Christmas Eve 2010

Mercer and the gang went over to Aunt Becky's house for a Christmas Eve party and ate roast beast and opened presents. Mercer got Criss Cross Crash from Aunt Becky - something he's been coveting for a long while now. It only half lives up to expectations because it doesn't crash too much. But it's probably because Pop is setting it up wrong.





Then it was back to Grandpa's house for a bath, story time, and a letter to Santa.

Adjusting the manger scene

Angel chimes.



Mercer and Cooper posing with the tree

Listening to Uncle Quinn read 'Twas the Night Before Christmas

Stockings

A note for Santa

Mom and Dad helped Mercer pick out which cookies Santa liked the most.

Decorating Grandpa's Christmas Tree

Mercer, Mom, and Dad visited Grandpa this weekend to help decorate his tree. Before that, though, Mercer helped Mommy bake a few cookies.

Outtakes from the NYC trip.

Pop has been getting really lackadaisical with the posting as of late. Sorry about that. Time has been at a premium recently. Here are some photo outtakes from our NYC trip a few weekends ago.

Trying to get at those Peanut M/M's.

Pizza.
More pizza.

Cookie in Azure's van.

Cookie in the rear-view of Azure's van.

Checking out city sidewalk bugs.

Clean up cookie, face.

A visit from Katie, Alyssa, and Azure.

Katie, Alyssa, and Azure visited last weekend. We all went into the city on Saturday and enjoyed what was surely the last bit of summer weather.

But first, we had to walk to the store on Friday afternoon to get some snacks.

Then off to Starbucks for a well-deserved treat.

No more treats, Mercer. You can just play with that Peanut M and M's bag. ("OK, Daddy.")

Daddy dropped Mom and the girls off on Canal Street to do some illegal handbag shopping. Pop and Mercer drove up to Chelsea and parked on 17th street, where Mercer became fascinated with a Cesspool truck.

Checking out the sights on 17th street.

We went to the wonderful Books of Wonder, where Mercer discovered the enchanting nature of revolving doors and the tin man from Wizard of Oz. Daddy bought two amazing books that have been in heavy rotation since the weekend: What's Wrong With This Book? by Richard McGuire and The Robot and the Bluebird by David Lucas.



It was time for lunch. Mercer wanted pizza, so we headed to Two Boots on West 11th. Other than spilling a bottle of soda, Mercer did an OK job of eating. He loves pizza crusts.

Dad promised Mercer a cookie if he ate all of his pizza. He didn't.

Ten minutes after we left, Mercer turned around and said "I want a cookie."

The ladies love a man walking down the street with a cute toddler. What they love even more, we found, is a man pushing a cute toddler while he eats a cookie the SIZE OF YOUR HEAD.

We waited for Mommy and the gang on 45th street as they finished up lunch. Pop told Mercer it wasn't wise to hold money out in the open like that.

A quick visit to Stew Leonard's in Yonkers was in order.

Mercer and Alyssa. Aww.



Trying to make a getaway in Katie's car. No luck, though.

at home with mercer.

mercer spent a playful and fun weekend baking holiday cookies with MeMa, aunt becky, and aunt jen. they made congo squares, peanut butter surprises, chocolate chip-raisin-walnut oatmeals, cranberry-orange oatmeals, chocolate pretzel bark, and a few more. pop spent the weekend in pennsylvania with jeff, brian, scott, and his wife rachel. he's still sore from an intense session of wallball, but he'll live; much fun was had by all.

mercer was a treat all weekend and well-behaved for his guests. he was so excited when dad got home, too. they played for a long time until mercer realized he was hungry and started to whine a little bit. after a snack, mercer took a long nap. he was then snuggle-tag-teamed by mom and pop at 7 to ensure that he would be awake for his nightly ritual. he was startled at first, but smiles, giggles, and snuggling ensued.

on another note, mercer is now seven months old! a new kodak gallery will be sent out shortly. stay tuned for the cuteness.

mercerMusic:
st. vincent - "these days" (cover)

sleep tight...