favourite festive photos of our fabulous five

Jamie Ruth




Nathanael Josh James




Elizabeth Jean




Michaela Joy




Micah Willem

C (Christmas, aka Chaos)

Our traditional Christmas photo. Santa and the kids. Would have tried to fit Heather's tummy into the picture, but time and space presented some logistical problems. As it was, we had to use some pretty blatant candy-cane bribery (note the look on Jamie's face) to capture this brief (but beautiful) moment!



Cara and Jonathan made all our meals on Christmas eve day, including a wonderful feast for supper. Meanwhile, the cousins had a blast together, including snuggling up in one single chair to watch a movie (The Iron Giant). Elizabeth hid behind Micah for the whole movie, because she finds it scary. Micah told her he would protect her. How sweet is that!?!?!



Christmas eve was a chaos of craziness! Calvin played the piano; Josh played the guitar; Ron played the trumpet; and the rest of us sang along for lots of wonderful Christmas carols. And the kids DANCED and DANCED and never has celebration been more exuberant. This is the best I could do at getting them all (including grandbaby #6) in one picture at the same time. Wish I had the ability to include some video footage!!! Elizabeth displayed natural twinkle-toe ballet technique, and also surprised us all with an apparently innate ability to play the trumpet! Meanwhile, Kazan (who didn't make it into this shot) was in HEAVEN.



Speaking of chaos... here is Christmas morning at Grandma and Grandpa's house!



And an aerial view...!

B.C.

Jamie's first Christmas in Canada. How fitting that it was a white one! Here is Jamie's very first Frosty. Tragically, rising temperatures toppled him over after a few short hours. But while he lasted, he was magnificent!


The arrival of Grandbaby # 6 is just one month away! Because Jamie's birth took place so far away, this was our first opportunity to throw an expectation party for her Mommy. Sharon was the catalyst, planner, and hostess of our little baby "sprinkle" for Heather and Baby! SURPRISE!



Brothers Josh and Calvin, shoulder to shoulder before making their escape to Grandma and Grandpa's house for a chaos of men, children and dogs.



Thank you SO MUCH, dear Sharon, for a terrific celebration of new life and family togetherness!!!



Michaela and family arrived in time for Cara to attend the baby shower. Here Michaela and Grandpa share a funny moment together. Thankfully, Grandpa's sense of humour has not matured past the 4-year-old level.

Nanie-baby!

Happy Birthday to Great Nanie, lovely and loving matriarch of our family! And generous too! I was amazed at how excited Micah was about giving her his very first drawing of a Christmas tree, until I realized that this was his very first sale of his artwork! And it didn't take Elizabeth long to recognize a business opportunity when she saw one!


Micah's gaming expertise is becoming legendary. Here is Ron losing at Robots. Micah and I like to play Wii tennis together. I never win.


Newlywed embodiment of simple comfort and urgent blessing: Take care of each other.

a friend at last

Uncle Kazan finally got to meet his brand-new niece Cassidy! They met at Lemoine's Point for a terrific romp in the snow. Micah and Elizabeth wondered why Cassidy was "squeaking" - maybe in the face of Kazan's imposing size, she was doing the self-protective puppy thing, a high-pitched warning sound reminding playmates to be gentle. In any event, they had a blast together. Unfortunately, none of us wanted to take our mitts off long enough to take a picture of all their running and tussling. So here are some pictures of them in a more subdued mood, after we came in out of the cold.

Cassidy is a very sweet girl, and didn't mind (too much) when she had to share her Mommy's affections (and treats) with Kazan.


A glimpse into the dark side!

Roughhousing indoors, tails wreaking havoc, chaos reigning, kitty litter strewn about. At least - thankfully! - no one fell down the stairs!


Kazan collapsed when he got home and slept all evening and all night, and woke to a "winter wonderland" at Grandma and Grandpa's house (to quote Michaela!).

beautiful joys

What joy to hear Nathanael call for me by name first thing in the morning, and smile and laugh for me throughout the day!


And what joy to be Michaela's friend, given the privilege of watching movies, telling stories, drawing pictures, and acting out imaginary scenes together!

for granted

What we tend to take for granted. That a new day will come. That a road trip is routine. That the pavement is secure beneath our wheels. That good-byes are temporary. Last night I drove home from Montreal under the speed limit due to weather conditions. Yet I had no warning when my car suddenly went out of control, for no apparent reason, careening all over the highway and ending up in the ditch, facing backwards. In order to avoid hitting me, a car travelling behind me went into the ditch as well. No one was hurt, and the cars weren't damaged. Had cars or trucks been next to me at the time, the story would no doubt have ended differently. Thankfully police arrived to watch over me until a tow truck could tow me back onto the highway. The other car was not as well-positioned, and had to wait until morning for towing. I feel very badly that this family's plans were so adversely affected by me, and can't imagine how I would be feeling today had someone been hurt because of me. The only thing I can think of that might have contributed to this event, is that I was using cruise control. In retrospect, I realize that cruise control is probably very dangerous when road conditions are less than perfect, as it keeps the car accelerating during the split second when lack of traction first occurs. Besides learning (and sharing) this practical lesson, I hope more intentionally to cultivate a spirit of thankfulness in my life, so that I may take far less for granted from day to day.