It's so true what our NFP teachers said, that when you have a large family, you don't have to worry about teaching them all. Just teach the first one, and the knowledge will be passed along. We've noticed that with Katie already -- she is very imitative. Whatever she sees big sis doing, she copies (bad as well as good). For example, she LOVES helping us put away groceries. Naturally, because she's Katie, she picks the heaviest, most unwieldy thing to put away, and then fusses when she can't lift the gallon of milk, or the 5-lb. bag of flour, or the half-gallon of apple juice. Silly girl. But she is VERY good at helping Miriam gather the empty plastic bags to put into one. It helps that she's really into cleaning up -- it involves putting things into things, yay!
-----
At the grocery store, Miriam will often request to sit in the cart, "So I can't get into trouble." The basket incident at Staples seems to have made a big impression on her.
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Readers of this blog all know what a sensitive, sympathetic girl Miriam is. While at some friends' house a couple weeks ago the kids were all watching a movie, the Barbie Pegasus movie, whatever it's called. A couple minutes into the movie Miriam came running to find me, saying, "Mommy, I don't like that movie, because there was a monster and the little bear was scaaaaaaared! [lower lip trembling]" Awww, my tender-hearted girl! I offered to watch some of the movie with her -- I doubted that a Barbie movie could really be so terrifying. Well, as it turns out, Miriam has the same issue as her mother with tension in movies -- neither of us is good at handling suspense! (That's mainly why I have a love/hate relationship with the Shyamalan movies -- too tense!) The movie was rather mild, but there was a little throw-away character, a baby polar bear, about whom Miriam was incredibly concerned. Whenever the bear disappeared she insisted on knowing where it was, and whether it was okay, or whether it was scared. Notably, in one scene, the hero and heroine were attempting to enter the ice castle of the evil sorceror, who had griffins for watch dogs (that was the scary monster from the beginning). Miriam kept whimpering and asking where the bear was. Once she saw that the bear was enjoying itself by sliding on the ice, she was fine and calmed down. Let alone the fact that the hero was being attacked by a man-eating griffin -- as long as the little bear was happy, everything was good. I guess her sympathy is selective.
Tuesday, January 31, 2006
Pathetic.
I'd be more willing to take these people seriously if they would only act their age. Or at the very least be capable of intelligent conversation. Instead, we get: "Listen to me! I can yell louder than you! Therefore my viewpoint is correct!"
Sunday, January 29, 2006
Bedtime Rituals II
To save time (not to mention Mrs. Pickles' sanity) on bath nights Mr. Pickles will bathe the girls together (so Mrs. Pickles can have some quiet time -- usually spent on the piano). It's always an adventure that usually involves a contest to see who can splash the most. As long as the bathees get wetter than the bather, it's considered a success. The other night as Mr. Pickles was filling the tub and getting Katie undressed, Miriam undressed herself, picked up an empty cardboard wrapping-paper tube, and proceeded chase Katie around the upstairs island, bopping her occasionally, both giggling hysterically and buck-naked. Ahh, the joys of parenting. Who needs TV!
From ridiculous to sublime...
The Pickles family has recently started praying part of the Rosary together every evening. We eventually want to make it all the way up to the whole prayer, but you have to start somewhere! Right now we're at 2 decades. We pray together after the girls are all ready for bed (or "all jammied up" as Miriam says). The last few evenings Miriam has INSISTED leading the rosary. It's really amazing what our little sponges pick up when you don't think they're paying attention. Miriam can pray ALL the prayers of the rosary, including the Apostles' Creed and the Hail Holy Queen! (At least, I think she knows the Hail Holy Queen -- she would have prayed it with me the other day except she was too busy concentrating on wrapping her rosary around her toes.) Of course, her versions of the prayers are hilarious. She prays what she hears, so there are some real words mixed with a lot of gobbledegook, meaning we need to slow down a bit so she can hear what the real words are! For the Hail Mary, she gets the first part all right, until: "blessed are down women, and blessed is the fruit of thym, Jesus." Often when we pray together as a family we'll include a litany of saints, all of our family patrons. We've got quite the list going -- each kid adds a couple more saints. :) Miriam has insisted on leading this too. Since she's still getting a hold on the whole counting thing, we have to cut her off after three "Most Sacred Heart of Jesus"s otherwise she'll keep going indefinitely. I think our favorite Miriam-version saints though are St. Therese of the Zoo and St. Elizabeth the Hungry (in addition to the perennial St. Gennanieve). St. Gabrull usually gets mentioned a couple times too.
