Welcome Baby George!!

We've got a new cousin! George Whitney was born to Christie and Garrett on Sunday, December 21. He wasn't showing any signs of turning head down, so, Chris was booked in for a c-section. They are all doing great and George is a handsome little devil that loves to sleep the day away. As a special treat to the Cordell Christmas, George was brought over and enjoyed the meal with us at Grandma Margaret's house. He was 6 pounds 13 ounces at birth and, even though Lily is small for her age, George made her look from a giant!

Christmas a little early...

Lily's Grandmommie Linda braved her way through the snowstorm in Spokane to fly to Seattle the weekend before Christmas. It was wonderful having her here to celebrate Lily's first Christmas a little early. While she was here we all tried out the new cameras that Santa had sent for Christmas. The video below is just one sample of Grandmommie's new camera.

Snow Angel

This past week we've been enjoying the promise of a white Christmas. Last weekend we received a small layer which left a nice layer of ice on the roads and forced schools to open 2 hours late on both Monday and Tuesday. Then, after pretty serious warning, the skies opened with a flash and a boom and began to dump snow Thursday morning and send schools into an early winter vacation. With the time off, Andy and I bundled up and trekked out to capture the moment of our cameras.

Lily has now met snow. She has tasted it, made snow angels, kicked it around, and felt the affects of the chill after the snow has soaked her.

Gearing up to brave the cold...

Dancing on snowflakes...

Snow Angel

Papa's Got A New Toy!

Andy has been eagerly awaiting the "birth" of the latest addition to our family. With about the same level of excitement as when Lily arrived, Andy stalked the UPS web page checking his tracking number about every 15 minutes and waiting for the magical word: DELIVERED. He knew that his box had arrived before the school secretary could phone me in class to let me know. The Cannon 5D Mark II is now nestled into his shoulder bag and ready for any and all Kodak moments. The morning after it arrived he took it for its first spin. What better first photo than one of the Bug?

Another Month, Another Elephant Picture

Lily Grace Holloway
5 Months

Goin' On A Tree Hunt

Last year we met up with Lisa, Brandon, and Lisa's dad's family for a trip to the tree farm. This year we were missing Roger's family, but we had the addition of two fabulous little girls. We got to the farm, bundled up, and got our feet ready to tromp around the trees. We've got a really cozy home that has just enough room for a table top tree. We looked around and saw a couple of potential winners, but in the end we all decided to go get burritos at Chipotle(after helping ourselves to cocoa and a candy cane). B&L ended up getting a tree at a lot right down the street from home and we went for a potted one from Trader Joe's. We're planning to take ours down to Grayland and plant it at my mom and dad's place.

Turkey Day - Part 2

One of the charms of where we live is the ferry boat commuting. This Thanksgiving we joined the ferry line as we made our way out to Bruce and Caroline Klassen's home on Whidbey Island for turkey dinner. Lisa and Brandon were already there with their daughter Evelyn and pup Lucy. Getting out to Chez Klassen is always a relaxing treat of friends, food, and dominoes. If only Lisa and Brandon hadn't had to head out early for a flight the next morning...

Turkey Day - Part 1

Looking back to the date on the last post, it's pretty easy to tell when my maternity leave was over and it was time for me to head back to work. Before I get into the back to work story, I better get you caught up!

Andy and Lily are waiting for the partying to begin! On Thanksgiving Day we partook of two celebrations. The first one was a gathering of friends. We headed over to our friend Justin's house in Ballard to meet up with all the friends who are too far away from family to make the trek for both Turkey Day and Christmas. The spread Justin lays out is totally worth it! We started our food extravaganza with the cold appetizers: meat, cheese, fruit, veggies, bread, yummy dips of several flavors, and (Andy's not so favorite) deviled eggs. Then came the hot appetizers: bacon wrapped shrimp and scallops, little smokies, and clams. Oh, our first tasty beverage was also making its rounds at this point and everyone had a mimosa in hand. Then the much anticipated dinner was ready... the deep fried turkey was brought in from its vat in the driveway, the oven roasted turkey was pulled from the oven and the ham was returned from the BBQ.


