Happy New Year!

New Years went largely unnoticed in the Iglar-Mobley household. I had an idea for a pajama party with the kids in the TV room with a mattress and pillows but that didn't really materialize. Next year, when the kids are older and we aren't so tired, I will advocate for it. The kids were put in bed, Ben fell asleep on the couch at 11:45 (can you believe the timing?), and I got some alone time in the wee hours that is really rare, and was thoroughly enjoyed. It's pretty rare for me to stay awake that long!

Winter Solstice we celebrated with a special dinner and we hosted Nana and Granpa. I broke out the good china and silver (which isn't really silver per se) and we set a pretty table. Ben made his famous fettucini, a favorite of Tyler's these days and which was a hit all around, and we had warm crusty bread and steamed broccoli, and I made a harvest salad with dried cranberries, brown pears, blue cheese and toasted walnuts w/ a raspberry viniagrette. Yum. We lighted our Solstice candle and celebrated the return of light in the darkest night of the year. We visited the solstice tree for a few early presents.

Christmas Eve we spent the night at Nana and Granpa's house, and Santa was generous! The feature for Tyler was Thomas the Tank Engine tracks and engines and what they call destinations. It's so cool I want to play with it. He has the "Trackmaster" system (NOT the "Wooden Railway" NOR the "Takealong"--it's very confusing!) It didn't take long for Megan to get the hang of ripping open her presents and happily carrying around new toys and pushing new buttons and dancing to songs they made. I brought a couple pies I thought I'd try from this year's Good Housekeeping magazine--an oatmeal pie with rolled oats, chopped walnuts, coconut, maple syrup, etc, and "pumpkin heaven" layered with cheesecake on the bottom, then pumpkin pie in the middle, and a pecan-brown sugar topping. A highlight was the newly remodelled bathroom Nana and Granpa just got with a huge walk-in shower that includes two shower heads and a bench. Toys were brought in and we made our own water park, and the kids just LOVED it!!!

The next Saturday Uncle Brian and Aunt Leslye (my brother and sister-in-law) came to exchange presents at Nana and Granpa's house and the kids made havoc of the house once again. Tyler got his very own camera! Megan has an especially good time with her Aunt Leslye and took to her immediately, skipping her usual shy routine--she does this cute thing with her arm over her face with her eyes peeking mischeivously over it--but she just took to Leslye right away.