Ah, sigh, children's piety is so great to see.
From ridiculous to sublime...
The Pickles family has recently started praying part of the Rosary together every evening. We eventually want to make it all the way up to the whole prayer, but you have to start somewhere! Right now we're at 2 decades. We pray together after the girls are all ready for bed (or "all jammied up" as Miriam says). The last few evenings Miriam has INSISTED leading the rosary. It's really amazing what our little sponges pick up when you don't think they're paying attention. Miriam can pray ALL the prayers of the rosary, including the Apostles' Creed and the Hail Holy Queen! (At least, I think she knows the Hail Holy Queen -- she would have prayed it with me the other day except she was too busy concentrating on wrapping her rosary around her toes.) Of course, her versions of the prayers are hilarious. She prays what she hears, so there are some real words mixed with a lot of gobbledegook, meaning we need to slow down a bit so she can hear what the real words are! For the Hail Mary, she gets the first part all right, until: "blessed are down women, and blessed is the fruit of thym, Jesus." Often when we pray together as a family we'll include a litany of saints, all of our family patrons. We've got quite the list going -- each kid adds a couple more saints. :) Miriam has insisted on leading this too. Since she's still getting a hold on the whole counting thing, we have to cut her off after three "Most Sacred Heart of Jesus"s otherwise she'll keep going indefinitely. I think our favorite Miriam-version saints though are St. Therese of the Zoo and St. Elizabeth the Hungry (in addition to the perennial St. Gennanieve). St. Gabrull usually gets mentioned a couple times too.
Ah, sigh, children's piety is so great to see.
Saturday, January 28, 2006
Reason #3947 Why I Love My Husband
Thursday was a Calgon day. As in, "Calgon, take me AWAY!" That was the afternoon the girls spent shrieking at each other and fighting over toys. Part of the problem was that I couldn't give them a whole lot of attention. The Stack (meaning dirty dishes) was threatening to take over the house, so I had to beat it back into submission. While I was up to my elbow in suds, Katie had fun practicing her new favorite talent, shrieking at super-high frequency, while Miriam had fun practicing her old favorite, whining. By the time Greg came home I was ready to go postal. Even though we had a budget-planning meeting and/or trip to Ikea (we desperately need more bookcases!) scheduled for the evening, he suggested I take the night off before I murdered everyone in their beds. So he wrestled with the barbarian horde while I spent a peaceful, quiet evening all by myself. Ahhhhhhhhhh. I went to World Market (a really cool shop like a cross between Trader Joe's and Pier One) and then to Panera, where I enjoyed a vat of hot chocolate with whipped cream while I finished off another chapter of The Once and Future King. Equilibrium restored, I returned home (making sure to arrive well after I knew the girls MUST be in bed). I can't mention enough how much I love my husband -- he takes such good care of me!
It's ironic that the last couple days (yesterday had its moments too) have been so rough -- we had JUST had a discussion Wednesday night about discipline. (We're reading the Sears' Discipline Book & discussing it in increments.) The topic this week was spanking (which the Sears are dead set against), and discipline alternatives. It's funny to note that before we were married, we had agreed that spanking, within certain limits, would be an acceptable part of our discipline. Now that we've actually GOT kids, though, we've come to agree that spanking would NOT be a good punishment in our family, for many reasons. It just goes to show that you can have all kinds of good theories about something, but once you're faced with the reality of it, you realize you had no idea what you were talking about! I think the important point is that we both agreed beforehand about how we were going to raise our kids, even though that idea was bound to evolve.
