First Ride in the Defender, aka "Milo"

We had a few inches of snow last trip to Dundee -- more than enough of an excuse for Dad to take me to NaNa and PopPop's in Milo - fun!  I don't know what was better, the smell or the sound!

OMSI!

We all made the most of a rainy day in Portland by hitting the Science Playground at OMSI.  That place is great.  Here I am with Mom designing an exhaust header pipe.

Pasta!

McMenamin's with Madisen

Mom and I met Tiffani and Madisen at the park for a bit, then we all met up with Terry and Dad for dinner.  The food was okay but I did my best to liven up the atmosphere.

It's always a treat to see Madisen -- hopefully it won't be too long til we catch up with her again.

Frosty and other Holiday Cheer

Over the Holidays Elsinore enjoyed time with family, eating great food, opening presents, and learning many new words. "Frosty" became one of her favorite new words. And, coincidentally, her cousins in Snowqualmie gifted her a great Frosty stuffed toy that she likes to tote around. She even insisted he eat breakfast with her the other day. Other new learnings include:

• Singing Jingle Bells - which sounds a little like "DonguhGehls" when she sings it


• Announcing "Kisses" (Christmas) when seeing festive elements like trees, lights, or ribbon.


• "Santa" (at whom she'll growl when seen or mentioned, thanks to uncle Scott teachings)


• "Ho Ho Ho" to be yelled at no particularly meaningul moment


• "Lights - Wow"

Even though we are past the Christmas season and into the new year, we are still very much enjoying all the cheer that has come our way.

New Wheels

This is the second Christmas in a row that NaNa and PopPop have given Elsinore a new car for Christmas. I can't wait to see what the future holds. Luckily it was uncharacteristically warm in Snoqualmie over the holidays, so Elsinore was able to test out her new ride in the neighborhood.

Airplane!

Elsinore loves airplanes...from identifying them by sight or sound, to playing with toys and books with airplane themes. She was a perfect passenger to and from Seattle for our Christmas trip.

new baby joggers for baby dolls

Steve and I took care of Els and Olive today. During their nap I assembled their matching Christmas presents and decided I was too excited to make them wait two more days. They experienced fun and minor injuries ramming the strollers around the house, putting babies and other toys in the stroller, as well as attempting to get in and out themselves. We'll be spending the next few days teaching them that only baby dolls go in the jogging strollers as a few too many bonks happened when they tried to put themselves in or out of the tiny strollers.

when the boys are away, the girls will play

The boys were out and about, so Jana, Olive, Lynette, and Lindsey came over for an impromtu girls dinner. We had a great time - Thanks girls!

Santa Claus visits Giraffe Laugh

Waiting for Santa can be boring

Olive gets a close lookElsi can't seem to lean far enough away from the big guy in the red suit

Note the lack of photos of Els or Olive sitting on Santa's lap...both girls refused!