who needs toys?

Our mom's group nurse likes to say that if you put all the

money you would spend on toys into a savings account, you could put your baby through college. I'm not sure about that given the high cost of tuition, but I do realize how easy it is to go overboard with toys. Especially when, at this age, Owen is much more interested in the packages they come in. Yesterday for the first time, O cried when I took away something he was playing with. It was a shiny red gift certificate box...

We had our "Chrismukkah" celebrations over the weekend. Dinner with friends Saturday night, with the traditional Hanukkah latkes and Christmas ham. (My first post-baby dinner party! -- I can't count Rosh Hashanah since our friends did the cooking. -- And the food was even ready pretty much at the scheduled time, although L had to take over frying the latkes so Owen could have his dinner.) We put Owen in his high chair for the first time so he could sit at the table, and it worked for a little while before he decided he'd rather be held.

Sunday morning we gave Owen his presents since we didn't want to schlep them all to Oregon and back. (We'll just do his stocking there.) He really enjoyed the shiny red wrapping paper on his main present, an iBear. He was less excited about the clothes and shoes, but enjoyed his new toys. And he got a few new books, including one about a hippo named Owen. It was nice out (can't beat 60 degrees in December!) so we followed this up with a walk to Starbucks and O fell asleep facing outwards in the bjorn. Too much excitement for one morning!