Anyway, I suppose it's a good thing we had this discussion on Wed., b/c if we hadn't come to that consensus, I'm sure I would have beaten both of the girls several times by now! Instead, I've had to make an effort to understand them, sympathize with their plight, and come up with a creative way to encourage them to obey. The effort of so much creativity and patience is EXHAUSTING, especially now that we're dealing with two disciplinees. No wonder many parents resort to spanking -- it's SO much easier! :b I feel that using alternatives to spanking makes us better parents though -- the focus is on understanding and respecting our children's unique personalities, rather than trying to force them to conform to our wills.
Next week's topic will be Correcting Undesirable Behavior, one of which is whining. I'm looking forward to discussing that one!
It's ironic that the last couple days (yesterday had its moments too) have been so rough -- we had JUST had a discussion Wednesday night about discipline. (We're reading the Sears' Discipline Book & discussing it in increments.) The topic this week was spanking (which the Sears are dead set against), and discipline alternatives. It's funny to note that before we were married, we had agreed that spanking, within certain limits, would be an acceptable part of our discipline. Now that we've actually GOT kids, though, we've come to agree that spanking would NOT be a good punishment in our family, for many reasons. It just goes to show that you can have all kinds of good theories about something, but once you're faced with the reality of it, you realize you had no idea what you were talking about! I think the important point is that we both agreed beforehand about how we were going to raise our kids, even though that idea was bound to evolve.
Anyway, I suppose it's a good thing we had this discussion on Wed., b/c if we hadn't come to that consensus, I'm sure I would have beaten both of the girls several times by now! Instead, I've had to make an effort to understand them, sympathize with their plight, and come up with a creative way to encourage them to obey. The effort of so much creativity and patience is EXHAUSTING, especially now that we're dealing with two disciplinees. No wonder many parents resort to spanking -- it's SO much easier! :b I feel that using alternatives to spanking makes us better parents though -- the focus is on understanding and respecting our children's unique personalities, rather than trying to force them to conform to our wills.
Next week's topic will be Correcting Undesirable Behavior, one of which is whining. I'm looking forward to discussing that one!
Thursday, January 26, 2006
What Sibling Rivalry?
I keep waiting for the other shoe to drop. When are Miriam and Katie going to start fighting like cats and dogs? This is what I get most of the time:
"Sisters... sisters... you'll never find two more devoted sisters..."
(Incidentally, this is what I LOVE about having two girls right away. Matching outfits! Thanks, Aunt Rachel!)
storytime
Why is Katie surrounded by fuzzy animals?
Katie & friends
Well, she was having a cranky day, so big sis was trying to cheer her up! (not realizing the fact that the reason Katie was currently fussing was b/c Miriam was upstairs and Katie couldn't get to her...)
what a good sis
well... maybe not
young hooligans
reading
I suppose today was a break in this idyllic representation -- they spent the afternoon grabbing toys from each other and shrieking at each other. Katie is getting more willful as time goes on, sigh...
But even when they "fight," we still have to laugh. The other day Miriam was in the bathroom washing her hands, and we heard her call, "Daddy, can you help me wash my hands? Because I just can't do it... NO, Katie! You're NOT the Daddy!"
In sum, despite their temporary misunderstanding, Miriam is SUCH a good, loving big sister, and Katie just adores her. I think what cinched it for Miriam was the first time Katie toddled over to Miriam, wrapped her arms around her big sis & gave her a big hug, patting her back. Miriam was SO tickled. She said with eyes wide open and a huge smile on her face, "Katie LIKES me! She's giving me lovin's!" For an affectionate & sensitive child, this means a lot to Miriam. Katie's affinity for blowing kisses now has also made a big impression.
