December 20

Productivity was the name of today's game. After breakfast, we headed out to try to finish up our Christmas shopping. (It was a valiant effort, but we didn't quite achieve the feat.) Then we had pizza and cheesesteaks at Jerry's, which is one of my favorite food places in the DC area (probably in part because they don't exist on the west coast, partly because I have such clear memories of stopping there before dance class some evenings, and partly because, well, mmm good). Then we headed over to mom's house to see her and Harvey. That's where this image is from:

We had a lovely time chatting and watching the trains circle the track beneath the tree (though the steam engine's smoke was a bit much!). The kiddos played with my old collection of Care Bears and Pound Purries (remember Pound Puppies? There was a kitty version, too) and had a grand time moving them around the house. I happened to look up at the tree at one point and noticed how lovely the sky looked. Then I noticed Brady appearing to notice it as well, so I snapped a quick pic of the whole scene.

It's such a blessing to me to see my children playing in the same spaces I once occupied when I was around their age, and to see them soothed by a beautiful sight. Time may fly by, but the sense nostalgia I feel when we're visiting my home is delectably sweet.