January 4

A dark and crappy picture. We frequently experience some pretty annoying barking and carrying on from Zoey. She thinks that she owns everything in sight and she is a very intense guard dog. On this particular evening her barking was to alert me to the deer that were grazing in *her* field.

January 3

I love seeing the girls play with the toys that I picked out for them for Christmas. These snap'n'style dolls from Fisher-Price have been a big hit.

January 2

This was taken out of the car window, so definitely not a great shot. One of these trips I would love to stop and spend some time photographing the windmills, but this trip was not the time for that. I love them, I think they are neat to look at, and a very cool concept. Aside from that, they are a landmark that lets me know we are almost to Grandpa's!

January 1

Christmas with the Howard Family. Good times, good food and good conversation. I love my family.

December 31

Even with all of the new toys in the house, these stacking balls are a favorite. We got them for Thea for Christmas last year, but both girls have always really enjoyed playing with them. When I came downstairs from bed this morning I was struck by the colorful arrangement on the stairs. If I am going to have toys spread all over the house, at least these inspire a smile.

December 30

Another day of Leila art. When I picked Leila up from school today she grabbed this off of the table filled with random animal sculptures. Right away I knew it was a horse and Leila was very pleased that I could tell. It happened to have a Styrofoam egg stuck on its back. Leila told me that the horse was going to hatch a baby out of that egg. I have to say I was impressed with her creativity, even though she may need a biology lesson.

December 29

I felt terrible when Leila came up to me with a bag that she had brought home from pre school that I had promptly set aside and forgotten about. The bag contained a Christmas present that she had made for Cory and I. When she brought it to me I made a big deal about how I didn't know how we could have missed this present, and what a wonderful to treat to have one more present to open four days after Christmas! And it really was a treat. I told Leila that I would set it on the window sill over the kitchen sink so that I could put my rings in it while I washed dishes, and she was very excited that her special gift would have such a useful life in our house. She let Cory know that he could use it to put his ring in while he does dishes too (I wish! :)). It is a perfect gift, and in Leila's favorite color!