the tail end of 2008

chatting about good times in bethlehem...

eating hot dogs at the mall, the fire alarm went off, when i looked up, they both had tissue sticking out of their ears... reminded me of mr. bean.

new years eve before bed.

playing games at the hotel..

swimming was fun.

these two didn't like the first course... it was a swiss cheese dip that was quite pungent... you should have seen elis expression after his first bite...

can't. stop. reading.

eli talking to c.j. on the phone.

at alberta theatre projects to see robin hood on elis birthday

officially 7!

busted out the table top hockey on christmas day.  i think this was dave and chucks board from a 15 years ago.  cleaned up nice.

mary and joseph.

more bethlehem small talk.

*rats, i added these pictures, thinking they would be in some type of sequential order, but alas they are not.  so... consider them a little random glimpse of the end of the year.

we have had a really nice few weeks.  it has been calm and quiet and birthdays, christmas and new years were easy going and different.  

we had christmas morning here at our house just the 3 of us, then out to mom and dads for food and fun.

elis birthday was celebrated with a play and supper out.

new years was spent here in calgary, downtown at the eau claire sheraton.  we went for fondue earlier in the night then went back to the hotel to swim and play games.  i think we were all in bed by 10:00pm.  in bed i read through my journal entries from this past year, reviewed the 31 goals/resolutions i had made (i think i only accomplished 5 or 6) and then started thinking about this new year. 

eli woke up in the morning to find that mother goose had come and left a small gift for him to start the year out right.  nothing like a C3PO keychain and random star wars guy to kick things off, eh?

and today, today is the first day in january.  eli kept saying, "there is still snow on the ground?!" thinking that because it is a new year AND january that the weather would change magically over night.  kid logic.

today we ate a tasty breakfast, packed up, checked out, went to the old studio, swept floors, finished up, bought a HD camcorder, walked around the mall, ate hot dogs and didn't care about time or anything at all really.  it was really satisfying.

when i got home tonight, i had a unexpected email from aunt betty.  i don't know her as well as i know some of my other great aunts, which is a shame.  she must have heard i was looking for insight from great grandma woods children about great grandma wood (AKA ida).  it was such a touching note.  i bawled and bawled.  

as of this moment, i have 16 days to go... did you know that is my number?  16.  

anyho, aunt betty concluded her letter with, "may god bless your baby, Ida Burton, and also you Jessica, and your husband in the raising of this precious little spirit.  likely right now Ida is instructing this baby for her exciting journey into this life." 

what a wonderful way to start this new year.