Isn't that just the sweetest little face? Rutledge told Santa that he wants a Wii game and Star Wars the Clone Wars.


And then a week later he got to meet Mrs. Claus when he went to see a Santa play at Swift Creek Mill playhouse.

And I'm pleased to announce that there are continued greetings from Winter Wonderland!

The magic continues. We slept late, we read a good book together, and the snow is still out there on the ground. The pull of playing outside was not so strong today, and there was more to do to make the holiday happen this week. Frances had a long Little Prince rehearsal, and I got to do some running around. Here's what I learned: intermediate flutes are very expensive. And there will not be one under our Christmas tree at this time. What I did get was a wah-wah Harmon mute for a trumpet, some things for stockings, and I found the giant Nerf gun for $8 less than I paid for it yesterday. I even had a few ideas for Ollie, which was a breakthrough. What a relief.

I've realized that I am much more lonely than I realized, which is, well, kind of sad. I'm missing conversation with actual adult humans, and I've realized that I've done a horrible job of keeping in touch with people or just plain being decent and making and keeping friends. It dawned on me how isolated I can be when I found myself in the house with just folks under 12 and was relying heavily on them for interaction. They are a lot of fun, don't get me wrong, but there's just something lacking. Shifting responsibilities and just general busyness have changed the patterns of friends I used to spend more time with, and meanwhile, my own busyness has probably prevented me from being more proactive in seeking some things to fill in the gaps. It's not just a Christmas week thing, but a life-wide issue. I hate when it becomes a vicious cycle--I feel alone, then start thinking that maybe I am truly unlovable and unlikeable, and then think that if I wasn't quite so alone, then I would probably be more likeable. Here's to figuring out how to get out of it.

I'm going to start by playing a bit more Bejeweled...