A picture of myself?

I recently needed to find a normal picture of myself.  One without sunglasses on, or with dreads, or without my head squished up against someone else.  As I started to look through the extremely large and disorganized folders labeled "pictures" on my computer, I quickly became annoyed and decided to look on the blog as I usually post  only the good pictures of me.  I started to look through all my most recent posts and I got lost in the memories and pictures.  I was never a frequent blogger but I did somewhat keep track of our life moments, big and small, on this blog.  I teared up looking back at those pictures of Woody when I thought he was such a big boy and he was so not.  So many smiles captured, so many moments I'm not sure I would remember as clearly, or at all.  I think I will remember and I don't, unless I write it down--and it is more fun to read about later if there are pictures to go with it!  We started this blog as a way to share our sailing adventure with our friends and family back home but it has turned into a personal diary of sorts, a way to electronically scrapbook I guess.  An expression I heard recently comes to mind, "Know thy self"  and if I am being honest with thy self:  Woody is probably never getting a baby book, my scrapbooking days are behind me (Conor would never let me drag around modge podged photo albums anyway) so this blog is nice to look back on.  It's more than nice, it's awesome, and fun and emotional.  So, for the sake of wanting to look back on some good memories:  

Note:  This is ridiculously long.  And covers a ridiculously long period of time.  But I thought I would catch up to 2014 in one sha-bam.      

Foggy Beach Morning in OCTOBER 

"Whatevs, this is gross, why are you taking a picture?"

Thanksgiving Turkey Hat 

Sporting his Dad's jeans

Reading a book to his bestie, Pen Dog
He reads to her all the time.  Just today he was being very quiet out of my site so I called for him and in the sweetest voice he answered, "Reading book Penny!"  Penny has has some real A-hole moments in her life but she is shining in her golden years being a patient, gentle buddy for Elwood.

On a date!
We saw Alabama Shakes and it was a fantastic show

Library Buddies

We actually did a Christmas card this year.  Conor was uncharacteristically patient while we shot a bunch of these gems:

Getting closer to a mailable pic, I just need to get myself and the industrial pipe out of the picture

Nailed it!

Finally, something I can work with!

We really got into the Christmas Spirit this year.  Having Woody understand most of what was going on made all the festivities exponentially more awesome.   Christmas time last year we had just moved into our place, money was tight, Woody wasn't aware of all the magic that Christmas brings so it just kinda past us by.  Not this year! We got a tree, Christmas lights, I had Christmas music playing the whole month of December, Woody met Santa, we watched the old school Grinch and clay-mation Rudolph Christmas movies; we were loving it!  My favorite tradition we started this year was a walk in our neighborhood almost every night to look at the Christmas lights.  Woody was cozed up in his pajamas and he would start out the walk on his bike, walk some of the way but usually one of held a sleepy, snuggly little guy on the way home, with his eyelids heavy but not closed making sure he got every last glimpse of the "Tisthmas Ights."  His favorite Christmas character was by far Frosty the Snowman.  We didn't push that guy at all, if anything I talked about Santa and Rudolph more but Woody loved himself some Frosty the Snowman.  We were walking early in December and Woody excitedly kept exclaiming, "Bossy Newman!  Bossy Newman!"  It took us a few times of him saying Bossy Newman to figure out that he was excitedly announcing that he sees Frosty the Snowman.  At bedtime we sing songs and I am still getting requests for Frosty the Snowman in March.  (Now said almost perfectly which honestly makes me a little sad).  He also would sing Frosty the Snowman, as in "Booosseee Neeewman" (that's it, no more words but he very proud of himself) the other Christmas jingle heard in our house was "Ingle Bells, HEY!  Ingle Bells, HEY!"  I'm honestly surprised we never heard a 1.5 year old rendition of Mariah's  "All I Want for Christmas is You" because he heard it multiple times a day, every day.  Cute Christmas memories I don't want to forget when he knows more words and says them all correctly. Happy New Year!

This was the most unblurry pic of the bunch.
Meeting Santa is always more traumatizing than expected.  All was smoothed over after Woody got his miniature candy cane.  

Our perfect little tree.  It stayed healthy and green and smelling Oh-so-piney the whole month of December and most of January.  Woody and I made homemade ornaments from pine cones, shells, and glitter.  We strung popcorn and cranberries to help decorate but between Penny eating it and Woody pulling them off to feed Penny, that decoration only lasted about a week.  

A little fire poking before bed