We’re all on the mend here after a few days of moderate (though merely annoying) head-colds, one of the souvenirs we brought back from Portland. (Alice will likely feel guilty ’cause I wrote that, but after her generous hospitality the least we could do is take some germs off her hands.) As far as [...]

December 26
… but only if you don’t find yourself waiting in line at a store or mall.

Day 26: Cuddlin’ Cousins!

10. Nurse your sugar-hangover from eating too many Christmas goodies.
9. Spend two hours hooking up various electronics and explaining to technologically illiterate relatives how to use the gadgets you or someone else gave them.
8. Sample [...]

December 25
I thought I would take a moment to wax-poetic on this day, which this year for so many odd an conflicting reasons, has a different sort of meaning for me than ever before. But instead, I thought I would just pick a list of ten randomesque things and ask: What does everything on [...]

December 24
Worried about losing the so-called ‘true spirit’ of the holidays? Not to worry. It’s all pretty much a fabrication of modern (and apparently historic) marketing anyhow. What gives? Well, don’t let it sour your eggnog quite yet, but keep in mind how we’re really spending the next few days.

Day 24: Opening [...]

December 18
I tend to think of your classic “board games” as anything that requires a table to play — and, of course, more than just a deck of cards, standard or custom. In the last couple years we’ve become fans of the large variety of games exported from Europe, all of which tend to [...]

December 17
I realized this morning as I was taking some time to plan out the week’s recipes in the mealplanit (and yes, two years later we still use that thing!) that while I mentioned cooking on my “planning for two weeks off” post, I didn’t really elaborate on the extent of that.

Day 17: …but she [...]

December 15
We’re half way through December and, as luck would have it, I’m on holidays. That’s right, from start to end, I’m on day one of an eighteen day break from all things work. So, what’s the plan?

Day 15: Mom’s cooking is actually quite good. When she can finally taste the shortbread, she’ll see [...]

December 14
Today was my last day of work before the holidays. As I told everyone at the office, I may not deserve it, but I’ve earned it and I’m taking it. I’ll be back sometime in January. And, if nothing else, call it round-two of the paternity leave.

Day 14: Hanging with Grandpa [...]

December 9
Every year about this time I start to think about New Years Resolutions. Why, you may ask, considering I am actually fairly lousy at keeping them? I think the answer is simply this: optimism. One day something — anything — is going to stick, and my good intentions will pay off. [...]

December 8
Just one of those got-stuff-done, but didn’t do much sort of days. This included:

Day 8: That Christmas tree looks so good, I could eat it!

Slept in a little bit.
Made a pot of really good coffee.
Picked up a tree at Ikea after scarfing down a one dollar breakfast.
Vacuumed the living room twice, once before we [...]

December 7
Yet another odd thing about being parents is that you re-learn how to play on the floor. And not just the floor activities you would expect, such as toys and general goofiness. We, for example, have discovered various other family-friendly ways to entertain ourselves and Claire while avoiding most forms of furniture. [...]

December 6
Claire was finally vaccinated this afternoon. I say finally because not only is it about two weeks past the ideal two-month date when she was supposed to receive them, but originally she had been signed up to participate in a scientific vaccination study for a new broader-coverage vaccine — she made the short-list, [...]