"Sisters... sisters... you'll never find two more devoted sisters..."
(Incidentally, this is what I LOVE about having two girls right away. Matching outfits! Thanks, Aunt Rachel!)
storytime
Why is Katie surrounded by fuzzy animals?
Katie & friends
Well, she was having a cranky day, so big sis was trying to cheer her up! (not realizing the fact that the reason Katie was currently fussing was b/c Miriam was upstairs and Katie couldn't get to her...)
what a good sis
well... maybe not
young hooligans
reading
I suppose today was a break in this idyllic representation -- they spent the afternoon grabbing toys from each other and shrieking at each other. Katie is getting more willful as time goes on, sigh...
But even when they "fight," we still have to laugh. The other day Miriam was in the bathroom washing her hands, and we heard her call, "Daddy, can you help me wash my hands? Because I just can't do it... NO, Katie! You're NOT the Daddy!"
In sum, despite their temporary misunderstanding, Miriam is SUCH a good, loving big sister, and Katie just adores her. I think what cinched it for Miriam was the first time Katie toddled over to Miriam, wrapped her arms around her big sis & gave her a big hug, patting her back. Miriam was SO tickled. She said with eyes wide open and a huge smile on her face, "Katie LIKES me! She's giving me lovin's!" For an affectionate & sensitive child, this means a lot to Miriam. Katie's affinity for blowing kisses now has also made a big impression.
Christmas Day 2005
Here are some shots from Christmas Day.
Since we've spent so many Christmases on the road, it's been hard to establish family traditions. In the past it didn't matter so much, but now that Miriam is old enough to remember and understand more things, we want to set the proper tone for the celebration of Christmas. We decided to let Miriam open one gift on Christmas Eve (so she wouldn't go mad from anticipation). Then Christmas morning we all delved into our stockings.
stockings
goodies
Katie knows where the good stuff is -- like any true female, she can detect chocolate a mile away...
hey, wait a minute...
all dolled up
After Mass and breakfast we attacked the presents.
These flutes were a big hit. I also wanted to point out the baked item in my hand -- yes, I made the traditional Christmas morning Pulla. It just wouldn't be Christmas without it!
flutes (and pulla)
Katie's new favorite book
aww, dolly
I just noticed that most of our pictures were of Katie. It's just because she's so darn CUTE in her Santa Baby outfit! :)
Miriam got boatloads of toys and books and movies. Her new favorite movie is...
"Cindalella"
...which she also refers to as "the Cat movie." Apparently mean ol' Rucify made a big impression on her.
All worn out from the present-opening frenzy! (or else suffering from carbo-coma after eating pulla and chocolate for breakfast)
snuggly Grandma
At dinner we had Christmas crackers -- no, not the unleavened kind, the explosive-loaded kind! As required, we all wore the silly hats and told our lame jokes over dinner. I couldn't eat until I had finished assembling my little plastic motorcycle.
Christmas dinner
Our cute-patootie:
little Christmas elf princess
When we returned home, we discovered that Santa had also visited OUR house TOO, while we were gone! Wow! So we got to have Christmas all over again. (at least, the shallow materialistic greedy part) :) Santa brought Miriam a box of dress-up clothes, something she has been craving ever since she was first aquainted with Edy's.
dressed-up girl
Completely accessorized:
Princess Meenum
(personally, I think the high-heels are evil: to be training innocent young things to LIKE instruments of torture!)
Katie enjoyed dismantling her stacking cups to see how much of a mess they would make when she spread them all out.
I love my cups!
Well, after a couple weeks of stepping over/around/on various toys, I finally decided I couldn't stand it anymore and stored away about half their toys -- all the older ones, anyway. I find that they actually play better when they aren't so totally overwhelmed by all their riches. :) This way I can rotate toys as I notice them losing interest in particular ones. I love this comic from Baby Blues.
Stay tuned... more to come!
