Finally!

After last year's epic winter snowfall, I will admit that we were hoping for a bit of a reprieve from having to shovel 10 feet of snow. Nevertheless, this winter, so far, has been a crushing disappointment--particularly for the kids. Clara has yearned for snow, and although Jonathan is not incredibly fond of being cold (and has a particular dislike for cold wind), even he was thrilled by the sight of falling "no" out the window this morning. They watched the snow fall for a full 10 minutes, with Clara asking, "Can we go and play yet? Can we go and play yet?" Finally the snow let up, and Jeremy popped out of his office to see if anyone was interested in a little snow play.

Happy taste of winter!

Costume drama

Clara loves to dress up, and Jonathan loves to wear the lion costume at the children's museum, so we thought we'd try our chicken costume on for size. As you can see in this little triptych, sometimes being a chicken is for the birds.

Dance, Poppet!

We signed Clara up for an eight week dance class through the city recreation department. Good times! She got to pick out some tap and ballet shoes to bring home for the duration of the class, which thrilled her deeply. She loves to wear her black leotard around the house as much as possible so she can practice her moves. I'm most excited for the recital in March. Who knows what will happen?

The first class went well for Clara, although it was tricky for her to do all of the steps. She tried hard, though, and had fun, and she can't wait to go back to "Dancing School" next week.

This video shows how Clara reacted to the news that she'd be taking dance lessons, which Jeremy told her about 30 minutes before her class started (I was not home from teaching yet). Sorry about the bad camera angle at the beginning; he was trying not to distract her with the camera. I'll try to get some better dancing action videos for next week.

A new post for a new year

I'm finally back on my computer after what has admittedly been a nice, long break. We enjoyed nearly two weeks in Utah over the Christmas break, splitting the time between my family and Jeremy's. It was fun to see all but two of our six collective siblings and their families. As always, though, it was a busy couple of weeks and we were happy to be home by the time all was said and done. Now our Christmas stuff is all packed away, the house is (relatively) clean, and I'm busily working to get my syllabi in order for the upcoming semester.

I've been thinking quite a bit about goals and new beginnings. My only official resolution of 2009 was to have feet as soft as my mother's (seriously), and I was a total failure. (My foot-softening efforts have perked up a bit in 2010, since I got a pumice stone in my stocking. From myself. But it still works like a champ.)

For 2010, I want to read more (I'm thinking two books a month, which is not nearly what I'd like to read but is probably realistic given the other strains on my time), go to the Temple every month, play the piano more (not including the better part of three hours at church I'm either sitting at an organ or a piano), do another triathlon, and do more to develop my spiritual strength. So there you go. I have a few other things in the works, but I figure I can make goals whenever I want to (even if Jeremy thinks it's barbaric to start a new goal on any day that's not either a Monday or the first day of a new month).

While you chew on all of this, please enjoy a few pictures of our Christmas fun--or, really, just a sample of our fun over the last month or so, since the odds of my going back and posting past events are quite slim. The pictures are in no particular order, but I think that adds to the excitement and uncertainty of the new year. Happy 2010!