TUNING UP: The kids had quite a lot of music homework this morning. First, they had to draw a picture of a scene they remembered from a Native American "Raven trickster" story told to them by Miss Nancy the week before Christmas. (Mercifully, they had no trouble recalling the story and coming up with something.) Next, they had some new note pattern cards. They had to look at those patterns and find them in a song they're learning ("When the Train Comes Along"). Then, they copied those note cards onto lined paper and transcribed the entire song to to staff paper.
DVD-DISCOVERY: While rooting 'round looking for a video game, the kids came across a DVD from their childhood (I know, I know, they're still children ...) which they haven't seen in years. It was a collection of music videos by Laurie Berkner . They were both very eager to watch it, so I pushed of some things that could wait and let them do just that.
They sang and danced and jumped (on the trampoline) for about 40 fun minutes of time well spent.
ROARING '20s: Around midday I got an email from a friend who knows I enjoy doing research. She was hoping to find info on some Guy Lombardo recordings from the 1920s, as her uncle was a part of his band then.
I told her the first place I would start would be YouTube, where music lovers post all sorts of stuff - including, as it turns out, Lombardo recordings from the 1920s. I had Lombardo's "Coquette" from 1928 streaming through the speakers when Annabelle said, "I like that music. It sounds like it would be in 'Steamboat Willie.' "
I told her I thought she was right - and we were surprised to find out that Steamboat Willie was also from 1928. How 'bout that?
We spent some time listening to a few other old time-y songs of the same decade, including the catchy "Hi Diddle Diddle" recorded by the Charley Straight Orchestra in 1926.
Gosh it's so great to have YouTube giving us access to all this good ol' stuff! CALENDAR CREATURE: This morning we got a link to the very cool Curiosity Calendar of the Month Web site (thanks, Undine!) Via the site, you can download a super cute PDF that allows you to craft a desktop calendar. (Cool - a craft project and a calendar all in one!)
The kids just loved the adorable Yeti that is this month's project. The Curiosity Calendar is brought to us by the Curiosity Group, a Portland, Ore.-based marketing agency.
The PDF we printed out was two pages - the first page included instructions and a cute poem the kids loved. They kept reciting it all night long:
The once was a cat-loving Yeti Whose favorite dish was spaghetti 'Til he went to Nantucket And looked in a bucket And saw ice cream topped with confetti.
I loved the poem because it gave me a chance to talk to them about Limericks! :)
The yeti involved a LOT of precision cutting. CJ wanted to call it quits several times, but you know I wasn't about to let that happen.
He soldiered through and both kids were thrilled with their resulting desktop decorations. BACK TO THE MAT: After missing last week, we were back to yoga this afternoon. The kids' regular teacher was back from her Christmas holiday, and they were happy to see her. There was a new student in class today - another boy. I think it's the first time he hasn't been the only dude in the class. ...
POD PEOPLE: The kids got in some PJ play time this morning with their dolphin collection.
BAG O' BOOKS: We got right back into the swing of schooliness this morning when I busted out a bag of books I'd scored a couple weeks back from the Rainier branch of the Seattle Public Library. While killing time there during a kids' yoga class, I found several bags sitting on a shelf in the children's section. Each bag had a theme and it included several books on that topic. The one we opened up today was about bravery. We found five picture books inside.
"Swimmy," by Leo Lionni, was the story of a little black fish who convinces other small fish to swim in formation of a giant fish, so they look powerful and can sight see round the ocean. The book was short on words and long on pretty watercolors.
"Hoptoad," by Jane Yolen, was about a brave (or is that stupid?) toad that hops out onto a road in front of a truck. Truth be told, while reading the book, I couldn't help but think of the news story I read this weekend about the brave, er, stupid man who decided to play a real life game of the arcade classic Frogger. Fortunately, for Hoptoad, the family in the truck screeched to a halt just in time and helped him across the road. Unfortunately, it was damn near "GAME OVER" for the real live dude playing Frogger. http://www.thesunnews.com/2010/12/29/1892464/cops-man-playing-real-life-frogger.html#storylink=mirelated
"Snip Snap! What's That" was a fun read about three siblings and how they deal with an alligator that comes a calling.
"Big Chickens" was a fun story about four rather hapless feathered friends who basically clutz their way into becoming brave.
