Christmasy happenings

This year we stayed here in Greensboro until Christmas day, when we drove up to Pennsylvania to spend the holiday week with Brooke's family. We did the same thing two years ago (before Jude was born) and I really think it is the ideal way to spend the holidays. Of course I miss my own family this time of year; we alternate, so we were in Colorado in 2010 and we'll be there again for Xmas 2012. But I love discovering new things to do around here, and I like having Christmas Eve and Christmas morning in our own home.

Here's one really cool thing: Christmas Eve LoveFeast at Home Moravian Church in Old Salem. It was a beautiful service, with a brass ensemble playing prelude music, coffee and delicious orange and nutmeg rolls for everyone, lots and lots of carols, and colonial-style hand-dipped candles. Isobel felt pretty grown up holding that candle.

Another cool new thing was visiting Burlington City Park with our friends! The carousel, train, visits with Santa and hot chocolate were all free for one special night.
We were also lucky to have Brooke's sister, Allison, come down to spend a few days and then drive up to PA with us. Having a guest made those days leading up to Christmas extra exciting. Here we are in Old Salem after the service:
We made the Greensboro-Carlisle drive in five and half hours (including one stop), which is the fastest it's ever been! Brooke's parents' house is especially homey during the holidays, with lots of little people running around and, on colder days, a fire in the hearth.
Don't worry! I didn't forget about the obligatory photos of the kids in front of the Christmas tree. In fact, we had two fairly unsuccessful photo shoots: one in front of our tree, and one in front of the Shifflers'. Here's what I got:



I always seem to have a terrible time getting good photos in front of the tree. They're either blurry with no flash or washed out with the flash. Anybody have a tip or solution for next year? Or am I just going to have to wait until my kids get old enough to hold still?










We've done a few cool project-type things lately, so stay tuned for another post sometime soon!

December

Ah, December. Doesn't it seem to go by faster every year? I would really like to spend most of my time cuddling up with Jude and watching TV (though Teletubbies might not be my first choice) but instead I have been rather productive this month.

Isobel has had a bunch of exciting firsts: Attending Disney on Ice with Azucena, having a big girl date (lunch at Liberty Oak and then The Nutcracker) with the Lufts, and performing with her class in the school's annual Chanukah Show.

Jude sat on Santa's lap for the first time today but other than that he's mainly been a passenger/spectator or the one at home with a babysitter. It's a good thing he's so laid back- he doesn't care (or doesn't realize) he's missing out. He did get to watch the old Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer with me and Isobel tonight (another first for both of them).

Brooke and I attended our first ever Roller Derby Bout last weekend and IT WAS TOTALLY WICKED. People, here's some advice: look up your local Roller Derby. Attend a bout. You will enjoy yourself!

The next few days will be exciting, too- lots of dinners with friends and Aunt Allison coming to visit (yay!) before we head up to Pennsylvania. Isobel is most excited about visiting Safari Nation tomorrow.

So, without further ado, photos from The Nutcracker! These appear courtesy of Dani, since I (as usual) forgot the camera. Isobel and Shaina got to meet Clara!

























And a video of Kitat Nitzan performing The Dreidel Song. This is a professional one, and the quality is 100 times better than the one I took and posted on facebook. Isobel and friends come on at about the 6 minute mark.

And finally...

Happy Holidays, everybody!

School Portraits

Those are my children! MY children! I almost didn't bother having them take school portraits this year because the prints are so ridiculously expensive and I feel like I can generally get better photos myself. But there's something special about that cheesy blue background, maybe because I remember having similar pictures of myself taken every year.
And I have to admit that I'm happy with these pictures. Doesn't Isobel look so grown up? I feel like that chapped lip is the only thing in the photo that makes her look four instead of fourteen. Jude looks so handsome with his rockstar hair. I'm so proud of these babies!

Thanksgiving!

As has become our habit, we spent Thanksgiving in Pennsylvania with Brooke's family. We had a really nice visit, lots of quality family time, and even a midnight showing of a certain movie.



















Thanksgiving morning we went to a park for a walk and some kickball/frisbee play time. I hope this will become a new tradition; it was so nice to get out and get some fresh air and exercise before all the cooking and then the feast. Of course, this year it helped that the weather cooperated. It was a perfectly crisp (but not cold) Fall day, and everybody had fun. Of course I forgot the camera, so Instagram saved the day as usual.




















Nicole let me fool around with her camera and I got lucky and snapped a new favorite of Jude. Look at that cutie-pie! Just look at him! :)
And while you're looking, you can also take a peek at our feast, provided by Brooke's mom and dad. We ate like kings (thankfully, of course).













And finally, here is Isobel raising a potato masher in triumph!

Hope you had a great Thanksgiving!

I am the luckiest girl in the world.

Brooke went to New York on business and I got to tag along! Isobel and Jude had a great time here in Greensboro with Brooke's parents, who came down to watch them. Lucky, lucky, lucky!

I haven't spent much time in New York, but I love what I've seen of it. Highlights this time included visiting my friend Claire in Brooklyn, eating incredible French food at Les Halles, hearing Jeffrey Eugenides (a favorite author) read at the 92nd Street Y, and seeing a tiny fraction of the amazingness that is the Metropolitan Museum of Art. It was a fantastic trip.

AND I got new boots. Yaaaaay!

RenFest Instagram Photo Dump

Saturday last we did with joye partake in ye olde Carolina Renaissance Festival. Forsooth, the Shiffleren did party like 'twas 1499! Feast thine eyes anon!
























































(ok, a few explanations: Isobel rode the camel with total strangers because we were too cheap to pay another $5 for Brooke or me to ride with her. She was also asked to dance on stage with some rather unenthusiastic child performers who were accompanied by their father on the lute. And she got to hold a very sweet goose or duck or something and pet it. Brooke bought me a stem of beautiful orchids. It was a good time for all.)

October IV: Halloween

For the last few years, we haven't made Jack-o-Lanterns. It makes a mess, it's one more thing to do in a busy afternoon before trick-or-treating, and (this is the main reason) I'm not very good at it. But this year Isobel was old enough to know that pumpkin carving is a part of this holiday, and she really wanted to do it. When I asked what kind of face she wanted to do, she requested "sneaky." So I tried, but we wound up with something that looked kinda like a demented hillbilly baby. The photo above doesn't really capture it. I guess that's one good thing about jack-o-lanterns: I am so clumsy with a knife that I usually wind up with something way weirder-looking (and, hence, creepier) than I intended.

Hope you had a safe and happy Halloween!