Fidget Trees

 Joe was kind enough to help me with gifts for my coworkers by using his 3D printer to print these for them.  He had printed a batch of these last year for our nieces and nephews.  I knew my coworkers would love them.  And I was right.  Let's just say that most of them didn't put them down after opening them.  Haha!

I love the way Míriel took time to hold the lettuce and take bites of it as opposed to just immediately shoving the whole thing in her cheek.  

Elendil wasn't actually interested in the lettuce.  He was just wondering why he was surrounded by the weird looking trees.  

Nativity Set

 Merry Christmas!  Today is a chill day for Joe and I.  We did our presents yesterday since I accidentally had already figured out what his gift to me was.  

I thought it was sooo cute that Míriel went straight to giving this cow a good sniff.  She's too funny!

Elendil looks like he is bowing next to baby Jesus to pray.  Pretty sure he was actually eating the treat I had for him, but at least he held still for longer than usual.  Haha!

Christmas Bells

 This year, I felt a stronger pull than normal to be connected to the past, so these bells made it out as part of our Christmas decorations.  They came from his family, but he doesn't know the history behind them.  Regardless, I know they were special to someone and I wanted to honor that.

Míriel was being so cute sitting in the sun.  But then she tried to take a bit out of the ribbon so I promptly stopped her session.  Hah!

By the time I got Elendil here for his time in the lime light, the sun was behind the clouds.  He was a perfect little model for me though.

Christmas Tree

 I really love our Christmas Tree!  It's not as big as our last one which means it fits better in the space we have, but also means we don't have enough room to actually put out all of the ornaments that we have.  The vast majority of what we have was passed down to us from Joe's family.  We have a little bit that we were given or bought since being married.  I realized this year that I want to know more of the stories behind the ornaments and that I want to continue getting more that are a reflection of our life.

Míriel looks so stunning.  I've always loved her coloring and markings, even though time is fading them some.  She's such a pretty girl!

Elendil looks so very tiny.  I love his delicate features.  I'm especially in love with the tiny white spot on his forehead.  He's a gorgeous boy!

Christmas Village

 My Christmas Village is out for the season which meant I had to get pictures of the hamsters walking through it.  It's been so long since I've gotten pictures of the hamsters.  I'm trying to get a balance back in my life where I feel like I not only have the time to do this, but also have the mental space to allow myself to be creative.  While I did finally take time to do pictures, all the spots I choose felt so uncreative and repetitive.  I'm still glad I did this as I'm realizing that as the months fly by, the hamsters are getting old which makes me so sad.  I love these two so much!

I'm seeing the signs of aging starting to appear in Míriel.  Her fur is lighter and she doesn't seem to have near the amount of spunkiness she used to have.  It's almost a bit sad how much she's calmed down.  I hope I have plenty of time to take a lot more pictures of her that are hopefully way more creative than these Christmassy ones I got last week.

Elendil had no desire to cooperate so I could get cute pictures of him in the little Christmas Village.  He just saw the opportunity to try to slip away between the houses unnoticed.  Haha!

Chilling

 I haven't been very good about consistently getting pictures of my hamsters like I used to be.  I am also pretty terrible at posting what I do have of them.  I tend to use the excuse that if I haven't even posted the ones that I have taken, then why do I need to mess with taking more?  I've just not had good balance in my life between my various obligations.  I hope to change that soon, but in the meantime, I'm getting so behind on photography work.  At the moment, there isn't too much I can do about it anyways as I am out of town with Joe.  I'm helping him run the IEN booth at HECC while he keeps the students with their matches and speakers organized in the room down the hall from the booth.

I do miss my Míriel.  She's not quite as spunky as she used to be, which is a reminder that she's getting older.  But I can't say that I'm all that upset that she's not constantly trying to escape every time I clean her tank.  😅

I definitely miss Elendil too.  I don't see him as often as Míriel, and when I do see him, it's right before bed.  I normally give him some pets, but occasionally I catch him and give him some kisses.  He quickly forgives me for the intrusion when he realizes I've fed him.  Haha!

Cutting Supplies

 These pictures are from a while ago.  I had these supplies out because there was an open exhibit at The Gallery at my church, and I was helping my dad since he and I were both submitting photographs.  I have lots of frames as well as a nice photo printer, so I offered to help him get a couple of prints made and framed.  He has some stunning pictures from a vacation he took over the summer to some National Parks out west. 

Míriel is my sweet, fluffy girl who knows exactly how to pose for me to get the shots I want.  I love taking pictures of her because she's just so good!

Elendil is not nearly as easy to photograph, but I've never gotten him as tame as Míriel.  I do feel more accomplished as a photographer when I do manage to get the shots I envisioned with him since he is difficult to work with.  He's a sweet boy even if he is a bit camera shy.