Laurel Elisabeth Stevens

Well, I feel like my Grandmother here: I just inserted all these pictures in the proper places in the text from Christmas Day, and I clicked on publish and they were gone. Where did they go? So I'm trying again, and you'll have to imagine them in the right places. Sorry! Grandma Gray presides over the caroling on Christmas Eve. This was the biggest year yet--the family keeps on growing! Bitsy's not so sure about Santa Claus Grandma Gray sits on Santa's lap

Merry Christmas! I'll have to post the pictures later, for so now, just a hundred words or so. I thought we were doing a good job of teaching Elisabeth what Christmas was about--she was learning about the angels (Angel said "Don't be fwaid") and Mary and Joseph and a "baby named Jesus." She knew that wiseman wore crowns and rode on camels, and a few days ago if I asked her "Whose birthday are we celebrating?" she would answer, "Jesus." Alas, today after opening lots of presents, I was putting her down for her nap and I said, "Whose birthday is it today?" "Bitty's!" without a bit of questioning in her voice. She knew right away it must have been hers. "No," I said, "Whose birthday is it?" She went through the list: Mommy's, Daddy's, Grandma or Grandpa. And Jesus was never among them. I suppose she's right since we don't know when he was actually born, and we are the ones who'v...

Right now Elisabeth loves to look at pictures. I will be downstairs and she will be upstairs and I get worried, thinking, she's so quiet, what is she doing? And when I go check on her, she is standing at the computer, watching the screen saver slide show go through countless pictures. Right now her favorite pictures are of "Bitty and Minny" (Bitsy and Timothy). So here are a few favorites.

Loving the "tunnel house" as she calls it. Her favorite thing to do is "meep" in it (sleep). But I think the cutest is when she looks out the window. Elisabeth enjoyed her first few sugar cookies--only the best recipe from Grandma Marva will do. Here she is modeling a sweater from Grandma, but she hardly gave me time to take the picture. She has figured out that she can see "pictures of Bitsy" on the camera, so she is always rushing around to see them. And as far as she knows, the only pictures on the camera are of Bitsy. That is nearly true.

Elisabeth is very particular about her clothing. It is a little scary. She gets out of bed and wants to pick out her clothes. She is only 2! If I choose something she doesn't like, there is no hope. The best I can do is pick out 2 outfits and let her choose. But sometimes she just wears funny combinations. But with this particular Christmas outfit, we got lucky. She loves it. This morning, just an ordinary Thursday, she was intent on wearing it. Since it is washable and warm, that was fine with me. But the shoes--she won't wear black shoes! She has two cute pairs of them, but she wants nothing to do with them. So it is the scuffed up white ones that she wears. Hopefully one day soon they won't fit. Other fun things: Uncle Josh and Aunt Sarah gave Elisabeth a set of instruments for Christmas--a tamborine, a harmonica, etc. I'm proud to say that to Elisabeth, Chritmas music consists of carols sung by Chanticleer or First Presbyterian Church Chancel Choir. We discovered th...