This is what happens when I ask for a smile.
This is only marginally better.
This is pretty great, but we've lost an arm.
He needed to take Christmas pictures of mama, too.
I actually kind've liked this one, but it looked a tad suave, GQ for a Christmas picture.
"And then I said . . ." 
Don't talk to me before I've had my cocoa. *
Seriously.
Ah, that's the sweet chocolatey stuff.
When Lincoln was six months old, I made it a tradition to knit him a hat for his half-birthday. This year, I made him an owl hat.
It's pretty cute, and he was certainly smiled at as we were out and about yesterday, but I think I'd like to give the beak another try in a bulkier yarn. The hat is big, but it still fits him, and he had fun wearing it. He never tried to take it off until it was warm!
I can't believe he's been around for 2 1/2 years--it simultaneously feels like forever and just a few seconds. Now, what hat to knit for next year?
My second pair of socks, knit out of a self-striping yarn called "pink burst"--I really loved knitting these over the year, and have made it a goal to always have a pair of self-striping socks on the needles.
A manually striped Christmas stocking, knit for my dear friend Hannah's wedding--I thought a new couple deserved new stockings!
I really didn't get any awesome photos of these stockings, but they really did knit up fast! It was fun to bounce back and forth between giant stockings and normal-sized socks.
Buzz Lightyear, space ranger, visits the first Thanksgiving. Lincoln asked for forks for his pilgrims and indians, as they were eating food.
The lad enjoys pumpkin pie while looking at Grammie's cranberry/apple pie.
I high-five a turkey.
Lincoln and his Cool Cousin enjoy some tummy time.
And of course, the requisite shot of the lad attempting to eat a drumstick. He really couldn't make a go of it, but he gave it his best effort.
As I was peeling and chopping potatoes yesterday for the mashed potatoes, I discovered this potato. It felt a bit like a sign--in the midst of all the Thanksgiving craziness/stress/food, remember the love. Cheesy, I know, but that's what makes the holidays different and special--we try to remember and show the love we have for our family and friends. 
This week Lincoln and I worked on some salt dough ornaments--he had a great time, but I'm not too happy with my dough. Anyone have any great recipes/secrets?
Remember this skein, from the Taos Wool Festival? I was between a hat and a cowl, and I decided to go with a cowl. The more I looked at the yarn, the more I realized it was made up of the colors you find in a pack of highlighters, and I wanted to play that up.
I chose a pattern that used slipped yarnovers, to really give a slash-y, highlighted look to the bright yarn.
I made it extra big, so that it would fall more into the mod/trendy "infinity" scarf realm of cowls.
It can be worn long and looped like the above, which is still keeping me pretty toasty.
It is also long and stretchy enough to be worn doubled up into a really cozy cowl. This was fun and fast, and if I see Fiber Fanatic at another wool festival, I will definitely be snatching up more yarn!
Not all his time is spent quietly perusing books in his "Boy Cave"--our small lad is becoming quite the talker. Below, a selection of his bon mots (italics are my side of the conversation):
Mom: What do you want to be for Halloween? A cowboy?
Dad helps get him strapped into his snow pants. Lincoln learned that suiting up for snow is a serious business.
As Lincoln lounges on the bench on the porch, you can get a real sense of how deep the snow was around here!
Flomping in the snow was just about as good as flomping in the pillows!
Daddy helped teach Lincoln about the joy of a snowball!
He liked scooping and tossing the snow!
His mittens got pretty caked with snow--it's tough to tell where they end and the snowball begins!
My adventurous lad surveys the scene--it was tough to get him to come on in!
Painting with dad, using the classic paint with water.