Since we've spent so many Christmases on the road, it's been hard to establish family traditions. In the past it didn't matter so much, but now that Miriam is old enough to remember and understand more things, we want to set the proper tone for the celebration of Christmas. We decided to let Miriam open one gift on Christmas Eve (so she wouldn't go mad from anticipation). Then Christmas morning we all delved into our stockings.
stockings
goodies
Katie knows where the good stuff is -- like any true female, she can detect chocolate a mile away...
hey, wait a minute...
all dolled up
After Mass and breakfast we attacked the presents.
These flutes were a big hit. I also wanted to point out the baked item in my hand -- yes, I made the traditional Christmas morning Pulla. It just wouldn't be Christmas without it!
flutes (and pulla)
Katie's new favorite book
aww, dolly
I just noticed that most of our pictures were of Katie. It's just because she's so darn CUTE in her Santa Baby outfit! :)
Miriam got boatloads of toys and books and movies. Her new favorite movie is...
"Cindalella"
...which she also refers to as "the Cat movie." Apparently mean ol' Rucify made a big impression on her.
All worn out from the present-opening frenzy! (or else suffering from carbo-coma after eating pulla and chocolate for breakfast)
snuggly Grandma
At dinner we had Christmas crackers -- no, not the unleavened kind, the explosive-loaded kind! As required, we all wore the silly hats and told our lame jokes over dinner. I couldn't eat until I had finished assembling my little plastic motorcycle.
Christmas dinner
Our cute-patootie:
little Christmas elf princess
When we returned home, we discovered that Santa had also visited OUR house TOO, while we were gone! Wow! So we got to have Christmas all over again. (at least, the shallow materialistic greedy part) :) Santa brought Miriam a box of dress-up clothes, something she has been craving ever since she was first aquainted with Edy's.
dressed-up girl
Completely accessorized:
Princess Meenum
(personally, I think the high-heels are evil: to be training innocent young things to LIKE instruments of torture!)
Katie enjoyed dismantling her stacking cups to see how much of a mess they would make when she spread them all out.
I love my cups!
Well, after a couple weeks of stepping over/around/on various toys, I finally decided I couldn't stand it anymore and stored away about half their toys -- all the older ones, anyway. I find that they actually play better when they aren't so totally overwhelmed by all their riches. :) This way I can rotate toys as I notice them losing interest in particular ones. I love this comic from Baby Blues.
Stay tuned... more to come!
Finally!
The long-awaited blog about our Christmas. I'm sure various installments of the family have been waiting to see Christmas pics from the West Coast half of the family.
Nana & the girls
These three got along so great! Mr. Pickles & I made sure to take advantage of that by going out to a couple movies. (ahh, nothing like free babysitting!) :) Lately Miriam has been telling me, "Mommy, we haven't seen Nana in a long, long time! We need to go see her again. Can we go tomorrow?" Oh, babe, I wish! Katie, who is often stranger shy at first, took to Nana right away. I think the day after we arrived, she was already going up to Nana and asking to be picked up. Nana was SO tickled by that! I was just happy that they both took to Nana so well, right off the bat. Although, who wouldn't love Nana? :)
So, what did we do for two weeks in Sacramento, CA? Well, Katie practiced her mountain climbing skills...
climber baby
Miriam decorated some Christmas peeps (which no one would eat)...
ewww...
Nana took us to see the sights of beautiful Auburn, CA. It's one of the myriads of cute old mining towns that sprung up during the Gold Rush.
This bridge was amazing. I'm not usually scared of heights, but this freaked me out.
beeg bridge
Note the sign. (What do you get when you have the highest bridge around? Sadly, jumpers!)
sign
Despite imagining oneself plunging to one's doom, the view from the bridge was really worth it. (Mr. P, can we move here?)
