christmas redux

The new year is right around the corner; seriously, the ball is going to be dropping any minute now, but we figured we should post the highlights of our Christmas celebration.

We made cookies for Santa.

The pup got one sweet train set.

We had to make sure he understood how to use it right and proper.

I got a toy of my own.

After lunch, we headed to Harkness Memorial Park to toss around the mini-pigskin and mess around with a new camera.

The boys had fun.

Actually, the whole family had a good time.

Our Christmas was a happy one, we hope yours was too! See you in 2008!

There is a ton of Christmas fun over in flickr. Have a look-see! And if video fun is your thing, have a chuckle over this:

santa is one scary guy

After being out of commission due to some sickness here and some more sickness there, we needed something fun to cheer us up. Last week was the Christmas party for Coast Guard families at the Coast Guard Academy. It was a fun night of institutional pizza, cake and all the Capri-Sun we could suck down. Good times!

It was also an opportunity to chat up the man with the bag. Clearly, someone needs to work on his conversation skills. I really wish I could find the Poloraid pic that Santa's elves took; in it, the Pup is screaming his head off while giving Santa a high five. Seriously.

The Pup's pal, Gherkin, didn't have a successful conversation either. Clearly neither of these handsome young men would be useful in any sort of negotiating procedure. Hopefully, Santa will look past their phobia of all that is jolly (and hairy).


To get over the trauma of the Santa sighting, we decided to make tasty things.

Granted, the Pup isn't going to be eating most of these treats, but he is very excited about his cardamom and honey "stars".

Most of the treats when to local friends for making us smile through the year. Thanks, y'all!

seals like what seals like

All things considered, things are pretty relaxed around these parts. Over the weekend, we made chicken noodle soup (for our bellies, not our souls so much). We like chicken noodle soup.

Carrots, we are fans.

I knit like it was my job (coincidentally, I also ignored laundry, so it was a win-win for me). I like to knit.

And Papa Seal and the Seal Pup went to a basketball game at CGA. The Papa Seal, he likes basketball.

Anders did pretty much everything except watch the basketball game (and there is something to see, the Bears are doing pretty good this year, those in the know, well, they know this is a pretty big deal).

He hung out with his pal Gherkin (always a good time). Anders likes hanging out with his homeboys, er boy.

He had Gherkin's mom read him a book (at the basketball game, people). We like to "book read."

He searched for useful things (...like pacifiers. Sigh.) in his backpack. He really likes his "binks."

And he pretty much walked around like he owned the place. He likes to rock the house like he owns it.

During half time, Papa Seal took the Pup to watch the swimming and diving meet happening at the pool; he was fascinated. Kelly tried to get him to leave for the second half of the basketball game, but he was all about the swimming. Kelly said it was like he was watching Thomas the Tank Engine or Super Why!, but with more interest (we did not know this was even possible). So our kid's sport of choice is swimming. It figures. That's right, he likes swimming.

Tomorrow night starts some fun holiday festivities for us. We are going to go to some Academy-sanctioned holiday fun, parties (did someone say Santa?), light shows...and then there are the Christmas cards. Need I say it? We like Christmas.

making merry

Turn on the crazy, it's Christmas time. The past weekend and the past few days have seen us pulling out the props of Christmas time merriness at the Wandering Seals household. There was the making of lists, the cracking open of the Christmas piggy (her name is Petunia, in case you were wondering) and messing about with decoartions. Good times. We also took the opportunity to get things in order. Papa Seal was very happy to see dated giftwrap, ribbons, bows, boxes and a lot of randomness get the big heave-ho (not a fan of clutter, that one).

And you can not have Christmas time merry without a tree, so we drove up to Preston, Connecticut to our favorite Christmas tree farm to cut down our tree.

Maple Lane Farms is a great place to get a tree. The people are helpful and nice and the selection can not be beat. They don't allow tagging of trees, but that isn't really a problem as there are few (if any) duds on the lot (or the acres and acres of farmland, you choose).