And finally, "Not so Tall for Six" was the oddest book of the lot. There was a fair amount of Southern or Wild West-y words and images used, as well as an abundance of insect imagery. An interesting mix, for sure.
Also in the bag was a musical CD of kind of bluegrassy folk music "for kids and kin". Frankly, after reading the tracks' names and listening to a couple of tunes, I wasn't sure how the music was supposed to match the 'bravery' theme. That, and I wasn't too keen on the music even if it had matched the theme. The CD quickly went back in the bag.
There was also a book for grown ups: "A Running Start How to Play. Physical Activity and Free Time Create a Successful Child." I skimmed the book - it looks like an excellent resource for parents who haven't read up on the topic already.
All in all the bag was a boon. I'll be checking out more book bags in the future.
PUTTING IT TO THE TEST: Not content with just enjoying the books (ha ha), I decided it was high time to try out the Accelerated Reading program the kids recently signed up for via their Home Education Exchange (HEE).
By reading books and then taking comprehension quizzes, the kids can earn points. With those points they can get prizes at HEE. We were able to find (5-question) quizzes on three of the books the kids read this a.m. They aced them, earning a whopping .5 points per title. It's a start!
THE SCIENCE GUY: Today's science lesson came courtesy of Bill Nye, The Science Guy. We watched a DVD about rivers and streams - how they're formed, how they fill and drain, what happens when you mess with them or the land around them - all good stuff. Gotta love Bill - he makes science so engaging.
DIDN'T GET THE MEMO: About 3 today we started getting ready for ballet. Bee got her leotard and tights on, while Christian, CJ and I layered up for a cold weather run/ride.
We parked at the Community Center and Bee and I went it just a minute before her class was to start. Imagine our surprise to find a darkened ballet studio. Hmm. Clearly, ballet was not happening here today. ... I figured the class must have been canceled due to illness or emergency, but we didn't get a call, likely because our new phone numbers aren't on file with the parks and rec department. I need to go online and fix that ...
We decided that Bee would join us on a bike ride, but of course we had to go back home to get her bike and warmer clothing. And then back over the hill we drove to the Magnolia flatlands, where we'd be running/riding. (We haven't run since before Christmas and my hip is The Worst Ever, so we weren't going to take on hills.)
We made a big rectangle - probably the Longest Mile (or so) Ever for me. The combination of too much time off running, three days of high fever and the left hip of an arthritic, 18 year old black Laborador was not pretty. But we made it. Afterward, the kids and Christian played at Catherine Blaine's playground while I limped around Albertsons. N.Y.E. NIGHTMARE: On New Year's Day CJ asked me, "What's the limit on the number of 'favorites' you can have on YouTube?"
I told him as far as I knew, there was no limit, but that I wasn't sure. And I asked him why he was wondering. He told me, "I had a nightmare that my favorites were cut out because I had too many of them. Let's check my account and find out. If they were really cut out I will be like. 'OMG, it was real.' "
Fortunately for CJ, it was just a nightmare.
CALCULATION NATION: Thanks to an email lead (from Clickschooling), we discovered Calculation Nation today. WoW!
Calculation Nation® is a great Web site where students can play math challenge games against students around the globe (or, you can play independently, against the computer).
Calculation Nation® is part of the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics "Illuminations" project, which offers Standards-based resources that improve the teaching and learning of mathematics for all students. (Illuminations is also part of Thinkfinity.org, an awesome educational Web site funded by the Verizon Foundation to provide free educational resources to parents, teachers, and students.)
A lot of the games on the site a just a bit above CeeJ and Bee's mathematical prowess at the moment (factoring, algebra, prime numbers, squared numbers, figuring perimeters), but there are some they can at least start to use (fractions, angles). Today we played a little bit of "Dig It," in which we had to create and locate fractions on a number line to tell your shovel where to dig for hidden gems.
KERPLUNK: Throughout the day, Annabelle toted our Xylofun book around the house and plunked out tunes for us. HE SAID: Last night CJ was playing "Super Mario Crossover," a wonderfully creative fan hack game that takes the original Super Mario Bros. platform and allows players to insert other Nintendo Entertainment System characters into the game. Players can also choose the degree of difficulty (super easy to extreme).
CJ set the parameters to a new game and turned to Christian and said, "I want you to be my beta tester for this." ROFL!
