December highlights {Advent preparations, Elizabeth is 3!, Pittsburgh Symphony, Nutcracker, Duquesne basketball}

three months later as I think back to December, my general memory is of chaos and the desperate effort to keep all the balls in the air (school, work, house upkeep, activities) ... and yet, looking back on my December camera roll, the vibe is so full of joy and sweet moments! while that doesn't negate the busy pace of the season, it just confirms for me again why I take these pictures and why I document them here. it reminds me of that classic analogy of looking at the underside of a tapestry. our first perception is the mess of tangled threads and knots without a discernible pattern; looking back, we see a beautiful picture emerge of abundance. crumbs on the floor, potty accidents, sickness, and scheduling snafus notwithstanding, I am so grateful for this season of life where all of my ducklings are still under my roof! 

1) Advent preparations. promptly on December 1, we took the Old Family Truckster out to a nearby tree sale that benefits a local high school marching band. this is where we bought our second tree last year, after the tree farm flop where the biggest tree they had was more Charlie Brown-esque than we prefer. as tall as this tree was, it looked positively diminutive atop the station wagon. we couldn't help but quote lines from National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation the whole time, and got lots of compliments from other tree shoppers (mostly fellow elder millenials who appreciate the nostalgia of the old wood paneled wagon). 

this year I decided to purchase an Advent candle-making kit so the girls could roll their own beeswax candles. I had very low expectations and was fully prepared to order a set of regular candles from Amazon, but the girls had fun and the candles were a lovely addition to our Advent wreath. (the wreath, by the way, was a wedding gift from neighbor friends of ours, and I treasure it! of course we appreciated gifts that were purchased from our registry, but some of the unexpected gifts -- Lenox ornaments, Waterford crystal candlesticks, and even a sturdy folding stepstool -- are some of my favourites that make me smile every time I use them now almost fifteen years later.)

we decided to go back to the Robinson Mall to see Santa for the first time since our beloved Real Santa passed away. he was such a gentle soul -- a youth pastor who flew out to Pittsburgh from Colorado every winter and embodied the spirit of Mr. Rogers. after he died, we went elsewhere for a few years because I just knew no other Santa would measure up. this year, by the time I was perusing the time slots to see Santa at various malls, there were very few options left (reminder to self: get this on the calendar in November next year!). so we decided to go to Robinson again, and Santa was great! Elizabeth loved catching glimpses of him as we waited for our turn to go. the added bonus was that this mall allows the whole family to be photographed (the other ones will only photograph kids). we never got around to booking a separate family photo session this year, so this worked out perfectly.

catching her first glimpse of Santa Claus

trying to let herself in ... we had to stand guard over the door! 

distracting her with a photo shoot...

fourth child problems: Victoria had to make do with her purple church shoes as her mother couldn't get it together to buy her black shoes before our photo session

we tried to have Victoria sit on Santa's lap, which would have been more aesthetically pleasing with their dress colors, but it was a no-go. Elizabeth had no such qualms!

Cece assured me that the X in the naughty box meant she had *not* been naughty

Greta initially declined to fill out one of these papers but then decided to, just to be on the safe side... (also I appreciate her self-assessment of being both naughty and nice, but more nice than naughty!)

tickets in hand to ride the Christmas train!

Elizabeth is at the prime age for Christmas magic!

Elizabeth had the honor of putting the angel atop the tree. it did need a bit of adjustment after being essentially tossed up there!

Victoria wanted to see too. her little flexed feet just slay me

fresh from the bath, playing with the fabric Advent calendar

finally, a sweet moment where the girls discovered the wooden nativity set carved by my great-aunt Saya (her given name was Sally, but as a toddler, my mom called her Saya, and the name stuck). 

2) Elizabeth is 3! she was so very excited for her birthday. "we're going to sing happy birthday TO ME!" she gleefully reminded us for the weeks leading up to her birthday. she is obsessed with Dr. Seuss so I had to unearth the decorations I used for Greta's first birthday party. (first child alert: we had about thirty people over, I made customized invitations in Canva, and made themed food for the party with little signs so people would understand the reference to the respective line in a Dr. Seuss book. Cece also had a big first birthday bash with a Chicka Chicka Boom Boom theme. poor Elizabeth and Victoria got a single cupcake with our family for their first birthdays...) 

the party hats said "Happy *1st* Birthday" but a little Sharpie took care of that nicely! also, she wanted to wear her "Elizabeth shirt", printed with her school picture from daycare. so hilarious!

closing her eyes tight as per instructions while Cece brought over her gift

Cece found this doll crib at our local thrift store. 

