Dofuf, Married, and beebee Deesis

We have had a whirlwind of activity these 2 weeks, visiting with friends and mostly family, opening presents and eating artery-clogging yummy food. I have no profound observations on it all, though I am very glad things turned out better than I expected. They often do, especially where family is concerned. It helps to have a cheerful little person around, whose look of astonishment and rousing choruses of "Make 'Em LAUGH" can relax tense situations. It is a privilege to share these firsts with him, and it gives me some hope.

One tense situation that turned out well was the arrival of a huge firetruck on my parents' little street on Christmas Day. Their neighbor had been trying to heat their house with the oven, and filled their house with carbon monoxide. He is ok, but it was a scary time. Firemen were going in and out of their house, and then came to our door. They went through the house, checking for CO, and chatting with my father-in-law outside. He had been a fireman for 20-some years, and retired a few years ago. My son was wearing his brand-new Fire Engine shirt from Kip Kids, a cool t-shirt company with bright graphics. So Pop-Pop and little A got to check out the fire engine close up, and give a little cheer to the sober occasion.

A is playing with our ceramic manger scene, which has been a very tempting item since it came out of the box. It's nothing special or heirloom-quality, and I don't even remember who gave it to us. But he has been clinking the pieces together on our foyer table, sliding them back and forth and having conversations with the kaow (cow) and formerly-one-armed shepherd. Dofuf looks on at Married, who prays in front of Beebee Deesis, as the stable sheds little wood splinters on the table.