St. Nicklaus filled our shoes on December 6.

The jammies have been nightly favorites since (which can be a stretch when laundry gets done just once a week!).

Did I Mention Karen Came To Town?

It turns out me-n-Granny share a birthday month, so Karen made a layover here for a couple days on her way to L.A. The way I see it, you're not doing too bad if your 37th birthday makes the cut with the 100-year-old.

We made a day of coffee, ferry rides, fish-n-chips at the wharf, sidewalk vendor shopping, Ghiradelli Square, and more coffee.

Thanks for coming, Url.

RIDDLE

Q: How can you tell when your child has nearly forgotten her Pacific Northwest Roots?

A: When she's lived in Marin for almost half her life and says things like "Why would it rain today? It rained yesterday..."

This is another (short) edition of Netty's Brag Page

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L(A)UNCHED

Plan. Shop. Eat. That's the motto at www.MealPlanner101.com, the new business started by our Bellingham friends, the Sheldrups.

If you're like me, the Eat part of mealtime usually comes easy -- it's the Plan and Shop parts that lack luster. Well, and sometimes that affects the Eat part.

This course smells like a good idea....

DECEMBER 1 - UNIV. OF PACIFIC CHRISTMAS PARTY

The Christmas party was fun -- even though the family was dressed like goobs.

Dane and Aubrey were in jammies my mom made them last year (the jammies aren't gooby -- just wearing them to a party was), with ornaments strung around their necks. Mick and I wore our matching jammy pants and these awful white sweatshirts from our Long's, our drugstore across the street: Mick's had I 'heart' 'picture of Santa' (I love Santa) in sparkles on it and mine was a line of snowpeople.

Of course, the kids thought the sweathshirts were cool, so when our family won the "Ugly Sweater Contest," which can also translate into "The Only Family Who Showed Up Completely Decked Out," we told the kids our sweaters were indeed cute, not ugly.

Our favorite part of the night was when Aaron -- a former Cleveland Institute of Music student, now almost a dentist -- played his cello as background music. First Dane just sat up on the stage steps next to Aaron. He listened like that for a good 20 minutes, mesmerized, while everyone else at the party mingled and ate. Aubrey joined him later and sat for another 10 minutes with them the same way.

Aaron eventually asked them if they wanted him to play Christmas carols, so he played Frosty the Snowman, Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer... The kids sat there quietly mouthing the words. After a while, Aubrey and I went to get food, but Dane stayed on. While we were dishing up our mashed potatoes and string beans, someone leaned over and said to me, "Don't look now, but guess who's about to sing." I slowly turned around and there was Dane at the microphone in his jammies singing "We Wish You A Merry Christmas" while Aaron accompanied on the cello. He sang the entire song, very sincerely and on some of the same notes as Aaron's cello. He got a huge round of applause when he was finished.

Later, he told us he was "kind of embarassed" to sing up there in front of everybody, but it was his favorite part of the night. I told him those are the normal feelings people have when they perform, and he could just let his body and mind get used to that. It's also what makes performing exciting and fun.

Aubrey danced later in a corner while people mingled, practicing her ballet spins and twirls.

The kids thought the White Elephant gift exchange was a blast. Aubrey came away with a huge bag of Ghiradelli Chocolates, Dane got a battery-operated monster truck (Mick's big friend Josh stepped forward at that point and yelled out "Anyone who takes that gift has to answer to me first!" -- very cute), Mick got a bag with chocolates, a bottle of beer and a cookie, and I got a huge box of toothpaste. ha ha.

FINALS

Mick has finals ALL DAY LONG today. Then he'll be FINISHED with Fall quarter -- with only TWO more quarters to go!

He still needs plenty of problem mouths for case work, so if that sounds like YOUR MOUTH, open it and give him a call.

EMAIL FROM BARRITT

Dane and Aubrey,

15 days until White
pass!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

list of stuff to do:

1. drink hot chocolate/ with marshmallows
2. ski
3. sled
4. swim in the swimming pool
5. open presents
6. read books
7. maybe make a gingerbread house
8. play games
9. laugh a lot
10. fondue

snow is coming soon!

love, Barritt

You're right, B (turning your somersault above) -- we're going to have SO MUCH FUN! xo

CLASSIFIED AD

WANTED: Wheels for Soapstone.

That's right, if you or anyone you know has an extra car in the Portland area LET ME KNOW! I need a vehicle for my two week residency at Soapstone January 15-30. I know it's a long shot, but I thought I'd start here before forking over the big bucks for a rental...

DANE HAS A DREAM

I woke up in the middle of the night and heard Dane laughing in the other room. Then he yelled, "Mom! Mom! Come here!"

I rolled out of bed and shuffled into the room, whispering, "What? What is it?"

He looked at me and laughed, "I just had the funniest dream: Jabba the Hut's body with Boba Fett's head! Isn't that hilarious?"

And then he smiled and fell back asleep.

George Lucas, do you EVEN know what you've created?

MARIN NUTCRACKER BALLET

Aubrey fell asleep last night to visions of the Sugar Plum Fairy dancing in her head.

Yesterday we watched the Nutcracker's mice and soldiers and fairies and flowers dance their sparkly selves across stage. We sat with our first grade friends Makayala and Mia and their moms, Renee and Amy. Afterward, the girls had tickets to the Candy Cane party, where they got special treats and face painting, but, more importantly, autographs and photos of the stars of the show.

SLUMBER PARTY
Aubrey and Dane and friends after the first day of school, back in August when it was still really hot -- way too hot for jammies in the loft.

YAKIMA, WA - Gramps came through the surgery fine. He's got a long road to recovery ahead of him, but he survived the tough part.

My mom and her siblings, Uncle Lorren (TX) and Aunt Laurie, were there. My cousins Patrick and Deric drove over, and my cousin Chris (TX) arrives tonight.

When I asked Gram on the phone this morning if she could think of anything I could send her way to help from California, she simply said, "Some hope." Well, that worked out.

Emergency Surgery Thursday, 1pm - Pull through, Gramps.

Quote of the Day - by Shawanna, the 2nd grader I take to school

When asked what it was like to milk a goat on her field trip, she said, "It felt like a hairy hot dog."

De Young with Pals

We brought Vincent and Amelie with us to Art Class at the De Young this morning.

The docents took the kids through the African art exhibit, focusing on patterns, colors and shapes. Then the kids got to identify shapes ("bowties," concentric diamonds, stripes, triangles) on their own pattern sheets in the art room, using a permanent marker to create a pattern of their own onto broadcloth. They ground up brown clay for brown paint and some orange pastel for orange paint (adding drops of water).





Mick tagged along to study in the museum cafe, and afterwards we went out for crepes in the Haight. Celine's taking the picture, so too bad she's not in it.