Yesterday Katherine discovered a small donkey figure inside her Advent cone, after which I took the kids out for a walk downtown. One of the area churches had advertised they would be bringing in a real donkey, so we were out to find it. I put Nathaniel in the backpack and had Katherine walk alongside me, and both kids did really well. We went in an out of stores and walked all over the city centre as we waited for the donkey, and, when it appeared, Katherine promptly instructed me to pet it. I think she regretted not petting it herself once she was back home (“Ka’frine pet donkey!”), but it still seems to have made an impression on her. Just my luck, she’ll think that the donkey is the focus of the Christmas story . . .
Nathaniel is teething pretty badly right now, and has rewarded his father’s return from Germany by giving him the cold shoulder. The babe currently wants to be carried in my arms all day long. Oh well. We’re hoping that things ease up a bit before the weekend. When Katherine isn’t busy tipping him over (why, oh why?), he and she get along really well. Her busyness often distracts him from his hurting teeth, and they have been playing hide-and-seek from one another a few times a day. He’s also taking more and more steps between furniture, and I’m wondering how long it will be before he abandons caution and strikes out after his sister, who is already a bit discomfited by how much he can reach.
We also had several wonderful surprises today: presents from friends arrived in the mail, and our neighbors appeared on our doorstep with Christmas cookies. I have not abandoned the Christmas spirit, but my efforts were pretty minimal as I ran after both kids this last week, so this was a wonderful boost to my holiday spirit.
Erin
Alan Schmierer