Thursday, December 18

I'm really not feeling so hot, so we left school at lunchtime. But went off to the mall to do last-minute shopping Christmas gift shopping for Nancy's boys since we're having Christmas dinner with them tonight (they're leaving for Italy for holiday so they won't be here for Christmas). We went to the bookstore, and as I was saying, "Aeden, no!" for the ump-teenth time, I see Becky poke her head around the corner and say hello. She and Katherine are there shopping and they've heard me calling after Aeden...how silly. I'm not sure I've been to Armada in the last two months without running into someone I know.

"Christmas" dinner was lovely at Nancy's, complete with Christmas music and a decorated ficus tree. And I found a Mad magazine anniversary book for her 13-year old Chris and a Charlie Small book for her 11-year old Patrick, which will hopefully serve them well on their trip or later on. I asked them to give us a full report on Italy so when we go we could be well-informed. :-) I realized while sitting down to mashed potatoes and gravy, and roasted pumpkin with blackened edges, that I like Turkish food, but it is pretty nice to have our standard favorites, too. (We've been having lunch at the preschool, which is strictly Turkish food brought in by a catering company.) I think I understand why Brian has sometimes been less than thrilled with experimental Turkish recipes for dinner, when he's already having to experiment with foods for all his lunches (strictly Turkish food is served at TED as well.)

Patrick, Lacey, and Maren (and the side of Chris's head in the foreground) with a good old fashioned game of Christmas Twister keeping them busy...