Thanks Mama and Papa for the great Christmas present!  

   

Sorry we didn’t wait until Christmas to open it, we didn’t get your email until after we had tore into the box.  And we’re not really a wait-patiently pair.  (Remember the 8 week engagement?)  I’ve been known to open packages in the presence of the UPS man who delivers our beloved boxes.  

But the gift is perfect for the cold weather and snow we’re been getting!

And this year we bought our first Christmas tree…

  

They are tiny little things that add a lot of warmth and cheer. Amen to little warmths and tiny cheers after a long and challenging week.

Since Josh’s separation from the US Air Force back in April he’s been experimenting with his newfound freedom of hair growth.  Many of you remember his beard growth chart we documented throughout our summer travels.  A quick reminder can be found HERE.  I stopped the weekly photos after he trimmed it for the first time in 4 months although he has kept a beard of maneagable yet substantial length since.  

Air Force Josh:

Post-summer Josh:

Unfortunately, in addition to his beard experiment, he was conducting a test of will along the lines of how long can I go without cutting my hair before my wife refuses to associate with me.   Had I known this earlier, I might have continued a more organized photo journal of this progression as well.  And protested much earlier and much more forcefully.  Amusingly, the hair length bothers me more than the beard length (although, as seen above, the two can be cumulatively distracting).

    

And so ensued nearly an entire season of wearing a hat or bandana. He carried the hope of hiding.  Of distracting me from THE HAIR.

 

Nice try.

Which brings us to today.  The DAY OF VICTORY.  

Josh’s hair before:

   

The much-protested cut:

And the much-more-appealing after:

  

Your opinion?

Before:

After:

In unrelated news, we experienced our first lasting snowfall this week.  Hallie’s first exposure to snow was back when she was a mere 9 weeks old.  We were hiking Grays Peak and at 14,000 feet she doesn’t remember much of anything.  Except feeling lightheaded and extremely cold.

 

So this week was much like Christmas for her.  

First she practiced her yoga poses:

Ate as much as her bladder would allow:

Ran around as fast as she could in pooping position:

Contorted her flabby face by shaking off the snow she couldn’t finish eating:

Attempted to fly:

5 months of easily excitable energy.