Four day weekend!

First off, I just have to say that I got the best Hanukkah gift ever this year! Jonathan gave me the collector's edition of The Tales of Beedle the Bard, the fairy tales by JK Rowling set in the Harry Potter world. I'll have to get a picture up so you can see how cool the book is, it comes in a gorgeous box and the book is leather-bound with embossed silver skulls on it. I'm a huge Harry Potter fan but never would have bought it for myself, so it's perfect. I got Jonathan a black t-shirt that says, "No, I will not fix your computer." :)

The last few days were relatively uneventful. On Christmas Jonathan and I hired a babysitter and went out for Indian food. The babysitter is 16 and is my madricha (teacher's aide) at Sunday school. The baby was fine; I think it was harder on me than it was on him!

Jonathan and Xander both relieved that we're home.

Aside from going out for a few errands, we've just lazed around. I watched It's a Wonderful Life, which I used to do every Christmas as a kid. And I shared An American Tail with Jonathan. I remember it as being much more dramatic, with the cats chasing the mice and poor little Fievel Mousekewitz being lost and scared. Then I looked at the date, and apparently the movie came out when I was five years old! That explains a lot.

Snuggling and doing nothing. I love vacation.

I'm determined to lose this pregnancy weight so I've been walking a couple miles a day on our treadmill. I've done this four times so far. And I'm not thin yet! What's up with that? (Footnote: half the time I'm on the treadmill I hear Joe's voice in my head, telling me in his British accent that treadmills were originally part of a prison punishment system and I'm voluntarily participating in the quest to go nowhere. Darn that historical context!)

And Hanukkah, of course, is still ongoing. Pictures of it are below. I realize most of them are of the baby, and that this blog is quickly becoming in danger of being solely baby-focused. It will even out more, I'm sure, when I go back to school next month.

In Hanukkah onesie from Chana, and his menorah socks.

In winter gear from Aunt Sandra and Uncle David.

Shabbat and Hanukkah all at once! Xander is looking at his hands - he'd been eating his fingers a moment before we put the mittens on, and he was very confused.

The kitties got gifts too. They love their new ball.

And in closing, a series proving that our boy is a flirt: