Christmas Eve:Christmas officially started while I was in the bathroom drying my hair. I had spent the day weeding my dad's front bed and cutting down the old flower stems, then rushed back home to vacuum and mop before everyone arrived, since Mom and Jim had finished baking delicious Christmas cookies. I had then jumped into a terrifically hot shower and then was out trying to be ready for guests when I happened to peek out the window and saw two faces smiling up at me - Jim and wee Tamsin. I waved happily. They're here!!!! I heard Camryn and her dad first, with Grandma in the lead. "Camryn," she queried invitingly, "would you like to say 'Hi' to Auntie Katie and Uncle Kenny?"
"No."
Well, all righty then! Christmas had officially begun! I could greet my Tamsie as cheerfully as I wanted, since she isn't all that timid, but I had to studiously ignore Camryn, whose shyness makes her liable to drop to the floor and burst into wounded tears if anyone other than her parents or Grandma looks at her too closely. It seemed to work - Baby T was subduedly friendly until fed, then even more happy to see us, while Baby C glanced at us cautiously but seemed not to mind our presence as long as we didn't observe her directly.
Tamsin shares a toy with me before dinner:
Reading the picture "Book of Mormon" together before bed in Mommy's old room:
But it's not time for bed yet! First, Camryn and Tamsin get to open their pretty dresses for tomorrow, since Christmas falls on a Sunday and we'll all be going to church together. (Incidentally, both dresses were picked out by Uncle Kenny.) Camryn, who generally likes presents, has a hard time dealing with all the attention in such an enclosed space. That's okay, kiddo - Mommy and Auntie Katie were always shy opening presents in a big group, too.
Tamsin doesn't mind the crowd so much:
More Christmas adventures:
Hanging out with Uncle Kenny!
Dominoes night!
Megan eyes the domino table while Kenny and Tamsin select their next tile:
Tamsin shows Camryn a coveted set of mousie toys:
I laugh unknowingly while Jim peeks at my tiles:
Karl spies an advantage!
OMSI Day!
Karl and Megan led the way in taking the girls to explore a day at OMSI, and I followed behind the crew to photograph some serious scientific investigation.
Camryn, Tamsin, Grandma, and Mommy check out the a replica of the Gemini Space Capsule to determine how they would fare in orbit:
"What might this be?"
"Big Sister seems to think it is safe, and Grandma is here, too."
"I'll go into space, Grandma, but only if you go with me!"
"I'll go, too, Camryn, but only if you help me get there!"
"Mom said I could go, too!"
"Hmm, this space capsule isn't quite right yet."
"Aha! Here's what was missing!"
"Okay, now I'm ready to go into space!"
Learning about orbits:
A cutie-pie little astronaut!
Peeking down from the overhead bridge:
Building our own bridge!
Tamsin, post-Godzilla move on Camryn's bridge:
Chipmunk costumes at the nature and animal habitat:
I gagged a little when I read this sign:
Speaking of which, here is some leftist propaganda I found in the bookstore:
The obligatory stop at Escape From New York Pizza!
And then, once proper digestion happened, jumping on the bed followed by the Tickle Monster and a story read by Pop Pop!
Tamsie gets some water from Grandma in the background, as she wasn't as interested in the story as in bugging Camryn:
Seeing kitties at the mall!
While at Clackamas Town Center, we discovered a pet store and adoption center where we could visit with some of the potential adoptees, including a young kitten. After checking with the staff to make sure it was okay that we all visit the little kitty, Megan and I took the girls to get acquainted with the kitten, who was very obliging. Camryn and Tamsin were both so gentle with her, and petted her very softly and even played with her. It was such fun to share our love of kitties with our little ones!
Megan shows the kitten to Tamsin:
I help Tamsin pet the tiny kitty:
What awe!
Camryn and the kitten make friends:
Camryn shows Grandma what a good kitten petter she is:
And how to play with her kitty toys:
The very best gift I got this Christmas came from little Tamsin, and it was completely unexpected. She had had her bath in the kitchen sink and was being dried off at the kitchen table by her mother when she pointed to the portrait of our family that was taken almost 14 years ago, when Megan and I were about to turn 16. "Katie!" she said distinctly. I turned toward the table, as surprised as could possibly be. Camryn has said my name twice, I think, only under duress ("No, Auntie Katie!!!") and will never repeat it when asked. Megan was grinning.
