Happy New Year!

On New Year's Eve the traditional bayberry candle is lit. The tradition is that it burns from one year to the next to bring good luck to the family. The candle has to burn completely and can't be blown out so we start it early. It will turn out not to be early enough.
Next come the martinis.

We toast the coming year.

We sip our drinks and chat while the radio plays jazz and the candle burns down.

Someone decides to lie down.

The countdown begins. Do you hear someone snoring?Wake up! It's almost New Years!

Midnight! Good thing one of us is awake!
It's 2009!

The clocks sound twelve bongs. Outside there are distant bangs of fireworks.

Um, this clock would appear to be in a different time zone. Guess it's still saving daylight.

The candle is blazing away so I set it in the bathtub to safely burn down.

Happy New Year to all and to all a good night.

Hoppy Holidays

There were a certain number of amphibians involved in Christmas this year. There were ones that appeared on slap bracelets. ("What's a slap bracelet?" asked T.)
There was the Frog Prince himself - I should say: "Der Froschkoenig", since he traveled all the way from Germany to sit under our Christmas Tree.

There was this ordinary looking frog who transformed

In startling ways with the flip of a page

in this amazing flip-page book.

Thanks to all who contributed to our Hoppy Holiday!

The mystery solved

The mystery is solved, the puzzle un-puzzled, the conspirators unmasked! It was a thrilling ending that is also a beginning. If you've been following this suspenseful mystery, you know that Granddad has been receiving strange messages that have led him to keys and clues. Christmas Eve he found the last key.
Then on Christmas morning he opened a package (of chocolate, of course) and found another message. "Behind the glass, between wedding vases" - that must be the big glass cases in the dining room and my grandfather's wedding vases. Sure enough, there is a lovely cedar box tucked between the old oriental urns.

We gather around to watch him take out the last key

and fit it to the lock.
What treasure could be inside?

Gold! A box of gold!

Take a closer look - it's chocolate in gold foil.
Wait - there's yet one more message:

What's this url? http://www.arrowheadinfo.com/

We all troop into Granddad's study and there, on the world wide web, is his very own webpage!

It's all set up and he'll have lots of help developing it.

What's more, it comes with a photo lab for taking photos of his many arrowheads, points and artifacts.

The brilliant conspirators are planning to make sure that you frequently have new things to see on Granddad's site.

And many thanks to those creative co-conspirators, Wm and Brenda!

It's the most wonderful time of the year.

It's the most wonderful time of the year. With the kids jingle-belling
And everyone telling

you, "be of good cheer"

It's the most wonderful time of the year

There'll be parties for hosting

marshmellows for toasting (or hot artichoke dip)

and caroling out in the snow. (only with guitars it had better be inside)

there'll be scary ghost stories and
tales of the glories of Christmases
long, long ago.

It's the most wonderful time of the year.

There'll be much mistletoeing
and hearts will be glowing,
when loved ones are near.

It's the most wonderful time of the year.

(lyrics by Eddie Pola and George Wyle. 1963)

A good beginning

Christmas morning dawned cold and clear. We welcomed the sunshine after days of gray overcast skies. It was still bitter cold.

The sun rose way to the south. That's as far south as it will be this year.

We filled all the bird feeders and put a little extra out for the squirrels and deer. Then it was time to feed us.

The mystery deepens

On the 24th Granddad received another mysterious package. Yes, there was even more chocolate and another strange message:

You remember that the "key" to the cypher was in the last box.
Go on, you solve it.
The rest of the family was just too busy to help poor Granddad. He puzzled over it for a while. Then he decided to wait until he had some detective help.

On Christmas eve our house was full of friends. Everyone puzzled over Granddad's latest mysterious message. What does it mean, H = 12? N = 18?

It took a smart 6th grader to help Granddad solve the cypher. The message?
Aha!
The whole party trooped out to the garage.
(Where they promptly discovered that I'd cleaned up the breezeway by shoving everything in the garage...oops)

In the trunk Granddad and his helpers found...another little box!
The key from the last box fit this box.

Eagerly they opened it up...

inside was another key!

The mystery is NOT solved....

but he's getting close.