3) Night at the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra. our school's fantastic music director arranged a student night at the symphony on December 6, including an opportunity to meet Maestro Manfred Honeck before the performance. the schola sang for him, and he distributed chocolate candies in honor of St. Nicholas Day. we concluded with a prayer led by one of our seminarians, who teaches at the school periodically. even more fun, we were able to meet up with my dear friend Karissa at intermission! she has been a cellist with the PSO for years. we actually grew up just a few miles away from each other in Washington state, and I took viola lessons from her mother (who often ends up on the same flight from Seattle to Pittsburgh with my mom as they travel here during the same school breaks to visit us!). 

prayer before the performance. Maestro Honeck is in the suit with the red tie. Greta is at the far right of the photo standing with other school orchestra members.

love these girlies!

beautiful Heinz Hall

the symphony warming up. Karissa, with the blond ponytail, is in the second row of cellists

4) Nutcracker. we continued our annual tradition of going to see the Nutcracker at the Pittsburgh Ballet Theater. I have learned to wait to purchase Nutcracker tickets until the inevitable buy one get one free sale, so we can snag seats close to the stage without blowing the Christmas budget. it makes all the difference in enjoying every tiny detail of the costumes, the set, and the dancers' technique and facial expressions. this year was our best yet -- we were only four rows back from the stage, and honestly, I wouldn't want to be any closer than that. in addition to the artistry of the show, I really enjoyed spending dedicated time with the older girls, and I know they appreciate not having our attention split with corralling the toddler craziness. 

the set pays homage to many Pittsburgh institutions, including the giant clock above the stage modeled after the original Kaufmann's department store downtown, and the Stahlbaum family's home based on the historic McKee mansion in Shadyside

another tradition: meeting the Sugar Plum Fairy (who dances during a different performance) at intermission

I truly can't believe how quickly the girls are growing up!

checking out the autographed pointe shoes for sale in the lobby. Cecilia desperately wanted a pair and added it to her Christmas list. stay tuned for updates on that...

5) Duquesne women's basketball game. the girls' basketball coach arranged to take the developmental team and their families to a women's basketball game at Duquesne, my alma mater. believe it or not, I never attended a basketball game during my five years at Duquesne. well, I can believe it, given my general lack of athleticism or interest in sports at the time. we had a blast! it was Diocesan Day so several other Catholic schools were in attendance. we had front row seats directly behind Duquesne's bench and it was really fun to watch the coaches and staff giving directions to the team during timeouts. after the game, we were able to get t-shirts and posters and meet the players. Cece made special note of her three favourite players' numbers and asked them for their autographs in her diary. they all happened to be sitting right in a row at the end of the line-up: Megan McConnell, Jerni Kiaku, and Kiandra Browne. when Jerni saw that Cece asked Megan to sign her book, she said, "oh, that is so sweet!!" and then when she saw her number also listed in Cece's book, she just about fell off her chair with excitement and tapped Kiandra on the shoulder to say, "look, you're on her list too!" all three women were so visibly touched. for all their toughness on the court and professionalism as incredibly talented athletes, they are still college kids and it was just so sweet to see their genuine delight at Cece's obvious admiration.

just look at those smiles!

6) bonus round. just some miscellaneous cuteness I want to preserve for posterity. 

Elizabeth switched from reading to singing "If You're Happy and You Know It" and ad libbed a line, "If you're happy and you know it, read a book!" preach it, sister!

the height of preschool winter fashion

the school hosted a movie night to watch The Polar Express. so cute!

all the school-aged kids piled onto blankets and sleeping bags on the floor and stuffed themselves with snacks and hot chocolate. E and V actually did very well in the back where they had some space to move around.

concession stand crew at one of Cece's basketball games. the parents all volunteer throughout the season for our home games and Greta and some of her 5th grade friends were thrilled to be old enough to work the concessions. we had them check each other's change-counting skills ;) I think it is so important that they realize we trust them to do actual jobs that matter! plus, it meant I could focus on corraling the babies during games and not also be trying to work a position!

Cece after making her first basket in a game! her friend bought her that candy to celebrate. 

Greta leading "gymnastics class" for siblings during one of Cece's practices

Your turn: Do you take your kids to see Santa? Have you been to a symphony concert? Did you attend any of your college's sports events?