Justin did the carving while the rest of the feast was set out. After all, what is Thanksgiving without cranberry sauce, stuffing, mashed potatoes, rolls, and veggies? I have a feeling that I left a few dishes out, too. After finishing our plates we rolled out the door so we could make the ferry to our next celebration. We left a pumpkin pie and told Justin thank you one more time before hopping in the car and puzzling over how we would manage to eat more that evening.

It's okay, Grandpa!

Grandpa Reichenberger went under the knife last Monday. In his right hip a calcification had gotten so big that it was pushing his leg out of socket. Ouch! He now has a new hip and is on the road to recovery. This past weekend we all went down to the beach to give Grandpa our love and support.

Cousin George

We are expecting an extra special treat this holiday. My cousin Christie is due to give birth to baby George on Dec 27. Just the other weekend, the Cordell side of the family all gathered to shower Chris with love and baby things. Now all we need is the baby!

Chris and her nieces are cutting the cake. Rachel (the youngest of the nieces) is checking out Lily and getting excited for her new cousin.

Seattle Children's Museum

A couple weeks ago I loaded Lily up in her brand new stroller and took her for a nice long walk down to the Seattle Children's Museum. We met up with Kristie, one of my oldest friends, and Zoe, her daughter, who were accompanied by Denise, Kristie's mom, and Shy, Kris's niece. The high points were the Mr. Potato Head exhibit, the Whole Foods shopping center, the water table, and... Who am I kidding? It was all great. Lily watched as Zoe and Shy ran all over and experienced all the centers. Some day she, too, will be running around with her big friends.

Signs of the Season

Over the past couple weeks the most wonderful thing has started to happen. As we wander down the streets, I keep noticing little signs of the season: Christmas trees for sale, twinkle lights outlining windows and filling trees of homes and and businesses in our neighborhood. We city folk aren't the only ones jumping on the holiday bandwagon a little early. I noticed a tree already decorated in a home down the street from my parents'. The "sign" that started the wave of holiday cheer for me was one that I have looked forward to every year that we've been in our little nest here on the hill. It's one that we can see from any of our west facing windows. Here's the view from the kitchen...

It isn't the clouds and all their texture. It isn't the ferry boats crisscrossing the water. It isn't even the Space Needle! It's that big yellow sign on the side of the theater pronouncing that it is officially time to get your tickets to see the Nutcracker! Can you see it in the view from our window? It's right there on the right side of the picture. Here it is a bit bigger...

I have the most wonderful memories of going to see this as a kid. Before Maurice Sendak created the current scenery, the King Rat was actually played by a dancer who did this fabulous dance just as he was dying. It involved his feet and arms repeatedly shooting up in the air and falling down as he lay on his back. Not that it isn't wonderful now, because it most certainly is! In a couple years we'll have to take Lily so she can start building her own memories of Sugar Plum Fairies and a magical Christmas.

Could we please take her picture?

That is exactly what they told me today as I was hunting down a diaper pail at Babies R Us (or as my mom likes to call it...We B Babies). Who am I to deny a photographer the opportunity to catch Lily in her lens. I hadn't really dressed her for the occasion, but I couldn't say no to a free picture!

Just a touch late...

For those who have been asking... here is Lily's elephant picture from her 4 month birthday.

Hail to the Chief

On November 4 our little family put on our coats and stepped out into the rain to make our way to Trinity Lutheran Church, our local polling booth. Out of the doors poured smiling people all sporting I Voted stickers. This is the last time anyone in the state of Washington will have the opportunity to do their voting without dropping their ballots in the mail and people were pretty proud that they had been able to fill in their bubbles and feed their choices into the big black vote counting machine. Ah, the satisfaction of knowing your votes have been counted. Lily gave a pat to the dalmatian with the red, white, and blue bandana while Andy fed his votes into the box. We walked out the doors of the church with big satisfied smiles and stickers on our shirts. Ahhhh!

Halloween Ladybug

Click the new "Lily-Halloween" link under photo albums for more Bug pictures.

Delicious!

