When your 18-month-old gets a camera for Christmas

Santa brought Owen a camera, one of the VTech kids ones that's really for ages 3 and up. It's very much appreciated -- particularly by the older-than-18-month-olds living here -- because in theory it means Owen is less interested in the real cameras floating around. (Aren't theories wonderful?)
A selection of shots from Owen's first 24 hours of camera ownership:
I guess he felt it was important to always remember when we had an oval-shaped living room.

This makes Laura's foot look like it's from another dimension.

Just in case you've ever wondered what kind of flooring we have in our hallways.

This shot of the living room rug is so in focus I have serious doubts about whether it was taken by Owen.

A rather extreme closeup of the upholstery of the living room furniture.

I guess he surrendered the camera at some point.

At least I was dressed.

The reflection of the chandelier on the living room window here is almost artistic. And, I assume, accidental.

Laura admitted she did this herself.

This is the window in our master bedroom (the things on the left are on top of my chest of drawers). Doesn't it almost look like a line graph of some sort?

So there you have it. I think the camera also takes videos, so maybe we'll have some action shots of the hall floor soon.

Merry Christmas!

Regardless of your religious affiliation, I think this sums up what we all should be trying to achieve this Christmas.

Welcome to the Christmas forest

Every time I've gone down to our basement storage room over the past six months, it's irked me that we have four Christmas trees. It's all about the moving; we only had two trees (one big and one small) pre-Foreign Service. We picked up the second small tree in Port of Spain when our household effects didn't make it to us in time (they were in country but stuck in customs; don't get me started on that) and the second tall tree last year when we were at Oakwood without any Christmas things in our unaccompanied air baggage.
So that's why we have this in our living room right now.
All four trees have lights, although you can't really tell that in this photo. And each has a theme of sorts ...
The big tree on the left -- with the most traditional decorations -- is our original one. We bought it in 2002, but I only know that because its box keeps reminding me. Among its branches are nine Hallmark cat ornaments, Christmas presents from my sister-in-law Heather each year she's been married to my brother.
The big tree on the right -- the bling tree -- is the one I bought when we were at Oakwood last year. All of its ornaments are glass, or at least sparkly. I guess we could term it religious bling, as there is a set of Mikasa nativity ornaments nestled in its branches. The baby Jesus is very cute.
The small tree on the left is fiber-optic. (You don't have to tell me that's all kind of classy, I know.) It's the one we got in Port of Spain, so there's no doubt it also was the most overpriced of everything you see. Its ornament theme is things Owen can't break. He has pulled it over once, but he hasn't even noticed it in a while.
The fourth tree -- the small one on the right -- is all done up in white, blue and silver. It's adorable.
That snowman between the big trees was part of a Relief Society craft night in one of our previous wards. Maybe someone reading this will recognize it. I wish I could remember whose idea it was. It's made of blocks of wood, which can be haphazardly packed into random boxes and reassembled whenever there's need for a snowman. Totally cool.
Is it all a bit much? Of course it is! But I figured we have the room, and we might not anywhere else we live. Maybe next year the trees will go in different rooms, but that would have been way too much to monitor with Owen running around.

Three worldly Christmas goals -- for next year

It's good to have goals, right? Here's my plan, in no particular order.
1. I'm going to send cards next year. This shouldn't be hard, as I've done them most years. Just not this one.
2. I'm going to make stockings for our family. Thank goodness there are only four of us. I haven't decided on a pattern or design yet, but I've been researching and thinking about it. Where did my mom find the time to make all of those sets of stockings way back when?
3. We're going to build Milan's Duomo out of gingerbread. This definitely is the most ambitious of the goals, and it'll likely have to be a simplified design. But my friend Kendra announced on Facebook today that she's building the Hagia Sophia out of gingerbread tonight, so why can't we do our local landmark, too?

I can't believe I missed out on getting to wear a green vest

When I was growing up, our family didn't do Girl Scouts. Cub Scouts and Boy Scouts, yes, but those are part of our church's "curriculum" for boys. There are other activities for girls, and there even are medallions and such to earn. But there isn't any official clothing or anything. (Some of my much younger sisters started participating in Girl Scouts after I moved away from home, but I never saw their attire.)
So when Laura wanted to join Girl Scouts this year, I was a bit taken aback by the vest. Not that it isn't lovely and all, just not very "modern." No matter, she likes the program, and they do cool things. This week was their investiture ceremony, and now I have even more badges to attempt to correctly place on the lovely vest. Yay Laura! Yay me!

