Christmas Time Photos

As always, this time of the year is full with excitement, love and joy.

At the tree farm

 

Perhaps the sweetest Santa ever. Both kids told him that they want nutcrackers for Christmas.

A pre-Christmas getaway for just us!

 

We came prepared for snow or no-snow – bike, ski, swim or run?

We had two great days of skiing!

 

Back at home – we hit the downtown holiday stops including the carousel and “gingerbread houses”

 

The Polar Express was Miles’ favourite one!

Buying injera at the Ethiopian market

Eating lunch at the Ethiopian restaurant nearby

Post-meal

Ski shopping at the downtown REI. Miles started “skiing” around the store. He bought the second smallest pair of XC skis available.

Ready for a sno park…

R-L Family by Mina, age 6

Do you think that Mina has picked up on the discussion of my long legs/short torso while bike shopping lately?

November Leaves

Day of the Dead

I love this holiday. It is full of beauty and meaning. So we’ve adopted it into our family’s traditions. This year we took in the celebrations at the Seattle Center. The dancing and music was the kiddo’s favourite part. I got a cool shirt with a bunch of skeletons riding a bicycle. :)

  

incredible sand art by a local artist

bread of the dead. next year i want to try to make some. i’ll also be sure to buy a chocolate skull when we first get there!

some of the dancing.

mina decorating her sugar skeleton. they had skeletons to decorate, paper marigolds, paper dancing skeletons…

We came home and made our own altar honoring our own family members. Mina quickly had the idea to include a picture and food for her Daisy, the sweet baby chick that we lost in the spring. 

M&M experiment by M&M

This was cool. Candy experiments!

M&M experiment. see the detached, yet in-tact M floating around the artificial goopy soup!

Chicken Jobs

Cleaning the coop. Check out the egg door. Sometimes when we open it there is an egg. Sometimes there is a chicken laying an egg.

 

Miles REALLY loves holding the chickens lately. I’m not sure what Elmo thinks about it.

Chicken treats. Amaranth from the garden. The cabbage should last a couple of days. Great idea from my friend Deb.

Pumpkin Push

Pumpkin Push 2 mile Family Walk at Seward Park

This was a hoot!

 

Post-race nutrition at Tutta Bella

Pumpkin Pancakes!

Here is a fun recipe that we’ve enjoyed twice lately. Perfect fall food served with apple slices and cheese.

Martha Stewart Pumpkin Pancakes

Food Rules: Your Dietary Dos and Don'ts

Food writer Michael Pollan shares twenty of his favourite reader-submitted food rules. They are found here: http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2009/10/11/magazine/20091011-foodrules.html

My favourite is the Zen teaching on tea!

Sweet and simple life

Rich has been working on several projects around the house still.

Mina, the book monster, in her natural state.

Miles, the little book monster, having some quiet time too.

 

Oh no. The season of colds and not so good sleep.

Miles at the zoo yesterday.