I LEAVE YOU WITH THIS: The wackiest alphabet "book" you likely have ever seen. "A-Z of Awesomeness" is the work of artist Neill Cameron. In 2009 he took one suggestion per day from followers of his blog, Facebook or Twitter and produce a drawing for each letter of the alphabet.
CJ and Annabelle found his experiment's result most amusing - especially CJ, and especially the letters D, H and P.
FRIENDLY DAY: Truth be told today was another day nearly entirely devoid of formal academics. Sure, we answered the normal 1,001 questions from the kids (What's '3D?' What year was Beauty and the Beast (the Disney version) made? How do I make a question mark [on the computer]? Does this sign have pixels? How does a magnifying glass work? and on and on.)
I had intentions of doing bookish stuff, but I have been hit by The Plague that Annabelle and CeeJ had/have, so I'm feeling like I've been hit by a truck and just tried to get through the day, period.
That said, we did have one obligation today and I was determined to make good on it. CJ is overdue to see his best kindergarten buddy and we had plans to meet up today. It was cold, but sunny, so we decided to meet at "Big Howe" park on Queen Anne, not too far from where his friend lives.
It was a little over a year ago that CJ had his first post-kindergarten pow wow with her at Top Pot Donuts on Queen Anne and wow, what a difference a year makes. I remember back then "coaching" CJ on the way over about things he could ask her and talk to her about, and reminding him that she wouldn't just want to hear about video games. And we've had several meetings at parks since, and in the early ones, I'd remind CJ he was there to play with her (as opposed to running of on his own).
Today, there are none of those concerns. With no prompts or reminders, he's super attentive and conversational and it's just great to see.
Annabelle also enjoys the pow-wows, of course, as it's a park outing and a donut for her, too. :)
All three of the kids ordered a Top Pot chocolate bar, which is about the size of a loaf of French bread. Yikes! NOT SO ROCKIN' NEW YEARS EVE: It's a little after 8 p.m. and I'm hosed. No way we're making it to midnight Pacific Time. If I'm lucky, I'll last until 9 p.m. and we can celebrate East Coast style. ;)
NOT GONNA LIE: We didn't do a whole lot of book work today. Why, you ask? Because, you see, the Holiday Bowl is tonight.
No, it's not a BCS bowl, and yes, the Huskies only had a 6-6 record this year but you know what? It's the first time they've been to a bowl in EIGHT FRIGGIN years, so today, we were all about getting our game faces on. We made two kinds of cookies and decorated them. We made "cowboy caviar," (which I highly recommend), we made BLT wraps, Chex Mix and bloody Mary steak (oh, so good). Rick, Kennedy and a couple of their friends came over to watch the game. Our hard work paid off and the food was awesome but by far the best part of the evening was the Huskies beating Nebraska soundly. Go Dawgs!!
A WATERY GRAVE: By pre dawn's early dark, Christian and I sized up the Sea-Monkeys. The news was not good. Either they were really heavy sleepers, or they were having the Big Sleep.
I wasn't ready to "call it" until the sun came up and we could take a good look.Or a bad look, as the case may be.
We came to the undeniable conclusion that the Sea-Monkeys were all goners.
"Their lives were so short," Annabelle bemoaned.
We talked about what might have gone wrong. My theory is that it got too cold in our house last night for them. It's about 32 outside, and it was probably close to 60 in the room where they were last night. If I had it to do over, I'd put them in the kids' room, where it was nearly 70.
The kit did come with a coupon for do-over Sea-Monkeys if your kit goes bad, so we'll send away for those. Hopefully we don't kill another batch of 'em.
IT'S A KICK: Though yoga, music, science and ballet were on hiatus this week, Annabelle did have her soccer class today. It's still just a class of two, so they get lots of personal attention. Meanwhile, on the sidelines, CJ watched. He clapped when Bee scored a goal or stole a ball. He was also quite happy to play PacMan on my phone.
At bedtime, Annabelle started crying for no apparent reason. When pressed, she told us that it was because she only has one soccer class left in this session and she doesn't want it to end. We couldn't sign her up for the next session as, for whatever reason, the day is switched from Thursday to Monday and it's smack dab in the middle of her ballet class, which she doesn't want to give up, either.
We assured her that we'll find another way for her to continue her soccer activity.
