Catch Up

May I be, well certainly not the first, but one to say that the conversion from a one-child home to a two-child home is quite a change. Clearly from my recent 2 1/2 month blogging interval it would seem the number of hours in a day are diminishing in the Gilmore household. I appreciate now every little bit of assistance that makes more family time possible - Greg's donation of his weekdays off (which I currently don't get)to taking care of all the necessary "life" tasks, Bette for making the house shine and occasionally having dinner ready for us, Al Gore for ultimately making internet shopping possible [ ;-) ]...

Our three has been four now for 3 1/2 months, since August 31st. Luka's adjustment is such that even we feel like he has been ours forever. He's a typical little boy and little brother, ornery and appropriately mischievous. His vocabulary is evolving rapidly though he still recognizes and responds to some Russian phrases.

Alena is sailing through Kindergarten, now reading at a first grade level. She will be the first to "mention" that she is the only one in her class who can flawlessly count to 100. Soon, she will begin her second season of swimming classes and expresses interest in golf, running, and art.

There is absolutely no rhyme or reason to this collection of photos, in its entirety. Just evidence we have and do still exist for anyone who was wondering!


The "main" Christmas tree. We also have one in the family room decorated with keepsake ornaments.


One of the Christmas card "out-takes" shots. This may be as good as it gets :-)


Alena modeling her beloved Hello Kitty scarf. How did HK get so big all of a sudden??


He's not at all happy. Rarely smiles, and if he does - it is clearly not sincere...


The back of this shirt reads "PUJOLS 5". In April, it will be retired and replaced with one that reads "FREESE 23".