More on yesterday's kitchen insanity

In early September, we noticed a water spot in a corner and adjacent ceiling in our kitchen. It turned out there was a leak in a water line upstairs, but it hadn't been evident because that apartment had been vacant since we moved in. Once people moved in in August, the problem became obvious.
Eventually workmen came in to fix the leak. They warned me that day that chunks of the ceiling might fall into our kitchen. That didn't happen, but they did have to remove a portion of the kitchen cabinets upstairs to get to the problem.
Eventually it all dried out, and even more eventually the painters came in to patch up our walls and ceiling.
We're lucky in that our whole building is owned by one landlord and that the whole thing is leased by the consulate. That simplifies the communication process in such situations.
I was unlucky in that I hadn't expected the painting to take as long as it did, so I had meringue cookies in the oven when the painters came. The kind that cook for three hours. So at some point yesterday morning, I had to crawl under that plastic you saw in the photo to get cookies out the oven. (Actually, I had to crawl under the plastic again to get food for Owen and me to have for lunch and to put the cooled cookies in a container to take to Girl Scouts.)
So now our kitchen is freshly painted, although the outline of the water and mold spot still is visible. And I have to put the island back in place. And rehang the curtains and things on the wall.
But at least it's somewhat better than it's been in months.

What my kitchen looks like right now

As you might imagine, this makes it somewhat difficult to prepare lunch.

Owen's day in photos: Consul general's children's Christmas party

Alternate title: The consul general's residence survives a visit from Owen.

I enjoy thinking I'm the center of attention.
But I don't enjoy Santa Claus any more than I enjoyed Buzz Lightyear.
Something has to be said for Santa's presents, however.
The moment before it was explained "Make yourself at home" doesn't really mean "Explore the china cabinet" was full of possibilities.
Why don't we have chairs like these at our house?
OK, maybe my mom dragging me kicking and screaming to this party wasn't the end of the world.
Merry Christmas everyone!

Yay for local holidays

U.S. government employees posted overseas get U.S. holidays off just as they do in the States. But there's the added benefit of also getting the local holidays. So the consulate is closed today for the feast day of St. Ambrose (the patron saint of Milan) and tomorrow for the Immaculate Conception.
There are all kinds of fun things to see and do, of course, but Owen and I both are sick, so we're missing out on today. I hope tomorrow will be another story. Meanwhile some Christmas decorating is getting done.

Adventures of the not-so-young and temporarily childless

Last night I rode Milan's metro for the first time without a kid. It was an adventure in other-worldliness.
Owen had accompanied me when I took Laura to a birthday party late in the afternoon. But when it came time to pick her up, Kevin said it made more sense for him to keep him at home. Who was I to argue with such logic?
I could walk as fast as I wanted (pushing a stroller can really slow one down). I could take stairs without having to carry the stroller (with Owen in it) up or down. I didn't have to worry about him kicking innocent bystanders in crowded cars or trying to lick the poles standing riders hold to keep their balance.
I emerged at the Porta Romana station and saw this (which I'd also seen earlier in the evening, but it hadn't been lit):Isn't it cool? I would have seen it had Owen been with me, of course, but I might not have stopped to take a photo. Aren't you glad I did?

Galleria d'Arte Moderna at Villa Reale

Yesterday Owen and I tagged along on another PTO-sponsored tour, this one of the Galleria d'Arte Moderna at the Villa Reale. It was cold and snowy, but it still was fun.
The garden is very popular during the summer, obviously less so during the winter.
I'm not one for modern art, but modern in this case means post-Renaissance. My favorite painting was a Manet I'd never seen or heard of:
Unfortunately, it's in area of the museum not open to the public, so I probably won't be able to see it again (or show it to anyone else). Apparently this closure has something to do with issues with the surveillance system. Our group had a guard walking around with us -- because a guide who makes his living off giving tours of Milanese historical sites and museums and a group of 15 international moms is a real danger. (I'm being sarcastic, of course, although I understand why we were watched.)
Owen was not as well-behaved on this tour as he has been in the past, but we all agreed this sculpture was a nice representation of him on previous outings.
Best of all, the museum and park are free, so we can go and hang out whenever we want.