LET THERE BE LIFE!: First thing on our To Do list today was to continue the Sea-Monkeys project. Yesterday we'd set up their tank and conditioned the water. Today, the magic Sea-Monkey powder was added to the mix.
Bee did the pouring, CJ did the stirring. At first - in large part due to turbidity - it was hard to tell what might be a Sea-Monkey as opposed to what was just an air bubble or other debris in the water. But after several minutes, when things had settled down, we did spy tiny specks that appeared to have movement on their own.
I thought to rustle up a magnifying glass. It helped us get a better look. We'll see if the Sea-Monkeys grow. We're not supposed to feed them for five days. Hopefully they'll still be alive by then to enjoy a meal. ...
HISTORY LESSON: Before Annabelle was even up this a.m., CJ asked me when YouTube started.
Naturally, I had no clue, but I told him I knew we could find out on the Internet. So we hopped onto Wikipedia and found out the YouTube was founded in February of 2005 by three men, all former PayPal co-workers. They are Chad Hurley, Steve Chen and Jawed Karin.
The very first video ever uploaded to YouTube was "Me at the zoo." It was uploaded by YouTube co-founder Karim and it's of him at the San Diego Zoo. The (very unremarkable) video was uploaded on April 23, 2005, and can still be viewed on the site.
THE ENVELOPE, PLEASE: Our thank you card project continued today, with stuffing and addressing envelopes and getting them in the mail our goal.
It was good practice for the kids. They were reminded of the proper stamp, return address, address format on envelopes. While they worked, I played some mail-inspired tunes via YouTube. They included Elvis' "Return to Sender" (what a catchy song!), "Mr. Postman" by the Marvelettes, Leonard Cohen's "The Letters" and even the suite from "The Postman." While its theme was forgettable, I rather liked that movie.
Once the letters were all ready, we walked three blocks to a mailbox. The kids were very excited to drop their letters in. I think it gave them a real "mission accomplished" feeling. No doubt they also like thinking about the people by whom those posts will be opened. :)
A HOUSE DIVIDED: The kids were downright excited about math today for two reasons. First, they have reached page 100 in their books - a milestone they discovered. Second, we started working on division today.
Before we delved into the lesson, I got out our white board and drew a circle to represent a pizza. (Honestly, how many division lessons do you think have started this same way over the years?) We talked about ways to divide it among people so that each person got the same amount of slices. From there, we got into the Singapore Math pages.
The kids had no trouble with the introductory concepts. In fact, they finished their three pages of exercises in record time.
MAMMOTH MAP: We spent a good chunk of this afternoon on geography and puzzle solving thanks to a great Christmas gift from Auntie Renee and Uncle Jim - a 4 by 6 foot world map puzzle. Its 252 pieces were fashioned from a dense foam mat, which make them easy to handle (and fun to roll around on, as the kids found out later).
We worked it methodically, doing the top (world clocks) border and bottom (world flags) borders first, and then the east and west edges next (which showed the equator and some lines of latitude). We talked about how the world isn't really flat, but it was made that way for the map's purposes (so Russia and Alaska were at opposite sides of the map rather than right next to each other, as is the case in real life - just ask Sarah Palin).
Working the puzzle was great because the kids got a good sense for the continents and their relative locations, the countries that make up each continent, and the names and locations of oceans.
It took us darn near two hours to finish the puzzle. CJ wanted to take a break several times, but I made his soldier on. I told him we wouldn't be quitting until we were done, and thanks to good teamwork and sticktoitiveness, we did complete the awesome puzzle.
To celebrate their achievement, the kids did "snow angels" on the map.
BACK TO BALLET: Today we started making our way back toward a "normal" schedule following the Christmas chaos.
For starters, we headed to the village for a ballet class this morning. Though her normal Monday ballet class was off due to the holidays, Annabelle did enjoy a special dance camp today. It's theme was "Jumpin' Jeremy." During it, the kids watched a ballet video about a frog named Jeremy who "had to jump from lily pad to lily pad to get to the best fishing spot in the pond - the middle." There, he promptly fell asleep and when a fish bit his line, he got pulled into the water with it. He made it back to land safely, and lived happily ever after, by Annabelle's telling. The take away was a cute little stuffed frog, which she loved.
TABLE TIME: Once ballet was over, we got right down to business. First, the kids continued their first chapter dealing with multiplication. It went mostly, OK, except poor CJ was having a complete mental block on one problem.
