Christmas came and went much faster than we would have liked. I love this time of year - the coziness of the holiday and another reason to spend quality time with those I love.
I got the flu on Christmas Eve and felt crummy the remainder of the holiday. This meant that I missed out on the Warwick family Christmas Eve festivities which included the first annual ping pong and pool tournament. Congrats to Marek (ping pong) and Jesse (pool) for their big wins. I also missed out on seeing my Uncle Randy, Aunt Cheryl and my cousins. I think it's the first holiday EVER that I haven't seen them. So, having said all this, are not many pictures of family functions or the accompanying gifts being open as I'm either not at the event or I am laying on the couch while my family rips through gifts.
Many of the pictures used in this blog were taken with an iPhone camera - let me just say, the quality of the photos leave much to be desired. I really am not sure how people get good photos with that camera - it's awful!! But, I want to include them as they memorialize many moments that I would like to share.
Christmas
Looking out the window at Yuri and Rory playing in the snow.
Our yearly family photo - thanks to Bill Bailey for playing photographer. Massie was pretty sick when we took the photo - hence the "I'm not super excited to be here" face.
Picking up the Christmas tree. I love that we still get a real tree, however, the spiders that call them home are starting to get to me. We may move to a fake one one of these years.
The Lambert family hosted their annual Christmas shindig and it was great fun. There was a lot of food, drinks, a cookie decorating station for the kids and the big guy (Santa's doppelganger of course) made an appearance. Rory got over her initial hesitancy and finally sat on his lap to share her wish list; which included a ballerina doll and a necklace.
Massie wasn't so thrilled to sit on his lap. I'm not sure if the red on her face is frosting from the cookie station or marker (usual occurrence).
I love this photo of Yuri - the calm force in the midst of a chaotic storm.
We hosted an impromptu Christmas party at our house the weekend before Christmas. Usually everyone is booked on that weekend however, the more I spoke to friends the more I realized that no one had plans...so, a party we had. I didn't have the camera out much that night but I did catch a few of the girls playing with the train that circles our tree...and Rory nibbling on a cookie.
A new family recently moved into our neighborhood, the Hales. While I knew David from work and various Fairbanks functions he has proven to be a wonderful neighbor. They had special Halloween bags for the girls when we stopped by trick-or-treating, our driveway has been magically plowed several times, they inform us when my folks' dogs have escaped (more times than we'd like to remember), but David seriously outdid himself this year. Acting on behalf of the real Santa Claus, he stopped by the house to present the girls with two humongous teddy bears. Rory was thrilled - it seriously made her Christmas. How many girls get house calls from the big guy before the real day. We are so lucky to have such fabulous neighbors!
Getting some lovin' from my sweet girl in front of the Christmas tree.
It's true, boxes are just as much fun as the toys they held. Here are Rory and Massie snuggled up in a box. The one behind them must be their vacation box.
Daddy's girl snuggling with her favorite guy.
Rory made a beautiful wreath that adorned our antlers through the holidays.
We got to spend a lot of time with Marek over the Holidays - he has pretty much become an honorary Warwick. Here he is posing with the coconut bra we brought back from Hawaii for him.
Santa's elves went homemade this year - below are the tents and "mattresses" (among other miscellaneous gifts) that were left for the girls on Christmas morning.
Our neighborhood WWWW group Christmas party was held at the Sundborg residence this year. As is becoming a habit, I didn't take many pictures, however, I did snap a photo of the amazing desert table Lisa and Jacyn put together.
New Year's Eve is never too exciting around the Morgan house. This moment (below) was the highlight of our evening; Massie and Rory got to use sparklers for the fist time. A 19 month old with fire is actually a little scary.
We've had some unseasonably warm temperatures up here in the arctic, and warm temperatures mean - "GET THE KIDS OUT OF THE HOUSE". Here are some pictures from our most recent sledding trip.
Pure joy on all three faces.
There are a few moose who call Riverview Drive home - here is Rory looking out the window at what she is convinced is a "horse".
Birthday Weekend in Anchorage
My folks celebrate their birthdays just three days apart in early January. This year my Dad turned 70, and to celebrate, the entire family headed down to Anchorage for a long ski weekend.
My Mom was the featured artist at the Artique Gallery in downtown Anchorage on our first night in Anchorage. After the art show we all headed out to eat and celebrate her birthday (her actual birthday was the day earlier). This photo is TERRIBLE but it's all I've got. L to R - Mom, Sharon Allen, Bill Allen (close family friends), Dad, me, Yuri, Marek and Jesse. It was a great evening full of laughs, stories and ending with "Happy Birthday to You".
The next day we headed to Girdwood to ski. It was our intention to get both girls on the slope but they didn't have skis small enough for Massie so she had to stay behind at the hotel.
Here are Yuri and Rory early in the "learn to ski" process. Although there are no pictures, she did much better skiing with me. It's great fun to teach your kid new things.
Close-up of a breakdown.
Grandpa Andy with the little skier.
The next day Rory had a lesson - she did fabulous!
I asked if Rory was ready to head back to the hotel after her lesson but she wasn't. She wanted to continue skiing with her Dad. She really enjoyed her time on the slopes.
Mom and I waiting for our party to be called for dinner.
Having fun entertaining each other at the sushi restaurant on Saturday night.
Celebrating Dad's birthday on Sunday night. We ate at the best restaurant in Girdwood - Jack Sprat. I highly suggest dining here if you are in the area. The food was creative, fresh and "lick your plate" good. The ambiance was comfortable and the wait staff was friendly. All-in-all it was a delightful evening. Happy Birthday Dad!
Posing with the bear at the hotel - Massie isn't willing to turn her back on him for the picture...she didn't trust him one bit.
Some down time after a busy day on the slopes.
My little HooDoo hooligans chomping on peanut butter and crackers.
Another shot of Rory and me - the only time where the darned iPhone photo actually looks pretty cool.
Hope your Christmases were filled with friends and family and that you have a safe and prosperous new year.
