Ok, got the pictures posted

Shara is turning out to be quite the photographer. It really is great that she likes taking pictures because they're pretty good and there are so many. I've noticed all of us have been pretty bad about taking lots of pictures - even though Liz and Jill have beautiful new cameras!. So, here they are:

Hanukkah at Bubbe's & Wii!

We went to Bubbe's last Friday for our hanukkah party. We had a lot of fun. The trip there wasn't very interesting - the usual stop at Whole Foods for some decent road food. Shara had a good nap in the car and I started knitting her leg warmers. Obviously Alan drove. We got to Bubbe's about a hour or two early so got to visit and help out. Shara couldn't wait for her cousins to show up. When they did, as Alan noted, they looked very sophisticated. Can't believe Samantha is almost in college and Lizzy is soon off to Scotland! Wow, time flies. When we moved to this area, I remember the first visit from Samantha and Jill - sam was 8.

Anyway, I hardly saw Shara the whole night. She was more than happy spending time with her cousins. I was there for the dance recital she set up. Liz & Sam knew exactly what "make a window" meant, being old dance pros. They followed Shara's directions beautifully. I also remember us all hanging out in the bedroom taking lots of silly pictures of each other and not feeling so bad that I only got to 16 mhz when Liz & Sam got to just 17. Yes Shara, we know you can hear them all!

Since I can't remember much of the evening, other than all of us staying up until 10 PM! I'd like to invite our family to post their comments about their memories.

The next day, after a good breakfast of Bubbe's eggs, bagels, lox and cream cheese, we drove home, again, nothing special. When we got home, the long clean-up process began. Where to put all the new things! Wow, there was a lot to put away. Alan started getting the Wii set up - that is the best invention ever! We all had so much fun on Sunday. We could all play - Shara was just as good at the golf as we were. She also had fun with the tilt table, getting the balls in the holes. Alan has some video of her boxing, which we'll have to figure out how to post - it's from his phone, so apparently not as simple. We also have tons of photos from Hanukkah, since Shara took the camera and went to town.

Christmas - Part 2

Shara got a utensil set from Oma & Jidor and said, "do you think they'd get mixed up with mommy and daddy's?" I said maybe, and asked if we should keep them separate. She thought so because, "they're special and handy". I asked her if she knew what kind of sheets Oma got her and she didn't so I told her flannel and she said that's a good thing I got them for Christmas because they'll keep me warm. Then she asked if I noticed the big mess she made with all the clothes - she meant the dress- up clothes. We all had a lot of fun at Oma & Jidor's. We all learned how to march through each other, like they do at dance class, and we all had fun playing with the play dough, the princess cash register, and watching Shara do her yoga.

And this is Christmas

Last night we had a good time at Sandra & Peter's. Shara actually enjoyed herself - petted Sadie, ate M&M's & cookies, meatball, etc. It took her a couple of hours to warm up, but once she did, it was much fun for all of us. The best part was watching her with Sadie. It was the same with Belle - she kept daring herself to pet her and then got all excited. We didn't leave until about 9 PM. Shara fell sleep in the car and for the first time since she was a baby, didn't want to wake up enough to change into jammies.

This morning she woke up and thought she didn't have to get dressed because she was all ready. She also noticed that Santa left treats in her stocking and knew that it was candy because that's what Santa brings. Then she realized it wasn't candy and that was because Santa must know she already has lots and lots of candy already. She was also really amazed that Santa had the same wrapping paper that we did. It was really cute. She loved her snow globe, Sleeping Beauty movie and Hello Kitty backpack clip.

Later we'll go to Oma & Jidor's. We decided to bring the rest of the presents there to unwrap because the day really got away from me/us. We took about an hour or so to put together 3 little houses out of five from our gingerbread village. Not a great experience. We had a little fun - no fighting at least, but it was too hard for both Shara & me. The frosting wasn't already made like the King Arthur kit, so next year we both decided we're getting a king arthur kit again. The candies wouldn't stick to the houses, the frosting dried so fast, it was too hard and didn't come out of the bag well, etc. Last year Shara was able to do almost everything - and she was a year younger! Anyway, off for my shower.

Talking on the Phone and other big kid things

Shara started answering the phone this past weekend, but only when she knew who was on the other end. She actually had a very nice conversation with Bubbe, Maggie and then with daddy. From not wanting to talk at all, to answering - big steps. We just have to get her used to talking to people she doesn't hear from often.

This weekend we also had fun wrapping presents together. Shara did a great job all by herself - so much better when I'm not getting over-involved and just let her be. I think we both enjoy being together but not being on top of each other. Kind of like when we were making cookies - I think we fought more than anything but we both seem to remember it was a wonderful time.

The Nutcracker

Today we went to see the Nutcracker at the Opera House in Boston. It was great. Shara was enthralled. It was better than she thought it was going to be. She sat on my lap during the first 1/2 but then we got a booster seat and she sat in her own seat for the 2nd 1/2. It was a very nice performance and the costumes were beautiful as well as the dancers. I can't think of a better first trip to the ballet.
View more pictures here.

mommy, daddy!

shara just came running into the office yelling mommy daddy - she got into my lipstick! Did a pretty good job putting it on too, and didn't even go for the bright raspberry! Quote of the day, "daddy, where does blush go?"

The Real Santa

Saturday we went to the mall and were on the top floor walking toward the Disney Store when Shara looked to the floor below and noticed Santa. The look on her face was so cute - she was amazed and said, "look!, that's the real Santa." We put that on our list of things to do, after the Disney Store, so when we did get down there, I asked Shara if she wanted to sit on his lap and she said, "you know I'm scared of him". I asked if she wanted to say anything to him and she said for me to say something. I asked what and she said, "anything you want". Not having anything to say to Santa, we left shortly after, but she was very excited. She knows I don't believe in Santa but she doesn't care and does. We saw 3 more Santas yesterday at the winter festival and to her they were all real. I suppose it's magic.

Night out with Friends

We got a surprise last night. When I picked Shara up from school, she said she wanted to go to the dinner & a movie night at school. For $20 they had the kids for 3 hours - they wore pajamas, watched a movie, did crafts, had dinner. Earlier in the week she didn't want to do that, but when she requested it, I asked the director who was going to be there and all of her friends would be, so we thought it would be a lot of fun. Alan & I had to figure out what to do (so hard!) We went to dinner at Portocello's. It was good, too rich for me, but tasty.

When we got home from school, we had an hour before the evening event kicked off, we put together the floor puzzle Auntie Chris gave Shara. It was so pretty - lots of fairies and flowers and even a castle!

butt shadow

tonight laying in bed, shara started moving her tush up and down, looked at the wall, laughed and said, "my butt shadow!". I guess that was better than getting hysterical earlier when she tooted quite a bit. My how we grow up so fast!

New Pictures - Thanksgiving

Check out a few new pictures.