He kept getting it wrong over and over and over. Meanwhile, Annabelle had finished up, so she was keeping herself amused by playing her new accordion ... while jumping on the trampoline. Apparently CJ found this a tad distracting, so a dejected Annabelle trudged off to the top of the spiral staircase to play the blues. FINALLY, CJ figured out that 6x4 = 24 and we were able to continue on.
DANKESCHÖN: Next up, we got started on the many, many thank you cards we have to write. First we took inventory of gifts received and who the kind gifters were. Once that was figured out, together we designed the cards and then the kids worked collaboratively on writing on their insides. While they worked, I played one of my Christmas gifts, composer Christopher Tin's "Calling All Dawns" CD. Tin is a California native of Chinese descent.
"That's wonderful music - really good music tracks," assessed Annabelle.
CJ asked, "Is this from 'The Lion King' " during the first track, "BabaYetu," which is the Lord's Prayer in Swahili. A couple tracks later, during "Caoineadh," a song with its lyrics rooted in Ireland, CJ asked, "Is that part of the 'Beauty and the Beast' song?"
Many of the songs were hauntingly familiar though we'd never heard them before. The lyrics paired with Tin's compositions takes listeners on a journey through several cultures - Swahili, Japanese, Mandarin, Portuguese, French, Latin, Polish, Hebrew, Farsi, Maori and Sanskrit. Together, the CD is an amazing artistic accomplishment. When the last track came on, it was clear the musical journey had come full circle, but not until reading Tin's Web site did I find out that "Calling All Dawns is a song-cycle in three movements: day, night and dawn. Each movement corresponds to a different phase of life--life, death, and rebirth. In short, it's 5 songs about life, 3 songs about death, and 4 songs about rebirth. There are songs of joy, mystery, and hardship, reflecting the complexity of our mortal selves. There are songs of the deepest, darkest sorrow to accompany us through death. And finally, there are songs of triumph and exultation that bring us roaring back to life, beginning the cycle anew."
The CD, which has been nominated for two Grammys, was recorded at the famous Abbey Road Studios with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. It's Tin's debut album. We're sure looking forward to his future projects.
NO YOGA: In an email from snowy New York, we learned that there would be no yoga this afternoon. Ironically, not because the kids' regular yoga teacher was snow bound and unavailable; it's because the substitute teacher was sick. Tonight before bed, CJ said, "I hope she feels better soon. And I hope she didn't get sick from us."
I assured him that wasn't the case. :)
MONKEY SEA: Today we launched a science experiment - we laid the groundwork for spawning Sea-Monkeys.
We found an intact kit at Value Village last week for $1.99 (score!). The kids were hot to get on it that day, but I told them we needed to be home to feed the Sea Monkeys, so it would have to wait until after Christmas. So, today was the day!
CJ filled the Sea-Monkeys tank with water and Annabelle conditioned it. Bee was mad that we didn't get to hatch any Real Live Sea-Monkeys today. "I do NOT want this to be more than a one day process," she said, with an Attitude.
I offered up a "good things come to those who wait" type sentiment. Tomorrow, we get to add Step 2 - the Sea-Monkeys. Stay tuned. ...
LMAO: This evening, we were watching "Sunday Night Football," which had been postponed until tonight because of the wretched weather back East.
At one point, Annabelle asked, "Who do you want to win, Dad?"
Christian was non-committal.
At that point, CJ weighed in. "He doesn't really care who wins. He's watching it just for the hell of it." At that, CJ abruptly headed to his room for some post dinner YouTube. Hysterically (to us) about 60 seconds later he re-emerges and asks, "What does 'Just for the hell of it' mean?"
BRIGHT LIGHTS, BIG CITY: Not quite ready to call Christmas over, tonight we went out in search of Christmas lights. Having grown up around the Portland (Ore.) metro area, Peacock Lane is my frame of reference.
After searching the Internet, we decided to check out Candy Cane Lane.
We learned that Seattle's "Candy Cane Lane" grew out of a contest sponsored by the Seattle Times around 1950. The initial challenge was to create a display that shows the most Christmas cheer and "Candy Cane Lane," a circular block north of the U District, took the top prize.
According to a Seattle Times article, the 23 houses on Candy Cane Lane are the result of 1920s University of Washington architecture project, "which fashioned this block as a neighborhood community, with homes made of brick and arched doorways with tiny garages hidden in the back."
It certainly wasn't a huge display, but it was nice. We made the small circle three times (which took all of 5 mintues). Peace was the theme of the display (don't know if it's this year's theme or the ongoing one), but the word 'peace' was featured in several languages in front of the Candy Cane Lane homes. We all liked the animated (his mouth opened) nutcracker at Candy Candy Lane.
FIVE DAYS OF CHRISTMAS: As I sat down this evening to reflect on Christmas 2010, it occurs to me that we really had five Christmas celebrations this year. In fact, our Christmas stretched from December 13 to December 27. Phew! No wonder we're all so tired!
Poor CeeJ was so sick for the past three days - he missed a lot of the festivities. :( In fact, here's his plate at the table for Christmas dinner. He was out of it for a good portion of the evening, but he did make it to the table to eat some Goldfish off the pretty place setting at his Nonnie and Bops' house. Naturally, by Christmas Day Annabelle was coming down with her (not quite as bad) version of the virus.
Despite their colds, the kids definitely rallied on Christmas morning. CJ was thrilled to receive the vintage Krang he'd asked Santa for, and Annabelle was so happy with the tiny pink accordion she got from him.Their gifts also included lots of LEGOS, so there will be some building in our future! We also got some cool books and movies, some science-y kits and it likely won't surprise regular readers to know there were some video game-related gifts, too. Annabelle, especially, is wild about the new Nintendo DSi XL. Without a bit of help from anyone, she figured out how to use both of its built in cameras and its fun photo editing software. She LOVES the Wario Ware DIY game Santa brought, as it allows her to create mini games, make music, make comics and more. And on the game's Web site, there are avenues to download games others have created and contests to create games to certain specs. We'll definitely be following up on that. They're also having fun getting to know Mario vs. Donkey Kong Mini-land Mayhem. It's challenging, which is good.
PLEASANT PIT STOP: Today, on our way home to Seattle from a very nice night with Grandma and Grandpa in Vancouver, we stopped in Olympia for a break. We drove through the historic business district north of the capitol building. There are many cool shops and galleries there, lots of neat architecture and we even saw a sign for a children's museum. We all want to make a field trip of capitol tour and downtown Oly sometime in the future.
Today, our tour consisted of one spot: McMenamin's Spar Cafe. We like checking out McMenamin's because of all the cool artwork and accoutrements their locations always have. The Spar was definitely worth the minor side trip off Interstate 5.
Built in 1935, the current structure has been a billiard hall, a saloon, a tobacco merchant and even a bowling alley before the McMenamins' arrival. Today, it has amazing chandeliers, a beautiful wooden bar and fantastic original paintings capturing the spot's history adorn the walls.
Interestingly, there's an artesian well in the cellar of the Spar, and the McMenamins are using its water to make their microbrews. Which, of course, reminds me of the old Olympia beer jingle, "It's the water, and a lot more ..."Above: Krang plots his overthrow of the Spar Cafe. (First, the Spar, next the state capitol!)
TOMORROW: It's back to the 'grind' (which really isn't a grind at all). Though they are still on break from music, Annabelle has a dance camp and they both have yoga and we're gonna get our noses in some books, for sure.
TUNING UP: The kids had quite a lot of music homework this morning. First, they had to draw a picture of a scene they remembered from a Native American "Raven trickster" story told to them by Miss Nancy the week before Christmas. (Mercifully, they had no trouble recalling the story and coming up with something.)
Next, they had some new note pattern cards. They had to look at those patterns and find them in a song they're learning ("When the Train Comes Along"). Then, they copied those note cards onto lined paper and transcribed the entire song to to staff paper.
The Curiosity Calendar is brought to us by the Curiosity Group, a Portland, Ore.-based marketing agency. 
BACK TO THE MAT: After missing last week, we were back to yoga this afternoon. The kids' regular teacher was back from her Christmas holiday, and they were happy to see her. There was a new student in class today - another boy. I think it's the first time he hasn't been the only dude in the class. ...
FIVE DAYS OF CHRISTMAS: As I sat down this evening to reflect on Christmas 2010, it occurs to me that we really had five Christmas celebrations this year. In fact, our Christmas stretched from December 13 to December 27. Phew! No wonder we're all so tired!
