Holidays

It took some time to sort through the 631 pictures we took during the month of December, and it was hard to narrow it down to the handful we've got here.


The city erected a giant tree at the courthouse plaza, and Ira ran circles around it giggling the entire time. This blur was the only picture we could get because he wouldn't stop running long enough to pose.


We drove around Nashville trying to find Christmasy things to look at and found this tree in Centennial Park. The tree is a replica of the Christmas tree located at the original Parthenon.


We continued our tradition of latkes with Chris and Lindsay at Noshville for Hanukkah.


Chris, Lindsay, and Ira.


Lighting the candles at home.


It was hard to convince Ira that he couldn't blow out the candles.


At the school Christmas carol sing-a-long. Ira and I decorated his shirt together.


We spent Christmas at Folly Beach in Charleston. Here Ira, Kirsten, and Uncle Tommy play with fronds from a palmetto tree.


Ira and Poppops watching football. Ira loved being with Poppops almost as much as he loved saying "Poppops!"


Under the tree with Big G on Christmas eve.


Playing the piano with Uncle Tommy.


Under the mistletoe with Mommy.


Ira's first present, opened Christmas eve, was a pop-up tent. Here's Aunt Drew and Ira hanging out in the tent.


Play dough fun with Aunt Drew, Kyle, and Ira.


Christmas morning, Ira found a dump truck waiting for him.


More hanging out with Aunt Drew and Kyle.


The best part about Christmas in Charleston is the lights at the county park.


The new Cooper River Bridge, a Charleston landmark, recreated in lights.


A Christmas barn.


If there is a train, you can bet we'll find it. Ira and Big G rode the Christmas train at the Festival of Lights.


Ira and Big G are in the middle row of the green car.


If you want to stay up late, you've got to caffeinate. Ok, it's really hot chocolate. Check out the adorable sweater Ira's wearing.


Me, Ira, Aunt Drew, and Big G in front of the fire pit at the county park.


While we were in Charleston, we stopped by Aunt Bobbi and Uncle Hugo's house.


Ira sat in Uncle Hugo's lap and listened to a story.


We went to Mark and Jill's house so that Jill could take some pictures of Ira and his cousins (which I'll post here when I see them), and Ira got to play the drums. He was in heaven.


Ira with his cousins Rilee and Blake.


A few generations of Morroses.


After pictures, we had pizza with our family. Here's Ira with GG and Blake.


We woke up early one morning and walked to the beach for breakfast. Big G taught Ira to look through the planks on the pier to see the ocean below.


Ira and Big G watching surfers from the pier.


This is how you play in the sand in the winter.


Ira and daddy at the beach.


Ira figured out pretty quickly that the best part of Poppop's house is that there is always cake.


Poppops took us to the James Island Yacht Club and showed Ira a picture of himself on the wall.


When we got back from Charleston, the Holleys came to town for a visit. Uncle Luke helped Ira with some contraption at the Discovery Center.


Nana, Uncle Luke, and Papa watch Ira play with water at the Discovery Center.

Thanksgiving

So I guess the way this blog works now is that I wait until a major holiday to show off pictures from the previous month's holiday. That's the routine. So here, in time for the Winter Solstice, are our Thanksgiving pictures.

This isn't actually a Thanksgiving shot. It's a few weeks earlier at the Dragon Park while the leaves were still changing and it was still warm enough for short sleeve shirts. But we had just purchased the jacket Ira's wearing so he didn't care how warm it was. My head is hiding the awesome fire truck but be aware that it's there. (We got the jacket for $8 cuz we're bargain hunters)

Here Ira's climbing the dragon at the Dragon Park. Check out the super cool Dalmatian shirt. You'll see it again soon because Ira wore it all day Thanksgiving, too.

See, I told you. Here's Ira and his cousins Serenity, Cheyenne, and Josh at Aunt Madene's in Chipley, FL, where all 700 members of the Holley family gather every Thanksgiving.

Daddy and Ira eatin' some Mac 'n Cheese and fried corn bread.

A highlight of the trips to Chipley are the golf cart rides around the lake. Kirsten stuffed as many kids as possible on to this thing.

Ira really loved spending time with all of his cousins.

People always say that Ira looks like me, but you can really see the Holley family resemblance with Ira and Jacob.

Jacob took this family photo for us by the lake.

The Holley family. There's a lot of us.

The Holley family reduced to its essential elements.

Ira got a chance to recharge on the road back to Pensacola. We put some Erik Satie on the iPod, and Ira said, "No I don't like sleepytime music," and then passed out before we made it to the highway.

Thanksgiving number two. It's just not Thanksgiving until somebody breaks out the bongos.

This had to be Ira's fourth piece of cake that day. This one had strawberries on it, though, so it's healthy, right?

Kirsten taught Ira to go through the doggy door. He then did it for about 45 minutes.

No, Ira, that's not a doggy door.

Ira fell in love with the trombone.

Ira took a bath at Nana's house and got to play with shaving cream. As you might have guessed, there isn't a lot of that to be found at our house. You know, because Ira's daddy is a big, unshaven hippy.

Ira had a sleepover at Poppy and Nonny's house, and they ran around pants-less and built a fort. I'd share more pictures, but nobody gave me any (cough cough, hey, Poppy, cough cough).

Ira is very lucky to have two uncles who are fire fighters. This might have been the highlight of his life thus far.

I don't think this hose was hooked up to any water, but I'm glad we didn't have to find out.

Ira and grandparents and a giant cock made out of Christmas lights at the Pensacola Beach boardwalk.

Ira and Nonny. I have no idea where these beads came from.

Ira and Daddy pretending to eat the gingerbread man.

Ira and Mommy on the pier. You can kind of see the awesome fire truck on Ira's jacket ($8).