Merriment

A few lessons from the last 48 hours:

Getting a seven-year-old boy to bed on Christ-

mas Eve is not for the faint of heart.

One or two good gifts, such as a handmade trailer truck from Dad or a few stacking cylinders from good friends in Maine, is really all an 18- month- old needs to be content for an entire day.

Shoveling is bearable if the sun is out and your sister (who you realize you've suddenly begun to resemble) is dancing around like a fool with the camera.

Some toddlers really REALLY don't like watching their older cousins...or anyone, for that matter...go barreling down a steep, snowy hill on a plastic saucer. The sight is apparently worrisome enough that said toddlers will wail and point for the duration of the sledding expedition, saying "Owie. Kid. Owie. Mommy! Mommy!" For the record, mothers and aunts aren't that keen on watching the barreling of the older cousins down the hill, either, and will try hard to find another, less steep hill, on which to try out the saucer. (Older cousins, however, hate less steep hills and love the barreling, especially when it involves taking other sledders out at the ankles. Oh dear.)

It's probably good that Christmas comes just once a year.