Excuse me Sir, how old are you?

Happy Happy Birthday Dad!

You are a spectacular dad, a cool dude, and a really sweet Granddaddy...(are there that many "d"s in Granddaddy?!?! Crikey! (That's what Ayesha would say). 

We are all wishing you a Happy Birthday!!!!!!!!

Paloma practiced this song several times and wanted 

to sing you the alphabet song too (we were rather 

impressed because we have not heard her sing the 

alphabet song yet either). However, she must have been 

a little camera shy because this is all you get.

Love WHB, ASB, PLB, BITO, and Semilla.

snow day

Yesterday was a snow day, which meant that daycare was closed and UNM was closed. It's funny, though, because there was really no snow. Apparently, there was snow all around Albuquerque, but just not IN Albuquerque. 

Oh, well. 

Howard was more than happy to spend a day at home with Paloma while I went into the lab and worked through some more invertebrate samples (making the most of the quietness!). 

We did, however, have real snow last Saturday. Not a lot, but enough to justify getting Paloma all dressed up in her cold-weather gear to go out to play in the yard. 

"Come on! Let's go!"

 Enough to make a happy little snowman.

"Hello! I'm a happy little snowman!"

 Enough to make a happy little girl.

Busy cleaning the picnic table. 

 

The next day was bitterly cold too, so we spent most of it inside.

Papa draws good giraffes. 

 Everyone could hang out together in the warm living room.

Semilla thinks life is pretty good. 

By the way, it's still freezing cold (Weather Underground says it currently "feels like" 29F [=-1.7C]). I'm staying inside with a cup of cocoa!

BITO bump

21 weeks: Paloma and I visited the midwife yesterday. Everything is measuring well and BITO is coming along swimmingly. 

Semilla makes me laugh.

the windy day

It was crazy-windy yesterday in Albuquerque.

Metro takes a beating from wind: krqe.com

Paloma has a cold and refused to take a nap. It was a long afternoon.

And then the power went out. I lit the fire, found all the candles, and crossed my fingers.

As the light faded, it became increasingly difficult to read books. So, in the twilight, we decorated the Christmas tree.

And then Paloma had to find a good place to put it.

And then the lights came back on.

catching up #4

Did we tell you about BITO? I think we may have forgotten to make a big announcement. 

BITO is our nickname for the new bun-in-the-oven. S/he is slowly cooking away in the crockpot that is my belly. 

Here are a couple of snapshots of the little creature: 

At about 12 weeks. 

At about 20 weeks (halfway there!). 

That last one looks like a creepy little alien to us... Hopefully s/he will be better-looking when s/he emerges. We're hoping to see him/her on the outside about 8April 2012 - Easter Sunday next year. (Mark your calendars!)

As you may have guessed, we have again chosen to not find out the sex until s/he is on the outside. It just seemed like more fun to us. (Although we are yet to agree on a girl name.)

And, before you ask, I will try and get Howard to take a photo of my HHHHHHHUUUUUGGGGEEEEEE belly. As you may remember from last time, there wasn't much to show for a long time.

Finally, Paloma is a little bit excited about BITO but doesn't really grasp the whole idea. We talk about it a lot and read books about big sisters, but I don't think she will really understand what is going on until next April.

catching up #3

Last weekend was a four-day weekend for Thanksgiving. 

We headed up to Taos for a couple of days of eating, feasting and relaxing. 

Oh, and watching the game on tv...

Football with Grandaddy. 

 ...and finding all of the animals in the house to snuggle...

Paloma in cuddly heaven. 

...and keeping Semilla happy...

Our handsome dog, wishing she was outside chasing a ball. 

...and keeping everything organised...

The redistribution of snuggly animals. 

...and we get to do it all again in a month for Christmas! Hooray for eating and feasting and relaxing!

catching up #2

In the beginning of November (shortly after Halloween), we headed down the South Valley for the Day of the Dead Parade. This is an amazing procession of all sorts of different people who want to get out onto the streets and celebrate or remember. 

We all enjoyed the parade immensely. 

Paloma gets the best seat in the house. 

Some of the procession.

Marigolds and skeletons. 

What fun!

Celebrating life. 

Ah, this is New Mexico
(check out the lowrider in the background). 

After all that, we went back to Leslie's house for a big potluck feast and some s'mores around the bonfire. What a great day!