New do

His hair hung in his eyes and seemed to always have some kind of "something" stuck in it. But I loved the curly ends and the I'm-still-a-baby-softness.
Alas, it was time to get a trim. David made an appointment with Deb, a gal who cut his hair for the first time when he was nine. He's been back to see her, off and on, ever since.
So Elias sat on my lap, while Deb snipped a little off the back, pulled it up from out of his eyes and took in the sides.
He looks like such a different little boy ... but the sweetness is still the same.

Dawn on a new year

December 31 was cold here in Juneau. We had winds gusting near 40 mph in the Douglas vicinity and temperatures hovered around the single digits.
But clear skies made for spectacular lighting so I found a way to get out and capture it.

A Christmas to remember

This wasn't Elias' first Christmas.

No, last year he was witness to the sights, smells and smiles that accompany this time of year. But it's unlikely he remembers any of it.

Last Friday, however, will most certainly find a niche in his memories. He's reveled in ornaments on the Christmas tree, tasted the buttery sweetness of sugar cookies and stared wide-eyed as gift, after gift emerged from boxes, bags and other brightly-wrapped containers.

He had to see them all, and after two-and-a-half hours, he settled down to examine, in depth, the loot.

While his expressions that morning are etched in my mind, the rest of the day, to be quite honest, is a blur. But in the tiny moments of pause I was able to make the following images.

Enjoy.

A ba, a ba!

Elias and I have taken to laying under the decorated tree.
We look up through the maze of lights, ornaments and branches and talk about what we see.
"Whas dat?" he'll ask.
"Those are lights. Blue light," I say pointing. "Green light. Yellow light."
"A ba, a ba!" he says gesturing toward a circular ornament.
"That's right! That's a ball!" I'll say. "But not for throwing, just looking."
"Ahhh..." he says.
We lay under the tree every day and I'm constantly amazed at how still with amazement a squirmy toddler can be.

Tree hunting

Sunday afternoon featured a hike for a holiday tree. The whole family, including the often-mistaken-for-a-dog, but-who-is-really-a-cat Simon, went along for the first annual Tree Hunting Expedition at 1024 Wee Burn. He didn't complain once, which was unusual. Perhaps his fat reserves are finally coming in handy.
Bali was her usual self, and destroyed every stick in sight. Elias slept the whole time. And David, the tree-spotter, did the manly duty of cutting it down and hauling it, on one shoulder, back to the house. I took pictures and toted the little man around.
It was tough.

Naughty

Love, LOVES the snow!

This year is not Elias' first winter experience. A year ago he was toted around the in the woods and on the slopes multiple times. And while he knows that the "white stuff" exists - he's never truly experienced it — until now.
And let me tell you, it's love.
Here he is pointing excitedly to a big snow pile near Mendenhall Glacier Sunday.