The View
We also went to visit the Jelly Belly Factory, which was a LOT of fun. I highly recommend this to anyone who's in the San Fran/Sacto area. We went on the factory tour and all got to wear silly hats.
little tourist
At the factory they had pictures with Santa. As soon as Miriam learned this, she BEGGED to go see Santa. When it was her turn, she went running up to him and climbed into his lap with a shy smile on her face. She's at the age now where she LOVES Santa.
Miriam w/Santa
Katie, however, is not.
Katie not lovin' Santa
Some artist decided it would be fun to make mosaics out of Jelly Bellies. On the tour we saw some pretty awesome ones -- one of which was of JPII! Since it was on the tour, we couldn't take a picture though. :( But there were a couple other famous people immortalized in flavorful Jelly Belly Beans...
the Gipper
For those who don't know, the reason there's a mosaic of Reagan is because he's the one who helped make Jelly Belly famous. The story is that he used them to help quit smoking, and he always had a dish of Jelly Bellies on his desk.
There was also a mosaic of the current governor:
The Gubernator
The gift shop was fun too: they had a tasting bar where you could try all kinds of flavors, including some of the Bertie Botts Every-Flavor Beans (like buttered toast or garlic -- I don't think they had dirt or vomit though). Katie preferred a high-fiber diet.
love my hat (for lunch)
after she was done with it
The one day it actually didn't rain (very much) we took the girls to the park. It figures that CA is having the rainiest winter ever when we decide to visit! After a while we all got tired of staring at the same walls all day. So it was good being outside and able to run around and shriek and basically go nuts. The girls had fun too. :)
wrong way!
Katie has discovered the joy of slides -- she giggles the whole time she's going down.
whee!
Another day we visited the Cathedral of Sacramento, namely, (what else?) the Cathedral of the Blessed Sacrament. Why can't they make churches like this anymore? It was like walking into a hymn in praise of Christ in the Blessed Sacrament. You could never get bored in a church like this.
Cathedral
The State Capitol was right across the street so we stopped in. Notice anything... oh, different, about these two portraits?
Gov. Moonbeam
Gov. Gipper
Honestly, which person would you prefer to have in charge of your state?
We also had a lot of family over -- once again Nana's house was the hub for Christmastime. We got to catch up with a lot of family.
girls w/Uncle Teddy
cousins!
(Some of our readers may be interested to know that Katie1 is no longer a full-time Katie -- she goes by "Kat" now!)
Katie hangin' w/Uncle Joe
So Nana wouldn't be burdened trying to cook for a small army for 2 weeks, we helped her out by taking over some meals.
Miriam "helping" Daddy cook
(don't you love all the magnets on the fridge? She had more on the side too!)
I'm cute and fuzzy!
So we did lots and kept fairly busy. But whenever we could, we just hung out.
ahhhhh...
(This was the best entertainment for Katie: she spent day after day playing mountain climber on the couch!)
The girls were very well behaved (we think), and only started to come to pieces a couple days before we left. It's a good thing that they get along so well (for now)...
"Love is in the Air..."
Nana & the girls
These three got along so great! Mr. Pickles & I made sure to take advantage of that by going out to a couple movies. (ahh, nothing like free babysitting!) :) Lately Miriam has been telling me, "Mommy, we haven't seen Nana in a long, long time! We need to go see her again. Can we go tomorrow?" Oh, babe, I wish! Katie, who is often stranger shy at first, took to Nana right away. I think the day after we arrived, she was already going up to Nana and asking to be picked up. Nana was SO tickled by that! I was just happy that they both took to Nana so well, right off the bat. Although, who wouldn't love Nana? :)
So, what did we do for two weeks in Sacramento, CA? Well, Katie practiced her mountain climbing skills...
climber baby
Miriam decorated some Christmas peeps (which no one would eat)...
ewww...
Nana took us to see the sights of beautiful Auburn, CA. It's one of the myriads of cute old mining towns that sprung up during the Gold Rush.
