Jeanine had a few spares of her own. 

Tonight was Maya’s choice for Family Night. She choose candlestick bowling and ice-cream out.  Maya’s skillful performance earned very careful scrutiny from the scoring table. Maya finished ahead of her brothers and mother which made her quite happy.

Having finally completed a major reorganization at work, I was finally able to leave the office in time to catch one of Nicolai’s soccer games. Although Nico faces many challenges playing on crutches, there are many things he is able to do that others cannot. Opponents underestimate him at their own risk.

Nicolai made this freehand sketch today. I would say he has inherited some of his grandmother’s artistic talent.

Last night I worked until 1AM preparing for a big reorganization I will be rolling out later this week. I stayed at a hotel by work to pick up an extra hour of sleep before an early meeting this morning. When I got home this evening at 9PM, I found this note and custom blended spritzer from Nico waiting for me. I am a lucky man.

Friends forever.

Maya and friend Julie constructing an ice skating rink in the front yard.

I hate the new pigs. Maya used to wake up every morning and come to the bed of her parents for a little snuggling. Now she heads straight for the kitchen each morning and this is how I find her when I come downstairs. I knew the day would come when I would no longer be her favorite guy but I did not anticipate being replaced by a squeaky, furry miniature pig (yes, I know they are not pigs but that is what I call them).

We took Kyle and his soccer buddies out for pizza before their game. Not exactly the food of champions, but it did not stand in the way of another strong win for the team. Unfortunately, Kyle injured his knee (mostly a contusion we believe) and had to sit out for most of the second half. He was able to score 2 goals and had 2 assists before he left the game. I have had a number of conversations with Kyle cautioning him to be a little more careful with his body. His response: “Dad, I only have two speeds, on and off.” Sound familiar Earlier in the day, he had one of his best basketball games of the season with 2 steals and 6 points.

Please observe this idiot child of mine.  With sub-freezing temperatures, he deems nylon shorts an appropriate dressing choice. The fact that I stood outside in my bathrobe with a 500mm lens to shoot this image should be ignored.

Eskimo’s Marie and Sophia. Photo courtesy of my brother Mark, sent from their home in Minnesota.

Jeanine picked up a couple of live lobsters for dinner. Maya and I did some claw strength testing and can highly recommend keeping digits you favor out of range.

A close up of Shivers.

Nicolai coaches Kyle on the finer points of using the release mechanism. Maya is eyeing the bow as well. It won’t be too long before she gets into the act. Nicolai has been given permission to shoot chipmunks (they make for a tough target, and we would be happily rid of them).

Nicolai was able to put several arrows in the center circle from 20 yards. From 30 yards, he kept every arrow on the target. He ruined one of his new arrows when he shot the feathers off it with a second arrow (Robin Hood style).

Rather than spending $80 on a target, Nicolai and I built this one in less than an hour with scraps. We made a sandwich of styrofoam insulation, 2-layers of old floatation cushion, and 2-layers of carpeting on a plywood base with hinged legs. It works perfectly.

Nicolai gave his new bow a workout this morning. His Uncle Mark must have provided some incredible training because his accuracy and consistency is unbelievable.

Maya models the night gown and matching slippers that her Aunt Lauren made for her. Maya and the rest of the family can feel the love that went into this present every time she wears it.

And then there were two. Due to concerns over loneliness of the first pig we now have a second pig which belongs to Nicolai. Maya has named her pig “Shivers” (white one), and Nicolai has named his “Wood Chip”. Both are boys, so I am fairly confident the family has reached terminal size.

Kyle received an iPod nano and a large selection of Indianapolis Colts fan wear.

Nicolai’s big present was a compound bow that was carefully selected by his Uncle Mark. I am seriously concerned for the safety of all squirrels in the neighborhood.

Nicolai does his best tough guy impression to go with a toy he has converted into a helmet.

Maya’s big present this year was a baby guinea pig. Other than a horse (which is never going to happen) nothing could have made this child happier. Maya is a little nature girl just like her mother, and she loves all sorts of critters.

Christmas service at First Parish. Wishing you all love, peace, and joy.

Maya is taking our neighbor’s dog, Daisy, for a walk on Mattison field.

Sophia (a distant cousin from Sweden) has joined us for Christmas. After playing some of her concert pieces for Sophia, Maya has begun giving her lessons.

It did not take long for Aunt Susan to get pulled into a craft activity with the kids.

Kyle with Aunt Susan and Rose getting ready to head out on a last minute shopping excursion. Meanwhile, Maya waits patiently in the car. Susan and Rose drove down from Burlington and will be staying with us for the holidays.

A very big day for Maya. This morning, she lost her first tooth. After discussing various techniques, she opted for the “twist and wiggle” method and proceeded with her own extraction.

This is one of several gifts I received from my boss at the Christmas party he hosts for his staff. He likes to poke fun at me whenever I wear my Stanford sweatshirt and asked if I would wear it today. Everyone else received equally humorous gifts, and the party was a very welcome break from the recent intensity of the new job.

Nicolai takes a little break from drumming practice. He is really starting to sound quite good. He uses his left foot to operate the bass pedal and has positioned the hi-hat pedal underneath his chair (proper drum term is the “throne”) which he operates by leaning forward and back. I have a day trip to Madison, WI tomorrow (leave at 5am, back by midnight) and probably will not post again until later in the week.