Happy Holidays!

Greetings to you this very fine December! We are very excited for the Christmas season and had a great Thanksgiving with friends and family. I think the total of T-day and preT-day dinners tally 6 that Timothy and I attended. He likes turkey from a drumstick! We did find a bit of disturbing news... My late grandfather's property that was in the family sold to a builder who built an enormous house plus a detached 4 car garage where there used to be a corral, haybarn, paddocks, detached garage, small house and several fruit trees on many acres of grass hay fields. It was quite a shock that Timothy wasn't going to know the hours of fun that barn can be. All of the days of creating hay forts, running in between the horses' legs, chasing cats and jumping into the mud pits in the corrals that the draft horses made. I loved Grandma and Grandpa's house. All that's left is the old mail box, but that's not quite the same. It's no longer lined with lush flower boxes, the wagon wheel or have shade from the trees.. I decided to preserve what I could with pictures of Timothy next to the mailbox, being sure not to include the monster house in the background.. I walked from the mailbox to my aunt's house where we have celebrated our traditional Thanksgiving day , potluck style. This year was the 39 year anniversary they have hosted ever since they moved next door to my grandparents. The pies lined the laundry room; 17 in total. Three turkeys, two hams and a vat of mashed potatoes.. Man, I missed that the year before, however, the food was still amazing last year. Timothy has two distant cousins born within a few months of him with one more on the way from another second cousin of mine. Hand me downs work well in my family. We have two boys older than Timothy and one younger to pass down hand-me-downs. There are several things I chose to keep for keepsakes. Most of them are handmade items given to him by his grandma, Kathleen, distant family in England and a few friends that knit. From my family gathering, I joined my friends for an east coast transplant Thanksgiving, of which I am not eligible to attend if it weren't for Timothy's charisma.. He gets invited to the best events! Here is where we discovered his love for the ping pong ball and a paper towel roll center.. I showed him once how to roll the ball through the roll center and he entertained, explored and learned for a half hour, chasing the ball, placing it back through and playing a healthy and accurate game of 'catch'. He bounces the ball to you and expects you to return it.. It's brilliant. I showed Jesse and now he has added problem solving skills with a tool to dislodge the ball if it sticks within the tube from littel hands squashing the tube by accident.. At home, Timothy greets my roommates kitties with a kkthhh sound that has now turned into two sylables and clear 'kitty' word... His vocab is developing. He says 'yeah!' when excited, 'nana' for banana, 'mama' when upset and pulling on my pantleg, 'da da' for bye bye, with a waving motion. He freely gives hugs and lays his head on you. He giggles and expects to laugh with you everyday. He appreciates books when he can turn the page. Timothy also loves the little walker he can push around the room. I honestly think he's more proud of his accomplishments than anyone (but me) and he shouts out with glee with every new discovery.. He's absorbing so many great things right now.. Love and Light!

Sandra and Timothy!