This bridge was amazing. I'm not usually scared of heights, but this freaked me out.
beeg bridge
Note the sign. (What do you get when you have the highest bridge around? Sadly, jumpers!)
sign
Despite imagining oneself plunging to one's doom, the view from the bridge was really worth it. (Mr. P, can we move here?)
The View
We also went to visit the Jelly Belly Factory, which was a LOT of fun. I highly recommend this to anyone who's in the San Fran/Sacto area. We went on the factory tour and all got to wear silly hats.
little tourist
At the factory they had pictures with Santa. As soon as Miriam learned this, she BEGGED to go see Santa. When it was her turn, she went running up to him and climbed into his lap with a shy smile on her face. She's at the age now where she LOVES Santa.
Miriam w/Santa
Katie, however, is not.
Katie not lovin' Santa
Some artist decided it would be fun to make mosaics out of Jelly Bellies. On the tour we saw some pretty awesome ones -- one of which was of JPII! Since it was on the tour, we couldn't take a picture though. :( But there were a couple other famous people immortalized in flavorful Jelly Belly Beans...
the Gipper
For those who don't know, the reason there's a mosaic of Reagan is because he's the one who helped make Jelly Belly famous. The story is that he used them to help quit smoking, and he always had a dish of Jelly Bellies on his desk.
There was also a mosaic of the current governor:
The Gubernator
The gift shop was fun too: they had a tasting bar where you could try all kinds of flavors, including some of the Bertie Botts Every-Flavor Beans (like buttered toast or garlic -- I don't think they had dirt or vomit though). Katie preferred a high-fiber diet.
love my hat (for lunch)
after she was done with it
The one day it actually didn't rain (very much) we took the girls to the park. It figures that CA is having the rainiest winter ever when we decide to visit! After a while we all got tired of staring at the same walls all day. So it was good being outside and able to run around and shriek and basically go nuts. The girls had fun too. :)
wrong way!
Katie has discovered the joy of slides -- she giggles the whole time she's going down.
whee!
Another day we visited the Cathedral of Sacramento, namely, (what else?) the Cathedral of the Blessed Sacrament. Why can't they make churches like this anymore? It was like walking into a hymn in praise of Christ in the Blessed Sacrament. You could never get bored in a church like this.
Cathedral
The State Capitol was right across the street so we stopped in. Notice anything... oh, different, about these two portraits?
Gov. Moonbeam
Gov. Gipper
Honestly, which person would you prefer to have in charge of your state?
We also had a lot of family over -- once again Nana's house was the hub for Christmastime. We got to catch up with a lot of family.
girls w/Uncle Teddy
cousins!
(Some of our readers may be interested to know that Katie1 is no longer a full-time Katie -- she goes by "Kat" now!)
Katie hangin' w/Uncle Joe
So Nana wouldn't be burdened trying to cook for a small army for 2 weeks, we helped her out by taking over some meals.
Miriam "helping" Daddy cook
(don't you love all the magnets on the fridge? She had more on the side too!)
I'm cute and fuzzy!
So we did lots and kept fairly busy. But whenever we could, we just hung out.
ahhhhh...
(This was the best entertainment for Katie: she spent day after day playing mountain climber on the couch!)
The girls were very well behaved (we think), and only started to come to pieces a couple days before we left. It's a good thing that they get along so well (for now)...
"Love is in the Air..."
The Death of Pixar?
It was announced earlier this week that Disney purchased Pixar animation studios. Mrs. Pickles and I were initially very sad about this event. Why? Pixar has created some of the best Hollywood movies (not just the best animation) during the last 6 years. They tell moving, moral stories that are entertaining and engaging; films that attract both children and adults. I think their films can also have a positive influence on the culture--especially within Hollywood. When was the last time I could say any of those things about Disney? Treasure Planet was a good movie (though it surprisingly flopped), but I don't think it's as good as nearly all of Pixar's films. We own every Pixar film made, and we've loved each of them.
