Back in January we hosted a birthday party for madame.

This year’s theme was Beatrix Potter. Everyone wore masks of different Potter characters, and we had tea, sandwiches, scones and cakes for the party.

We played with some of her new presents…

and had a rousing game of impromptu ‘balloon ball’ too!

Some January kidspeak:

“Whatever food you’re making I’ll be in time for.”
— the kid’s response to “Breakfast is ready!”

Dad: “Look! We’re going through the castle. That’s the portcullis.
Do you know what that is?”
Kid: “Yes.”
— a conversation as we enter Disneyland

“Why does your hair look like a little crown, Dad?”
“Why does your hair look like fireworks?”
“What did you say about your hair looking like the water show?”
— the kid riffs on her dad’s hair

January was pretty fun. In addition to the kid celebrating her fifth birthday, we also had a fun trip to a little place called Disneyland.

January Happenings:

• We celebrated the new year with a trip to the beach
• We wrote about a letter from Santa
• The kid and her mom saw the SF Nutcracker
• We posted a Disneyland video

January Book Readin’:

A Storm of Swords

The Killer of Little Shepherds

Movie Watchin’:

Midnight In Paris

50/50

Crazy, Stupid Love

Fish Story

TV Gazin’:

Downton Abbey, Season 1

Downton Abbey, Season 2

Here is it, and above it, her actual silhouette.
The lady who cut the silhouette did it freehand with a pair of surgical scissors. Pretty amazing!

Next time we’re at Disneyland we will be sure to get another.

“That was exciting!”
— the kid, as we leave Disneyland’s “Soarin’ Over California”

“Nice one, Dad!”
— the kid comments on her dad’s use of a hair dryer on his shoes after a rainy day at Disneyland

Here’s another video with pics from our Disneyland trip.

Music Used:

• “It’s A Small World“, “The Aristocats“, “Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious“, and “The Wonderful Thing About Tiggers“, from the Sherman Brothers Songbook performed by various artists and written by the Sherman Brothers

“It’s a hotel after all.”
— the kid, when asked to name her favorite Disneyland ride

We just spent four days at Disneyland and I’m actually quite surprised to say that we happily would’ve spent even more time there.

I’m sure we’ll be posting lots of words and pictures. For now, here’s a video of our time there.

This year’s Christmas spectacular at Filoli was themed around owls and woodland creatures. Our favorites! Here are some pics from the magical event.

We went to the San Francisco Nutcracker this year, and had a wonderful time!

This was our little one’s first time at the SF Ballet, she saw the San Jose version of the Nutcracker last year, after her first ballet last summer.

Here are some pics from our adventure.

After the performance, madame felt like dancing…as did other kids we saw twirling out of the Opera House.

We weren’t allowed to take pics during the performance of course, but you can watch it online or on dvd.

Back in October madame wrote a letter to Father Christmas.  She drew her wishes in her letter, and asked me to add subtitles just to make it crystal clear.

She very carefully wrote the name on the envelope, but got a bit tired after writing so small and running out of space, so I helped a bit and added the north pole.

Here is the response she got…

Lovely drawing of Father Christmas and the reindeer…

Here is the postmark from Santa’s post office, and the stamp…

The letter was sealed with sealing wax…we have been thinking about getting our own sealing wax ever since we saw it.

She paid careful attention to his recommendation about an early bedtime on Xmas eve, she was in bed and asleep by 6:30 p.m.!

Did she get what she wanted? She did get a toy cat in her stocking, and was very pleased. Thank you Father Christmas!

December Kidspeak:

“Well what do you know….I’ve been wanting one of these for years!”
— the kid, while opening items found in her Christmas stocking

“Think pink! Think pink! That proves the kitchen sink!”
“Everything is muffin, YES, when strawberries are here!”
— the kid, making up songs as she runs up and down the hall

Another month (and year!) is now history. The kid and her mom instructed me to wake them up right before midnight so they could ring in the new year. However, when I gave Jill a little nudge at 11:53 PM, she gave me a “What are you, crazy?” look and immediately went back to sleep. Oh well.

Happy new year.

December Happenings:

• We created a July – December, 2011 video and photo collage
• We posted a few Christmas videos here, here, and here
• We visited the 2011 Dickens Fair
• We visited a Waldorf school

December Book Readin’:

The Professor and the Madman: A Tale of Murder, Insanity, and the Making of the Oxford English Dictionary

The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy

The Restaurant at the End of the Universe

My 2011 Reading List (from most to least enjoyed):

• A Clash of Kings – George R. R. Martin
• A Game of Thrones – George R. R. Martin
• Unbroken – Laura Hildebrand
• Moneyball – Michael Lewis
• The Call of the Wild – Jack London
• A Walk in the Woods – Bill Bryson
• Ready Player One – Ernest Cline
• Moonwalking with Einstein – Joshua Foer
• Life of Pi – Yann Martel
• The Restaurant at the End of the Universe – Douglas Adams
• The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy – Douglas Adams
• Mockingjay – Suzanne Collins
• Freakonomics- Steven Levitt
• The Tipping Point – Malcolm Gladwell
• The Psychopath Test – Jon Ronson
• The Partly Cloudy Patriot – Sarah Vowell
• The Professor and the Madman – Simon Winchester
• A Visit From the Goon Squad – Jennifer Egan
• Sex, Drugs, and Cocoa Puffs – Chuck Klosterman
• ESPN: Those Guys Have All the Fun – James Miller and Tom Shales
• Notes from a Small Island – Bill Bryson
• I’m a Stranger Here Myself – Bill Bryson

Movie Watchin’:

Hugo

Limitless

Warrior

The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy

TV Gazin’:

Community, Season 3

Amazing Race, Season 19

American Horror Story, Season 1