Merry Christmas to all!

Merry Christmas from the Doughertys - we wish you and your families a wonderful 2009.

Christmas Eve

Again this year we went to my parents house for a Christmas Eve extravaganza including beef tenderloin, a professional piano player and a special visit from Santa and Mrs Claus. MJ sure knows how to throw a party!

The Dougherty Clan singing a version of Snow! with Seamus in the lead...












Finn getting his treat from Santa - a fire engine that makes noise (thanks Santa).












There is no better exuberance than a three year old at Christmas - real magic.












MJ playing hard to get (MJ got molars for Christmas - yeah!).












Seamus and Santa right before he tells Santa that he must be mistaken. He's supposed to get a DRAGON for Christmas not a matchbox car....












Oh, well. Better than coal!












Katie and Barbara do not know how to have fun (clearly).












Nice work you two!












Singing Christmas carols (lots and lots of them - all the verses too).

Cuddling in the warmth

Since it's been so warm and toasty here in Minnesota, we are constantly coming up with creative ideas to keep cool.

Here's a pic of all three huddled on their homemade bed in front of the Air Conditioning vent, trying desperately to cool off.

Here's a pic of all cuddled up watching a movie, using special Dad chilliness and an ice blanket to take the edge off.

Happy holidays to all! Sending love from Minnesota!

Shovel or sled?

Our nephew Carl and his lovely wife Meg bought a house within a few miles of ours. On the first shoveling assistance run of 2008, we cleared their driveway and then discovered that their front yard makes a righteous sliding hill. Note Seamus' unzipped coat.

Once Carl taught the boys how to use their shovels as sleds, it was all over. Let the fun begin. And let the crashing into Carl's car never end.

Little MJ was very excited to sled as well, but was not appropriately attired. Thus, she squirmed and attempted to leave my arms. I have an iron grip. She took eating snow as a nice compromise. (That's Carl on the left there)Finn only enjoys shoveling grass. He frequently deposits the snow back onto my freshly shoveled area. Either he's the worst helper ever, or he has a fantastic sense of humor.

Note: I deliberately don't outfit my children with snowpants on these type of excursions. This results in them getting cold quicker, which facilitates my throwing them in a hot bath and relaxing with a manhattan and a cozy fire quicker. I'm some kind of evil genius, aren't I?

Note note: Seamus of the unzipped coat was his own problem. He refuses to wear any of the other coats. His favorite is the Spiderman coat his Grandma Barbara bought him - even if the zipper is totally busted. This is my attempt to teach him the consequence of choices. He was soaking wet when we returned home. Since this did not appear to bother him (he refused the hot bath) I'm not sure my teachable moment really worked out as planned.

By the way - all of your North Carolinians, South Carolinians, and New Jerseyites visiting in December, it's really warm here. Trust me. VERY warm.

Alright, I totally stole these pics from Carl's blog. Shout out!

http://schnemarq.blogspot.com/2008/12/winter-with-cousins.html

Our little Darwin

Seamus awoke from deep sleep, went to the bathroom, entered our room, and crawled into our bed.

Seamus: Does a monkey have 4 hands or 4 feet?
Anne: (blurry, sleepy) what?
S: Does a monkey have 4 hands or 4 feet?
A: 2 hands and 2 feet
S: JUST LIKE HUMANS...
Then he lay back and contemplated this for a while.

Later, when we're downstairs eating cereal together in our morning ritual, I attempt small talk.
J: So, Seamus, what was that question you had about monkeys earlier?
S: Dad, my question was already answered.
J: Okay.
S: Besides, I was asking MOM, not you.

It was kind of an odd morning.