The only thing we would have changed about the day we selected and chopped down our tree is the weather. It was in the twenties, even colder WITH WINDCHILL. We are some pretty wimpy seals when it comes to being cold. Let's not put too fine a point on it.

Papal Seal showed his knotting skills after the tree was wrapped. Someone get this man a medal!We really enjoy this time of year. Now that the Seal Pup is older, there is some more recognition going on. He gets excited about trees ("yes, there is indeed a tree in the house"), really excited about lights ("yes, we know there are lights in the tree. No, you may not pull them down--the ornaments either..."), and then there are the presents. Last year, he didn't really get it; but, this year, at 20 months old, it's a whole new ball game.

The presents, he likes to open them (or have them opened, same difference).
The fact that we were told to open one gift early really made him happy.

Thanks, Dru!
We hope you are finding ways to celebrate the season in a stress-free way (or not, if that is your thing).

There is tons of Christmas prep fun over in flickr.

thanksgiving redux

Thanksgiving has come and gone; but the memories of the day will stay with us. We took the opportunity of the good weather and the day off to explain to the seal pup that he is going to have to start earning his keep (the kid eats monster amounts of food!).

He thought it was all fun and games at first.


He really enjoyed raking the leaves with Papa Seal (and wearing his mama made sweater!).
But then he thought some more and realized that raking leaves is actually a lot of work.

Clearly, Papa Seal knows this.
Despite the work entailed in living in New England, we love it.

We hope your Thanksgivings were happy and full of good food, family and fun.

More leafy fun over in flickr.

we heart nyc; or, no sleep till brooklyn

We are battling the plague and trying to recover for a party on Saturday; but now that my mother has harnessed the power of the internet (Lord, help us all), I now have a constant reminder that I need to "update website more." Yes, ma'am.

Let me tell you where we are going.

We went to New York City and Brooklyn over the past weekend. Papa Seal and I realized that this is a trip we have been planning since we last went to New York more than four years ago (it's not like we live 3 hours away or anything). We made visits to Queens/Flushing when my mom lived there, but Manhattan, that's another story.

One thing that was readily apparent, our priorities are vastly different than they were four or five years ago. It was weird being in NYC and not going to the TKTS booth to score whatever show tickets were scorable that evening (which probably wouldn't have mattered as there was a strike and a lot of shows were canceled).

I wasn't a knitter 4 years ago, so we definitely didn't hunt down yarn shops in the city. How things have changed. (And really, how could I resist the oldest yarn shop in New York?)

Look at all the fun I missed last time! (Brooklyn General Store is my new favorite place on earth.)

Although I was a sewer/quilter 4 years ago, it probably would not have occurred to me to go fabric shop hunting.

Well, maybe it would have. (Purl Patchwork didn't exist back then, so that is my defense, I guess.)

Clearly I am overjoyed to be part of this shopping excursion.

And neither Kelly nor I were that into photography 4 years ago. The times, they have changed.

B&H puts the "super" in Superstore!

Since we were subjecting the Seal Pup to weather that could not, in any way, be described as warm. It seemed fair to make sure he had some fun too (for us this translates into public spaces). He liked looking at the ice skaters in Central Park. The Delacorte Clock (also in Central Park) was really interesting as well.

But clearly, all of the fun was happening in Prospect Park in Brooklyn.

Not only was there a playground. But there were leaves to crunch and kick (though we have tons of those in our backyard, it's different in New York).

We had a great time, we heart New York City and Brooklyn (especially Brooklyn, who knew?!). We would definitely like to make a trip back when it warms up. Also, our trip to the Brooklyn Children's Museum was deterred due to renovatons. So obviously another trip down to New York is in store. Ahem.

We are now going to get back to the business of healing. Anders just shook off his ear infection, I just got antibiotics to treat mine and Kelly's is probably just around the corner. How much do we love day care?!

Want more pictures? You know where to find them.