Merry, Merry, Merry, Merry Christmas!

Ho. Ho. Ho.

We love you all.

From Santa 2009

Let It Snow

They say that writing is one of the best forms of therapy and after watching the Packers get beat on a last second TD and my top seeded fantasy team upset, therapy is needed. In my younger years a day like this would have been an automatic trip to the local watering hole, but as I have wised-up with age, the written word seems to be the smarter and less painful way to go.

It is an exciting time in the Swanson household. Our addition is winding down and we have begun the process of moving back in this weekend. It has been an interesting and educational process, watching our house ripped apart and then rebuilt. It feels good to see the finished project and we couldn't be happier with the result. We can't wait to be back there permanently. That's not to say that our current arrangements haven't been stellar. Many thanks go out to Bob and Mary Anne for housing us the last two and a half months. They have been an unbelievable help. While I know they wouldn't have had it any other way, it is still quite a sacrifice to have your house turned upside down by the constant chaos of a 21 month old.

Cullen has been enjoying his first winter on his feet. We got knocked with a huge snow storm a couple weeks ago and Cullen was ready to go. The snow pants went on and Dad put him to work...child labor laws, pfft. He grabbed his shovel and pushed some snow around. He took a few breaks to pick up, examine, and eventually eat the snow. Thankfully, Camp hadn't colored it up yet.

The holiday season is upon us and I'm about to get a bit sappy, so if you are turned off by this sort of thing I suggest you end the reading portion here and move on to pictures. Alright, still with me? Good. As I was saying the holiday season is upon us and I always enjoy taking a step back this time of year. Alot of stuff gets lost in the hustle of the world. Days come and go, decisions are made, and the things that seem so important at a moment are really insignificant in the grand scheme of things. The things that tend to get taken for granted, friends, family, health are really all that matters. So from our family to yours. Have a Happy Holiday and we hope to see you soon.

Cullen's First Christmas Program.

Cullen had his first Christmas program. The toddlers danced on stage to "Run, Run Rudolph". It wasn't a choreographed dance, but rather more of an interpretive or whatever they felt like kind of dance number. Some kids clapped, others jumped, one little girl even pulled her dress up over her head. Cullen just stood there staring at the crowd (there was at least 100 people in the audience). And then, in the middle of the song, Cullen just laid down on his belly. I guess he needed a break. We were very proud of our little star. We predict much bigger things to come....

New Words.

Gobble. Gobble.

Happy belated turkey day to all of our fans! We had a great holiday weekend with lots to be thankful for - mainly our happy, healthy families. We were able to spend Thanksgiving morning with the Swanson clan and then we headed up to MPLS for Thanksgiving with the LaVigne's. We are also very excited that Tracy, Jason and Jameson have moved back to La Crosse. Now Cullen has another cousin in close proximity to pal around with. He loves playing with Mase (a.k.a Mason) and J (a.k.a. Jameson).