New Year's Eve 2014

Like most dogs, Ender loathes the loud sounds of fireworks and thunder. The poor guy whines and retreats to his safe corners of the house. In this case, it's our closet. Ava decided to keep him company. She did a great job of soothing him.

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Baby, It's Cold Inside

The temperature inside our house this morning

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Six Flags Fun

We love going to Six Flags the day or weekend after a major holiday as there's not much of a crowd. Here are Ava and K enjoying the park the day after Christmas.

Before going on Sky Coaster. Brave girls!

Christmas presents

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Christmas 2015

Making cookies for Santa

Christmas Eve dinner

Hugs on Christmas morning

Jenga seriousness

Fun with grandma and grandpa and presents

Grandma wraps presents SO beautifully. Here's an example:

Here's another one:

We didn't forget about Ender

And to close out Christmas Day, more Jenga seriousness

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Elf in the Shelf

It's December! And if you have little ones in your house, most likely you have an elf visitor. Our elf friend is Jingles, and here are some of the mischiefs that she got into during her visit.

At least this TP job is easier to fix than ones on outdoor trees

Jingles had this to say after we came back from Disneyland

A farewell message before going back to the North Pole

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The Ducks Are Here!

The duck pen is almost finished.

We just need to double up on the pond liner and add water. 

In the meantime, our new friends are here!

They are so amusing! I love how they stay together as a pack, and their mannerisms are adorable. The way they wiggle their butts!!! So cute!

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The Ducks Are Coming!

So, I saw an ad on backyardchickens for six free laying ducks near my area. This is pretty rare in itself as usually most of the ads are for roosters in far-flung locations. We were in no way ready to house ducks, but they are something that we've wanted so I asked Lee if we could get ready. He said yes and started building the duck area! Yay, Lee!

The ducks will be housed next to the chickens. Some folks keep ducks and chickens together, but they have different water needs and ducks can get pretty messy so we will separate them. Here's the start of the duck pen structure.

The start of the pond:

Ender, the construction site supervisor:

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November = Nom Nom Nom

I declared that November was going to be a month of deliciousness, and I'm glad to say that it lived up to its expectations. Behold:

Steamed chicken in young pumpkin - Thank you, Mom! 

Crispy pork belly

Mojito fries at Belly in Oakland

Shrimp & Avocado, Belly, and Steak & Eggs tacos at Belly. Thanks, Amelia!

 Roasted catfish and accompanying fresh herbs at Saigon Kitchen. Thank you, Mère!

Moules marinières 

Crab roll (from a joint whose name I can't recall). Thanks, Lee!

 Escargot (et frites) at Shutters 

 Rack of lamb at Shutters. Thank you, Lee and Ava!

 Steamed Dungeness crab

Garlic Dungeness crab (hey, it's crab season in the Bay!)

 Salami and Castelvetrano olives

Roasted Brussels sprouts

Heirloom tomato salad (yes, we still have tomatoes from our garden!)

 Bone-in ribeye steak

It's medium rare ;-)

And of course, the best November meal... Thanksgiving!

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Halloween

Ava made her own costume this year. She was an "evil mermaid thing." I couldn't get a better answer than why it's evil other than "because it kills people." You will have to ask her yourself.

Here she is with K, who was the Cheshire Cat. I really love the girls' creativity.

Here's Ava and the two Gs in costume:

More with Ava and friends. Here she is dressed as a "candy (w)rapper." She won the prize for funniest costume.

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Equestrian Ava

Our favorite equestrian

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