Holidays 2008

Hi friends and family!

We had a very very quiet, uneventful holiday here in Chicago, which was just what we needed. We took some time to make some memories with just the three of us before the baby comes, and we really enjoyed spending long days together just hanging out around the house and around town.

Here's a video of a bunch of photos from Christmas day, and our vacation time together over the next week or so.
In a nutshell and hopefully somewhat in order:
- Christmas morning - it was beautiful - sunny, cold, crisp and clear. The light was beautiful outside!
- We had special "christmas hot chocolate" and crescent rolls, and Lydia had her first candy cane. I think that she was wondering where they've been her whole life!
- The "rocket" from Seth and Mary in its garage in the closet. (one of her favorite gifts!)
- Lydia playing in her new kitchen set! She likes making coffee. (hmm....maybe it IS time to cut back!)
- Lydia in her sweet chef's hat. Silly grin! (She was eating chocolate chips)
- Opening gifts - you can't see it, but she had great fun opening a very soft pillowcase from grandma Ruth (nana), and she loved it!
- Lydia hugging "kitty" backpack - she says "thank you josh. thank you allison" when she carries it around the house. So sweet!
- Christmas dinner at Bill and Dayna's. They are gifted with hospitality, a beautiful home, and great cooking! Also a sweet 3 year old who plays so sweetly with Lydia.
- The light show at Cosley Zoo, our little local petting zoo. It was a little chilly, but we had a great time. Lydia loved the lights, and the hot chocolate too.
- Christmas projects - Jess finished her rag rug that she's been working on for Lydia's room. Lydia got a kick out of playing with the rag balls before they became "rug"!
- Gluten-free sugar cookie making! We decided that Lydia needed to learn how to frost and sprinkle cookies. She did great. And Sam was so kind to show Lydia that if you lick your hand, you can pick up more sprinkles with your fingers. :) we also found out that we only have heart cookie cutters. Like 10 of them.
- Lydia in the snow! She loved shoveling with our little collapsible shovel. It's just the right size for her.
- Sledding! It was still snowing when she was sledding, and she kept pulling the blanket up around her face. I felt kind of bad. :(

We missed seeing all of you over Christmas. But looking forward to trips out, down, and around after the baby comes!
Love you all, Jessica, Sam, Lydia + baby 2!