"Did you say her name, Tamsie? Who is that? Where is Auntie Katie?" Tamsin looked at the portrait and then at me and repeated, "Katie."
I jumped up and down with glee and Tamsin smiled at me as her mother finished toweling her off and buttoned her into her jammies. I proudly announced to the house that I had just heard my name twice! A day later, I came home from some random errand and Tamsin ran to the door and pointed me out to her mom, who was in the other room. "Auntie Katie!" she announced over and over. Oh, man - this was the coolest thing EVER!
Uncle Kenny got similar star treatment. Megan and Karl took off for some husband and wife time at the movies, allowing us to have the kiddoes all to ourselves. Grandma and Pop Pop put the little ones in their beds for a nap, but when Tamsin woke up and cried, Uncle Kenny was right there to get her up and help with diaper duty and snack time. And the next day, when I heard her wake-up cries and came in to pick her up her from her crib, she only stopped crying when Uncle Kenny came to take her from my arms. Ken chased her for eight laps around the house as she toddled on those zippy little legs in search of the hapless kitties, who couldn't seem to make a quick enough exit. (Or a clever enough one - with his safari partner at his side, Kenny rousted the cats for Tamsin's delight over and over. When I suggested the cats get a reprieve, Ken scoffed. I think he was remembering several cat pee incidents and figured Cat Safari was "payback time.") Together, Tamsin and Kenny ate goldfish crackers "like a bear," scavenged candy canes off the Christmas tree, and strolled together through the chilly neighborhood Christmas lights on a family outing while Sister walked with Mom and Dad. He basks in the attention from his nieces, but since Camryn is being super shy right now, Tamsin can hog all the attention she wants!
As all visits do, this one ended and each girl was missed as soon as she left the house for her trek back to Utah. But ohhh, how many wonderful memories we get to treasure until they come back again! Kenny is already planning his next Cat Safari and we both have grinned at the chance to hear "Katie!" and "Kenny!" over the phone. We love our family so much, whether near or far, and we can't wait to see them again!!!*
*The cats may feel differently about this.
4 comments:
When Colton first called me "Auntie" (since he was such a slow talker, and was much older than Tamsin), I was so excited! I took him around the house to other people so they could hear it too, and he could not figure out why it was such a big deal. I even called Meaghan and said, "Guess what Colton just said to me?" It was a proud moment.
He still, however, refuses to call me Meredith. I am Auntie Doc, named after Doc in "Cars" (Paul Newman, BTW, which is pretty cool). He has informed me he will always call me Auntie Doc, and since it has been going on for two years now, I am inclined to believe him.
We went to OMSI, too, over Christmas break! Although we could only go for a half day, so we went to the Planetarium and then Meaghan's mother-in-law nicely paid for all of us to go to Body Worlds. If you want to freak out a bunch of little kids, take them to that exhibit! It was cool, however, for older kids and adults. Meaghan's niece, who barely shows me the time of day most days (she is 3), grabbed my hand and wouldn't let ago, and when I tried to show her things ("These are lungs, Alyssa. They are what we breathe with") was always followed by "I DON'T HAVE THAT". So we left the exhibit and discussed something I knew more about, why "Beauty and the Beast" is the greatest Disney movie ever.
(How is that for a long comment for a long blog post?) :)
"I DON'T HAVE THAT" - that is totally funny!!! We went to the "Body Worlds" exhibit when it was at Salt Lake City, and although it didn't have a special on the brain (which I would have loved to see), I was still fascinated and a bit ooked out. I helpfully pointed out to Kenny which of all the bodies were "boys." ("That's a boy one! I can tell!" "I KNOW.") Hey, we'll take little kid affection where we can get it, right?
I LOVE "Beauty and the Beast!" I remember seeing in the theater with my family on Valentine's Day when it first came out. "The Little Mermaid" was always my favorite, but "B&TB" is a serious close second. It has everything in it - castles, mystery, love, beauty, scariness, danger, romance, evil, hot guys who are total dolts, etc. And it's set in France! How cool is that? Have you seen the musical? I haven't, nor have I heard the full score, but I SO want to. Someday....
I wonder how many years it'll be before pictures of family gatherings DON'T involve Camryn lying prostrate on the floor.
Heh heh heh! Even if it is a few more, I'll gladly take them - I miss those girls!!!
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