisters and I would help my mom string popcorn and cranberries and be extra careful with all her antique glass ornaments that came from boxes so old they were falling apart. There was that one year I was electrocuted by an old strand of lights, leaving the socket and my thumb black, but in general they are all happy memories. I especially loved setting up the nativity scene on the mantle. My family was not particularly religious (meaning we never attended church), but I was fascinated by the story of Baby Jesus. Everyone loves a baby, right? And I also think I know the lyrics to almost every Christmas song after playing them year after year on the piano from my mom's Reader's Digest Christmas piano book (that was probably the most motivated I was to actually practice!)
Now I am getting to spread my enthusiasm to my daughter, who will celebrate her third Christmas this year, but technically, it feels more like her first real one to me. She knows who Santa Claus is, thanks to some repeated explanations and readings of Christmas books. (I guess I am doing my duty as a parent, although it is a bit odd to be "teaching" her about this part of our culture.) She was definitely a bit scared of him initially, and told me that the stuffed Santa decorations needed to "keep sleeping" in the basement. She then noticed our neighbor's lighted display of "Santa slaying (sleighing) his reindeer." But a brief "observation" of Santa at the mall and a real encounter with him at Aunt Nat's work Christmas party taught her that he brings "pwesents to all the boys and gulls." At Nat's party, she went up and got a present from him and also got to take a swing at her first piñata. She had a great time and I had so much fun watching her experience all these new things.
Above all, though, Morgan has taken a particular interest in Baby Jesus. I have a small corn husk nativity scene I got in Prague that she plays with, and I've heard a lot about that baby recently. She told me she was "going over to Baby Jesus's house to sing him a song." When I asked her what song, she instinctively came up with "Happy Birthday." Sometimes she really amazes me. She also tried to call Baby Jesus on my cell phone, as you will see in the video below. :) But the one question which I wasn't really sure how to answer: "Mommy, how old is Baby Jesus?"
We have been reading many Christmas books these days, some of which were mine when I was little. Another tradition my mom had was keeping a special box of Christmas books. I loved getting that box out each year and rereading stories like "How the Grinch Stole Christmas," "The Berenstain Bears Christmas," lots of old golden books with corny stories, and even a scratch'n sniff Christmas book - that still smells! I thought it would be fun to make sugar cookies with her, so we attempted a batch at my parents' house one day, even using the same cookie cutters from when I was a kid. Morgan has had practice with play-doh, so she did well using them and really liked decorating them too, although we would have had sprinkles all over my mom's kitchen if I didn't keep her in check.
To top off all this holiday cheer, Morgan's school/day care had a Holiday "Performance" (and yes, they put quotes on the word performance!) It is a great place for her with very caring, easy-going teachers. We didn't really know what to expect at the performance, but what can you expect from 16 kids under the age of 4? But they each made cute reindeer shirts with their hand prints and sang two short songs. I loved that they put the babies in boxes wrapped like presents. Meanwhile, Morgan seemed to be wondering why there were so many adults at school that day, and just seemed to take it all in with her big blue-eyed stare.
It is only December 19, but it has already been a wonderful time for old and new traditions. Christmas is taking on even more meaning for me now that I have Morgan to indoctrinate in this fun time of year. And I can hardly wait for Santa to come to our house and see Morgan's face on Christmas Day!
It's not often as an adult that I use the term "BFF" but Noami has been and always will be my Best Friend Forever. Since age three when we met, if someone asked me who my best friend was, I would and still do answer "Naomi." Yet since the age of 18, we have never even lived in the same city. We have graduated from college, tried new jobs, gotten married, had babies, and met lots of new friends, but Naomi will always be my BFF. Now I rely on her long-distance mothering wisdom and sense of humor to lift me up. It's amazing we can still indulge in hour-long phone conversations with screaming kids in the background, but being able to change a poopy diaper while still talking on the phone is a skill we have mastered. She also inspires me: she introduced me to the world of blogging, and she motivates me through her new-found hobby of triathlons and running.
Now, though, I only get to see her once or twice a year, but it doesn't matter - we always have great time. One of the reasons we do have fun is because we married great guys who like hanging out with each other probably even more than Naomi and I do. We always say how lucky we are that we married guys who get along so well, and we also hear Alex and Sam say how lucky they are too. We all have a love for great wine and great food. In fact, one of our best ideas to date is to all go out for a fantastic meal together as our Christmas gifts to each other. I also never seem to laugh harder than when the four of us are together. I guess it brings out that dorky kid in me and I laugh so hard I can't breathe and my side hurts. And having all known each other for so long (at least 11 years), the four of us have many inside jokes and long-running "traditions." I won't go into too much detail so as not to embarrass anyone (okay, all of us), but needless to say I am very blessed to have an amazing lifelong friend in Naomi, as well as many great memories of the four of us together.
This fall was no exception, as we got to see them twice: in October when we visited them in Dallas, Texas, and this Thanksgiving, when the Calle clan was in Portland for a week. Not only was it a blast to hang out so much, it was also great seeing our kids play together. And we are creating friendships amongst our kids now too. Things are definitely different then they were a few years ago. But I know my BFF will always be there and we will still be giggling about things when we are old and gray.
Here are some recent random moments with family and friends in honor of Thanksgiving. We will be heading over to my parents soon for a wonderful meal with our families. I am thankful for many, many things in life, but especially thankful that both our families enjoy spending holidays and vacations together! Happy Thanksgiving!
Avery, Morgan, Ava, and Lauren bond over some TV. Note that none of them are actually looking at the camera!
Morgan loves peeking (and climbing) through the pass-through. Here she is watching my mom make pumpkin pie.
The only other person who can touch their nose with their tongue is my niece, Avery! Finally, I am no longer the freak of the family!
Thanksgiving morning, Sam, Naomi, and I did the Give n' Gobble 5K in Sherwood, while Erica volunteered. It benefits the Oregon Food Bank, as well as our bodies before we eat the big meal!
Morgan made a native American headdress at school this week for Thanksgiving. Later I found her getting water "for her horse" in the bathroom. (See the video below for more on that.)
A classic toddler shot....now, if she would only potty train herself!
Hi, I'm Avery and I am in first grade. My best friends are Gretchen and Cambria. My favorite project we did in first grade was fudgecicles in math. Today I was with my aunt and uncle and cousin. We got to go to Starbucks coffee and go see Uncle Sam in his office. Then we got to go pick up Morgan in her preschool. 
I was in the hospital on Thursday night for bumping my chin. I almost needed stitches, but I just had to get glue and chinstraps and some medicine on my chin. It happened when I was at my day care. That's why I have a band-aid on my chin. 
Here is my bunny, Nike, and dog, Oliver. They are drinking coffee and looking at the newspaper with Aunt Robin. 
I did some art today. And I made a handprint and it was painted blue, with a green outside. It had polka dots. The border was purple and red and made out of wood.
We were dancing to some music called "Under the Sea" and Morgan was sitting on the potty. 