Every Tuesday Lily and I head over to Bertschi School to visit the pre-k class and visit with friends at the school. Before we turn the stroller around and head toward home, I go to the front porch of the Hooper House and load up our order of fresh local produce from Full Circle Farm. It's this great service that supports local farmers and fills our home with wonderful organic fruit and veggies. The drop off location is our school and it arrives every Tuesday with a list of what should be in the box and some new recipes to try. We tried this one last week. Yum!

Pear Custard Bars
Recipe from Simply in Season

1/3 cup butter (softened)
1/3 cup sugar
Cream together with an electric mixer.

3/4 cup whole wheat flour
1/4 teaspoon vanilla
Add and beat until combined.

2/3 cup nuts (chopped)
Stir in and press into an 8 x 8-inch baking pan. Bake in pre-heated oven at 350° F until lightly browned, 20 minutes. Cool in pan on a wire rack.

8 ounces cream cheese (softened) or 1 cup plain yogurt
1/2 cup sugar
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
In a mixing bowl cream beat cream cheese until smooth (no need to beet the yogurt). Mix in sugar, egg, and vanilla. Pour over crust.

3 cups fresh pears (peeled and sliced)
Arrange over filling.

1/2 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Combine and sprinkle over pears. Bake in preheated oven at 350° F for 25 to 30 minutes. (Center will be soft and will become firmer upon cooling.) Cool for 45 minutes, then cover and refrigerate at least 45 minutes before cutting. Store in refrigerator.

Jack O' Lantern

It's Halloween morning. I've got laundry started down in the basement, a cup of coffee next to the computer, and am watching the rain pour down. I am sure the floods are coming and am wondering how trick or treating will go tonight. Andy's sister is coming over with the family and Lily is set to spend her first Halloween dressed up and begging for candy along with all her cousins. We'll post pictures of the blessed event. Not to worry!

We've definitely gotten into the spirit of things and spent the night carving and feasting on pumpkin seeds. One of the pictures of me as a baby in my parents' albums is of my first Halloween next to my very own pumpkin. The face was painted on and the teeth spelled out my name. With that in mind, we carved...

More Punkins!

We just can't get enough of pumpkin patches! Andy has always told me these great stories of his trips to the fields of orange globes and how the really good farms had goats. Well, I came across a pumpkin patch that not only has goats and other barnyard animals, but also has a pumpkin cannon that shoots pumpkins up to three football field lengths away! It sounded too good to pass up! I called my friend Lisa and sent a message to my friend Annie (two of my fabulous friends from college and two of the Ta-Ta's) and we set a date for yesterday to bring our girls out to hunt for the Great Pumpkin. Annie came with Nina. Lisa came with Evelyn and Brandon. I came with Lily and Andy. We watched pumpkins fly across the fields. We scratched behind the ears of a goat and some pigs. And we left with a perfect little pumpkin. It was the first time we'd been able to get all three of our daughters together and there are sure to be many more gatherings in the future!

A little bit of Japan here in Seattle

One of our favorite people from our Japan adventure passed through Seattle this weekend! Diane was one of the wonderful literacy teachers that I worked with at Ikego and one of our fabulous circle of friends. This week she is spending time with family down in California, but had to fly through either Portland or Seattle on her way there. The Kasparek and Holloway families agreed that she made the right choice in picking Seattle. We got to spend all day Saturday and part of Sunday with our dear friend. Saturday, after meeting her at the airport, we brought her home for coffee and, once the Kaspareks arrived, we headed out to one of our favorite spots for lunch: Volunteer Park Cafe. Then, while Vanessa, Chris, Emma, and Camden were entertained at the Backyardigans show, Andy, Lily and I took Diane over to the Ballard Locks to see one lone fish (nicknamed Louis the Loser) swimming up through the ladder. Oddly, this was Andy's first trip to the Locks on foot. He's decided it is now one of his favorite places in Seattle! After leaving Andy to go off for a "business dinner," we met back up with the Kaspareks and headed out for a slumber party at their house in Silverdale. Lily spent the evening laughing and watching football with Chris while Vanessa, Diane, and I visited. The night ended with Emma reading and singing for Lily. The next morning we had just enough time for a quick breakfast before heading off to the airport. After a mix-up with the ferry schedule, we ended up driving around, but that just meant that all three of us got a bit more time together. Which one of our friends from Japan will come over next?