Crazy Ballerinas

More silliness

Hulahoopin Abby

This is Abby's latest trick. She's been practicing--like, *really* practicing, actually working on getting better at it. Suddenly this past week everything clicked, and now she can do it forever. This is a longish video, and the first two times she doesn't last that long, but keep watching and see how long she goes on that third attempt. I think we need to call the Guinness Books...

The first of a few videos

We have four or five videos to post but it is taking us longer than we hoped. Since I know a couple of you have been asking about them, I'll put one of them up now that is ready to go. These are not works of art and nothing especially exciting, but I know those of you who are not currently seeing the girls much will enjoy them.

And when Abby shows you how long her hair is, you need to know that if it were wet or you could pull those curls out, it would go well below her waste. It's sneaky long.

So, enjoy, and hopefully we will get a few more similar videos up soon.

dan

What they said

The other morning Abby scribbled a picture in her notebook, ripped it out, and then handed to me as she said, "Take this to your leader."

*********

I was playing hide and seek with the girls, and it was Abby's turn to hide. Pj, being unclear on the hiding concept, usually just tags along with whomever is seeking, so I had her on the couch with me. I started counting, "One, two, three, four, five, six--"

PJ: "Six."

Me: "Right, six! Seven--"

PJ: "Eight."

Me (and Dan): *blinkblink* "That's right! Nine--"

PJ: "Ten!" (delivered with a gleam in her eye)

Such a smarty pants, that one.

hide-and-seek the Abby way

A modern day Bedford Falls

Tonight was the 74th Annual Starlighting here in Castle Rock. For those who are as math-impaired as I, that means the star was built and lit for the first time in 1936, as a boon to the struggling locals whose spirits were dragging from the Depression. It's a huge affair--they block off the streets downtown and have booths set up, the firehouse holds a chili dinner fundraiser, one of the churches sets up a live nativity, and there are horse-drawn carriage rides. It was absolutely packed--someone we talked to said this was the biggest turnout they'd had in a few years. I'm sure it helped that the night was beautiful--more like mid-October than almost-late-November.

At about 5PM they started the program in front of the courthouse. They started with the pledge and the National Anthem--who does that anymore?! It was wonderful! Then a local pastor prayed, and it wasn't some nebulous, PC-thing either, it was all about Jesus. Then, after a couple quick speeches and some carolers, someone read the Starlighting Poem, written by a Denver poet in 1966:

The Star of Castle Rock

by Helen Lowrie Marshall

Long years ago in Bethlehem
A star shone brilliant bright
Above the place where Christ was born
On that first Christmas night.

And Wisemen, following its gleam,
Came traveling from afar
To see the miracle that lay
Beneath that glorious star.

Tonight, we light our Christmas star
In memory of that birth,
Proclaiming to the world our wish
For peace, good will on earth.

A star whose radiant glow reveals
The close, encircling ties
That bind the hearts of all whose hands
Have placed it in the skies.

A beacon light whose beams reach out
To lift the hearts of men,
That they may sense the wonder
Of His coming once again.

That travelers by earth and sky
Who journey through the night
May feel the warmth and peace and cheer
Reflected in its light.

For now-as-then-the star proclaims
A miracle sublime
The miracle of love reborn
Each blessed Christmas-time.

And, as the Star of Bethlehem
Declared the Savior's birth-
May this-the Star of Castle Rock
Shine forth for Peace on Earth.

At 5:30 Santa came up to the stage to flip the switch, and we all counted down together and cheered like maniacs when the star began to shine. Then some more Christmas carols were sung as people began to shuffle on their way. We hight-tailed it out in the hopes of scoring a table at a restaurant on the other "non-historic" downtown area, but we weren't quite quick enough, so Chick-Fil-A was Plan B.

The girls did really well, given there wasn't a lot for them to do. We brought our big jogging stroller since we knew we'd have to hike from wherever we found parking--the festivities started at 1 but we didn't go down until 4:30--and Abby lasted in there for quite a while, though PJ had had enough after about 20 minutes. I'm looking forward to turning this into a Morrow family tradition in the years to come; it's such a great way to kick off the holiday season. Dan's even got Christmas music on downstairs.

This is the kind of experience I've always wanted: the small town style celebration of traditions that have spanned decades and hold a special place in the community's collective memory. I'm so happy to be living here.

Happy Harvest!

We've never really decorated for autumn or Halloween or Thanksgiving, but with this giant mantel it seemed a shame not to try to spruce it up for the season. We've been hitting all the post-Halloween sales and picking up things here and there that are autumn-y and harvest-y (and not Halloween-y), and today Dan and Abby visited Michaels to complete the collection. They called me down from my office to reveal this:

Abby proudly told me she helped get off all the price tags. :)

So now we're officially decorated for the season! We've already found some Christmas things on sale, believe it or not, and since we used to decorate for that back in RSM we should have enough stuff to make the space look at least half-way decent come December. We're going to try to decorate it for all the seasons, since otherwise it's an awfully big, empty, BORING space. If you've got any ideas for what to put up there come spring and summer, let me know!