Pixar knows to put substance before style. My brother-in-law made an insightful comment about the difference between movies released by Pixar vs. those from other animation studios. When you look at the marketing for Dreamworks' films you see the names of the notable actors and then you see the characters they play. With Pixar, you first see the characters, and then you see the name of the actors. Dreamworks leads you to the theatre with the names of notable actors--like nearly every other film. Pixar leads you to the theatre with their characters and great stories.
I do have some hope for the deal. From the article:
There does seem to be some humility and recognition for Pixar's greatness, so I do have some hope that its influence will reign. It will take about 3-5 years to know for sure. Here's hoping and praying.
(PS For the picture starved, my dear wife is getting some of our Christmas pictures together for our blog, now that her delinquent husband finally uploaded them to the PC. There are mucho pictures, so it'll be worth it.)
Pixar knows to put substance before style. My brother-in-law made an insightful comment about the difference between movies released by Pixar vs. those from other animation studios. When you look at the marketing for Dreamworks' films you see the names of the notable actors and then you see the characters they play. With Pixar, you first see the characters, and then you see the name of the actors. Dreamworks leads you to the theatre with the names of notable actors--like nearly every other film. Pixar leads you to the theatre with their characters and great stories.
I do have some hope for the deal. From the article:
"I think this is great for Disney, not only to have Pixar be part of theand
company, but to have Pixar influence the company," Disney Chief Executive Robert
A. Iger told The Associated Press in an interview Tuesday after the deal was
announced. "It's also possible we'll look at Pixar and see not only how well
it's run but how well it lives and seek to overlay that influence on some of our
other businesses."
Key to spreading Pixar's influence will be Pixar President Ed Catmull, who will
serve as president of the new combined Pixar and Disney animation studios, and
Pixar Executive Vice President John Lasseter, who becomes chief creative officer of the animation studios and principal creative adviser at Walt Disney Imagineering, which designs and builds the company's theme parks. (italics mine)
There does seem to be some humility and recognition for Pixar's greatness, so I do have some hope that its influence will reign. It will take about 3-5 years to know for sure. Here's hoping and praying.
(PS For the picture starved, my dear wife is getting some of our Christmas pictures together for our blog, now that her delinquent husband finally uploaded them to the PC. There are mucho pictures, so it'll be worth it.)
Wednesday, January 11, 2006
I love my job.
Today while putting the girls down for their naps (praise be that they nap at the same time now!), I let Katie rat around in the room while I prayed with and sang to Miriam. After I kissed her goodnight, Katie toddled over and started blowing kisses at Miriam (she's very good at this -- although she will blow them from her eyeballs instead of her lips...). Miriam kept giggling at her, which encouraged Katie to keep it up. Then Katie leaned over with her lips puckered (Miriam's mattress is on the floor), and she and Miriam gave each other a good night kiss. It was SOOOOO adorable! I finally picked Katie up (after she started whapping Miriam on the nose), and as we were leaving the room, they kept blowing kisses at each other, and Katie kept waving "na naaa! [night night!]"
It's moments like this that make me feel like a million bucks -- I must be doing something right if my girls love each other this much! I only hope this relationship lasts through their teen years....
btw, sorry about the delay in getting a Christmas blog up -- we'll post some pictures as soon as Mr. Pickles uploads them from his computer... (HINT HINT....)
It's moments like this that make me feel like a million bucks -- I must be doing something right if my girls love each other this much! I only hope this relationship lasts through their teen years....
btw, sorry about the delay in getting a Christmas blog up -- we'll post some pictures as soon as Mr. Pickles uploads them from his computer... (HINT HINT....)
Saturday, January 07, 2006
Merry Christmas
Isn't this the most beautiful image ever?
Morgan Weistling -- "Kissing the Face of God"
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year, everyone! We'll post again with lots of Merry updates soon!
Morgan Weistling -- "Kissing the Face of God"
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year, everyone! We'll post again with lots of Merry updates soon!
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