No pictures, alas

More camera woes: I discovered (after much searching and gnashing of teeth) that the little memory card somehow slipped right out of my digital camera. This was just not a good buy. So I've dusted off my "real" camera and will keep shooting, and will somehow get the pictures from film to pixels. Somehow.

Antonio left for Denver on Friday and had a good trip up. Lazarus keeps asking for him, and I don't quite know what to say except that "Papa went on a trip. Papa loves you." How do military families do it? And they're going half a world away, for God knows how long, to stand in the line of fire that Donald Dick and friends insist is essential to world peace. Funny that, waging a war in the name of peace. Though they never use that word so I guess I'm expecting too much. ANYway, so I tell myself not to feel too stressed out, but it's hard sometimes, especially right before Christmas.

Time to make some chicken for the monkeys. Maggie can now eat all kinds of tiny-bite-sized foods by herself, and seems to favor her left hand lately. I love watching her focus on a piece, slowly reach for and grasp it, cram it in her mouth, and chuckle when she likes how it tastes. Her favorites seem to be chicken, peaches, Cheerios, and cheese. Lazarus' current favorite food is "peendie buttah" -- peanut butter, preferably straight from the jar with a spoon, or on an apple slice if I insist. Another cool development: Lazarus seems to be accepting Maggie as "human" a bit more every day. He sometimes takes a favorite book or toy to show her, and yesterday was playing her little music box and dancing for her, much to her delight.

Okay, dinner, then bedtime, then back to work -- the evening routine is pretty grueling with two babes, more so when I have an edit on deck. Work is good, of course, but it's the week before Christmas and I REALLY want to send cards and thank-yous to my generous family and bake cookies to make little boxes of goodies for all the people in town who've been so kind this year. Sarah at the bank, who didn't blink an eye when I brought several hundred dollars of change in to deposit. Abby and Libby at the post office, who always google over Laz and Maggie. Betty at the hardware store, Barbara at the grocery store, Clay at the feed store (my new best friend now that I have 50 or so chickens that Antonio left), Bob and Harold the car mechanics (who are always happy to jumpstart the Bronco, which dies almost every time I take it out), Steve and Betty at the wool mill, and Cat the weaver who calls me every month about the arts council meetings even though I never manage to make it. And of course Gail the knitting guru, and her deputy Evelyn who also coordinates the food bank distributions that are saving our butts this winter.

Wow. I live in a great place. Making that little list sure cheered me up.